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Place

Mercury Cafe

2199 California St.
Denver, CO 80205

303-294-9281 | Website

Downtown Denver | Get Directions  | 

Category: Bars/Clubs, Restaurants, Music Venues | Coffeehouse, Health, Vegetarian

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Mercury Cafe
  • Mercury Cafe
  • Mercury Cafe
  • Mercury Cafe

Cassandra Kotnik

 

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For thirty years now, Marilyn Megenity has hosted the town's most eclectic party at the Mercury Cafe, her club/cafe/community gathering place. Today it's an institution known as much for its enlightening entertainment options - plays, poetry slams, tango dancing - as it is for its healthy hippie fare. Whether vegan or carnivore, libertarian or commie, everyone feels at home at the Merc. A restaurant, dance club, music venue and speakeasy, the Mercury Cafe is in an orbit of its own, hosting everything from lindy hop lessons to poetry readings, high teas and Green Party meetings. Rock-and-roll shows were axed years ago, but classical, jazz, avant-garde and singer-songwriter performances still go on in the Merc's three baroque rooms. Every cultural subset can find something at the Merc, the embodiment of Denver eclecticism.

  • Cuisine(s): Coffeehouse, Health, Vegetarian

    Hours: Sun,Sat 9am-3pm, Sun,Tue,Wed,Thu,Fri,Sat 5:30pm-2am

    Price: $, $$

    Payment Types: cash, check

  • Features: Patio/Sidewalk Dining, Takeout, Private Party, Banquet Facilities, Wheelchair Accessible, Kid Friendly, Vegetarian Friendly

    Serving: Brunch, Dinner, Late Night

    Entertainment: Live Entertainment

    Alcohol: Full bar

  • Reservations: Accepted

    Parking: Lot Available, Street

  • 2011 | Best Experimental Music and Food Showcase

    Last year, Corey Elbin set out to create a special night of community-oriented experimental music and performances, which just happened to include reasonably priced vegetarian and vegan meals. And with Gorinto, his Wednesday-night showcase of... More >

  • 2009 | Best Anarchist Ball

    Louis Vuitton Night proclaims itself "too smart for New York, too hot for L.A." And indeed, Denver ought to be flattered that the $3 anarchist variety show takes place here every so often at the Mercury Cafe instead of one of those two other... More >

  • 2009 | Best National Nod to a Local Institution

    Marilyn Megenity's Mercury Cafe is a Colorado institution, beloved both inside and outside of this state. It's also a no-brainer for a left-leaning catalogue of American collectives, co-ops, eco-conscious and alternative businesses, think tanks,... More >

  • 2008 | Best Breakfast for Hippies

    Marilyn Megenity has been working to save the world with food for more than three decades, and at the Mercury Cafe, it looks like she's winning. From wind-driven electrics and a fryer-oil-to-biodiesel recycling plan to a local, sustainable, green... More >

  • 2007 | Best Greens

    Who is this city's most fierce, forward-forging green advocate? The answer is blowing in the wind. This year, Marilyn Megenity -- who infuses her Mercury Cafe with good, organic food and intelligent entertainment and fuels her own car with... More >

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Westword Reviews and News

  • Give Us a Beat

    By Laura Bond | Thu, February 02, 2012

    Young Neal Cassady kept busy in Denver, tailing his father to Larimer Street dives, stealing cars and serving time in the Colorado State Reformatory. Cassady's adventures left little time for formal education, which is why he dropped out of East H... More >

  • Tinny Dancers

    By Jenn Wohletz | Thu, December 29, 2011

    Sure, you could stay home, get snockered and burn off your eyebrows lighting fireworks this New Year's Eve, or you could hear some naughty poetry and watch belly dancers in steampunk gear. The Mercury Cafe, home of local booze, urban-hippie decor ... More >

  • Tribal Dancing

    By Susan Froyd | Thu, December 22, 2011

    Hal Aqua likes to call the music he plays with his party band, the Lost Tribe, "nouveau klezmer." That's because, like classic klezmer itself, it's already a mash-up of cultural influences -- but then takes things a step further, fusing klezmer wi... More >

  • Renna Shesso on A Magical Tour of the Night Sky and more

    By Amber Taufen | Fri, December 16, 2011

    ​In this state, we're blessed to live close to areas where there's very little light pollution, so the stars of the night sky are easily visible. Local mystic Renna Shesso (and onetime Westword More >

  • Bring the Light

    By Amber Taufen | Thu, December 15, 2011

    As the days get shorter and the nights get longer -- and the stress of the holiday season begins to take its toll -- it's important to re-member that soon, Earth's tilt will be bringing us closer to the sun and the warmth of spring. "Around the tw... More >

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User Reviews
7 User reviews

Write a Review
  • AshleyG

    AshleyG

    | Mon, June 28, 2010

    Hosts great events

    What do you think of this review?    0    0      
  • amanda.lindelow

    amanda.lindelow

    | Fri, June 25, 2010

    Great events!

    What do you think of this review?    0    0      
  • neecola21

    neecola21

    | Mon, March 22, 2010

    Local organic food and dancing

    What do you think of this review?    0    0      
  • oneskinnydj

    oneskinnydj

    | Mon, December 07, 2009

    The atmosphere is right. The entertainment is always interesting. If you eat meat the food is great, however, if you're vegan or vegetarian the food is typical of what you might expect a sports bar to interpret to be - a tortilla wrapped around some carrots & vegetables. The desserts are awesome with their great menu of coffee and drinks... probably one of the last surviving independent cultural hubs of LoDo. Unfortunately the affluent & influential do frequent the place, however, the overwhelmingly warm atmosphere humbles their presence.

    What do you think of this review?    0    0      
  • westwordbestof

    westwordbestof

    | Wed, May 06, 2009

    Marilyn Megenity's Mercury Cafe is a Colorado institution, beloved both inside and outside of this state. It's also a no-brainer for a left-leaning catalogue of American collectives, co-ops, eco-conscious and alternative businesses, think tanks, coffee houses, favorite leftist anthems and restaurants for locavores, but we were still happy to see that The Nation Guide to the Nation mentions Denver's long-lived, free-thinking hippie outpost not once, but twice. Lauded for its rooftop windmills, organic fare and alternative politics, this Mercury is still rising.

    What do you think of this review?    0    0      
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Dinner Menu
Appetizers
$6.00
John Long's Ham
with grilled apple and caramelized gjetost cheese
$6.00
Vegetarian $5.00
Quesadilla
edam and gruyere, salsa, tomato, avocado, colorado trout or chicken
$10.00
Fruits And Cheeses
$8.00
Mixed Grill
chicken, elk and ham with mushrooms and bell peppers, two sauces
$6.00
Vegan Grill
breaded tofu with mushrooms and vegetables; two vegan sauces
$6.00
Colorado Haystack Feta
spinach, tomatoes, olives
Salads
With Vinaigrette Or Feta Dressings
$10.00
Large Green
greens, vegetables, herbs and tomato
$16.00
River Food
green salads with alamosa striped bass, and grilled potatoes
$12.00
Vegetarian Chef
green salad with cheese and nuts; choose: plain or breaded tofu
$15.00
Carnivore Chef
green salad with ham, turkey and cheese
Enchiladas
Covered In Vegetarian Green Chili And Melted Edam And Gruyere. Garnished With Lettuce, Tomato, Onion And Salsa
$9.00
Vegetarian
with beans, mushrooms and spinach
$12.00
Elk, Bean And Cheese
$10.00
Tom's Enchiladas
with turkey, beans and spinach
Sandwiches
Served With Grilled Potatoes, Onions, Lettuce And Tomato On A Rustic Spelt Roll Mayonnaise Upon Request
$10.00
Ground Elk Burger
$12.00
Elk Burger
with cheese
$8.00
Sauteed Vegetables
open face with cheese and avocado
$10.00
Roast Turkey
A La Carte
Cup $3.00
Bowl $5.00
Soup Of The Day
or miso broth or green chili
$4.00
Small House Salad
$4.00
Corn Chips
with salsa
$6.00
Chips, Melted Cheese And Salsa
$8.00
Nachos
corn chips on a bed of beans and green chili; topped with melted cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, salsa, fresh corn and garlic upon request
$12.00
Chicken Or Elk Nachos
$5.00
Tony's Potatoes
grilled potatoes with melted cheese and salsa
$4.00
Beans And Quinoa
served with salsa
$8.00
Bob's Tofu Burrito
with potato, onion, mushroom, bell pepper, cheese and green chili
$6.00
Leiza's Tofu
sauteed with tomato, onion, bell pepper and mushroom; with potatoes
$6.00
Santa Fe Breakfast
beans, quinoa and corn covered in vegan green chili and cheese
$8.00
Susan Jane's Tofu Chop
breaded tofu with quinoa and vegetables
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