Meow Wolf Debuts New Cocktail Lounge, Sips (With a Z)

Visitors to Denver's Meow Wolf now have a place to kick back with a cocktail. Sips (With a Z) is currently pouring at Convergence Station, the massive immersive art installation at 1338 First Street, and — as you would expect — it's decked out with trippy details created by Meow Wolf's team of artists.

"As you come into the building downstairs, you're entering QDOT, the Quantum Department of Transportation, which is the transit station between Earth and the converged worlds," explains events director Kristin Hutton, describing how the new addition fits into the Convergence Station backstory. "This is like the executive traveler's lounge."

The space, which can fit around 120 people, is located above HELLOFOOD, which is just to the left of the main entrance. In fact, you peek down into the cafe's seating area from a red-hued window in the lounge. The second-floor space was always intended to be a bar, Hutton notes, but those plans were put on hold during the pandemic. Construction began in March, and the decor is a mix of street art and high-end Art Deco. There are marble-topped tables and colorful velvet chairs — there's even velvet wallpaper — along with graffiti-covered floors and marble statues decked out with neon lights.
Like the rest of Convergence Station, it's filled with Easter eggs, including two sidewalk grates on the ceiling that give a glimpse into C Street, one of the four worlds that guests can explore.

There's also a small stage and a projection wall where live performances happening in the Perplexiplex space on the first floor can be streamed. In the future, the team says the lounge could be used for smaller ticketed events as well, like acoustic live music, comedy nights and poetry slams. "This was designed with performance in mind," Hutton notes.

While beer, wine and some cocktails are served at HELLOFOOD and mobile pop-up bars are used during Perplexiplex shows, this new addition has "a very elevated cocktail program," Hutton says. Offerings include three classics — an Old Fashioned, a Manhattan and a Negroni — along with libations with names like Tears of Eemia, ‍Ariel's Sting and Memory Storm. It will also serve food items such as charcuterie boards and flatbread pizzas.
The original Meow Wolf in Santa Fe only serves cocktails from a counter in the main lobby area. The Las Vegas location has a hidden bar called Datamosh, though it's much smaller than Sips (With a Z). "I don't feel like Meow Wolf has dabbled in upscale service in this particular way," says group and events sales manager Kimberli Turner. "I think this is a really wonderful offering that we have here in Denver."

The cocktail lounge is only open to Convergence Station ticket holders (and only those who are 21 and up can order cocktails); the team is working through the logistics of giving access to people attending events at the venue. In the meantime, Sips (With a Z) will be open from noon to close on Friday and Saturday and noon to 7 p.m. on Sunday. "But it's available for private events seven days a week," Hutton notes.