The extinction event of the past few years — aka COVID — left a number of Denver's longtime punk venues counted among the dead. But the Crypt didn't earn our vote for Best Punk Bar by simple process of elimination. It was formed from the ashes of Tooey's Off Colfax in the summer of 2022 after longtime industry stalwarts Priscilla Perez and Chris Maynard moved on from their long tenures there. Flooded in red light, it's decked out in vintage metal posters, with slasher films on the TVs, louder-than-loud bands playing every other night, and a vegan bar menu that hits the spot after some PBRs and a hardcore show. The Crypt was built to party, and no one does it better.