Station 26 Brewing Co.

The huge garage doors still go up and down every day at the former Station 26 firehouse in northeast Park Hill, but the only emergencies now are when someone's glass gets low on double IPA. Station 26 Brewing opened last December inside this renovated fire station (the Denver Fire Department's new Station 26 facility is located in nearby Stapleton), and the south-facing cement patio sits where the fire trucks used to roar in and out of the garage. But that flat surface isn't going to waste. Food trucks now visit the brewery on a regular basis, selling grub that complements owner Justin Baccary's wide variety of beers, including a Colorado Cream Ale made with Colorado malt that he describes as "an easy-drinking patio beer that hits the spot when it's ninety degrees out." With seating for 88, the patio has room for more people than the tap room itself, but less shade -- something Baccary says he plans to fix. "We will add shade and hops and lights and some games," he explains. "The patio will be a lot cooler by the end of the summer."