Golden Couple Teams With Bartender Noah Heaney to Open Miners Saloon This Summer

A new bar with an old theme is coming to historic downtown Golden. Miners Saloon, a project from partners Dean and Aimee Valdez and Noah Heaney, will open in mid-June at 1109 Miners Alley. The partners explain that the new bar and restaurant will aim to reflect Golden’s history as a mining town, with a saloon interior reminiscent of the late 1800s. Miners Saloon will be located directly behind the Windy Saddle Cafe, and next door to Golden Moon Speakeasy, with its entrance opening onto Miners Alley.

Dean and Aimee Valdez own the building that houses The Windy Saddle, Golden Himalaya, Golden Moon Speakeasy and a real estate office that became vacant in 2015. They thought about what they wanted to see in the empty address and decided to open a bar there themselves.

Both Dean and Aimee knew Noah Heaney, who had worked as bar manager at Golden Moon Speakeasy, next door, for the past two and a half years. When Heaney saw the space and its potential, he joined the team and they all began working on the design of the restaurant. Heaney will continue working with Golden Moon.

Dean and Aimee have lived in Golden since 1998; Aimee worked in PR and communications for Coors and currently owns and operates a consulting company. Dean also worked at Coors in sales and marketing and now owns a consulting company working with beer distributors across the country. 

Heaney has a long bartending resume at some of the metro area's top spots, including the Bitter Bar, Colt & Gray, and Longmont's Bayonet Room

Miners Saloon will focus on Colorado craft beers and food and cocktails reminiscent of Golden’s mining era in a setting that will be a comfortable, approachable neighborhood spot that the partners hope will appeal to a wide range of customers.

“We really wanted to hearken back to Golden’s mining days,” Aimee says. “This was a jumping-off spot for miners going up Clear Creek to pan and go to the mines there. We wanted to take advantage of that history and make this a gathering place where people could also learn a little bit about what a cool place Golden is.”

“You can think of it as kind of a modern-day saloon,” Heaney adds. We’re going to focus on very high-quality Colorado beers, Colorado spirits, delicious wines, and, and a menu focusing on locally sourced ingredients.”

Miners Saloon will be open every day from 11 a.m. to 9 or 10 p.m. during the week, with later hours on weekend nights.

“We want this to be a gathering place for friends,” Aimee says. “We really want people to come in and meet new people and have great discussions. We want to capture that neighborhood feel of camaraderie and friendliness in a warm, cozy atmosphere.”