On the Rocks: Mayor Mike Johnston Will Get Behind the Bar at Satire Tonight

Pete's Satire Lounge has survived 62 years at 1920 East Colfax Avenue, and the place was a bar for years before Pete Contos took it over in 1962 (hosting such future celebs as the Smothers Brothers and Bob Dylan). But can it survive the Colfax Bus Rapid Transit construction?

After Contos passed away in 2019, relatives continued running several of his eateries. His grandson, Alex Barakos — the only member of the third generation to move into the family business — took over Pete’s Satire Lounge and Pete's Kitchen next door. “We’re going to make it to 100,” he said with a laugh during a celebration of the Satire's sixtieth in late 2022.

But it's not going to be easy. "We survived COVID, but BRT is worse than COVID," Barakos said at a Chats on Colfax business gathering in February. "If Colfax loses businesses in the process, it's not worth it. What makes Colfax special is that it's this group of independent businesses, minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses. Like, Pete's Kitchen is a community. Sit down, have your coffee, read your newspaper, talk to five people you don't know. That's the kind of spot it is. I don't want to lose that. That's everything my grandfather built and everything he stood for.

"Still," he continued, "I am very positive and hopeful for the BRT. I really am. I really think this will be good for the city. I'm optimistic about it. I just want to see us get through it, that's all."

To help businesses get through, Mayor Mike Johnston volunteered to work at a few...and he'll do a stint behind the bar at the Satire tonight starting at 5:30 p.m. "The things that I drink and the things that I can make are a different list," he told City Cast during an impromptu announcement of the program in March. "I'm great at beer and wine, it turns out, as a bartender. Margaritas, I'm good at margaritas, Old Fashioneds and Manhattans, because I make them for myself. So I feel like those are probably my three best drinks at this stage. But I learn fast."

See if you can teach him a few things tonight at the Satire.