Trick or Treat: 24 Tastiest Events on the Culinary Calendar This Weekend

The Halloween spirit has already descended upon the city, and although Halloween isn't until Saturday, the holiday is never just a one-day affair. Denverites can expect a weekend packed with candy, costumes and, as always, good food and drinks. The culinary calendar is oozing with spook-tacular events that you can really sink your teeth into. Keep reading for all the details, both dreadful and delightful. (Yes, a few of these events are not even related to the holiday....) 

Friday, October 30 

Frasca Food and Wine welcomes guest Daniel Brunier for the restaurant's Tastemakers Series, which provides an intimate opportunity for a small number of guests (just twelve or thirteen at each dinner) to get to know a winemaker over a meal, paired with their own wines. Reservations for tonight's dinner are $235; make yours by calling Frasca at 303-442-6966.

Satchel's on 6th is gearing up for Halloween with a night of pumpkins. The evening starts with a pumpkin-carving contest with prizes and happy-hour specials from 4 to 6 p.m. followed by a pumpkin-throwing contest and late-night happy hour from 9 to 11 p.m. For reservations and more information, call Satchel's at 303-399-2560.

The West End Tavern in Boulder is getting totally radical for its Throwback Bash today. The '80s-themed party will feature drink special, '80s jams, and plenty of fanny packs, neon colors and side pony tails. Grab your mobile and call the West End at 303-444-3535 for more information.

From 6 to 9 p.m. Larimer Square will be transformed to the realm of the dead. The square will be holding a free Dia De Los Muertos celebration that will feature salsa dancing lessons, sugar-skull face-painting, mask-making, Latin music, tequila tastings, special menus and more. Check out larimersquare.com for information.  

If you're feeling brave enough, head down to Riverside Cemetery's Moonlight Hops 'n Mysteries event at 5:30 p.m. tonight. Guests can partake in cemetery tours, beer from Tivoli Brewing Company and food, all to help raise money to improve and preserve the cemetery. Tickets are $45 and must be purchased in advance at eventbrite.com. 

World Vegan Day is November 1, and today KCMJ and JL Fields, host of the KCMJ radio show Easy Vegan, are throwing a huge celebration in Colorado Springs. From 6 to 8 p.m. guests at the Tim Gill Center for Public Media, at 315 East Costilla Street, can watch a live broadcast while they enjoy food from local restaurants, vegan prizes and more. Tickets are $5 in advance; $7 at the door; proceeds benefit KCMJ. Ticket holders get one free entry into a drawing with prizes valued at nearly $500. For more information, click here. 

The Terminal Bar will be transformed into a Spooky Speakeasy at 9 p.m. tonight. The bar will be showing The Shining and serving up killer Halloween cocktails as well as beer specials. There will also be a costume contest with prizes, including a one-night stay at the Crawford Hotel plus a $100 gift card to Denver Union Station. For more information, go haunt unionstationindenver.com. 

All aboard the Soul Train! Tonight, Bar Red will be holding a Soul Train party so that Denverites can get down and warm up for Halloween. There will be music by DJ SD and a live performance by Kid Astronaut. For more information, call Bar Red at 303-573-0223. 

Saturday, October 31 

Lala's will be creeping on Capitol Hill again this year during the restaurant's Halloween Dinner and Ghost Tour. Guests at the event will partake in a three-course meal, followed by a Haunted Capitol Hill tour, guided by Banjo Billy's. If you are feeling brave enough you can save your seat for $35 per person by calling Lala's at 303-861-9463.

The Tavern Downtown will be celebrating Halloween with a costume contest, drink specials all night, music by DJ Denco and more. Party goers can indulge in $3.50 Bud and Bud Light drafts as well as $4 Pearl Vodka drinks until 10 p.m., after there will be $4 Jager, Rumchata and Fireball until close. Down south at The Tavern Tech Center guests can shake it to beats by DJ Blurre and quench their thirst with $4 Jager, Rumchata and Fireball until close. There will also be a costume contest with a two-night stay for two in Vail during Snow Daze with VIP concert passes and lift tickets, as the grand prize. For those looking for more of a Howl-o-ween, The Tavern Uptown invites you to bring your devilish dogs to the restaurants' Howl-O-Ween dog costume contest, which has already started but is running through October 31. Have a Tavern team member take your photo with your dressed up dog, and you'll be entered to win a pet-friendly prize for your pup and a $50 gift card for yourself. For more information contact the appropriate Tavern location.

Head down to South Broadway from 2 to 5 p.m. today for a taste of Trick or Treat Street. Many of the business in Denver's Antique Row will be offering treats for the kids and a dozen restaurants and bars, including Adelitas, Former Future Brewing, Dive Inn, Marie Empanada, and more, will be handing out free treats for adults too. Just look for the pumpkin in the window of participating locations.

The West End Tavern in Boulder is throwing a zombie-themed shindig for Boulderites hungry for brains and booze today. The zombie-themed downtown throwdown will feature live tunes from Ninkasi Dawn of the Red, food and drink specials, and a horde of zombies. For more information, call the West End at 303-444-3535.


Interstate Kitchen and Bar's seventh annual Haunted Highway Halloween Party will have you boogieing with the boogieman today. The party starts at 10 p.m. You can pay a $5 cover for the party and a cash bar, or you can get down with an all-you-can-drink ticket for $20, which includes wells, drafts and house wines. For more information contact Interstate at 720-479-8829.

Ace Eat Serve will be blasting off to outer space for Halloween. From 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. ghouls and boys can partake in music from DJ Jack Burton, food specials from the kitchen, drink specials at the bar, and Cosmic Pong with black lights, strobes, lasers and fog. For details and reservations call Ace at 303-800-7705 or visit the event's Facebook page.

The Post Brewing Company is throwing a Pumpkin Party from 4 to 9 p.m. today. The brewery will be pouring happy hour pints all night long and the best dressed ladies and gents will win some sweet prizes like Post six-packs, growlers, and other swag. Voting begins at 8:00 p.m. Call the Post at 303-593-2066 for reservations and more info. 

Baur’s Restaurant and Listening Lounge will be starting the celebrations early with a Halloween brunch from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on October 31. All kids will receive a free pumpkin to carve and the pumpkins will be entered into a Jack-o-lantern contest for a chance to win $100 Baur’s gift certificate, prizes, candy and more. Kids 10 and under eat free with the purchase of an adult meal, which grownups can pair with Halloween drink specials.  Next, from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. the restaurant will devolve into a dead sexy dance party with  DJ Son of Dog, providing the beats. Guests can at the party can dance the night away while enjoying a Halloween buffet, spooky drink specials and a costume contest with a $100 grand prize. For more information call Baur's at 303-615-4000  or visit baursrestaurant.com.
Wonderland Brewing Company and the Colorado Beer Trail are teaming up this Halloween to put on the inaugural Halloween Craft Brew Ball at Wonderland today. The family-friendly event will feature a miniature golf course, pumpkin bowling, face painting, a photo booth, food trucks, live music, trick-or-treating for the kids and beer trick-or-treating for adults. From 2 to 6 p.m. adults can dabble in 40 craft beers and ciders for $25 a ticket in advance, and $30 the day of the event. There is also a VIP option, which includes some swag and an extra hour of tasting, for $65. Entry to the event without a tasting package is $5 for adults and free for those under 21. Grab your tickets and learn more here. 

As part of a national tour in fifty cities, Town Center at Aurora and Park Meadows Mall, will participate in the Gone Cupcaking: Halloween Cupcake Decorating Roadshow, and attempt a Guinness world record for the largest simultaneous cupcake decorating class in history. There will be five  decorating sessions at 11 a.m.,  1 p.m., 3 p.m., 5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. each session will last about an hour and will include cupcakes, icing, decorating tips and toppings. Tickets for the cupcake class are $49; get tickets and details at gonecupcaking.com.

The 9th Annual Boo and Brew will have Colfax crawling with creeps today. More than 35 businesses in the Bluebird District will be handing out treats from 1 p.m. to 2 a.m. Kids will be able to get in on the action from 1 to 4 p.m. when there will be face painting, haunted houses, pumpkin decorating, live kid-friendly music, a bouncy castle and, of course, trick-or-treating. Later, from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. the boos will switch to booze and brews as the adult portion of the block party conjures up live music, tours of Park House Tavern's haunted basement, a bar crawl, a Star Wars themed party, and more. Nine bluebird bars will be participating in the festivities. The event is free to attend but be sure to have some money for food and drinks. Track down all the details at boonbrew.com.

Settembre Cellars in Boulder is putting on a Farmer Girl Pumpkin Dinner today from 7 to 10 p.m. The winery will welcome chef Tim Payne of Farmer Girl to the Tasting Room for his annual pumpkin dinner, which will be paired with Settembre wines. The four-course meal is priced at $85 per person. For more information, visit settembrecellars.com.  

Pig out 'til your eyes glaze over during the Glazed and Confused doughnut popup at Old Major on Halloween. The two eateries have joined forces to get your Halloween started off right: with a little sugar. The popup will feature classic doughnuts from Glazed and Confuzed as well as some new ones, and Old Major chef Justin Brunson will be whipping up devilishly decadent fusions of pork and doughnuts. The feast begins at 9:30 a.m. on October 31 and is served on a first-come-first-served basis, so get there early. In addition to the popup food, Old Major will be serving its regular brunch from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Call the Major at 720-420-0622 for more information. 

The Viewhouse in the Ballpark neighborhood will be holding a whole Halloweekend of festivities, and on Halloween the bar will be home to a sexy House of Horrors. The event will feature a costume contest, three dance floors spread throughout the bar, beats by DJ Squirt, a costume contest with a $1,000 grand prize, and more. You can make reservations by calling 720-306-9132. Visit viewhouse.com for more information on the weekend of horrors. 

Channel your inner actor or actress for Punch Bowl Social's dead celebrity-themed party. The evening will feature a DJ, dancing and specials starting at 9 p.m., as well as a costume contest at 11 p.m. Prizes for Best PBS Themed Costume (dead celebs), Best Costume Overall, Best Female Costume and Best Couple/Group Costume will be awarded. There will also be a complimentary photo booth, because you know you're not going to remember most of the night anyway, and a special Apple Bottom Punch shareable cocktail. Get all the details at punchbowlsocial.com.

Sunday, November 1 

If tickets to today's game were a little too steep for you, you can watch the Broncos take on the Packers at Tracks during the bar's Big Gay Football Day. Watch the game on a massive 40 foot by 10 foot screen, while enjoying food and drink specials, games, prizes and more. For more information visit tracksdenver.com.  

For more Food & Drink events, go to our online calendar. If you know of an event that should be included in that calendar, send information to [email protected].