Occupying the sleepy corner of 6th Avenue and Washington Street in Denver’s historic Alamo Placita neighborhood, the longstanding Pablo’s Coffee is one of Denver’s first and finest craft coffee roasters.

Opened in 2001, Pablo’s was one of the first institutions in Denver to join the craft coffee craze. This means that Pablo’s collects green coffee beans from around the world and then roast them by hand in small batches. In turn, the coffee you get served at Pablo’s or that you serve up in your own home is some of the freshest in the city.

Beyond their roasting and bean sourcing, Pablo’s greatness is best found in their beautiful storefront on 6th and Washington. The space is incredibly inviting, mixing rustic accents with local art, indoor plants and large street side windows.

Comfy couches intertwine with diner-style stool seating and old wooden tables. Books and games scatter the space, adding to the homey, casually unpretentious feel of the shop. Pablo’s is a center of the community, best seen in the sense that on a rainy afternoon in March, the interior is occupied by patrons from wide and differed backgrounds. Like the community around it, the coffeeshop is a mixture of peoples and backgrounds that all offer something different and great to the aura of the space, whether it’s two old men playing chess in the corner or young professionals and students conversing on the comfortable couches.

Pablo’s self roasted coffee provides a base for delicious espresso offerings and whole bean and ground for sale coffees. The menu is pretty normal and simple, made of  typical espresso and tea offerings such as  Americano ($2.25), cappuccino ($3.00) and chai ($3.00). Where Pablo’s shines, and in total disregard to the rest of the coffee world that labors over creating complex espresso concoctions, is in their normal black coffee offerings. This reviewer had a double shot Americano, which was made with a strong and slightly acidic espresso blend, that tasted bold and fantastic.

A cup of drip or press coffee at Pablo’s is $1.60 with free refills, and you have quite a few options for blends and single origin beans. There are speciality blends with fantastic names such as “Danger Monkey” (a dark roast mixing Rwanda and Java sourced beans) or “Two Stroke Smoke” (another dark roast mix of Colombian, Brazilian and Ugandan beans with a smoky finish). Pablo’s offers all their blends and single origin beans for 12 oz or five lb purchase in store or online ($11.25 for 12 oz), where you can buy the beans via a subscription service and have freshly roasted coffee arrive at your doorstep every week or at a greater interval of your choice. 

Pablo’s is one of the best coffeeshops in the Denver area to find yourself in with friends, or simply by yourself, but it is not made for studying. The shop does not offer wifi, so do not plan on getting anything done on the internet while there. If you’re able to forgo the internet or digital devices for a welcoming, delicious, locally roasted and greatly enjoyable coffee experience, Pablo’s is perfect.

4/5 Stars

Cost: $

Suggestions: Americano, press or drip coffee

Location: Main location at 6th Avenue and Washington St., second location at 13th and Pennsylvania

Hours:

Main Location:

Mon – Sat  6 a.m. – 9 p.m.

Sun 7 a.m – 9 p.m.

Second Location

Sat-Sun 6 a.m. – 7 p.m.