SUMMER ISSUE 2025:
July 8, 2025
Empowered Women Empower Women
While Denver’s LGBTQIA+ nightlife is often assumed to center around gay men, a growing wave of women- and nonbinary-owned businesses are creating vibrant, inclusive spaces that center sapphic energy and community care.
By Tayler Smith
USE ARROWS TO MOVE THROUGH IMAGES
When people think of LGBTQIA+ businesses around Denver, not many people think about or know about the women-owned businesses that are also queer-owned and definably safe spaces for everyone to meet at. Many people think that most of Denver’s queer scene revolves around gay men, but that’s not the only focus. The Pearl, Lady Justice, and The 99ers are businesses being ran by queer women. With Denver Pride just around the corner, these three businesses are gearing up!
The Pearl, which used to be known as The Pearl Divers –a sapphic lesbian tiki bar inside of Your Mom’s House, had the pleasure of taking over The Mercury Café located on California Street. The Mercury Café, that operated for nearly 50 years, recently closed its doors this past March due to financial setbacks. The Pearl Divers wanted a space of their own, so the company took a chance at expanding their space, and they promise to uphold the continuation of the well-loved Mercury Café. The Pearl is currently being ran by five different people, Sheli Gilman being one of them. When Gilman was asked to be part of this transition, she immediately said how, “the location is perfect. [The Mercury] is like a time capsule that feels whimsical, so I’m glad we get to preserve that.”
Lady Justice Brewing Company -Image by Tayler Smith
Sheli Gilman is also the creator of the Sapphic Collective – an empowering group that designates meetups specifically for women and non-binary people around Denver. The events Gilman creates with The Sapphic Collective (i.e. silent discos, book clubs, craft nights, and raves) are all events that she hopes will transfer over to The Pearl as well. Even though The Pearl is now known for its eclectic events and late nights, the space is still a lounge and a place to hang out with some coffee, tea, lattes, adult beverages, and mocktails. All the beverages can be accompanied with a full menu that desires many vegan options. Gilman revealed that she hopes “the space feels safe and welcoming against its funky and colorful vibes. And more importantly, feels sapphic.” When asked what “sapphic” means, Gilman exuberantly affirmed, “’sapphic’, to me, is about how you carry and present yourself.” The Pearl is a place to feel empowered and to feel like yourself –especially late into the night.
When the sapphic vibes need to wait, grab a well-deserved beer at the only women-owned and queer-owned brewery in the country: Lady Justice Brewing. Owners Betsy Lay and her partner Alison Wisneski had the vision to brew beer and give back to their community. That’s how Lady Justice became a community-focused brewery dedicating time and money to nonprofits and community members that support women and nonbinary people in the state of Colorado. Lady Justice started out on Colfax and then moved to Englewood to have a larger space and an outdoor patio. The larger capacity has welcomed many more events, especially to watch sports. However, Betsy Lay admitted, “we accidentally became a place to watch sports, specifically women’s sports.” The Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) games and watch parties started to really take over the brewery. The WNBA club in Denver, created by Dea Vander-Fertgus and her partner Lindsey, meet up at Lady Justice to host many of the WNBA games and events. Betsy Lay expressed how much she loves how the community has changed into admiring women’s sports because sports help bring people together. Betsy Lay hopes that the brewery is “a safe space where queer parents can bring their kids and feel comfortable with other families around.” As the WNBA continues this season, go grab a drink or some food from the rotating food trucks on site, kick back, and fully capture the motto Lady Justice exemplifies great beer, better world.
The 99ers -Image by Tayler Smith
As the world continues to evolve, so does the newest bar in town: The 99ers. This sports bar is located on Colfax, neighboring The Ogden Theatre, which is the first bar exclusively devoted to women’s sports. When owners Miranda Spencer and Annie Weaver met during a flag football practice, they quickly became best friends and business partners. Annie Weaver used to be a high school math teacher, but when she visited The Sports Bra, a queer sports bar in Portland, Oregon, she got the idea of opening a sports bar of her own – only airing women’s sports.
As the two friends came together to run a business, they mentioned how “we got a lot of push-back from the city. We were told ‘no’ a lot more than we thought we would. The pushback was so extreme that we were discouraged about being able to open up this idea.” But the pushback fueled the drive. As queer women, Miranda Spencer and Annie Weaver wanted to create a safe space for women, non-binary, and transgender people to come and feel at home. “This is a place where everyone knows your name,” and allows visibility and encouragement to empower everyone who walks in. The 99ers is a narrow, small space that holds a basement with a pool table, but there is talk about possibly expanding into a larger space – ideally with a patio. Though the experience has been challenging, the reward is greater. The LGBTQIA+ community now have many places we needed when we were younger. Places we need now.
----
M
About the author
Tayler Smith is a dental professional by day and a writer by night. Along with being a part-time barista, Tayler knows when to put the work aside and indulge in the arts. Growing up in Colorado, Tayler masters the craft of connecting with others, especially amongst the Denver community; she thrives on getting to know people through art shows, open mics, bookstores, concerts, and tasty cuisine. Talery has published a book of poetry and is a skilled writer.
Since 2004, METROMODE has been a beacon for the LGBTQIA+ community and our allies. We’re a publication built on quality, not only in our advertising clients but in the look, feel, and editorial pieces of each magazine. METROMODE speaks to the entire community with thoughtful analysis of local, national, and global events affecting our community; developments in business, finance, the economy, and real estate; interviews with emerging and seasoned artists, musicians, and writers; appealing new opportunities to enjoy Colorado’s rich culture and social atmosphere; quality aesthetic experiences from film, to food, to music, to art, to night life; and challenging social and political thought.
MORE FROM METROMODE
CONNECT WITH US
© 2024-2025 METROMODE magazine. All rights reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement. METROMODE magazine may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Metromode magazine.