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Colorado Vignette - Broker Restaurants

The Broker Restaurants have been a tradition in fine dining in Denver since 1972. The Broker downtown is the long time flagship among Denver's finer restaurants. The restaurant has one of the most unique restaurant settings. It is situated in an old bank vault in the old Denver National Bank building. The building was one of the centers of financial activity in Denver during the grandiose era around the turn of the century.

The building now has Historic Designation. The 8 story building was built in 1903 by the Ideal Cement Company. It was the first concrete skyscraper West of the Mississippi. When it was being built they started with the vault as it is actually the foundation of the building. The vault, crafted by the famous safe company, Diebold, has one of the last round vault doors. One craftsman was responsible for the vault from construction to installation and even signed his work. The door itself weighs 23 tons and is constructed of many layers of copper and stainless steel. The different melting temperatures of the metals makes it impossible to blow-torch through. The door was equipped with the latest innovation of the day, the time clock. There were three backups, all with their own battery system to prevent any kind of failure that would keep the door from opening on schedule. Even the ventilation system had its own vault door. The walls, ceiling and floor are 30 inch thick concrete over reinforced steel rods. The rods are in a three dimensional grid of 4 inch squares. When the conversion to restaurant was done, the process of putting in a door to the kitchen took six weeks with modern technology. Inside the vault are the original stalls used by Bank customers for privacy to open their safety deposit boxes. These are now booths for dining. Private dining rooms, available for larger groups, are beautifully paneled conference and board rooms of days gone by. The Currency Storage vault, down a narrow winding stair case, complete with iron bar gates, makes a charming wine cellar. Dining is available in the wine cellar as well.

The graciousness pervading the restaurant makes the guest feel special in every way . The atmosphere, food and service make it truly a living Denver landmark. Ed Novak, owner of the Broker restaurants and Broker Inn in Boulder says that people have made the Broker tradition what it is. "We attribute our longevity in the Denver market to the public's appreciation of the great dining value offered. We pride ourselves on fielding a caring, well-trained staff."

The Broker recaptures the excitement and elegance of days gone by. A truly unique experience in dining.

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