South Broadway just picked up a quieter kind of nightlife. Vaultaire, a subterranean HiFi listening bar, opens Thursday beneath La Forêt, trading rowdy tavern energy for candlelight, records and slow-sip cocktails.
The underground spot pairs an analog record setup with French-inspired small plates and a deep bench of vintage and rare spirits. In a corridor better known for late-night bar crawls, Vaultaire is staking out the opposite vibe: a listening-first room where the soundtrack matters as much as the drink in your hand.
According to Westword, Vaultaire "will be a subterranean cocktail and HiFi-driven space" and will operate as a walk-in-only bar. The outlet reports that the team is leaning into an analog HiFi rig spinning European synth-wave, post-punk and underground disco, with a beverage program from Jason Patz that showcases vintage and rare spirits, European-inspired cocktails and a tight wine list.
Menu and sound
Vaultaire’s own site leans hard into an “Analog Sound” identity, framing the room as a place where the records and the food share top billing. Executive Chef Jamie Rutherford is credited with a lineup of French-inspired small plates, including escargot au Champagne and duck rillette, built for sharing rather than rushing.
The venue highlights a rotating cocktail list built around vintage spirits and a focused wine program, and lists hours as “Open Thursday - Saturday 6 pm - Close.” According to Vaultaire's website, the cellar-like space is deliberately tuned for shared plates, low light and careful listening instead of shout-over-the-music nights.
Where it fits in SoBo
Vaultaire sits in the basement beneath La Forêt’s woodsy dining room at 38 South Broadway. La Forêt's site confirms the address and describes the upstairs restaurant as a Guestfloor Management concept, a group also linked in local coverage to neighborhood fixtures like Union Lodge No. 1 and the Arvada Tavern. That background helps explain why the new bar is betting on vintage bottles, curated sound and a slower pace instead of high-volume nightlife.
Vaultaire arrives as Denver’s small but growing listening-bar scene gains momentum, from kissa-inspired ESP HiFi to newer rooms that put record collections front and center with cocktails on the side. As Westword has noted, those spots are nudging parts of the Mile High City’s nightlife toward more intentional, unhurried evenings, and Vaultaire looks ready to keep that needle moving.
