Shake it, shake it… shake it like a Polaroid picture…

In this case, you’ll be shaking your cocktail, not your booty.

Thursday night is the private grand opening bash for the Martini Ranch Denver in Larimer Square. They opened in December, but they’ve finally gotten good enough at mixing drinks to invite the media in to judge, err… I mean, to enjoy their hospitality.

We’ll be scrutinizing en masse tomorrow night (as we enjoy our free cocktails — we are evil beings, us media leeches), so hopefully things have improved a bit over at the old Soapy Smith’s building. The one time I’ve been so far, the service was inattentive — and that’s being way polite. But it was early, they didn’t have a regular DJ (which explains the train wreck 80s -pop-meets-new-millenium-hip-hop song mixes), the kitchen wasn’t open yet, and to be fair – it was a Sunday night. Not exactly crunch time for a brand new martini bar. But the drinks were definitely tasty, and the space is cool and loft-posh in that particularly LoDo manner.

Friday through Sunday, the grand opening fete continues, so pop by for a $5 house martini (usually they range from $7 up to $12). The Shaker Room on the 3rd floor has the best views, so get there in time to snag one of the cozy square lounge areas which seat about nine people comfortably.

Cheers.