By Laurie Montoya
When Mark and Rob ventured into the transformation of our beloved Susie’s bar, no one could have imagined the Dirty Dogs Roadhouse that it is today. A biker bar that is more to us than a bar to catch a quick drink, grab a bite to eat, and hit the road again. Dirty Dogs Roadhouse is our HOME.
There hasn’t been a time in the past 4 years that I haven’t walked in and saw someone I knew who said hello. It reminds me of the TV show Cheers back in the day when Norm would walk in, and everyone said, “Hey Norm.” It is a place where everyone knows your name, and if you are riding alone or feeling lonely, you can ride up to Dirty Dogs and see someone you haven’t seen in years and melt the stress of live away.
In 2017, so much work went into the first wave of renovations of the original Susies’ building neglected and renovated by others for years. It would require more than repainting. Dirty Dogs had to have a certain biker flair but keep the same vision of the Susie’s we loved. The biker community didn’t disappoint and supported and packed Dirty Dogs from the moment that it opened.
In late 2017-2018, came Mark and Rob’s vision to create an outdoor patio area that could accommodate the overwhelming number of riders coming in on the weekends. For months, customers would go just to watch Mark, Bart & Rob doing the improvements themselves, and you could see the excitement each week as another intricate piece of wall or concrete was poured.
In 2019, the 3rd wave was the outdoor stage area that would enable Mark & Rob to bring bigger entertainment and host multiple riding events simultaneously. The 4th wave was the upper parking lot to allow more riders and vehicles to park safely.
Dirty Dogs is also where most in our community will start or end their charity rides or hold our parties. Dirty Dogs Roadhouse is also where we have mourned the loss of the bikers that we have lost over the years. Munky Mark was taken from our biker community 2 years ago, and it was standing room only as we laughed, cried, and remembered a life that was taken from us too soon! Mark and Rob ensured that Munky’s beloved bike will forever be displayed at Dirty Dogs for his years of service to the community and love and friendship to all of us.
The history and biker memorabilia around the bars leave no open space, and there is always something that takes us back to a time when Freedom of the Ride was FREE. Dirty Dogs brings the best entertainment and great food, including their new BBQ trailer.
Biker bars like this are rare, and for Dirty Dogs to have not only shown impressive growth over the years (with more to come in 2022) but to have also survived the pandemic with little to no income and rapidly changing restrictions from the health department, shows their management is solid. The biker community will support Dirty Dogs thru thick and thin.
Dirty Dogs will be hosting their 4th Anniversary Birthday party on October 16th so SAVE THE DATE and Thank you, Dirty Dogs, for giving the biker community in Denver a place to call HOME! Please enjoy this 3-page spread honoring the growth of Dirty Dogs Roadhouse
