The Rooftop at Coors Field: A Review

Opening weekend is a fun time to be at Coors Field, no matter where you sit. Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

One reason I attended Saturday’s Rockies game was because of a promotion the team was offering for Rockies tickets to the new Rooftop area. For $15, you could watch the game from the Rooftop and cash in on $6 worth of concessions (which ended up being almost enough for two orders of funnel cake fries–we always get our hot dogs and drinks from the guy at 16th and Wynkoop, and so should you). I thought it was worth checking out this enormously expensive, highly-touted renovation to Coors Field.

On the whole, I was pretty disappointed. I had read Mark Kiszla’s declaration in the Post a couple of days earlier that the Rooftop was “brilliant.” Kiszla doesn’t think much of anything is brilliant, so I felt like that was as good an endorsement as any. Kiszla, to be fair, toured the Rooftop when there was no giant crowd of people, which means he had an unobstructed view of the field. He did mention that he worried it might be “too crowded.” Well, yeah. The Rooftop is essentially a giant platform with a bar running all along edge it for you to set your food. If you don’t get there early enough to secure a spot along this bar, you cannot see a gosh darned thing. Believe me, I tried. There is even an upper platform where the concessions are, with a few tables, and you can’t see anything from there either. There is a big-screen TV, but I don’t go to Coors Field to watch baseball on TV.

Eventually we started hovering around those who were standing by the bar, hoping someone would leave. Someone did, and we could finally see the field. Honestly, it is a gorgeous view. It was a cloudy night, but I imagine the sunset will be spectacular from up there. And though you’re far from the field, to be looking down on it in that way is pretty cool.

Within an inning, though, I started to want to sit down. Most of the people around me were there to socialize and hang out, not watch a game, and I kept getting jostled. The nice thing about a seat is that people don’t get into your space. I also don’t think I could stay on my feet for 9 full innings. Luckily, the upper deck at Coors Field is never full, not even on opening weekend, and we found some seats behind home plate. From there, by the way, the Rooftop looks spectacular.

Verdict: If you’re not a real baseball fan and you go to games just to hang out with friends, you might as well go to the Rooftop. It’s got a way better view than any other bar in Denver. If you do actually want to watch the game, I’d say pass on the Rooftop when you’re buying tickets, and stop by between innings just to get a look at it.

One other semi-unrelated note having to do with this year’s scoreboard: Whenever a player comes up to bat, instead of spelling out what his previous at bat’s resulted in, the board shows the actual scoring symbol (such as 6-3 for a shortstop to first base forceout). I’m a bit of a scoring geek, and so I thought that was awesome.

If you’re looking for Rockies tickets this season, I’d advise checking out FrontRowTickets.com, as they have a solid amount of Rockies inventory available and some of the best prices on the market!