If you’re looking for a new place to visit, no need to look any farther. Moodswing has everything.
At Moodswing, stained glass decorates the inside as booths and lounges line the walls, the smell of delicious foods fill the air, and the sound of pickleball floats in the other room.
Moodswing is reimagining pickleball as a social experience. Play hard, connect with people, sip on coffee or cocktails, listen to music, do work, and watch TV.
“We’ve just been really purposeful in knowing that no matter who you are, what you’re into, hopefully you’ll come into a place like this,” says Justin Riley, owner and managing partner of Moodswing and Perpetual First, a company transforming adaptive reuse properties into unique food and beverage spaces.
Justin says Moodswing was created alongside his business partners Colton Cartwright and Giovanni Leone because they shared the vision for building thoughtful, community-focused environments. The idea formed a few years ago as they noticed how fragmented social life had become. “One place to work, another to exercise, another to eat, another to socialize. We wanted to create a space where all of that could coexist naturally under one roof,” Justin says.
About 11 years ago, Justin moved to Colorado from Kansas City, Missouri, after quitting his corporate job and “risking it all” to come out here to join his business partner. During COVID, Justin says he picked up pickleball like the rest of the world. He says Moodswing is modeled closest to the concept Chicken N Pickle, a place to socialize, eat, and play pickleball. Chicken N Pickle owns 10 locations nationally, but recently opened a location in Thornton, targeting the suburban environment.
“Several years ago, we flew out to both Kansas and Missouri in order to go and see these places. What type of people were going? What type of offerings did they have? What are they doing well that we want to emulate?” explains Justin.
What they found were plenty of things they liked, and some they didn’t. While Chicken N Pickle was extremely kid-friendly, Justin and his partner found the environment – as two guys wanting to play pickleball, have a beer, and hangout – a bit chaotic. “There were kids literally chucking pickleballs at each other, using the pickleball courts as corrals.”
As a new parent himself, Justin says it is cool they targeted a younger group, but he says Moodswing wants to create a place for literally everyone. And that means real diligence and programming to make sure it doesn’t become too much of anything.
But that doesn’t mean Moodswing isn’t kid-friendly. “So far, our record for the youngest age was 12 days old. It was really cute,” says Justin. There are family-friendly times of day, open spaces for kids to move, food options for all ages, and activities that parents and kids can enjoy together. According to Justin, Moodswing was intentionally designed so families don’t feel like they are forcing themselves into a space that was not built for them.
“Like the volume of the music that we’re playing, we still want it to be loud enough that it’s engaging and fun, and so someone without kids, or some grandparents are going to enjoy the ambience and still have areas for everyone,” explains Justin.
The name Moodswing was also a purposeful choice of ambiguity, he says. The company and building is multifaceted, with the mantra being a place to offer for those all across the spectrum. “You can come in for coffee and just hang out and co-work, and then very easily transition into having lunch and playing pickleball, or then your family comes into town, and there’s something that you guys can do for that.”
Justin even works to make sure the music is varied – indoor and outdoor stages feature no demographic in particular. They’ve hosted music from line dancing, to a DJ, to a Shrek cover band.
The big challenge Moodswing faces now is doing what they can to get people in to see the space, Justin says. He feels if people come in, then they really get it. The food’s great, the drinks are fun, and there’s always some kind of cool programming. “Sure, I’ll go play some pickleball, or maybe I won’t,” Justin explains.
Along with that, Justin is working to show that it is a great place for corporate and private parties. Nonprofits and companies have used their space as a way to enjoy themselves and create the “watercooler” effect that is missing from some work spaces nowadays.
“The way that we have it built is that it is adjacent to the pickleball court, so that you could kind of package it together. You can get the big event space with a projector. You could watch a big game or do your presentation, and then have literally the garage door separating you from the four or six pickleball courts that are inside. You can do your own little company tournament,” he says.
As a parent to a one-year-old daughter, Justin is proud to have Moodswing open after a difficult run. From getting permits and working hard with the city, to trying to be present for his wife and new daughter while working 14–16 hour days, Justin says it was a challenge.
“I guess there is no necessarily good time to have a little one because everyone’s got stuff going on in their life, but it felt particularly difficult to not be super present,” he explains. “It took a lot of pressure on the relationship, but I think it ultimately made everyone stronger. And so now it’s like a really, very proud kind of moment to have it open, and my wife and daughter have been on the site for our soft launch and grand opening and hanging out.”
At 45,000 square feet, Moodswing has 6 indoor and 6 outdoor pickleball courts, a bar, a kitchen, a coffee bar, stages, TVs, lounge areas, and more.
Justin hopes families will come out and rent a pickleball court and play with their adult friends or their kids. “I’m sure that we’re going to see a three-year-old probably crushing it on a pickleball court before we know it.”
Pickleball, as Justin puts it, is a sport for all ages, demographics, socioeconomic statuses, whatever. It works for everyone.
“But we also acknowledge that there are people who don’t want to play pickleball and they just want to come either hang out with their family, or hang out with their friends, or their family are in town, or go on a first date, all of that stuff,” says Justin.
Moodswing is open Sunday through Thursday 8am-11pm and Friday and Saturday 8am-midnight. It is located at 3625 E. 48th Ave, Denver. Check out their website mood-swing.com for more information.
