Clayton - Denver, CO

The Clayton neighborhood was originally named after the George W. Clayton Trust and College, which is registered on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Denver Medical Depot, at 3800 York Street, is also on the National Register of Historic Places. This building staffed more than 800 employees during World War II, and shipped more than 250 million pounds of medical equipment. In 1998, a renovation modernized the facilities and brought the building back into service after a few years of vacancy.

Clayton campus hosts the annual Moonbeam Harvest to raise funds and awareness for early-childhood education. Denver's top chefs create culinary creations harvested from the gardens in Clayton, much to the delight of festival goers.

With Clayton being so close to the central hub of fine dining in downtown Denver, there are many food options for locals that sit just a few miles away. Clayton itself, however, has some hidden gems as well.

Lucero's amazes with its authentic Mexican food. Nestled between houses in a residential area, this restaurant can be easy to miss — but don't keep walking. This hidden gem has some of the best food in the area. The salsa's fabulously fresh flavor astonishes diners, and the chili-cheese fries quickly become favorites of those new to the city.

To quench more of your Mexican food craving, stop in at Tacos & Ranchitos. The steak tacos, slathered with a distinctive spicy sauce, give you an authentic flavor that's hard to find anywhere else in the neighborhood.

For a more southern touch, enjoy a meal at KT's BBQ. Be sure to try the June Bowl. With this option, you get to pick your meats, sides and barbecue sauce. Reasonably priced portions on the small- and medium-sized bowls make this a perfect place to fill your belly without breaking the bank.

The night life in the Clayton neighborhood contains more family friendly options than hip bars compared to downtown Denver, but there are still some small dive bars in the area. Mr A's is a local favorite, with a fun karaoke night on Thursdays. Self-proclaimed as "the friendliest lounge in Denver," this bar won't let you down if you're looking to meet locals, have some inexpensive drinks, do a little dancing and share some laughs.

Just up the street sits High Street Bar & Grill, where the drinks are incredibly cheap and the jukebox seems to always be churning out classic rock tunes. Ask for their $2 spicy mixer, stirred into your choice of beer.

40th Avenue and Colorado Boulevard border the edges of this neighborhood, providing residents with many options to get anywhere they need to in the greater Denver metro area. RTD Denver provides the public transportation, and some of the options include the bus, light rail, Park-n-Ride and the skyride. Lyft, Uber and other local taxi companies operate in the area, making it easy to arrange for a cab.

The light rail that runs through neighboring Five Points brings students right to Auraria Campus, which houses the University of Colorado, Metropolitan State University of Denver and the Community College of Denver. The rail line also goes farther south, to University of Denver.

Many residents get around by bus or car, with Interstate 70, which intersects with Colorado boulevard, acting as one of the major highways in the city. Free parking lines the Clayton area's streets.

Walking around can be an option for the adventurous, but most of the bigger things to do and see lie more within the realm of driving distance. For bikers, plenty of sidewalks and not too much traffic make for easy and safe pedaling through the area.

When it comes to green spaces, Clayton residents have City of Nairobi Park and Schafer Park to chose from. While both of these parks are on the smaller side, the Park Hill Golf Club is just a few blocks east, and City Park — the largest park in Denver — is just a few blocks south. City Park also contains the Denver Zoo and City Park Golf Course. The Denver Zoo has free days every few months for residents to explore the park.

The average list price of a house in this neighborhood comes with a price tag of $222,500. Rent for an average one-bedroom apartment sits in the ballpark of $700 per month. The cost of living in Clayton sits lower than the Denver average, which the locals don't mind, since the average beer costs about $2 throughout the neighborhood. The cost of gas hovers around one percent lower than the national average.

The Clayton neighborhood remains home to mainly locally owned and independent stores. Most of the high-end shopping can be found in downtown Denver or Cherry Creek.

Hackl Guitars works hard to serve the guitar owners in Denver. Being locally owned and dedicated to creating custom guitars, they also do restores and repairs for anyone who wants to simply fix up their old instrument, helping to make sure the music scene in Denver stays top notch.

Head a few blocks north and you'll find yourself at Smith & Truslow. This shop has freshly ground organic spices and herbs, giving you the utmost flavor for your dollar. Any home chef will love this store for all the hard-to-find spices available to add to your cooking.

For Clayton residents, Walgreen's and Safeway handle most everyday grocery and drugstore needs, and a farmers market just south of City Park, at Josephine and Colfax, gets loaded up with fresh, locally grown food.