Pearl Street Mall

Kind of cute but not worth the drive from Denver in my opinion. We came here for shopping and walking but left after an hour in. We ate at Foolish Craig’s, which was stellar (see separate review), but it wasn’t the food that left a bad taste in our mouths. We have an incredibly well behaved older dog but weren’t allowed on much of the outdoor mall area. It really should be up to the shop owners and not the city when it come to allowing pets in the outdoor area. After all, it’s they who lost our business. We are from NYC and Tampa but live in KCMO; it’s disappointing that somewhere like the Midwest would be more pet friendly than a free-​spirit, hippie-​loving mountain town like Boulder.
Pros:
Lots of local cafes, restaurants and shops
Good people watching
Foolish Craig’s
Nice for a short walk
Nice shopkeepers
Cons:
Not dog friendly
A lot of the same (oh look, another free-​trade coffee shop)
Not much to do after a couple hours
Didn’t live up to the hype (though that’s our own fault for having high expectations)
Overall, I wouldn’t return.

Boulder is so cute! I really enjoyed Pearl Street Mall even though I didn’t buy anything. It’s a great way to walk off a hearty meal or to just window shop and grab some gelato or ice cream too.
There are about four blocks of the mall to walk around, and they decorate it beautifully and the street entertainers are pretty great as well. They’re a nice touch, it doesn’t feel too crowded either.

Has something for everyone and very fun! I was there for the art fair in July and it was wonderful. Unfortunately I’m from Oregon so I couldn’t take any of it home with me. It has so much to offer and is worth the day of exploring!

A cute place to walk around with some nice shops, but very touristy and gets crowded after work and on weekends. I like the tea shop and the puzzle shop. There are also plenty of places to get food and dessert.

If you are in Boulder this is a great place to stop! There are a ton of restaurants and stores in the area, everything from book stores to pet stores. There were street performers, large crowds and lively music when we stopped by. The atmosphere was really upbeat and lively which we loved.
There are signs everywhere banning skatebaprds, smoking and dogs just to name a few. I have been told people get fined for bringing their dogs (except service dogs, obviously) to Pearl Street Mall so keep that in mind.

Pearl Street Mall is a beautiful spot in Boulder. I was really amazed by the mountain backdrop behind the great bar, restaurant, and shopping scene on the Pearl Street Mall.
In the afternoon on a nice day there are street performers, food trucks, and artisans selling hand crafted items. All of the restaurants and bars that we went to we enjoyed and gosh, the people were all so nice! Boulder is one of those few places that I would really consider living in and a lot of it has to do with the Pearl Street Mall! Great spot!

Pearl street is one of those not-​so-​hidden gems of Boulder. It can be a real bustling tourist attraction if you’re savvy enough to ask a boulderite what’s up, but otherwise, I guess people out of town just head straight for the mountains because they don’t have a clue.
There are so many things to do here! People watch, shop, eat, enjoy the street art/​performers, etc. It’s forever hoppin on the weekends, where it seems there is almost always some lively festival or fair happening during the summer. Pearl street is very quintessential boulder with it being very relaxed, kinda hippy-​ish, but also just very hip.
Check it out! It’s a solid visit no matter how often you’ve been. In my book, it’s one of the best street malls with it winding through the city almost endlessly. A limitless source of entertainment! But be weary… Parking is a nightmare unless you take advantage of free parking on sundays or after 7PM.

I always enjoy going down to Pearl St. Mall & I’m a Boulder local. There are so many choices of places to eat & local brewery’s to grab a beer from. The stores on Pearl are high end and often are a bit over priced but I don’t think it’s too ridiculous. There are usually random performers around Pearl, and they’re fun to watch a lot of the time as well.

Pearl street mall is a fun little outdoor mall that stretches from 11^th to 15^th street in downtown Boulder and has many different shops and restaurants of many different styles, and flavors. In the summer there is always free events (mainly on the weekends) and there is street performers doing everything from singing, playing guitar, juggling and doing acrobatics. A fun time will be had by all, both young and old at the Pearl street Mall!

I fell in love with this whole area. It’s so nice to just walk around outside with all of the flowers, musicians, shops, and places to eat. It’s good for kids to run around and play on a rock playground too. The shops are unique, and all of the people are really nice and friendly. It’s all around a younger area since it is in a college town. I would even venture to say it is kind of a hippie area, but I enjoyed it for that reason. You do have to pay for parking, but we found a spot pretty easily.

Nice spot to relax, shop, and dine. I wish I had more time to check out the area. I like El Loro gift shop and the musical performances. These Portugal guys sold their own CDs. It wasn’t too cold out on a June evening. Taxis were waiting and ready to go.

It’s definitely a popular spot, has great little eateries, shops and street performers around. A little touristy, but it’s definitely a fun people watching spot. I feel weird rating a public space — but it’s just a place you have to go to while you’re in Boulder and need to rest from hiking.

The mall itself is a great place to walk around and just people watch. Some of the stores are a seriously overpriced for my taste and there’s not too much diversity or selection of stores. The street performers and hippie transients are a sight alone. This place is definitely the epitome of Boulder.

One of my all time favorite places in the world… I might be slightly biased since I was born in Boulder, but whenever I go home I head to the Pearl Street mall for some shopping, hanging out, watching the weirdness or grabbing a bite to eat.
It helps that the Pearl Street Mall is enticingly situated at the foot of the mountains and that the red brick construction is timeless and classy. The pieces of sculptures and small areas set aside for the kids to climb on just add to the nostalgia that I feel each time I leave.
The Pearl St Mall holds a special spot in my heart and it is always a pleasure to return when I can.

Delightful for all ages.
Each visit has been a wonderful new experience. All year round, it serves its purpose for me and has provided countless hours of «ooh and awe’s» while window shopping, people watching or appreciating the moments and memories made!
*Pearl Street is my preference of «Place to Share with Visitors». I prefer Pearl Street Mall when taking ‘people I love to do fun stuff’ over the ever closer DangerZone aka 16^th Street Mall in Denver, it is def worth the gorgeous drive (via Highway ¹²⁸⁄₉₃ …via the AutoBahnBoulder stop-​crash-​athon, not so much)
**parking bites year round

What a fun and unique experience while visiting Boulder! We have been here almost everyday this week. Great stores, love the street performers, hula hooping in the park and some great restaurants along the street. They have a water feature for kids and rocks to climb on.
Only downfall is that parking is challenging if you arrive around lunch time, but guess that can be expected with a hot spot like this. Drivers are extremely aggressive around here, looking for parking spaces. The parking garage was usually filled up by 12:00, only spaces left on top level, which is outside. I was backing up to turn into a missed spot that I saw on the 3^rd level and the car behind me totally sped up and pulled into my spot. Just ridiculous. Other than that, I would go to Pearl St., you’ll love the energy:)

Yes it is a tourist attraction but it is still fun to browse the stores and eat at the local eateries. I prefer this pedestrian mall to 16^th St Mall in Denver. While both have their share of chain stores, Pearl St Mall has more unique stores. For example I really loved Peppercorn and have never seen anything equivalent to that in Denver.
I also feel that while Pearl St is small, it beats the need to walk crappy segments of 16^th St mall just to find what you are looking for.

While living in Colorado, I visited Pearl Street Mall a number of times. It’s a great place to stroll — street performers of different sorts, stores for all ages really (an amazing toy store, an EPIC cooking/​home store — don’t remember the name, LUSH cosmetics [for those that want fancy soaps], and a bunch of bars and restaurants. I could write a longer review, but it seems like everyone else has done that for me.
There are three reasons I cannot give Pearl Street Mall five stars and I apologize in advance if they seem silly or picky:
1 — the parking situation is crazy for those that don’t live in Boulder. It’s expensive, the spots are small (it seems like everyone here drives big cars), and it’s hard to find an empty spot.
2 — It’s expensive. If you’re looking to find cheap, but cool and not tacky souveneirs or even gifts — go somewhere else. I walked into a vintage clothing store and I would’ve expected someone famous to have worn half the stuff in the store.
And 3 — I’m not a city planner or transportation engineer by any means, but I think closing the roads that cut the mall into distinct blocks would do wonders in improving pedestrians’ welfare and making the mall a more enjoyable and safer experience.

No visit to Boulder is complete without a trip to Pearl Street.
From street performers to restaurants, bars to CU souvenir shops, Pearl street brings a unique experience every time you go.
Some of my favorite restaurants and shops in town can be found here. Several blocks of pedestrian walkway make up Pearl Street, but beware — no pets are allowed on this part. You will get a ticket if you bring Fido along for a walk on the pedestrian portion.
A few highlights of this area are:
–The Kitchen (amazing farm to table food)
–Farfels Farm (boutique pet shop– be sure to say hello to Cloud and Bagel, the dogs that hang out there every day)
–Bliss (gift shop with incredibly hilarious greeting cards)
–Old Chicago (deep dish pizza!)
–Wasted Sun (great CU gear)
–Peppercorn (the best housewares store ever)

This is certainly one of Boulders best assets. It’s good all year round but there is nothing better than a warn summer evening on the Mall. The mix of shops and restaurants is always changing and we can always find a good place to eat, on the Mall or withing a block or two.
Tourists love it, but so do lots of us locals.