Our Favorite Seattle Bars (Part 2)

Here’s Our Favorite Seattle Bars (Part 1)

In our post, Seattle Bars For All Occasions, we discussed what we objectively believed were the best Seattle bars based on the occasion. Now we discuss our subjective picks. There are certain bars that you like, not because it’s a great bar with great atmosphere and great drinks. You may like certain bars, because it was the bar you went to to celebrate taking your last exam in college, where you met your wife/husband, where you witnessed the ultimate Seahawk comeback win, where you drowned your sorrows getting over being dumped.  We also mentioned in Our Seattle Bar Thoughts post that our bar of choice is the neighborhood bar, Our Bartender Thoughts, How We Treat Bartenders, Best Seattle Bars to Impress Out of Towners and Seattle Bars for Each Stage of Dating.

 Favorite Bars Based Purely on Memories 

• J & M Café-I moved to Seattle for work from LA in the mid-90’s, not knowing a soul. My co-workers knew this, so as a way to introduce me to everybody, they organized an after-work happy hour. We worked in downtown, so J & M Café was in walking distance. As a new Seattleite, I was really shocked that they’d go out of their way to make me feel welcome. Though it was over 20 years ago, many of these people remain my friends to this day even though we’ve all moved on to different jobs. The J & M actually closed for a number of years and opened back up I belileve in 2010.

• Owl’N Thistle-This was deemed my work’s “satellite office” because we hung out there so much. We were all young and single(and dumb) at the time, so this was our defacto spur of the moment after work gathering spot. This is the place we bitched and moaned about our morons bosses, low pay and lack of respect.  I recall whenever a fire alarm at work went off, the Owl & Thistle was our meet up spot. Many memories in the place. Oh, to be young again.

• “The Zoo” Eastlake Zoo Tavern-I had to take a grueling government administered test if I wanted to further my career. I studied months for this test, since the government only offers it twice a year. The pass rate for this exam is 11% and in one particular year it was actually 1.2%. I met up with a bunch of co-workers after the test at The Zoo as a celebration on getting it over with. Luckily I passed. 

• Fado-There was a time in my life where I wanted to meet new people. I joined a Meet Up group that played pub trivia here every Thursday.  The group lasted about 2+ years before it disbanded, but I met a lot of interesting people and it represents a time where I put myself out there and did something that was out of my comfort zone and helped me grow as a person and for this I’m grateful.  

• Steelhead Diner-This is a diner, but it does have a nice view at their bar of Pike Place Market and the Puget Sound. The reason they are on this list? We held our wedding reception in the small room in the back. The bar worked with us to create a signature drink that incorporated the color theme of our wedding-purple and gold. It was in the summer, so it was a refreshing gin/mint drink and a big hit with our guests. 

• Lucky Envelope Brewing-This is the first place serving alcohol that we took our daughter to at 2 months old. Once our daughter was born, we thought our bar hopping days were over.  Not only because we had a new life to take care of, but as you know, babies ain’t allowed in bars.  The one exception to the rule-breweries. I don’t know if I would consider it a loophole but the license to operate a brewery in Washington State is considered a non-retail license. And there is no age restriction for non-retail premises. Bam! To prove to ourselves that having a baby would not preclude us from getting out of the house and continue meeting up with friends and having a cold one, we made it a goal to visit 24 breweries with baby in tow within a year. Did we make it?  Hellz to the Yeah!!!

Lucky Envelope was the first and holds a special place in our hearts for that reason, but shout out to the other 23 breweries that we visited that allow families to enjoy very tasty beers- Counterbalance Brewing Company, Figurehead Brewing, Floating Bridge Brewing, Flying Bike Cooperative Brewery, Fremont Brewing Company, Ghostfish Brewing Company, Lantern Brewing, Lowercase Brewing, Machine House Brewery, Naked City Brewery & Taphouse, NW Peaks Brewery, Old Stove Brewing, Optimism Brewing Company, Peddler Brewing Company, Perihelion Brewery, Populuxe Brewing, Ravenna Brewing Co, Reuben’s Brews, Rooftop Brewing Company, Schooner Exact Brewing Company, Seapine Brewing Company, Stoup Brewing, Urban Family Brewing Co. 

Note: We’ll soon have posts on Seattle Breweries shortly  

Next: Our Favorite Seattle Bars (Part 3)

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• Roxy’s Diner- Where can you get a good breakfast and slap in the face?
• Varsity Inn – The Diner With The Secret Mexican Menu
• Northlake Tavern & Pizza – Best Pizza in Seattle?
• Battle of the Best Caribbean Sandwiches-Paseo vs Un Bien

Our Favorite Seattle Bars (Part 1)

In our post, Seattle Bars For All Occasions, we discussed what we objectively believed were the best Seattle bars based on the occasion. Now we discuss our subjective picks. There are certain bars that you like, not because it’s a great bar with great atmosphere and great drinks. You may like certain bars, because it was the bar you went to to celebrate taking your last exam in college, where you met your wife/husband, where you witnessed the ultimate Seahawk comeback win, where you drowned your sorrows getting over being dumped.  We also mentioned in Our Seattle Bar Thoughts post that our bar of choice is the neighborhood bar, Our Bartender Thoughts, How We Treat Bartenders, Best Seattle Bars to Impress Out of Towners and Seattle Bars for Each Stage of Dating.

Our Favorite Bar (Overall):  Palomino. Any Seattleite reading this is saying, “WTF”? The Palomino is a restaurant located in the City Centre in downtown Seattle. They do have a bar area with an actual bar that they claim is the longest in length in Seattle. Their happy hour is okay, but nothing special. Their beer selection and cocktails are ordinary. The atmosphere is a little strange because it’s open on a floor within a building kind of like a bar in a hotel or train station.  So why is this our favorite bar in Seattle?  This is where my wife and I first laid eyes on each other and met. She was in town for a convention. I worked downtown. It was easy to find and centrally located so that’s where we met. I guess we’re just sentimental fools.  Later that night we had a drink at Kells, then the Pink Door.  

Our Favorite Beer: Bodhizafa IPA-Georgetown Brewing Company.  

Our Favorite Specialty Drink: Hot Mango Love- Suite 410.  It’s a vodka based cocktail with Finlandia Mango, Scrappy’s Firewater bitters, a house-made Peach bitters, shaken with orange and lemon. 

Our Favorite  Bars  By Area:  

Downtown-Suite 410  

Pike Place-White Horse Trading Company, Alibi Room, Radiator Whiskey  

Ballard-Tractor Tavern, King’s Hardware, Ballard Loft(RIP) 

Belltown-The Rabbit Hole  

Capitol Hill-Knee High Stocking Co, Unicorn, The Lookout, The  Pinebox  

Central District-The Neighbor Lady(RIP)

Eastlake-Mammoth  

Fremont–The Leary Traveler(RIP)

Green Lake-Latona  Pub  

Madrona-Bottlehouse  

Pioneer Square-J&M, Merchant’s Café

Queen Anne-Hilltop Ale House  

Roosevelt-Atlantic Crossing  

South  Lake  Union-Brave Horse Tavern (RIP) 

University District-The Duchess  

Wallingford-Burgundian(RIP) 

See Also: 

Our Favorite Seattle Bars Part 2

Our Favorite Seattle Bars Part 3

Related Articles:

• Our Seattle Coffee Shop Thoughts
• Best Seattle Coffee Shops For Each Stage of Dating
• Morsel vs Biscuit & Bean – The Battle of Seattle’s Best Biscuit Sandwich
• Ezell’s vs Heaven Sent – Battle of Seattle’s Best Fried Chicken

Our Seattle Bar Thoughts 

If I have time to kill and not on the clock at work or no intention of exercising, I normally look for a bar. This normally happens when I’m early for an appointment/meet up, waiting for my SO, waiting for a flight in the airport, taking a break from running errands, etc.  Other common occasions when we head to a bar-After a hard day at work and needing to wind down, celebrations(birthdays, graduations, anniversaries, engagements, hitting other milestones), catch up with friends/family, watch a sporting event(we don’t have cable). Let’s just say we’ve spent a lot of time in bars.  

General Observations: 

It’s hard to pinpoint an all-encompassing checklist of what makes a bar a favorite bar of ours. We try to keep a good attitude and an open mind when visiting a bar for the first time but we tend to lean towards certain types of bars. We tend to like neighborhood joints that are not so big, but not so tiny that they are always packed. These places tend to have a good mix of single men and women, couples and groups. It’s normally low key and full of regulars and a sense of community. These bars tend to be friendly, relaxed and make it easy to enjoy your stay. Some examples-Latona Pub, The Neighbor Lady (RIP), The Rabbit Hole, The Lookout, Bottlehouse, Atlantic Crossing, Café Racer(RIP), The Leary Traveler(RIP), Burgundian(RIP). 

While we are partial to the neighborhood bars, there are different bars for different occasions, but that’s for a whole separate post. There is a time and place for the high end expensive cocktail bar and for the unsophisticated cheap dive bar. The type of bar we go to depends on where we are, who we’re meeting up with and what type of mood we’re in. Below are our Seattle Bar Thoughts: 

General qualities we tend to avoid when it comes to bars: 

These aren’t deal-breakers. We always try to keep an open mind, but with so many options why bother if certain qualities are below par.   

• Meat markets and clubs-There was a place and time, when we were younger and dumber, but that time has passed. 
• Super Loud Music-Whether it’s a live band or piped in music. It’s just too loud to talk to others.
• Theme bars-Example Irish or British themed pubs, pirate themed bars, goth themed bars 
• Massive chain bars–Example-Yard House, Fox Sports Bar, Buffalo Wild Wings 
• Too hot or too cold-Door or window open in mid-Winter when it’s freezing or stifling heat due to no breeze or air conditioning. 
• Lack of maintenance/cleanliness-Dust so thick it obviously hasn’t been dusted in years, cobwebs, total lack of pride in appearance such as, taped up seats, unsafe loose carpet, peeling paint on the walls and the dreaded disgusting restrooms. 

General qualities we don’t really care about when it comes to bars: 

Fine if the bar has it, but doesn’t sway us like it might other people.  

• Happy Hour 
• Signature drinks–We know most bartenders/bars have em, but it’s not what we typically order. 
• Big sized drinks–Save those for New Orleans/Las Vegas 
• Strong pours–We just want the drinks to taste good. Although I have a few friends who frequent bars known for strong pours, because they feel like they save money not having to order as many drinks. 
• Games-video games, pinball, pool, ping pong. Darts are a nice option though. 

General qualities we do care about when it comes to bars: 

• Draft beer options-Since this is mostly what I drink, a good variety of craft breweries and a few hard-to-find exotic selections are my choice. I have to say, most bars I go to meet this requirement easily. I do feel that Toronado (RIP), Brouwers and Chucks Hop Shop really excel in this area. 
• Bartenders–(link) 
• Patrons–As mentioned above we enjoy places with laid back folks and a good variety of people(singles, both men and women, couples, groups) who are out having a good time. We don’t like places where there are regulars who think they own the joint and feel they can act and be as loud as they want and who are particularly cold to newcomers. Also over zealous sports fans who rub it in opponent fans’ faces when their team is winning or makes everybody miserable when their team is losing.
• Food options or allow food if they don’t serve food- You know when drinking, you start craving food. We’re looking for simple bar foods like burgers, fries, nachos, pizza. Nothing fancy. I love bars where if they don’t serve food, allow you to bring in food such as Teddy’s, Triple R and the various craft breweries around town. Free snacks will always earn bonus points in my book.  
• Music selection /Jukebox –As long as it’s not too loud I enjoy places that play background music. 
• Pub Trivia –Anywhere that happens to have pub trivia while we’re there, earns bonus points from us and we’re likely to participate if we have the time. We’re nerds. 
• Location-Selfishly, bonus points for being close by to where we live or accessible by public transport. Location friendly for us due to being close to us, near link light rail or Seattle Metro bus lines from our house are Fremont, Wallingford, University District, Ravenna, Roosevelt, Green Lake, Greenwood, Downtown, Cap Hill, Beacon Hill, Colombia City, South Lake Union, Pioneer Square, Belltown, South Lake Union. Unfortunately for us this limits places we can try in West Seattle, Upper Queen Anne, Magnolia, Georgetown. Although Ballard is also lacking in public transport from where we live, the high density of bars/restaurants and popularity as a meeting area makes it easier to visit multiple places at a time.   
• A nice bar( the actual bar )-If I’m by myself or we’re out as a couple, I always opt for sitting at the bar. Hatties Hat, Merchants Café and J&M have beautiful ornate old vintage bars. I also love Canon with it’s dark wood shelves against two white walls, Bath Tub Gin with shelves of rare liquors against the red brick wall, Radiator Whiskey w/crate shelves of whiskey and giant barrel on the wall, Unicorn with it’s circus themed colorful bar, Stoneburner with it’s strangely shaped wrap around bar, and The Backdoor with it’s mirrored altar-like bar.

• Interesting things to look at-posters, old pics, strange décor(like White Horse Trading Co.), I’m partial to older bars with lots of character and things to look at. For you non-Seattle folks, think McSorleys in NY, Jacob Wirth in Boston, The Brick in Spokane or Joe Jost’s in Los Angeles.  
• Overall Atmosphere – Welcoming, Comfortable, Relaxing, Not to crowded and loud, but not dead and silent.  

Related Articles:

• How We Treat Bartenders 
• Seattle Bars For All Occasions
• Best Seattle Bars for Out of Towners
• Best Seattle Bars For Each Stage of Dating

How We Treat Bartenders 

Previously we told you what qualities we look for in bartenders. Now we tell you how we treat bartenders. 

Try to be observant of the bar environment–Don’t go screaming and high fiving everybody if the Seahawks score in a swanky speakeasy-type cocktail bar and don’t expect high end whiskey in a dive bar. If it’s a beer bar, don’t order a pina colada. If it’s a high end craft cocktail bar on a packed Saturday night, don’t order a bloody marry. Sure, you’re the customer and you should be able to order anything you want, but think of the people lined up in back of you, waiting for their drinks.  And think of the bartender who is trying to get as many people served as possible with drinks that they specialize in, not one-off time consuming drinks. If you’re not in the mood for a fancy craft cocktail, perhaps something simple like a gin and tonic, screwdriver or whiskey neat or on the rocks? 

Be patient and smile–If especially busy and the bartender is scrambling, just make eye contact and wait patiently. I’ve actually never seen anybody do this since my college years, but don’t wave dollar bills or scream out your order over everybody elses.  And if the bartender accidentally takes another person’s order out of turn, just roll with it. We all make mistakes. Also, if I’m new to a bar and it’s full of regulars, it may not be fair that I’ll be served after them even if I’ve been waiting longer, but that’s life and not worth getting bent out of shape and ruining your mood. It’s a privilege of being a regular. One last thing, if a place is super busy, I try to tip a bit more than usual because I know they are working hard and it normally helps me the next round I order.  

Small talk-If things are pretty mellow and the bartender has some free time, my favorite thing to ask bartenders is their favorite bars and restaurants when not working. We all like to feel like we’re experts, right? They’ll normally elaborate on why it’s their favorite and I find that they normally have great insight into getting the most bang for their buck, great food and drinks for reasonable prices. I don’t know if this is common since I’ve never bartended, but many of them seem to bartend at not just one bar, but multiple bars. Also, if it’s a bar with some history, background on the place is always interesting. 

I also love when bartenders talk about the intricacies of the business or little secrets. I’ve had bartenders tell me the following: 

• Beer Tap handles really do make a difference on beer sales, especially if somebody is deciding between two beers they’ve never had. People tend to pick the most distinctive tap handle.  
• Maybe this is no secret, but you must have three choices of IPA and maybe one double and triple IPA in Seattle because we are IPA crazy at the moment.  
• Pinebox(formerly The Chapel) was the site for Bruce Lee’s funeral 
• The Good Bar was once the Japanese Commercial Bank in 1907. You can still see remants of the vault door to the right of the bar.
• Bathtub Gin Co is located in the former boiler room of the apartment building it’s located in. 

If it’s a place with some history, background on the place is a nice.

We don’t get sloshed-It’s been awhile since we’ve gotten stumbling drunk, but leave this for your own home party.  Drink water, have some food, know when to call it quits. Nobody wants to have their outing ruined by a loud, obnoxious, out of control patron.

Related Articles:

• How We Treat Bartenders 
• Seattle Bars For All Occasions
• Best Seattle Bars for Out of Towners
• Best Seattle Bars For Each Stage of Dating

Our Seattle Bartender Thoughts 

Much like waitstaff are the “face” of a restaurant, the bartender is the “face” of the bar. We’d say a bartender is more important than waitstaff because a restaurant relies on the host, cooks, bussers, expeditors and in some cases a cashier. There’s a team effort in restaurants. Most bartenders are responsible for all these roles(sans cook) in a bar. 

A great bartender can make any experience a good one even if the bar itself stinks and vice versa a bad bartender can make your favorite bar into a “I’m-never-coming-back-here-ever-again” bar.  

Here’s what we look for in bartenders:

Welcoming-We always appreciate a smile when stepping up to a bar. It really does set the tone of your stay there.  We like bartenders to simply acknowledge our presence even if they are super busy, taking orders, collecting empty glasses or bottles, mixing drinks, opening and closing out tabs, We really appreciate an, “I’ll be right with you”.  

Accommodating–I’m pretty decisive with my drink orders, but I have a few friends who get analysis paralysis and invariably always asks the bartender for suggestions. I like bartenders who ask leading questions to try to make the indecisive drink orderer comfortable and try to point them in the right direction. If it’s an indecisive beer orderer, they can provide some samplings. They can also suggest their favorites or their particular drink specialty. I think this helps make patrons feel like the bartender has their back and will go the extra mile to make sure they enjoy their drink. This in turn will cause patrons to stay longer and order another round and perhaps more likely to revisit. 

No Complaining-Let me give you a scenario. We both just got off from an extremely mind numbing day of work. Before heading home we decide to meet at a bar to vent about our idiot co-workers, stifling bureaucracy and our perceived low wages. We get to a bar, order our drinks and then have our bartender complaining about how she had to cover a shift she wasn’t expecting, how she’s gotten no visitors the entire day, so no tips, and how her boss is a dumbass.  Never complain about your job within earshot of your customers. That’s Customer Service 101.  We all have bad days, but when you’re on the clock, try to act like you enjoy your job. If you don’t like the place as an employee, we surely won’t as customers.  Maybe it’s unfair to judge a place after just one bad incident, but there are so many quality bars around Seattle, why take the chance that this was not anomaly and waste our hard earned dollars for a bad experience. 

Intuitive-Sometimes I just want to have a beer and concentrate on the game. And admit it, we’ve all been there, perhaps you’ve been dumped and just want to be left alone so you can drown your sorrows.  Sometimes I’m in the mood for small talk. I appreciate bartenders who are perceptive and can figure this out and act accordingly.

Able to Adapt/No snootiness–I have a friend who relayed this experience to me. There was a craft cocktail bar(that is no longer in business). It was right next to a major theater in downtown. He took an out-of-town guest to see a show here, but decided to grab a drink at this cocktail bar before the show. His friend was a beer drinker and ordered a beer, but the bartender exclaimed in a snooty tone, “but we’re a handcrafted cocktail bar”? Now, they did serve beer. It’s just that the bartender with all their rare bitters and liquors, not to mention his cocktail making skills and show, felt it was beneath him to pour a beer. I actually retold this story to a co-worker and she had her own story about this same bar. Again, she brought a friend from out-of-town who liked gin. Her friend ordered a particular gin she had not seen before. I guess it was a rare gin and meant to be sipped neat, because when she insisted on ice, the bartender refused to serve it with ice because in his words, “it would ruin it”.  This might very well be true, but shouldn’t the customer get it the way they want? I hate when my wife orders a well done filet mignon and then puts sauce on it, but that’s how she likes it.  

I like when bartenders can roll with the punches and adapt. Once, I ordered a whiskey and coke for a friend of mine and she wanted a rather expensive whiskey that the coke would surely ruin. When I went up to order, the bartender warned me that I should get a cheaper well whiskey instead, because it would cut the price near in half and taste just as good(or bad). I thanked her for the warning, but that’s what my friend wanted and so she made it. First I’m glad she just made it, but more importantly I’m glad she tried to look out for me and of course I will remember this and go back here often.  I had a friend order a red wine at a well-known craft beer bar. They happily pulled out a Trader Joe’s Charles Shaw from behind the bar and asked her if it was okay and she was more than happy to have it as an option. I also have a friend who drinks nothing but 7 and 7(7 Up and Seagram) regardless if at home or out and about. When we ended up at a high-end cocktail bar, without issue the bartender made it no questions asked and with a smile. Adapting to the customer.  

And fair is fair, we also have to do our part. Next we’ll discuss how we treat our bartenders.  

Related Articles:

• How We Treat Bartenders 
• Seattle Bars For All Occasions
• Best Seattle Bars for Out of Towners
• Best Seattle Bars For Each Stage of Dating