What a strange and happy marriage this is between the stately, neoclassical Carnegie library building and the lively Kangaroo and Kiwi.
The
Ballard Public Library opened here on June 24, 1904, part of the 2,500 Carnegie libraries built between 1883 and 1929 in partnerships between the steel magnate and local communities. It became the first major branch of the Seattle public library system when Seattle annexed the city in 1907, and remained in service until 1963. Since then it has hosted a number of small businesses, most recently the formal French restaurant
Carnegie's (2003-2010).
Kangaroo and Kiwi spent the previous eleven years at the most un-stately of locations, on Aurora Avenue just south of Beth's Cafe in the longtime location of the Meet Me Here Tavern. K&K is serious about its Australian and New Zealander theme, and bills itself as the only genuine Aussie pub on the west coast. They serve up pub food from burgers to Aussie meat pies, and a few cocktails along with a lot of beer. Around the side and front of the building is one of Seattle's better summer, outdoor drinking spaces, and one hopes that over the long term the signage will blend into the building a bit more smoothly.
The crowd is, as you might guess, friendly, informal, and fun. It's not a library, but somehow a casual public room serving beers amidst the august surroundings seems like a perfect realization of Carnegie's democratic ideals.
2026 NW Market St, Seattle, WA 98107 - (206) 297-0507
Est. June 9, 2012 - Building constructed: 1904
Previous bars in this location: Carnegie's
Website:
kangarooandkiwi.com -
facebook -
Ballard Carnegie Library
Reviews:
seattleweekly -
komonews -
seattleweekly -
myballard -
yelp -
theworldisfun
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