#1888 #S1063 - Kickin Boot Whiskey Kitchen, Seattle - 9/6/2011

Kickin Boot Whiskey Kitchen, Seattle, WA

Update: Kickin Boot closed in October 2017

Try the:  Dark Sparrow

Kickin Boot Whiskey Kitchen is large and instantly popular, and people like to criticize big, popular places. But I'm a fan. The Matador guys (Zak Melang and Nathan Opper) have done a great job of remodeling the 1927 Henry Whyte warehouse, which once hosted Ballard Millwork, Union Wines, and then Olsen Furniture. The place is large, rustic and industrial. It is very pretty, but also rather corporate -- you won't find charming little shabby and personal touches, no items from childhood or inherited from Uncle Hank. In that sense it seems a bit out of place in Ballard and even Seattle -- it immediately feels more like a place in Dallas or Scottsdale.

Nevertheless it is a beautiful setting, and a fine alternative, I believe, to the more hole in the wall sorts of BBQ joints which pepper the Ballard area. The BBQ and choice of 5 sauces at your table are not knock your socks of good, but they are quite adequate. And the cocktails are more than adequate. The horse shoe shaped bar is the center of attention, backed by a giant triangle of whiskey in the large back window. The emphasis, as the name says, is on whiskey, and they have flights for tasting and whiskey (Buffalo Trace) on tap.

Kicking Boot Whiskey Kitchen, Seattle, 

Some BBQ purists may resent that it's an attraction as much or more for socializing and its large patio as it is for its smoked meats or sauces. But I see it as a fine bar and dinner alternative.

5309 22nd Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107 - (206) 783-2668
Est. Aug 16, 2012 - Building constructed: 1927
Previous bars in this location: None
Web site: kickinboot.com - facebook  
Best Reviews: seattleweekly - thestranger - seattletimes - myballard - building history - seattlemet - seattlemag - thestranger - yelp