#1854 - Jim's Alibi, Boise, ID - 8/20/2011

Hanging in Bullshit Corner did not prevent me from getting the
BS Swatter treatment from Tristina, at Jim's Alibi, in Boise, ID

Jim's Alibi is a faithful dive bar.  It is open 365 days a year; there waiting for you on Christmas, Thanksgiving, whenever you feel like dropping in.  It's available in the morning and the middle of the day. It offers you all the activities you expect in a modern dive bar: karaoke, eight ball, bingo. And it is faithful in keeping your activities inside safe from the prying eyes of outsiders -- there are no windows. If you need an alibi, it's not because Jim's let you down.

2710 Broadway Avenue Boise, ID 83706 - (208) 342-9220
Est. 1983 (Jim's Alibi, the Alibi has been around longer)
Previous bars at this location:  Happy Hour Tavern
Web site: jimsalibi.com - facebook
Reviews: sneakysunday - boiseweekly - yelp

#1853 - Moe's Place, Garden City, ID - 8/20/2011

You can pretty much know Moe's Place from the moment you pull into the parking lot. A big, open space between city and suburbs, with no particular attraction except cheap alcohol, a youngish crowd, and the distractions from mixing the two. You see the signage with the sort of sparkling font you might see at a low budget strip joint, and you can pretty much deduce that this place has much more than its share of fights and moron melodrama, and hence it probably changes owners every couple years or so. But if your life is going nowhere and you think the best way to fix that is Jack and Cokes, you might want to get down to Moe's -- or whatever it's called for now.

3933 W. Chinden Blvd., Garden City, Idaho 83714 - 208-343-1243
Est. 2011


Reviews: boiseweekly - neurolux

#1852 - The Stagecoach, Garden City, ID - 8/20/2011

This is a classic, mid-century steakhouse lounge, dark and romantic in a slightly shabby way. It claims to be the oldest family-owned restaurant in the Boise area, run by the family of founder Willie Schrier from 1959 to 2007, when it was acquired by another local family.  It is unabashedly old school, with red  naugahyde booths, fringe leather server outfits, and a sort of gamblers after-hours atmosphere.  The drinks are classic dive bar -- moderately priced and poured with a heavy hand. The food is classic middle-American steakhouse, with the best known dish among the locals being the large, breaded bar prawns.

3132 W Chinden Blvd, Garden City, ID 83714 - (208) 342-4161
Est. 1959

Web site: stagecoachboise.com - facebook
Reviews: urbanspoon - boiseweekly - yelp

#1851 - Joe's Crab Shack, Garden City, Boise, ID - 8/18/

2288 North Garden Street Boise, ID 83706 - (208) 336-9370


Web site: joescrabshack.com
Reviews: boiseweekly - yelp - urbanspoon - tripadvisor

#1850 - Sandbar Patio Bar and Grill, Boise, ID - 8/18//2011

A seasonal patio bar associated with the Riverside Hotel, the Sandbar has average food and service, but a very nice location on the south bank of the Boise River.

2900 Chinden Blvd, Boise, ID 83714 - (208) 343-1871
Est. June 15, 2012

Web site: riversideboise - facebook
Reviews: idahostatesman - boiseweekly - yelp

#1849 - Tiny's Lounge, Nampa, ID - 8/18//2011

A nifty little dive bar in Old Nampa.

10 12th Avenue South Nampa, ID 83651 - (208) 467-1717
Est. 1979?


Reviews: boiseweekly

#1848 - 1918 Lounge, Nampa, ID - 8/18/2011

A classic little dive that I might have been ready to spend some extended time in if I had not grown accustomed to Washington state's smoking ban.

10 13th Avenue S, Nampa, ID 83651 - (208) 467-3273

Reviews: boiseweekly

#1847 - Monkey Bizness, Nampa, ID - 8/18/2011

This place apparently had live monkeys at one point.

724 1st Street S, Nampa, ID - (208) 467-1507               
Web site: facebook
Reviews: boiseweekly

#1846 - The Packard, Pendleton, OR - 8/17/2011

A fair sized dive bar with a good beer selection, some funky art, and a nice, very old back bar.

118 SE Court St, Pendleton, Oregon 97801 - (541) 276-3737


Web site: facebook
Reviews: brewpublic

#1845 - Hamley Steakhouse, Pendleton, OR - 8/17/2011

Hamley Steakhouse & Saloon, Pendleton, OR

The Hamley Saloon is part of a very large restaurant outfitted in a sumptuous old west theme with antiques, lots of dark wood, tin ceilings, and rock steps down to a sizable wine cellar. It is named for J.J. Hamley, who was making saddles and leather goods in Pendleton since 1905, and whose company has outfitted Hop Along Cassidy, Tom Mix, Gene Autry, Walter Brennen, and John Wayne. The restaurant is inside a historic Pendleton building that hosted the Umatilla Courthouse around 1869. The bar features not only a grand Brunswick "Del Monte #2" model back bar, but a matching cabinet.

The cocktails and food are fairly standard fare, but the remarkable decor make it a must-visit stop for anyone traveling through northeast Oregon.

 

30 SE Court Ave, Pendleton, OR 97801 - (541) 278-1100
Est. June 2007
Web site: hamleysteakhouse.com - facebook  
Reviews: foodsantacruz - urbanspoon - yelp - tripadvisor

#1844 - Virgil's at Cimmiyotti's, Pendleton, OR - 8/17/2011

In our brief stay in Pendleton, multiple locals recommended Cimmiyotti's, a much beloved place that went out of business a few years ago and has been revived by new owners.  It is a very night place in terms of both ambiance (elegant Victorian house of ill repute) and food quality.  They were very busy the night we visited and did a very poor job of even touching base with us as we waited an hour and half for our food.  There was no excuse for this (even when you are swamped you should touch base with a each customer once in a while), but it appears that under normal circumstances there are no such problems.

137 South Main St, Pendleton, OR 97801 - (541) 276-7711
Web site: facebook
Reviews: goseeoregon - tripadvisor - urbanspoon - yelp

#1843 - The Rainbow Cafe, Pendleton, OR - 8/17/2011

The current Rainbow Cafe is the oldest business in Pendleton, Oregon and the first brick building in town, est. 1883 as State Saloon and Banquet. It is now a classic diner and dive bar, with historic photos and collectibles on the walls, along with some nice neon, much of it capturing the town's old west theme and famous rodeo. It had a major remodel in 2006, removing many layers of paint to expose the original brick facade and restoring the original neon sign. We chatted with some nice folks there, especially Rocky, who gave us some tips on this and other places in town.

209 South Main Street Pendleton, OR 97801 - (541) 276-4120
Est. 1883 (as State Saloon)

Web site: rainbowcafependleton.com
Reviews: igougo - highway12 - urbanspoon - yelp

#1842 - The Pub, Kennewick, WA - 8/17/2011

"The Pub," in Kennewick is like a typical neighborhood dive bar that has been stretched out to ten times its rightful size. Walking along outside it, the building seems to go on forever, and when you step inside a good part of one side is filled by a 70-foot bar -- the longest in the state of Washington.

7001 W Clearwater Ave, Kennewick, WA 99336 - (509) 735-7868
Est. year - Building constructed: year

Web site: facebook
Reviews: yelp

#1841 #S1050 - WaMu Theater, Seattle - 8/14/2011

Jack White, WaMu Theater, Seattle, Aug 14, 2012

WaMu Theater is a medium sized (3,300, 4,000, or 7,000 seat configurations) event hall just south of the ballparks which for some reason retains the collapsed bank's name. It is utterly charmless, but the sound is decent after some upgrades, and there is a bar area behind the grandstands where they are happy to serve you dive bar quality drinks at craft cocktail prices.

800 Occidental Avenue South Seattle, WA 98134 - (800) 745-3000
Est. Nov 3, 2006 - Building constructed: 2006
Previous bars in this location: None
Web site: wamutheater.com 
Reviews: yelp

#1840 - Koral, Bellevue, - 8/14/2011

Owned by the same folks who own Pearl Bar & Dining, this new place in the Bellevue Hyatt aims for "a new American Tavern," with craft cocktails, and "approachable" American regional dishes. (In order to form an opinion, I must come back for more than this quickie bite and drink in their off  hours.)

900 Bellevue Way Northeast #100 Bellevue, WA 98004 - (425) 623-1125
Est. March 1, 2012
Previous bars in this location: Twisted Cork

Web site: koralbellevue.com
Reviews: seattletimes - eatbellevue - gastrolust - yelp - thestranger

#1839 #S1049 - Mutiny Hall, Seattle - 8/13/2012

Update: Mutiny Hall closed May 17, 2014.

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This is another craft beer public house from Seth Howard of downtown's Collins Pub and Lake City's Hudson Pub. This one is very much in the model of Hudson, with a good selection of beers, a woody but fairly plain design, and slightly upscale pub food. With all the places one can get great beers, the attractiveness of this place for me will depend upon the kind of crowd it attracts and vibe they create. During this visit it felt a little lifeless, but they were just getting started, so it remains to be seen if it manages to establish a sort of neighborhood vitality.

1205 Northeast 65th Street Seattle, WA 98115 - (206) 524-5020
Est. Aug 12, 2012 - Building constructed: 1947 - Closed May 17, 2014
Previous bars in this location: None known (previously Jalisco restaurant)
Web site: mutinyhall.com - facebook
Reviews: seattlepi - seattlebeernews - examiner - thrillist - thestranger - yelp - urbanspoon