#694 - The T-Bird Tavern, Seattle (Ballard) - 8/31/2008

Thunderbird Tavern, Seattle - Joe Nix mural

The Thunderbird/T-Bird bar next door to a small strip club is in a space that has hosted a bar since the late 1930s. By 1941 it was the "Pilot House Inn" and in 1959 became the "Thunderbird Tavern." It closed again in mid 2013, but reopened the following February under new owners Madison Eckendorf and Ian Smith, who have preserved the diveyness, and eventually added a beautiful Joe Nix mural to the north side of the building.

 Overheard from a Thunderbird customer (discussing a different bar): "You can't have a 70-year-old woman totin' around kegs and have a ditch in back ..."

Thunderbird Tavern, Seattle - 2008

7515 15th Ave NW,  Seattle, WA 98117 - (206) 706-4973
Closed 2013 - Building constructed 1936
Previous bars at this location: Pilot House Inn
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#693 - Hazelwood, Seattle (Ballard) - 8/31/2008

This bar had the small personality of a bar in the Adams Morgan district of Washington DC (which is the best strip of small personality bars in the country, as far as I've seen). I wasn't quite as knocked out by the drinks or vibe as most of the places I highly recommend, but this is an intimate, unique space, with a cool crowd and some adventurous cocktails, and what more could you ask?

#692 - Ocho, Seattle (Ballard) - 8/31/2008

A very nice, hopping, little place.

Try the Ten Dollar Margarita and the Sangria Rioja.