#1569 #S929 - Pritty Boys Family Pizzeria, Seattle - 10/3/2011

Update: Pritty Boys closed in August 2014

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This is a new, family-oriented pizza place from the owners of Branzino in the former Madrona location of Dulce Latin Bistro.  I had already had dinner when I stopped in, and was only interested in the bar -- which is not very good, overly bright, and suffers from being right across from the children's play area.  The pizza did not look like anything special to me.  However since I have subsequently learned that the chef is the same one who did the excellent pizzas at West Seattle's Phoenicia (and trained under Charles Wadpole, of Anchovies and Olives), so I definitely will be back to give the food a try.

It's probably a quite good option if you have young children with you.  You will not want to go there for the bar.

1430 34th Ave, Seattle, WA 98122 - (206) 257-1319
Est. May 26, 2011 - Building constructed: 1996 - Closed Aug 2014
prittypizza.com - seriouseats - eater - thrillist - yelp

#1568 #S928 - June, Seattle - 10/3/2011

Update:  June closed in Dec 2011

An upscale but casual bistro from Vuong and Tricia Loc, featuring Vietnamese-influenced French cuisine.

I had an Aaron's Cucumber cocktail, the prawns with green cocktail sauce, the burger (ground bacon and beef, Kurtwood Farms camembert, fries).

1423 34th Avenue Seattle, WA 98122-3300 - (206) 323-4000
Est. May 2010 - Building constructed: year
juneseattle.com - seattleweekly - seattleweekly - thestranger - seattletimes - seattlemag - yelp

#1567 #S927 - The Cactus (West Seattle), Seattle - 10/2/2011

The West Seattle version of this popular Mexican restaurant does not have quite the neighborhood feel of the Madison Park version, but it does have a location right on Alki looking across the beach to the water and large roll-up windows for great summertime seats.  The Mexican food and margaritas are both better than average, and the airy, modern building makes it a sort of loungey, modish counterpoint to the funky and fun Chupacabra up the road.

2820 Alki Ave SW Seattle, WA 98116-2788 - (206) 933-6000
Est. 2006 - Building constructed: 2003
cactusrestaurants.com - gayot - yelp

#1566 #S926 - Via Tribunali (Belltown), Seattle - 5/13/2011

Many of us will miss the dirty foam and neon sheep and the divey atmosphere of the back bar in the original Crocodile.  But the remodel included many things done right, including the dark and swanky Via Tribulani in the back portion.  This was Mike McConnell's fifth and most romantic of his AVPN-certified Neapolitan pizza restaurants, with a bar that seemed like a central point instead of squeezed in.  The most striking features where the very high-backed black vinyl seats and the gorgeous paintings of Mt. Vesuvius, emphasized with carefully positioned Rembrandt lighting.

 When it closed after approximately one year, Via Tribunali left the wood-fired pizza oven made from ash from Mt. Vesuvius and the mahogany bar to the owners of the Crocodile.  They continue to sell very similar pizza and fairly decent cocktails, though no longer under the volcano paintings.

2200 2nd Ave, Seattle, WA 98121 - (206) 441-4618
Est. April 16, 2009 - Closed 2010 - Building constructed: 1924
facebook - seattlepi - hideousbelltown - foodbuzz - seattleweekly - seriouseats - cornichon - belltownpeople - yelp  - zagat 

#1565 #S925 - Emerald City Beer Co, Seattle - 10/1/2011

The Emerald City Beer Lab is a medium-sized tasting room for the microbrew that has moved into the historic old Rainier Brewery between Airport Way and I5. The new brewery is also lager focused, but create a variety of craft brews.  The "lab" is somewhat spare, consistent with the industrial setting, with a good sized bar, two taps, and a big screen television.  The owner and staff are casual and friendly.

The tasting room is most notable to long-time residents for its historic location.  Beer has been brewed here since 1883, and the large R from the Rainier days was a Seattle icon.  The current building was constructed by Kopp & Hemrich brewery in 1887 and has been the site of major brewing from then until 1999 (around the prohibition years) under the names Bayview Brewery, Sick's Seattle Brewing & Rainier. 

The Mountain Room  ran within the brewery from the 30's until 1999, hosting at times Jim Whitaker (the first American to climb Mt. Everest), Mickey Rooney, and the Seattle Rainiers  baseball team. The brewery and Mountain Room were closed in 1999 and "Rainier"  subsequently sold to Pabst and brewed by Miller.  In recent years, developers have converted portions of it into artists studios and rehearsal spaces.

3100 Airport Way S, Ste 8100, Seattle, WA 98134 - (206) 351-8250
Est. Aug 21, 2010 - Building constructed: 1887 (Historic Bay View / Rainier Brewery)
Other bars at this address:  La Cantina, The Mountain Room (1930s - 1999)
emeraldcitybeer.com - washingtonbeerblog - seattlepi -  king5 - seattlest - yelp

#1564 #S924 - Epic Ales, Seattle - 10/1/2011

Epic Ales is a microbrewery run by Cody Morris with a tiny bar & tasting room in the KR Trigger Building in SoDo.  You'll need to ring the doorbell to be shown in.  On Saturdays he teams with a chef and presents upscale meals in the "gastropod," an upstairs room with lovely old wood and signs.  The room contains a lovely old bar made to look like a ship, which the landlord obtained from an old tavern in Spokane, and which now juts its bow through the wall into the next room.

The beers are adventurous and use some offbeat ingredients, and the food and beer pairings of the gastropod show the same creative considerations.  I had a lambic made with fresh hops called Zero Minute IPA.  Belgian-styles are not my personal favorites, but it was nice to have an intriguing set of tastes so different from the typical offerings.


3201 First Ave South, Suite 104, Seattle, WA 98134 - 206-351-3637
Est. January 22, 2010 (Brewery est. Dec 2008) - Building constructed: 1923
epicales.com - facebook - yelp - hessbrewing - beerblotter - eater.com

#1563 #S923 - Mars Bistro, Seattle - 9/30/2011

Mars Bistro (previously Blue Dog Kitchen) is a funky little spot on the north end of The Ave that focuses on organic breakfasts and lunch, along with teas and coffee.  But about a month ago they opened up a bar, and now in the evenings they offer an intimate, unfussy, little break between the frenetic Galway Arms and the sophisticated Lucid.

5247 University Way NE, Seattle, WA 98105 - (206) 632-5132
Est. 2011 - Building constructed: 1950
Other bars at this location: None known
organic-mars-bistrot.com - facebook - thestranger - yelp