#1636 #S969d - Chuck's 85th St. Market, Seattle - 12/3/2011

Chuck's Hop Shop, Greenwood neighborhood, Seattle, WA

First, new owner Chuck Shin took a shady little shop and cleaned it up into a bright convenience store that the neighbors actually welcomed. Next he turned the back section into a beer lover's mecca, with a small bar, a fairly large selection of craft beers on tap, and 1,200 additional choices in bottles (this is to go along with 600 wine choices under $15. It's a homey place, where the beer is served in masan jars, the workers know and love beer, and their toddlers and families drop by. The Seattle PI listed it as the "Best bar that isn't exactly a bar."



As it *is* a convenience store, it's a little bright and busy when one is in the mood for a relaxing pint. But it's a great place for beer lovers to fill their growlers or grab a quick taste of some very interesting things on tap.

Note: Since the writing above Chuck's has added picnic tables out front and regular visits from some of the best food trucks in Seattle (food truck schedule)

656 NW 85th St, Seattle, WA 98117-3143 - (206) 297-6212
Est. 2010 - Building constructed: 1945
Previous bars at this location: None known
chucks85th.com - facebook - seattlepi - beeradvocate - phinneywood - crapmonkey - seattlest - yelp

#1635c #S969c - Sun Liquor Distillery, Seattle - 12/3/2011

Update: Sun Liquor on Pike closed June 25, 2017.

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Sun Liquor Distillery is a sister cocktail lounge to Sun Liquor and also the first distillery on Capitol Hill since prohibition.  Both locations make quite good cocktails -- the bars are managed by Eric Chapman. 

512 East Pike Street, Seattle, WA 98122-3618 - (206) 720-1600
Est. March 11, 2011 - Closed June 25, 2017 - Building constructed: 1926
sunliquor.com - seattletimes - seattlemet - seattleweekly - tumblr - thestranger - yelp

#1635b #S969b - Chino's, Seattle - 12/3/2011

Update: Chino's closed in late September 2012

Chino's calls itself an "Urban Tiki House & Taiwanese Cantina."  They offer Mexican and Taiwanese street foods, as served from old-style L.A. food trucks, along with tiki cocktails.  Whereas tiki drinks are generally terribly made sugary concoctions for drinkers who don't really like spirits, here they are a rotation of well-crafted classics from Verionika Groth (of Poppy and Oliver's Twist).  The foods items we sampled were very tasty and many not quite like anything I've seen anywhere else in the city.  “Most of the food we're doing can be found at the Taiwanese night markets,” says one of the owners.

 Chino's is a nice new alternative.

1024 E Pike Street Seattle, WA 98122 - (206) 860-4238     
Est. Dec 3, 2011 - Closed Sep 2012 - Building constructed: 1913
Previous bars at this address:  None known  
chinosseattle.com - facebook - seattlemag - seattlemet - gastrolust -  capitolhillseattle - eater - yelp

#1635 #S969 - Fusion Ultra Lounge, Seattle - 12/2/2011

Update: Fusion closed in March 2015

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An all-ages nightclub with a separate bar area.

"According to police, officers have been called to Fusion, located at Northeast 45th Street and Eighth Avenue Northeast more than 30 times in the past year for events ranging from traffic-stopping, 50-person brawls, to shooting, to security staff pulling a gun on a drunk patron." (komonews)

Historical notes: This has hosted bars since at least 1939, most notably The Rainbow (Rainbow Tavern, Fabulous Rainbow Room, etc.). It was the Rainbow from at least 1941 into the 60s, renamed the Sandpiper Tavern for a while, then renamed The Rainbow in 1973, and hosted a wide range of musical styles and artists including Robert Cray, Bo Diddley, George Thorogood, and Sound Garden.


722 NE 45th St, Seattle, WA 98105 - (206) 774-9296

Previous bars at this location: Rainbow Tavern/Room, Sandpiper Tavern
clubfusionseattle.ning.com - yelp

Number Adjustment Notes

A systematic review of my starting data has led me to adjust my counts of both total bars and Seattle bars, and the next several posts will reflect these changes:

• 11 bars listed under "Seattle area" and previously counted in the Seattle total are/were not technically within the Seattle city limits
• 8 bars have been removed entirely, either because they were duplicates, not actually bars (e.g. an all ages club was included), or simply cannot be confirmed
• 5 Seattle bars were added due to a refinement in my definition of what counts as a bar

Thus I will suspend the numbering of bars after this post for 14 Seattle bars and 3 bars overall to make up for the difference.

#1635 #S969 - The Innkeeper, Seattle - 12/2/2011

Update: The Innkeeper closed in November 2017 and replaced by The Jerk Shack later that month.

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The Innkeeper looks much the same as Marco's Supperclub, but manages to have both a little more personality and a little less attitude. The menu is focused on Latin American and Caribbean dishes, with a few good cocktails to boot. I had the Penn Cove Manila Clams and Chorizo, which were spicy and tasty and had me ordering extra bread to sop up every drop of the broth. I also had a cup of the Ham Hock White Bean soup which was also very fine.

 The cocktails were fairly good, though not quite as well balanced as one would expect at, say, Spur or Canon. I had a fairly good "Fleur de Lys" and an okay Corn n'Oil, while my friend had a slightly sweet but enjoyable Dark and Stormy.

The Innkeeper is run by the folks behind Black Bottle and here they provide the same sort of affordable, quality food in perhaps a slightly more casual atmosphere. I'm eager to go back, particularly if the back patio is open on warm evenings.

2510 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98121 - (206) 718-7817
Est. Nov. 28, 2010 - Building constructed: 1954
Previous bars at this location: Tokyo West Tavern (70s), Seoul Tavern (80s), Wheelhouse Suds (80-90s), Marco's Supperclub (1994-2011)
innkeeperseattle.com - seattletimes - seattlemag - thestranger - eater - yelp

#1634 #S968 - Lost River Winery, Seattle - 12/2/2011

The Lost River Tasting Room, just north of Pike Place Market, offers glasses of the selections from the Mazama, Washington winery.

2003 Western Ave Ste 100 Seattle, WA 98101 - (206) 448-2124
Est. Oct. 1, 2011 - Building constructed: 1981
lostriverwinery.com - facebook -  yelp