#2320 - China Pearl, Friday Harbor, WA - 10/13/2013

On the surface this appears to be your typical small town Chinese Restaurant / Pizza Parlor / Sports Bar / Karaoke Joint / Dance Hall. But a closer look at the upstairs portion shows it can also get a hint risque now and then.

View from China Pearl Restaurant, Friday Harbor, WA

51 Spring Street, Friday Harbor, WA 98250 - (360) 378-5254
Web site: chinapearldining.com - facebook
Reviews: yelp - tripadvisor - urbanspoon

#2319 - Herb's Tavern, Friday Harbor, WA - 10/13/2013

Taking a quick look at online reviews for Herb's Tavern in Friday Harbor one finds the typical range of positive and negative. One of the bad reviews includes "The furniture has seen better days" -- a comment that immediately informs me that this person's tastes in bars have nothing in common with mine. Another reviewer's "Funnest Place in Town!" seems like it is probably true -- although the competition is not overwhelming in this San Juan Island community of two thousand people. One of the nearby hotels warns about the noise.

The San Juans, an archipelago of 428 to 743 islands (depending on the tides) east of Vancouver Island, were the subject of a 30-year border war between the British and Americans, although the only fatal shot was fired at a pig. Friday Harbor is now the gentle hub of the area, its restaurants, shops, and galleries, happily free of corporate chains, looking over sailboats, sailplanes and ferries bringing in tourists and locals.

Herb's has been here since 1943, according to the signs. It seems as much the heart of the town as any place here, with personalized bar stools, live music, karaoke, pool tournaments, and fairly typical bar food and drink options. You can spot it by the bar scenes painted on the windows of the upper floor, and you'll know you're their when you see the bras hanging from a bicycle attached to the ceiling.

80 1st Street, Friday Harbor, WA 98250 - (360) 378-7076
Est. 1943 - Building constructed: c. 1892
Previous bars in this location: None known
Web site: facebook
Reviews: yelp - citygrid - panoramio - tripadvisor - urbanspoon

#2318 - Oak Harbor Cafe Bar, WA - 10/12/2013

Hidden in the back of a diner in a motel parking lot and accessed through a funky door in back of the swimming pool, the Oak Harbor Bar seems like a cross between local dive and hotel lounge. But they pour a generous glass of cheap wines, and keep a small mix of locals and tourists three sheets to the wind.

430 Southeast Pioneer Way, Oak Harbor, WA 98277 - (360) 675-9100
Reviews: google

#2317 - La Conner Pub, La Conner, WA - 10/11/2013

The La Conner Pub, known locally as simply "The Tavern," feels like the heart of this town. It's a gambrel ceiling joint that's been around for almost 80 years, mixing a smattering of tourists into an atmosphere firmly set by the locals, and serving dive bar style drinks with old school cafe seaside comfort foods. And like a lot of small town bars, it tends to have a little of everything -- family diner, dive bar, community meeting hall, live music venue, pool tables, darts, pull tabs, and a fine patio looking out on

It was here that we met Reed, who had just had three teeth pulled, and was methodically "medicating." Reed talked about starting a drunk driving school, the main key appearing to be experience. Pointing to his shot of whiskey he explained "If you only do this once in a while, you're in trouble."

702 1st Street, La Conner, WA 98257 - (360) 466-9932                   
Est. 1937 - Building constructed: 1900 or earlier
Previous bars in this location: None known
Web site: laconnertavern.com - facebook
Reviews: tripadvisor - yelp - urbanspoon

#2316 - 1890s Lounge, La Conner, WA - 10/11/2013

The 1890s Lounge inside La Conner Seafood and Prime Rib House, is a re-opening of a sort of 60s/70s rock joint in a historic building that once served loggers and fishermen. "Most stories include a woman named Rosanna (who managed the live-music bookings for the 1890’s lounge, and whose nickname was Rosanna Pianna), as well as late-night escapades centered around a rather cannabis-induced haze." (laconnerseafood.com)

La Conner itself is now an amiable, fairly touristy town strung along the Swinomish Channel, just a few thousand feet from where the Washington state coast approaches the Pacific in the form of Skagit Bay. A trading post was established here in 1869 by J.S. Conner, who named the place not with a French "La" but for the initials and last name of his wife Louisa Ann Conner. In 2005 La Conner proclaimed the wild turkey the Official Town Bird, a motion that lasted 5 years before the residents had enough of turkey feces, destroyed gardens, and nuisance complaints for the town counsel to officially name them a nuisance and arrange for their removal. (e.g. see NPR)

The current restaurant and lounge must be a far cry from gambling hall that greeted the old sailors and lumbermen, let alone the club that once hosted John Lee Hooker and Taj Mahal. But its genteel decor does include several nods to the past beyond the name, including some great old photos, and it now hosts some standout local artists like Knut Bell and Brent Amaker. The food is slightly upscale seafood and the drinks include some nice cocktail options. In the summer you should try to nab a table on the deck looking over the Swinomish.

614 S First St, La Conner, Washington - (360) 466-4014
Est. June 2, 2012 (Restaurant est. 1986) - Building constructed: 1900 or earlier
Previous bars in this location: Mal’s Tavern, 1890’s Lounge (late 70s, early 80s)
Web site: laconnerseafood.com - facebook

#2315 #S1179 - Ohana, Seattle - 10/9/2013

Somehow I previously missed listing Ohana, which looks something like a tiki bar, but is a bit more of a Hawaiian and Japanese themed restaurant and karaoke bar. It gets a pretty fun late night crowd, and feels like a joint pleasantly thrown together on a beach walk with whatever decorations and gewgaws were at hand.

2207 1st Avenue, Seattle, WA 98121 - (206) 956-9329
Est. 1999 - Building constructed: 1910
Previous bars in this location: Bell Town Tavern, Tugs, Vina Wine Bar
Web site: ohanabelltown.com - facebook
Articles Ranked: critiki - thestranger - seattletimes - urbanspoon - yelp - tripadvisor - thestranger

#2314 - Habitant, Bellevue, WA - 10/9/2013

Yes, Habitant is a cocktail bar smack in the middle of Nordstrom in Bellevue Square, and described by the company as an experiment, though one could hardly fathom how it could fail (at least in this location). The vibe is more that of a frozen yogurt shop than a bar, with only slight railings separating it from the racks of women's slacks and blouses. My drinks fell a bit short of the quality I anticipate from a place described as providing craft cocktails, however they do have a nice selection of fresh juices and quality spirits, and while I would not go out of my way to get a drink there, it could certainly serve as a welcome respite when I am coerced into the mall.

100 Bellevue Square, 2nd Floor, Bellevue, WA 98004 - (425) 455-5800
Est. July 26, 2013 - Building constructed: 1946
Web site: nordstrom.com
Reviews: seattletimes - seattlemet - eatdrinksing - bizjournals - yelp - untapped