#820 - The Tin Table, Seattle (Capitol Hill) - 5/21/2009

Try the: Amendment 21

Very good cocktails, very good food, good prices, romantic atmosphere, and sexy salsa dancers dropping in from the Century Ballroom dance floor next door -- what's not to like? Yet another fine new choice on Capitol Hill.

915 E Pine St. (above Odd Fellows and across from Century Ballroom)
Est. Feb 28, 2009 - Building constructed 1908
thetintable.com - yelp - seattle metropolitan - capitol hill blog - the stranger

#819 - Boom Noodle, Seattle (Capitol Hill) - 5/21/2009

Update: Boom Noodle on Pike closed Aug 21, 2016

Try the: Cucumber Mint Fizz 

Est. 2007 - Closed Aug 21 2016

 1121 E. Pike St. boomnoodle.com - yelp - the stranger

#818 - Crocodile Cafe (new), Seattle - 5/13/2009

Of course I would have preferred that the old Belltown institution stayed around forever, along with its smoke-stained neon sheep, but the the new owners just did a crackerjack job in remodeling the place. The Croc itself now makes much more sense as a space for music; no more spilling out into the rather pointless cafe area or peeking around the beams in front of the stage. The walls are lined by large photos of various Seattle area rockers (The Sonics, et. al.), which would be cheesy if the photos weren't so dang cool.

The old back bar portion is now a sexy Via Tribunali, which feels like a bar with good food, rather than a restaurant that serves drinks. The booths have great, high backs and the entire interior is circled by dramatic black and gold paintings of erupting volcanoes, with each lit by a single lamp that accentuates the Rembrandt lighting. They're even booking interesting bands again. The Croc is definitely back.

2200 2nd Ave Seattle, WA 98121
thecrocodile.com - yelp

#817 - Umi Sake House, Seattle (Belltown) - 5/13/2009

Try the: St. Valentines

2230 1st Ave Seattle, WA 98121
umisakehouse - seattle weekly - yelp - seattledining

#816 - Buckleys, Seattle (Belltown) - 5/13/2009

This feels like a bit more welcoming place to watch sports than the other large options downtown, though I've yet to go there when it's full of people.

2331 2nd Ave, Seattle WA 98121
web site - yelp - citysearch

#815 - List, Seattle (Belltown) - 5/13/2009

I wasn't very excited about another Belltown wine bar, but this is a nifty little place from the owners of Barolo, with a pleasant crowd, excellent food that they serve until midnight, friendly bartenders, and fine wine.

2226 1st Avenue Seattle, WA 98121 (map)
seattle times - the stranger - yelp - urban spoon

#814 - Dinette, Seattle - 5/8/2009

Dinette closed on Dec 23, 2013 and the owner is said to be looking for a larger location.

1514 E. Olive Way
Est. 2005 - Closed 2013
Previous bars in this location: None known
dinetteseattle.com - bostonglobe - yelp - zagat - the stranger - seattle weekly - seattle times -

#813 - Yuji's Lounge (Kona Kitchen), Seattle - 5/6/2009

#812 - 5th Avenue Tavern, Seattle - 5/6/2009

A nifty, old neighborhood tavern -- one of the oldest in Seattle. Like any good neighborhood place, it has no spectacular features (though there's an interest mural wrapping around the back room), and its continuing attraction depends on the quality of conversation among the regulars. So it's nice to find people like James the bartender and Dan the long time regular who love to talk local history, whether its what the area was like 100 years ago or what the local music scene was like 15 years ago

8507 5th Ave NE
Previous bars in this location: Stewart's Tavern (1930s)
myspace - yelp

#811 - Sun Liquor, Seattle (Capitol Hill) - 5/2/2009

Another fine craft cocktail bar in the Capitol Hill area. I haven't yet given this my highest recommendation, but my stay was brief, the decor and vibe were fine, and I may well upgrade it after another visit or two.

807 Summit Ave E, Seattle, WA
sunliquor.com - nwsource - yelp - facebook

#810 - Summit Public House, Seattle (Capitol Hill) - 5/2/2009

A very friendly place, in keeping with the name. But why is it that every bar that refers to itself explicitly as a "public house" (from which "pub" was derived, of course), no matter where it is, seems like a college bar?

601 Summit Ave E # 102
summitpublichouse.com - seattle pi - yelp - the stranger - seattle weekly

#809 - Casablanca, Seattle (downtown) - 4/29/2009

This is a fairly big place but it was a small and intimate crowd when I visited, and though the bar itself is fairly unremarkable, the merguez was good and the company and conversation were first rate. I hope to see Ben, Salah, Belan, and the rest again soon.

113 Virginia St, Seattle, WA 98101 - (206) 448-3590
casablancaseattle.com - yelp

#808 - Wedgewood Broiler Lounge, Seattle - 4/23/2009

8230 35th Ave NE, Seattle, WA 98115-4817 - (206) 523-1115

#807 - O'Asian, Seattle (downtown) - 4/20/2009

This is a lot bigger and considerably swankier than I'd expected. (I would have taken several pictures if my camera didn't go on the fritz today.)

800 5th Ave #1, Seattle, WA 98104-3176 - (206) 264-1789

#806 - The Traveler, Seattle (Ballard) - 4/19/2009

Update: The Leary Traveler closed Oct 30, 2018.

---

AKA "The Leary Traveler. Nice place.

4356 Leary Way NW
Previous bars at this location: Carl's Tavern (1930s), Harvey's Tavern (40s-90s)
consupo - yelp - the stranger - urbanspoon

#805 - Golden City, Seattle (Ballard) - 4/19/2009

Update: Golden City closed in 2022

Now this is a fine dive bar! This has more of what I was hoping to find in the Ballard Smoke Shop. It's dark, it's intimate, it has backlit "Chinese" art, a huge, old, and terribly executed painting of an antebellum riverside scene, and it has a slightly creepy history to match. (I was informed by a regular that in the old days this place was named "The Plantation.")

And indeed The Plantation was located here from at least the 1940s into the 1980s.

5518 20th Ave NW 
Est. 1988 - Closed Aug 27, 2022 - Building constructed 1946
Previous bars at this location: Bayou Room (The Plantation Restaurant)   
seattlest - yelp

#804 - Ballard Smoke Shop, Seattle - 4/19/2009

This is a decent, old, dive bar, but it's too light, too open, and too big to have the sort of intimacy you want in a great dive. I recommend walking a few blocks to Golden City.

5439 Ballard Ave NW    
the stranger - ballardgossipgirl - yelp

#803 - Volterra, Seattle - 2008 (OOO)

5411 Ballard Ave NW
Est. 2005 - Building constructed: 1945
Previous bars in this location: The Suds (1934, not current building), Disalvo's Tavern, Freddy's Tavern, Burk's Cafe

volterrarestaurant.com - the stranger - yelp - fodors - seattletimes

#802 - Jade, Seattle - 4/16/2009

The latest residents cycling through this large space next to a biker AA hangout are a very friendly Chinese family. As far as the lounge goes, well, there was one older lady there when I dropped by and she told me the bartender made very good cocktails -- then a few minutes later had to explain to her what serving a drink "neat" is.

Historical Notes:  This structure was built in 1933 and by 1943 it was the "White Stone Tavern," which it appears to have remained at least into the 70s.  The river rock which comprise virtually the entire exterior of the building have since gone though various color changes, including orange and now yellow.  When I first moved to the neighborhood many years ago this was Travelers III, a popular native American bar where you could count on seeing cop cars pretty much every Friday and Saturday night. You could always count on the most drunk people on the #6 (now #358) bus getting off at that stop and staggering in.

In 1980 it is listed as the "Brooklyn Bridge Tavern" and in 1983 as "Rose Garden." After Travelers, it had a nice little run as a second Steel Pig BBQ, but I don't know if it's ever been half full since those early days. I'd like to see the current residents make a go of it, though there are at least three other Chinese restaurants within a couple blocks, with a less imposing exterior. And you may want to give the bartender a year or two to pick up her trade before going there for cocktails.

8904 Aurora Ave N.
Constructed: 1933
Previous bars in this location: White Stone Tavern, Brooklyn Bridge Tavern, Rose Garden, Travelers III, Steel Pig
jaderestaurant.net - yelp

#801 - The Funhouse, Seattle - 4/15/2009

Update: The Funhouse closed Oct. 31, 2012

I somehow missed getting this on my starting list, so I'll count my last visit Wednesday night, though of course I've been here many times before.

While this is now a regular venue for punk bands, I remember when it was Tex's Tavern and they first started trying out having live music. The back stage area didn't exist then, and the bands played by the front window, and when they started up they immediately emptied the place of 3/4 of the patrons -- the old folks who at that time were the primary clientele. For an illustration of just what kind of place it was for the bands in those days, I remember a time the bartender interrupted the set of my brother Spud's band, because a patron wanted cigarettes and they had to unplug the amps to plug in the cigarette machine. That same night LeRoux gave a dressing down to a guy for sneaking drinks from her beer, and then refused to buy him a pitcher in exchange for his engagement ring.

At any rate, the Funhouse is now a fine, dark alternative to the Disney-esque EMP and Seattle Center across the street, and the flickr search provides a pretty good sense of the place (and hence is not entirely work safe).

206 5th Ave N. (map)
Other bars at this location: Lex's Tavern, Tex's Tavern, Zak's 5th Avenue 
funhouseseattle.com - myspace - yelp - flickr