#2019 - Chinook Room, Columbia Inn, Kalama, WA - 1/20/2013

Overheard in the Chinook Room:

"He falls down and gets a 15-yard penalty. I don't think that boy should even be playing ball. Tom Brady is the biggest, little sissy."
"Bill, sometimes you are the biggest dumbshit."

The Columbia Inn and Chinook Room sports bar in back are more interesting on the outside than the inside. The food, drinks, and decor are bland, but you tend to stop for the cool signage and the charming little town.

The population of Kalama peaked in 1874, booming and then declining as the Northern Pacific Railroad created a terminus there, then moved their headquarters to Tacoma. From the 1880s to 1908, the second largest ferry in the world took train cars across the Columbia River from Kalama to Oregon. The ferry is gone but port-related businesses still employ about 1,000 people from the area (the current population of Kalama is around 2,500).

 In 1962, Elvis stayed at the adjacent motel, while driving from L.A. to Seattle to film "It Happened at the World's Fair." A sign on the side of the restaurant notes this and a visit from Jack Benny.

698 Northeast Frontage Road, Kalama, WA - (360) 673-7600
Reviews: yelp - elvishistory

#2018 - Icehouse, Vancouver, WA - 1/19/2013

For a description see Three Monkeys Pub.

7804 Northeast Highway 99 Vancouver, WA 98665 - (360) 573-0454

#2017 - Three Monkeys Pub, Vancouver, WA - 1/19/2013

Just over the river from hipster Portland, Vancouver, Washington bars seem like they are lost in time. There are hair bands on the big screen, and The Macarena is still huge. This is very evident in the classic suburban strip mall pub the Three Monkeys. The space has no particular personality, but a lively crowd is there doing Jaegar bombs, jello shots, and whip cream in flavored vodkas.

7917 Northeast Highway 99 Vancouver, WA 98665 - (360) 828-7006

#2016 - The Florida Room, Portland, OR - 1/19/2013

For Seattlelites, you might envision Portland's Florida Room as something midway between Unicorn and the Blue Moon. It has the colors of Unicorn, the carnival scenes painted on the tables, mid-century modern signage, the diveyness of the Blue Moon, condiments in six pack cartons, and various paintings with the Hamms Bear painted into them.

435 North Killingsworth Street Portland, OR 97217 - (503) 287-5658
Est. 2006

Web site: facebook
Reviews:  portlandmercury - eater - wweek - portlandhamburgers - barfly - portlandmonthly - urbanspoon - yelp

#2015 - The Tardis Room, Portland, OR - 1/19/2013

A funky, nerd magnet, Dr. Who-themed bar inside "The Fish and Chip Shop"

1218 N Killingsworth St Portland, OR 97217 - (503) 232-3344
Est. Dec. 2010 (restaurant in Nov. 2008)
Previous bars in this location:
Web site: thefishandchipshop.com - facebook 
Reviews: pechluck1 - oregonlive - thrillist - barfly - yelp

#2014 - The Woodsman Tavern, Portland, OR - 1/19/2013

Try the: Kentucky Special

It was interesting to hear the bartender at this upscale restaurant and craft cocktail bar tell of various locals poking their head in expecting to grab a Bud in the new neighborhood dive. Instead the Woodsman usually has a line for dinner and drinks, and was recently celebrated by GQ Magazine as one of the best new restaurants in the country. I had some very nice cocktails on this evening, including a "Hunting Vest" (basically and Old Pal with Cedar-steeped Campari) and an even better "Kentucky Special" (12yo bourbon, Lapsang souchong, cherry heering, and Angostoga bitters). I'm no fan of oysters, so I stuck to the burger, which was pretty good, and came with fried potatoes with mayo and Saracha sauce.

4537 Southeast Division Street Portland, OR 97206 - (971) 373-8264
Est. Fall 2011

Web site: woodsmantavern.com -
Reviews: eater - nytimes - wweek - eatiuppdx - seriouseats - portlandmonthly -  yelp

#2013 - Funhouse Lounge, Portland, OR - 1/19/2013

Portland's Funhouse does not have great drinks or food, but it does have a stage hosting music and improv, a carnival on acid retro decor, and a number of fairly isolated rooms, crowned by the happily creepy "Clown Room"

2432 Southeast 11th Avenue Portland, OR 97214 - (503) 841-6734
Web site: funhouselounge.com - facebook
Reviews: barfly - yelp - portlandmercury

#2012 - Reel M Inn, Portland, OR - 1/19/2013

This is a swell example of the sort of places that make Portland such a good bar town. There's chalk graffiti on exposed wood, a door handle made from an oar, and an upside down umbrella that collects a surprising amount of cash for the Make A Wish foundation. It's an unassuming neighborhood dive, with a nice mix of ages, and enough ramshackle personality that you can easily feel as if it were on the side of a small lake in the mountains.

2430 Southeast Division Street Portland, OR 97202 - (503) 231-3880

Reviews: barfly

#2011 - Dockside Saloon, Portland, OR - 1/19/2013

The Dockside  is a blue collar restaurant across the street from an industrial area on the banks of the Willamette River. It's been around sine 1986 but there's been a restaurant in the building for 90 years or so. It's more of a diner than a bar (it closed at 3pm on Saturdays), but the woody interior, hodge-podge of wall decorations, and the friendly staff make it a pleasant place to grab an early cocktail.

The Dockside's brush with fame came courtesy of Tonya Harding, when they inspected several bags of trash someone had thrown in their dumpster and found various bits of evidence connecting to the clubbing of Nancy Kerrigan (including Nancy's practice schedule in Tonya's handwriting).

2047 Northwest Front Avenue Portland, OR 97209 - (503) 241-6433
Est. Sep 15, 1986 - Building constructed: c.1925
Previous bars in this location: Doc's Sternwheeler, What's Up Doc?
Web site: docksidesaloon.com - facebook
Reviews: barfly - portlandmercury - yelp

#2010 #S1106 - Joule, Seattle - 1/16/2013

Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi started the Korean fusion restaurant Joule in 2007, and in 2012 moved it to this new location across from The Whale Wins in the Fremont Collective building. There is a new emphasis on steaks, and as they demonstrated with Quoin/Revel, they can deliver some really good cocktails with their excellent food. My Pork belly ham, salted shrimp and chili oil was quite tasty, and every dish coming past looked great. For cocktails, I had a very good and interesting "Jalisco Campire" (tequila, Lapsang Souchong, agave, Thai chile, and lime) and a fairly good "35 Stone Buck" (bourbon, Asian pear, honey, cinnamon, Rachel's Ginger Beer, bitters). Perhaps this last one was an idiosyncratic reaction, as I am not particularly fond of Rachel's Ginger Beer in cocktails, and this seems to put me in a tiny minority.

3506 Stone Way N Seattle, WA 98103 - (206) 632-5685
Est. 2012 (2007 in previous location) - Building constructed: 1964
Previous bars in this location: None known
Web site: joulerestaurant.com - facebook
Best Reviews: seattlemet - seattletimes - thestranger - seattleweekly - yelp

#2009 #S1105 - Ampersand Lounge, Seattle - 1/15/2013

Update: The Ampersand Lounge is now closed (as of sometime in 2014?)

After a brief run as the Empire Lounge, the Copper Cart folks are back, and running the Ampersand Lounge in a form I can distinguish from neither of the predecessors. However, if you go early on a Tuesday afternoon, you'll find a sedate, nearly empty place where "Mama" makes tacos for $1 each.





113 Bell St, Seattle, WA 98121 - (206) 239-0830
Est. Dec 5, 2012 - Closed 2014? - Building constructed: 1930
Previous bars in this location: Copper Cart, Empire Lounge
Web site: ampersandlounge.com - facebook
Reviews: thrillist - yelp

#2008 #S1104 - The Grill from Ipanema, Seattle - 1/15/2013

Marco Cazas Breaux has established some of the more provocative Latin nightclubs in the city (Madrid 522, Club Sur), owned the Buenos Aires Grill in Belltown, and started the palace of Brazilian churrascaria Ipanema at the top of the Harbor Steps. The Grill from Ipanema revives the latter, in another romantic location, which has recently housed Fandango, Twist, and the shortlived Mestizo. Marco is an old school restauranteur, roaming the premises and making sure everything is just right for the regulars. The salad bar alone is a treat, but the star of the show is the rodizio, where gauchos bring skewers of various tasty meats from the fire pit. Marco employs chef Jared Velasquez (Il Bistro, Avenue One, Volterra, Ipanema) and bartender Alberto Meza. Dinner is a well worth the relatively high price, but you can also get essentially the same great rodizio choices for considerably less at lunch time. As for the bar, you are pretty much obligated to have a caipirinha, the national cocktail of Brazil.

2313 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98121 - (206) 457-4885                                     
Est. Jan 12, 2013 - Building constructed: 1999
Previous bars in this location: Fandango, Twist, Mestizo Tequila Ultra Lounge
Web site: seattlegrillfromipanema.com - facebook 
Reviews: seattlepi - eater - thrillist - tripadvisor - yelp

#2007 #S1103 - The House Sports Pub, Seattle - 1/14/2013

Yes, another sports bar -- this one taking over the space that was Pillagers Pub, and again, with no particular soul, but a limited set of memorabilia which could have well all been purchased in one day at the mall. They do have a fairly good beer selection, though very limited liquor, with average food and serious TV coverage.

8551 Greenwood Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103 - (206) 403-1464
Est. Dec 21, 2012 - Building constructed: 2000
Previous bars in this location: Pillagers Pub (2009-2012)
Web site: thehousesportspub.com
Reviews: thestranger - yelp

#2006 #S1102 - Tailgaters, Seattle - 1/14/2013

Update" Tailgaters closed Sep 2013 and reverted to Bad Albert's

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The most recent owners of "Bad Albert's" in Ballard determined that they need to change the theme of the place to make it, and hence the additional televisions, cleaner look, sports-bar theme, and new name. The staff are nice, the menu is typical bar food in generous portions, and the drinks are pedestrian but generous pours. It's a very average sort of place, but perhaps Ballard needs a few of those along with the Moshi Moshis, Oaxaca's, and Bastilles.

Historical notes: The Palmer Building that hosts the bar was built in the "rough section" of Ballard in 1905 and hosted various businesses over the years. The first bar I have found there in the Tailgater's location is Trader Vans' Tavern, here from the 70s into the 90s. In 1995 it became Fat Alberts, and hosted jazz and blues bands.

While there on this night I had a pleasant conversation with Wally, a 73-yo fisherman who has lived on a boat in the same nearby slip for 20 years. Wally used to trade fish at the old sandwich shop down here. He has a place outside of New Orleans and lives and works there, in Seattle, and Alaska. Wally likes Ballard because it's an easy walk to the bars from his boat, and noted that he's only fallen in the water once.

5100 Ballard Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107 - (206) 782-9623
Est. Dec 24, 2012 - Closed Sep 2013 - Building constructed: 1905
Previous bars in this location: Bad Albert's (1995-2012), Trader Van's Tavern (70s-90s)

Reviews: myballard - thrillist - thestranger - yelp

#2005 - Sunnydale Tavern, Seatac - 1/13/2013

Sunnydale Tavern, SeaTac, WA

This is a congenial, historic tavern in an area that the old-timers still call "Sunnydale," most the locals call "Burien," and government officials call "the city of Seatac." It is full of antique, western bric-a-brac and devoted, regular customers (one I met drives from Auburn five days a week).  After 70+ years, the place closed down briefly in 2012, until two long-time customers purchased and revived it -- and God bless 'em for preserving a bar with such history and personality.

Sunnydale Tavern, SeaTac, WA

European settlement in the area is said to date back to 1860s, and the original name of "Sunnydale" is attributed settler Mick Kelly from that time. But it was only a decade later that Gottlieb Burian moved with his wife from Seattle, constructed a cabin on the southeast corner of what is now Lake Burien, and started the community that, like the lake, would bear his slightly misspelled name. The surrounding area was mostly Italian farmers before SeaTac airport was constructed in 1944, and I am told that the road outside the tavern remained brick into the 1960s.

Antique chastity belt at Sunnydale Tavern, SeaTac, WA

Various sources including Carl, the current owner date the bar back 70+ years to approximately 1939. However, this must have been in a different building, as King County tax records date the current structure to 1955. Art Kleitsch owned the tavern from 1949 to 1975, and it was he who introduced the western vintage and antique items in 1960.

A number of customers were very willing to tell me what they knew about the place and why they loved it. I talked to Matthias, Brent, and others, with one customer noting that it "feels like you're in Colorado or Pendleton."

Sunnydale Tavern, SeaTac, WA

Though it is hardly convenient to my home or work, this is definitely a bar I will return to.

14404 Des Moines Memorial Dr S, SeaTac, WA 98168 - (206) 246-2029
Est. 1939? - Building constructed: 1955 
Previous bars in this location: None known

Reviews: link - b-townblog - nwkaraokeguide - yelp