Amidst the malls and the chain stores that generally comprise the communities on the east side of Lake Washington, the Yuppie Tavern leaps out for the singularity of its character. A few years ago the owners of
Yuppie Pawn took about a third of their large shop and converted it into a bar, with a sort of Disneyesque, old west theme (I'm guessing this is mostly left from the Cowboy Steakhouse and Saloon that previously occupied the space?). Inside the building, you walk through the false front of a western saloon and look up past sundry knickknacks hanging from the ceiling and walls to a row of emulated old buildings and mannequins hanging above a stage where live bands play each Friday and Saturday night.
It may be titled "Yuppie," but the crowd is mostly 50-ish, and this usually includes the people in the bands. Typical patrons were a what looked like a 60-year-old, retired biker couple, sporting a bluetooth ear piece and a bedazzled top. This is not to say that the place is not fairly lively. People seem happy and friendly and ready to have a good time, and I like the place. The bar offers 13 beer choices on tap and another 50 in bottles. The menu includes some "signature cocktails" of the sugary, beach party variety, and various burgers and sandwiches.
While it was difficult to identify anything particularly "young" in the place, the "Yuppie" moniker comes with the pawn shop, which has been around for over 20 years and goes to great lengths to communicate that the shop and its clientele are cut from the cloth of east side material success. "This means Medina, Issaquah, Bellevue, Kirkland, etc. 80% of our customers come from these neighborhoods. Inside the store For those of you reading this throughout the country who are unfamiliar with our region, this means that our borrowers come from areas where the average income exceeds $50,000 per year and extends up into the higher six figure incomes." So "Whether you need money for diapers, cigarettes, a Harley, a Rolex or for stocks--we can lend it to you." After all, "Whether you make $10,000 or $1,000,000 per year, you will experience a cash flow problem at sometime during your life."
The bar portion seems like a place where pretty much anyone would have a pleasant time. And if, like me, you would like to see a bit more individuality from the shops and bars of the east side, it seems like we must give credit to a pawn shop which caters to people fond of ostentatious wealth and contains a cowboy themed bar inside.
12031 Totem Lake Way, Kirkland, WA 98034 - (425) 814-5200
Est. 2011? - Building constructed: 1979
Previous bars in this location: Cowboy Steakhouse & Saloon
Web site:
yuppietavern.com
Reviews:
kirklandreporter -
yelp
#2122 #S1124 - Chabela's, Seattle - 3/30/2013
#2119 - Unicorn Room, Tacoma, WA - 3/29/2013
The restaurant is housed in a 1908 building near the junction of Ballard Avenue and Market, the two major restaurant and retail thoroughfares in a neighborhood booming with great places to eat and drink. The building has housed a department store, car dealership, the Ballard News Tribune printing press, and a few restaurants, most recently Thaiku (now in Greenwood). Subsequent to this visit, the area that hosted Fu Kun Wu, the apothecary-themed bar of Thaiku, was opened as "Grog."
