#2213 - Van's 1885 Bar and Grill, Naches, WA - 7/3/2013

Naches, Washington is a central Washington town of about 800 people. It is named for the nearby Naches River, which in turn is said to be named for the native words for "turbulent water," formed by the confluence of the Little Naches and Bumping River flowing down the eastern slopes of the Cascades and eventually into the Yakima. Van's 1885 Bar and Grill was in the Van Ness family since 1944, and called "Van's Tavern" for most if not all of that time. I chatted with the current owner, Elliot Baker, and when I asked him how long the place had been his, without pause he told me "Seven years and three days."

Elliot had worked in sales for Montgomery Ward and worked in real estate. In addition to the desire to have his own place, he was tempted by the grand, antique, oak Brunswick bar, which he believes was constructed in 1885 (hence the bar name).  The bar is said to have been made for Schlitz, which supplied a Schlitz-only bar formerly across the street, below the brothel and also believed to have been sawed in half and this half put in its current location sometime in the 1940s. However, review of the Brunswick-Balke-Collender catalog clearly identifies this as their standard "Metropolitan" model. It could very well have been made in 1885, and most likely was manufactured in the Dubuque Iowa Brunswick factory. (For some reason these "sawed in half" stories have quite commonly grown around antique Brunswick bars, even though they are quite clearly the full bars advertised in the catalogs.)

The 1934 and 1935 Yakima Polk Guides list "The Tavern" and "The Past Time" tavern in Naches, but unfortunately do not include addresses, and I have no way to date the bar beyond the information Elliot has received re. the Van Ness family.

The bar might be seen as a neighborhood dive, but it is considerably larger than it appears from outside, and with the current food options, cleaning, and upgrading by Elliot it feels almost as much like a family restaurant -- at least on an afternoon like the one I visited.  Typical beers, cocktails, and pub food are available.

208 Naches Ave, Naches, WA 98937 - (509) 653-2257
Est. 1944? - Building constructed: 1921
Previous bars in this location: Van's Tavern
Video: yakimavalleyrisktakers

#2212 #S1151 - Teachers Lounge, Seattle - 7/2/2013

Update: Teacher's Lounge closed in Nov 2022

A couple who worked at the now-closed Copper Gate have carved out a small part of this 85-yo building to create a "gastro-teria" -- a craft cocktail bar in the form of a seventh grade classroom. Husband Perryn, who also recently worked at Cicchetti, creates some nice and creative cocktails, and with wife Desiree put together a nice menu from the small kitchen, complete with in-theme titles.

This is basically my neighborhood, and in addition to adding probably the second best cocktail bar after Oliver's Twist to the south, it contributes to a dandy little variety of bars on this single block, including the hipster-ish Gainsbourg, beer-ish Naked City, and epic dives the Baranof and Yen Wor.

8505 Greenwood Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103 - (206) 706-2880
Est. June 25, 2013 - Building constructed: 1929
Previous bars in this location: None known
Web site: teachersloungeseattle.com - facebook
Best articles: seattletimes - seattlemag
More articles: eater - thestranger - yelp

#2211 - Harbour Public House, Bainbridge Island, WA - 7/1/2013

The Harbour Public House is almost hidden on the banks of Eagle Harbor, in log cabin-y remodel of an 1881 house in the old cannery district. The house was originally the home of Ambrose Grow, a civil war veteran who settled on the island, and it is now a pleasant pub with 15 Washington state microbrews on tap, 6 Washington wines on tap, and contemporary pub food with an emphasis on seafood. When the weather cooperates, the pub patio is a very nice place to enjoy a burger, oysters, or fish and chips, while making out the Seattle skyline over the masts of the sailboats moored in Eagle Bay.

231 Parfitt Way SW, Bainbridge Isle, WA 98110 - (206) 842-0969
Est. December 27th, 1991  - Building constructed: 1881
Previous bars in this location: None
Web site: harbourpub.com - facebook
Reviews: yelp - foodspotting - urbanspoon

#2210 - Hitchcock, Bainbridge Island, WA - 7/1/2013

Hitchcock is known much less for its bar than for owner/chef Brendan McGill's excellent, locally-source, daily menus. The menu is largely driven by the produce of local farmers, and McGill's interest in maximizing what he can make of it. E.g. he told the Seattle Times “People think you’re just trying to be weird with your smoked duck hearts or something, but we get some beautiful heritage breed ducks from an organic farm on the island. You have to use every single part for it to be economically possible to sell them.”

Hitchcock is named for McGill's wife's family, who first settled on Bainbridge Island in the 1890s. The short distance across Elliot Bay from downtown Seattle makes Bainbridge an attractive ferry ride and day trip, with many Seattleites making the trip expressly to dine in the restaurant. McGill's food and process are popular with both locals and tourists (e.g. he won the 2013 Food and Wine magazine’s 2013 People’s Best New Chef award).  Particularly recommended is the "name-your-price tasting menu," where you provide the chef how much you are interested in spending and some basic information on your taste preferences, and they prepare a surprise, multi-course meal to match.

The drink emphasis is on the wine list, and there is not quite as much inventiveness invested in the cocktails as in the meals, but the Hitchcock bar does offer some fairly high quality cocktails to go with the excellent food.

133 Winslow Way E, Bainbridge Island, WA 98110 - (206) 201-3789
Est. 2010 - Building constructed: 1941
Previous bars in this location: None known
Web site: hitchcockrestaurant.com
Best Articles: seattletimes - littlemisslocavore - seattleweekly - seattletimes - gastrolust - seattlemet - bainbridgereview
More articles: seattleite - heyprettything - dailymeal - seattlemag - gayot - yelp - chowhound - thestranger

#2209 - Mick Kelly's Irish Pub, Burien - 6/26/2013

This is a fairly typical, large, American, Irish bar owned by Mick Purdy and Kelly Adrian. The food and drinks are not outstanding, but it's a friendly place, and I'm inclined to reward them with my business more after reading this is a review: "I also hate it when a restaurant thinks they should tell guests how to wear their baseball hats. I was told repeatedly that turning my cap backwards was not allowed."

435 SW 152nd St Seattle, WA 98166 - (206) 246-2473
Est. Sep 15, 2005 - Building constructed: 1948
Previous bars in this location: The Shaft
Web site:  mickkellysirishpubburien.com - facebook
Reviews: seattletimes - yelp

#2208 - Ulysses Restaurant and Lounge, Tukwila - 6/26/2013

At age 25, Ulysses Kollias migrated from Kaloskopi Parnassidos, Greece, and at 36 he founded Ulysses Restaurant and Lounge in Tukwila, which has remained run by the family ever since. The emphasis seems a bit more on the lounge side of the business, with a fairly typical suburban bar serving up inexpensive drinks, karaoke, and televisions showing sports events.

16360 42nd Ave S, Tukwila, WA 98188 - (206) 243-1875
Est. 1978 - Building constructed: 1972
Web site: facebook
Reviews: yelp

#2207 #S1150 - Billy Beach Sushi and Bar, Seattle - 6/22/2013

I'm not a good judge of sushi. But not only has Billy Beach been running or worked at what seems like every modern sushi bar in Seattle (Japonessa, Wasabi Bistro, KushiBar, Rain, I Love Sushi), but this new ballard restaurant serves some very nice original and traditional cocktails. I especially enjoyed the Diesel Fuel (bourbon, Cocchi Torino, Zucca, whiskey barrel aged bitters), by bartender Cameron.

5463 Leary Ave NW Leary Ave NW, Seattle, Washington 98107 - (206) 257-4616
Est. May 1, 2013 - Building constructed: 1950
Previous bars in this location: Paratii Craft Bar
Web site: billybeachsushi.com - facebook
Reviews: onceuponabite - thrillist - ballardnewstribute - seattlemet - eater - yelp - thestranger