#2278 - Mill Creek Bar and Grill, Forks, WA - 9/7/2013

Up until about a decade ago, before the era of sparkly, teenage vampires, if someone knew Forks, Washington at all, it was probably as the rainiest town in the contiguous United States, with an average of 212 days a year of precipitation. If not, they probably knew it for the rain forest, or perhaps for the timber industry that once dominated the local culture. Then Stephenie Meyer wrote her Twilight series, set largely in the town, Forks tourism trebled, and teenage vampires have ruled ever since.




That doesn't mean the economy was necessarily booming, and by the time we visited the Mill Creek Bar and Grill it was the only bar left in town. And it would close three weeks later.

New owners have remodeled and reopened it as "Blakeslee's Bar and Grill. We've not been since this happened, but I don't imagine it is that much changed, with the exception of eliminating the family-friendly restaurant section and making the entire place a bar (generally a welcome kind of change in my book). It's a fairly large place, with a sizable dance floor, karaoke, cover bands, bar food, Fireball shots and candy colored cocktails. It's not one of my favorite bars in the state, but every town needs a gathering place where local folks can dry out and unwind, and that has to be even more sharply felt when it's raining or snowing 212 days a year.


1222 S Forks Ave, Forks, WA 98331
Est. 2008 - Closed Sep 30, 2013
Web site: facebook - blog
Reviews: yelp

#2277 - Porthole Pub, Ocean Shores, WA - 9/7/2013

The Porthole appears to be the go-to bar in Ocean Shores (and the only one open past 10pm). It has the little-bit-of-everything suburban strip mall bar sort of setting -- flavored vodka drinks, jello shots, karaoke, some live music, pull tabs, cafe style foods (with various seafood options, of course), and a pretty fair sized crowd of friendly drunk people. On one wall there is a mural of a shipwreck that features many of the locals and regulars ($40 to have yourself added).

893 Point Brown Ave NW Ocean Shores, WA 98569 - (360) 289-4469
Est. 2000
Web site: portholeoceanshores.com - facebook
Reviews: yelp - tripadvisor - urbanspoon

#2276 - Red Genie Pizza, Ocean Shores, WA - 9/7/2013

This is a pleasant enough place, with old saws and artifacts on the well and decent pizza. In the back, under the Men sign, is the lounge, which again, seems fine for a pizza stop, though if you are looking specifically for a bar, you might look to some the livelier nearby bars like the Porthole.

766 Ocean Shores Blvd NW, Ocean Shores, WA 98569 - (360) 289-8144
Web site: facebook
Reviews: tripadvisor - rooseveltcabin - yelp - urbanspoon

#2275 - The Pirate's Cove Pub, Ocean Shores, WA - 9/7/2013

For me, it is debatable whether any joint that closes at 10pm on weekend evenings should be considered a legitimate bar. But the Pirate's Cove is a lively place, with a nice mix of locals and tourists drinking and laughing before they turn off the lights so early, so I suppose they squeak by. In the meantime, you can get some typical dive bar sorts of cocktails, with burgers and other fairly standard bar food, in a nautical theme decor.

798 Ocean Shores Blvd NW Ocean Shores, WA 98569 - (360) 289-4400
Web site: facebook
Reviews: yelp

#2274 - Porter Saloon, Elma, WA - 9/7/2013

AKA Porter Creek Saloon, the only bar between Oakville and Elma has been around for a very long time, but its beginnings are unclear. Kay Lee, the current owner, believes it was established, as the "Porter Saloon," in 1919, with the physical bar purchased in the 30s, and that it is the "second oldest bar in the state of Washington." But that would have been during statewide prohibition -- so it seems unlikely that it would have been established with an "Saloon" name in that period (let alone a liquor license) -- and numerous bars across the state make the claim to being the first or second liquor license after prohibition. A newspaper article in the bar contains an interview with previous owner Opal Butterfield, who says she purchased the place with her husband in 1935.  Grays Harbour Polk Guides show one bar in Porter in 1937 owned by Ed Butterfield, and one in 1935 owned by A.B. Miller.

Wikipedia says that "Porter Saloon was re-built" in 1925, a year after a fire destroyed it and much of the town. The Wikipedia article adds that "When it re-opened in 1933 following the repeal of Prohibition, it was one of the first establishments to receive a liquor license in the State of Washington," but contains no references. Thus with no primary references, my best guess from what I've found so far is that there was some kind of business built here in 1919, it burned down in 1924, and was rebuilt in 1925, it became a tavern in Dec. 1933, has been the Porter Saloon for many years, and in the last few years has had a quite remarkable remodel by Ms. Lee.

3 Porter Creek Rd, Elma, WA 98541 - (360) 482-4443
Est. 1933? - Building constructed: 1925
Reviews: yelp

#2273 - Brooklyn Tavern, Cosmopolis, WA - 9/7/2013

The Brooklyn Tavern, Brooklyn, WA

"There's an old tavern up in the mountains somewhere, in the middle of nowhere, and it has a creek running through it."  I heard a couple mentions of this legendary bar from patrons at other out-of-the-way dives around the remote parts of the state, but no one could tell me exactly where it was, or even what the name was. Finally I stumbled upon the site for the Brooklyn Tavern, and planned a road trip around what would definitely live up to my expectations of one of the great, hidden gem bars in the state of Washington (or anywhere else).

The Brooklyn Tavern, Brooklyn, WA

It does indeed seem like the middle of nowhere -- up a very pretty drive along the North River, about halfway between highways 12 and 101, 18 miles and 40 minutes from the nearest towns or other bars. From the east it can only be reached by navigating some narrow dirt logging roads. The "Brooklyn" area has been dying out since the 40s, when the Saginaw Lumber Mill closed, and the tavern is pretty much all there is to it now. The tavern happily embraces the remote nature of the place; there are no televisions or cell reception, no pulltab bins or cardboard beer corporation memorabilia, the only heat comes from a woodburning stove, and there's a sign behind the bar noting that if you are not happy here there are bars available just 18 miles away (only one of which turns out to be still open). It also embraces Brooklyn past, with passels of memorabilia, much of it celebrating the old lumber business.

The Brooklyn Tavern, Brooklyn, WA

The building isn't really that old -- it was rebuilt in 1991 after burning down the previous year. But it was built with a sort of cabin-like rusticity its predecessor appeared to have, constructed in 1927, and serving drinks to thirsty local loggers and rail workers since shortly after prohibition if not during. The "creek" -- "Snoose Creek" as it is known for its utility in flushing away spent chaw -- doesn't look quite like I envisioned. It is very similar to the plumbed little gutter in The Brick in Roslyn, and years ago much more common in the saloons and the occasional "latrine bar." Serving us was Ciara, a bartender here for three years, who recently married the owner's son Warren. The couple is now in the process of buying the place, and happily treasure the historic nature of the joint and plan few changes. At the front end of the bar were Dottie and Bruce, who have been coming here for the last 20 years. When we remark on how nice it is up here, Bruce asks if we've been here in the Winter. Another man drops in just to pick up an 18-pack. "Just write me up," he says, heading out the door.

Shotgun shell christmas lights and nekkid ladies decorate the
men's room at the historic Brooklyn Tavern, Brooklyn, WA

I don't know when we'll make it back, but we will. In the meantime I feel a bountiful amount of gratitude to Warren and Ciara, Warren's dad Ray, and all the others in the past who have kept this jewel of a joint in the woods waiting for our discovery.

---

Postscript Oakville:  Seeing the sign about bars 18 miles in either direction surprised me a bit. I knew about the Artic Tavern to the west, but, I asked Ciara, pointing east, "there really is a bar that way?" She told me there was, but that it was owned by an old fellow who only opened when he felt like it. So we changed our previous plans and headed down North River Road to find it.  In a few miles, the pavement turned to gravel, and then the gravel turned to dirt.  As the single lane dirt road wound around around the curling, steep hillsides for about seven miles, I thought if there is really a bar out in this remote area, it must be the best bar ever. But eventually the dirt flattened out into pavement again, and then to civilization, in the form of Oakville, WA. The bar, once quite appropriately named "The Only Bar," was now not even that. A glance through the windows told us that if the owner opened when he felt like it, he hadn't any such feeling for the last several years. So we departed Oakville, and by a different route, on flat wide pavement from which I never questioned might whether I might at any minute reach a point unnavigable by my small, low sportscar.


2611 N River Rd Cosmopolis, WA 98537 - (360) 533-2324
Est. ?  1930s? - Building constructed: 1991
Previous bars in this location: None known
Web site: historicbrooklyntavern.com
Reviews: seattleweekly - link - link

#2272 - John's River Lodge, Aberdeen, WA - 9/7/2013

The John's River Lodge is listed in Aberdeen, but it's really quite a ways from Aberdeen proper, and considerably closer to Westport, sitting on the west side of state highway 105, about a thousand feet from where John's River tumbles toward Grays Harbor. The bar there is packed with personality and artifacts aggregated over the years, with a collection of t-shirts hanging from the ceiling and assorted knickknacks all around. Jeff Kuni, the current owner, is a very friendly host. Jeff's dad purchased the bar in 1976 -- Jeff recalled from memory that it was on this very day of that year (Sep 7). Outside is a great old tavern sign that came from the old Bright Spot, on south G Street in downtown Aberdeen. If you like dive bars with lots of character, this is a must stop when you are in the area.

1564 State Route 105, Aberdeen, WA 98520 - (360) 648-2319
Est. 1956
Reviews: sandiegoreader - yelp - niceshirtamerica