Help with Cocktails in Seattle

[Darren72]

Hi everyone,

I'm on a short trip in Seattle. I heard that there are some excellent places to get really good cocktails here -- places that may be in the same league as The Pegu Club in New York. Can anyone help me with some names of places?

Thanks in advance!

[johnder]

Zig Zag.

All you need to know.

[Darren72]

Zig Zag.

All you need to know.

←

Perfect - thanks for the quick response!

We're going to Elliot's tomorrow night for a big oyster thing, and Zig Zag seems really close. I'm excited - thanks again.

[johnder]

Hopefully Murray will be there when you go. He is a legend.

Let me know how you like it.

[Dave the Cook]

Be aware: unless things have changed, Zig Zag keeps true saloon hours. You can't show up at 3 in the afternoon expecting to get a cocktail. If I recall correctly, they don't open until 5 pm or so -- the reason I've not yet been able to quaff a drink there.

[rockdoggydog]

Murray works Tuesday through Friday at Zig Zag, though everyone there is a great bartender and you won't disappointed in the least. You should also consider as many of the following as possible:

Vessel - next door to 5th Ave Theater

Liberty Bar - on Capitol Hill

Union - Friday, Saturday, or Sunday when Keith Waldbauer is behind the bar

Can Can - go late if you're going to go Friday or Saturday, Sunday is a good day

Sun Liquor - also on Capitol Hill

Spur Gastropub - Belltown

Hazelwood - Ballard

Sambar - attached to Le Gourmand on the border between Phinney Ridge and Ballard

Tini Bigs - Monday-Wednesday Jamie Boudreau is there tending bar

These are all definitely more than worth checking out, and besides Zig Zag some are also on par with Death and Co, PDT, and Pegu. The others are not far behind.

Rocky

[little ms foodie]

Murray works Tuesday through Friday at Zig Zag, though everyone there is a great bartender and you won't disappointed in the least.  You should also consider as many of the following as possible:

Vessel - next door to 5th Ave Theater

Liberty Bar - on Capitol Hill

Union - Friday, Saturday, or Sunday when Keith Waldbauer is behind the bar

Can Can - go late if you're going to go Friday or Saturday, Sunday is a good day

Sun Liquor - also on Capitol Hill

Spur Gastropub - Belltown

Hazelwood - Ballard

Sambar - attached to Le Gourmand on the border between Phinney Ridge and Ballard

Tini Bigs - Monday-Wednesday Jamie Boudreau is there tending bar

These are all definitely more than worth checking out, and besides Zig Zag some are also on par with Death and Co, PDT, and Pegu.  The others are not far behind.

Rocky

←

Amen!! I love Zig Zag and all the guys there but I hate it when all these others aren't mentioned as they rock!

I was just at Liberty last night and had an Aviation old fashion- nice!

If people do make it to Ballard for Hazlewood and Sambar I would add Traveler (on leary) to the list and the Copper Gater for their house infused aquavit

[blurby]

...

Sun Liquor - also on Capitol Hill

...

+1 on ZigZag of course, there's no denying it's great. I love Sun Liquor though, and not only because it's in my neighborhood. The bartenders are great, the drinks are great, and the atmosphere is not the crowded, loud, hipster crush that you find all over Cap. Hill.

[Darren72]

Thanks again everyone for all of the replies. My wife travels to Seattle for work fairly often and I'll accompany here when I can. We look forward to working our way through the other suggestions.

Zig Zag was great. Very cool atmosphere. As I wrote above, we first went to Elliot's for their Oyster New Year, which was a blast. Oysters from probably 25 different places, about 25 area wines, live music....it was incredibly fun (especially for two Chicagoans who are used to paying $3/oyster).

Then we headed to Zig Zag. We walked in a grabbed the first table we saw free. Then a host saw us and escorted us to one of the larger, half circle tables. Way to make us feel welcome. The drinks were amazing.

We also had lunch at Matt's at the Market and a dinner one night at Quinn's. What a weekend of great eating! Can't wait to return.

[birder53]

Thanks again everyone for all of the replies. My wife travels to Seattle for work fairly often and I'll accompany here when I can. We look forward to working our way through the other suggestions.

Zig Zag was great. Very cool atmosphere. As I wrote above, we first went to Elliot's for their Oyster New Year, which was a blast. Oysters from probably 25 different places, about 25 area wines, live music....it was incredibly fun (especially for two Chicagoans who are used to paying $3/oyster).

Then we headed to Zig Zag. We walked in a grabbed the first table we saw free. Then a host saw us and escorted us to one of the larger, half circle tables. Way to make us feel welcome. The drinks were amazing.

We also had lunch at Matt's at the Market and a dinner one night at Quinn's. What a weekend of great eating! Can't wait to return.

←

Grab a seat at the bar at Zig Zag if you can on your next trip. That's the best seat in the house!

[Steamtrain]

Murray works Tuesday through Friday at Zig Zag, though everyone there is a great bartender and you won't disappointed in the least. You should also consider as many of the following as possible:

Vessel - next door to 5th Ave Theater

Liberty Bar - on Capitol Hill

Union - Friday, Saturday, or Sunday when Keith Waldbauer is behind the bar

Can Can - go late if you're going to go Friday or Saturday, Sunday is a good day

Sun Liquor - also on Capitol Hill

Spur Gastropub - Belltown

Hazelwood - Ballard

Sambar - attached to Le Gourmand on the border between Phinney Ridge and Ballard

Tini Bigs - Monday-Wednesday Jamie Boudreau is there tending bar

These are all definitely more than worth checking out, and besides Zig Zag some are also on par with Death and Co, PDT, and Pegu. The others are not far behind.

Rocky

This list still good?

I'll need a cocktail in Seattle in August.

[LEdlund]

Murray works Tuesday through Friday at Zig Zag, though everyone there is a great bartender and you won't disappointed in the least. You should also consider as many of the following as possible:

Vessel - next door to 5th Ave Theater

Liberty Bar - on Capitol Hill

Union - Friday, Saturday, or Sunday when Keith Waldbauer is behind the bar

Can Can - go late if you're going to go Friday or Saturday, Sunday is a good day

Sun Liquor - also on Capitol Hill

Spur Gastropub - Belltown

Hazelwood - Ballard

Sambar - attached to Le Gourmand on the border between Phinney Ridge and Ballard

Tini Bigs - Monday-Wednesday Jamie Boudreau is there tending bar

These are all definitely more than worth checking out, and besides Zig Zag some are also on par with Death and Co, PDT, and Pegu. The others are not far behind.

Rocky

This list still good?

I'll need a cocktail in Seattle in August.

Murray has left Zig Zag and will be at Michael Mina's new place, RN74, when it opens later in June.

Vessel is now closed

Liberty Bar is great, Keith Waldbauer (mentioned in the Union listing below) is now co-owner

Union is now closed

Jamie Boudreau is no longer at Tini Bigs

littlemsfoodie wrote a great app on cocktails in Seattle called Seattle Cocktail Culture which will give you all the up-to-the-minute activity in the Seattle cocktail scene.

[munchymom]

Piggybacking on this question:

I will be in Seattle for a few days this July (on either side of an Alaska cruise) and would love to have some good cocktails while there. But since I will have the family in tow, I can't really go to bars. Are there any restaurants in Seattle which both serve excellent cocktails and will welcome a well-behaved, seafood-loving 8-year-old?

[LEdlund]

Piggybacking on this question:

I will be in Seattle for a few days this July (on either side of an Alaska cruise) and would love to have some good cocktails while there. But since I will have the family in tow, I can't really go to bars. Are there any restaurants in Seattle which both serve excellent cocktails and will welcome a well-behaved, seafood-loving 8-year-old?

littlemsfoodie's app, mentioned above, has a filter for Hotel Bars. I checked it and there are some listed including Art Lounge at the Four Seasons and BOKA at Hotel 1000.

[vengroff]

Piggybacking on this question:

I will be in Seattle for a few days this July (on either side of an Alaska cruise) and would love to have some good cocktails while there. But since I will have the family in tow, I can't really go to bars. Are there any restaurants in Seattle which both serve excellent cocktails and will welcome a well-behaved, seafood-loving 8-year-old?

Here are some options you might want to consider:

Anchovies and Olives - Good variety of thoughtfully prepared seafood. House-made ginger beer for a great dark and stormy. If your 8-year old is adventurous, you can go for things like carbonara with cured tuna heart.

Restaurant Zoe - An early pioneer of high-quality cocktails in a restaurant setting. They are planning to move to a new location soon, so check your dates against their move schedule.

Taste at SAM - Much more than a typical art museum restaurant. Creative cocktails including a farm-to-glass program and creative regional cuisine.

The majority of serious restaurants in Seattle now recognize the importance of a quality cocktail program. Call or check online, but these days almost any place you go expecting an excellent meal should have at least a decent cocktail program.

[Steamtrain]

Murray has left Zig Zag and will be at Michael Mina's new place, RN74, when it opens later in June.

Vessel is now closed

Liberty Bar is great, Keith Waldbauer (mentioned in the Union listing below) is now co-owner

Union is now closed

Jamie Boudreau is no longer at Tini Bigs

littlemsfoodie wrote a great app on cocktails in Seattle called Seattle Cocktail Culture which will give you all the up-to-the-minute activity in the Seattle cocktail scene.

Thank you very much for the update. I just sent my friend the app.

Rob Roy any good?

It was mentioned in the Saunders+Hess NYT article.

[LEdlund]

Murray has left Zig Zag and will be at Michael Mina's new place, RN74, when it opens later in June.

Vessel is now closed

Liberty Bar is great, Keith Waldbauer (mentioned in the Union listing below) is now co-owner

Union is now closed

Jamie Boudreau is no longer at Tini Bigs

littlemsfoodie wrote a great app on cocktails in Seattle called Seattle Cocktail Culture which will give you all the up-to-the-minute activity in the Seattle cocktail scene.

Thank you very much for the update. I just sent my friend the app.

Rob Roy any good?

It was mentioned in the Saunders+Hess NYT article.

Rob Roy is one of my favorite bars. It's dark and comfortable and serves fantastic cocktails. Wasn't that a cute article?!

[Steamtrain]

Yes, it was cute.

We are headed out this week!

Thank you for the help.