As October comes to a close, and pictures of Bavarian beauties barely-clothed are still fresh in our minds, we consider our favorite watering holes to drown our Oktoberfest blues.
Great beer selection, including some NW finds you might not have known about. The food is above-average for pub grub. Get the Latona burger. It's $11, but totally worth the weight of the patty and the freshness of the Macrina roll that makes it so delicious.
If you can get to this place during the weekday, say, before 5p, you'll have nearly the entire place to yourself. Quite a contrast to the college kids who swarm this place late at night. Cozy little pub with a great beer selection in the heart of downtown.
Just hidden enough in Post Alley in Pike Place Market to make you think you stumbled upon a magically place. This is an English-style tavern, complete with Samuel Smith beer from Yorkshire. Try the Dark & Stormy, which has nothing to do with rum and everything to do with ruby port and dark brown ale.
This is where the locals hangout after work. Blue collar with a just a tinge of hipster, your choices of beer are expansive, including nearby Georgetown Brewing (which is responsible for the 9lb Porter) and Oly and PBR on tap. Food comes courtesy of the adjoining Square Knot Diner, which is owned by the same proprietor.
A ton of beers on tap, peanuts on the floor, and pizza by the slice. This is no neighborhood bar, but it certainly feels like it. Located across the street from Safeco, this place is jammed packed during M's games. The service here usually only hits a homerun when there's no action taking place on the field.
Located beneath Third Place Books, the pub looks like it's been carved out of a tree trunk. Burl tables, board games and awesome music make this hidden gem akin to your friend's basement rec room in the 1970s....but with beer. A nice mix of college kids and older gents. The food and drink here are solid.
Known more for their gastropub food than their 14 beers on tap, Quinn's takes everything they serve seriously. Great beers, including several made by Trappist monks. Get the burger or the wild boar sloppy joe.
Two things you can count on at Spur: great food and cheap beer. A can of Rainier is usually on the menu during happy hour, but if it's late at night and you're craving a cold brew with your molecular gastronomy, ask for a can or Rainier. The boys always have some on hand, even if it's not on the menu.
One of the oldest bars in Washington. An old logger tavern with top-to-bottom wood paneling, this place is accidentally hip; a bar that hipster bars strive to be. Totally blue collar, the last time I was in here, I sat next to a construction worker and a landscaper who were covered in dirt, making Loretta's their first post-work stop. Extra points for the old Olympia beer paraphernalia behind the bar. Decent grub, too.
Solid beer selection. German-focused, of course. The food comes straight from a crock-pot/microwave, but the beers are freshly tapped. In the summer, you can't beat the patio. Any place you have the option to drink out of a giant glass boot shouldn't be missed.