Good food and beer out in the Stix

I work within a few steps of the soon-to-debut South Lake Union Trolley ... er, Streetcar. Like so many who work in the Cascade ... oops, I mean South Lake Union area, I will soon be able to hop the streetcar at lunchtime and dine at the upper-crust establishments in Westlake Center: They have a McDonald's and a Sbarro.

Fortunately, the streetcar's north terminus is more or less directly in front of Stix Billiards & Brewery. Stix isn't open for lunch, but their happy hour is exceptional: From 4 to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, they serve $4 well drinks and $3 pints of their excellent house-brewed beer and rent their pool tables for a mere four bucks an hour.

Stix brewmaster Tom Munoz makes an excellent beer -- his honey-colored Corner Pocket Pale Ale is one of the city's best, and the Pool Shark Porter is so rich you'll be tempted to skip the appetizers. For the price of a limp slice of pizza at Westlake Center, you could drink what seems to me to be a very sensible dinner.

Or you could try Stix's pizza. Their Gourmet Veggie pie, with its generous spread of artichoke hearts, red peppers, garlic and Roma tomatoes, is a rarity among vegetarian pies: Every item on the pizza holds on to its distinct flavor without melting into one big vegetable mush. The Italian sausage-, red pepper- and onion-laden Salsiccia is powerfully tempting, and the kitchen also makes a cheeseless pizza (with an olive oil base, carmelized onions, kalamata olives and fresh rosemary) that's much tastier than a regular pizza with the mozzarella left off has any right to be.

The crust is a bit on the bland side (it could probably use a pinch of that rosemary), but that aside, Stix serves a very decent pizza. It's not the best pie in town, but it's much better than average, and it pairs beautifully with the house brews. Be sure to finish off with a cannoli, imported directly from a Boston bakery.

Take special note of Stix's west-facing windows, with their Lake Union view. In nearly any other establishment that view would belong exclusively to diners, but Stix has surrounded those windows not with white tablecloths but with green felt. Even the second-floor billiard tables at Jillian's don't afford players such a spectacular distraction -- and if you live or work in downtown Seattle, it's only a streetcar ride away.

Stix is at 1001 Fairview Ave. N., Suite 2000; 206-749-9088. Visit the restaurant online at www.stixbilliardsandbrew.com.

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