Life Behind Bars
In the course of my work I am introduced to many fine adults, and many fine adult beverages. Tini Bigs' annual cocktail tasting, hosted by the bar's owners and resident bon vivants Keith Robbins and Patrick Haight, brings the best of both. This year's tasting found me and several other local media peeps enthusiastic and thirsty. So. Very. Thirsty.
By Geoff Carter | March 24, 2008
Gentle Snark
For its first year, entry to the McLeod lounge was restricted to members. The membership structure is still in place, but beginning this weekend everyone is free to mix it up with the McLeods in their swanky lounge - which is lit by a giant, glowing ranson note.
By Geoff Carter | March 12, 2008
Gentle Snark
It's time you checked out this classy exhibition of dirty art. I don't mean to diminish the Seattle Erotic Art Festival in any way, but I can't think of a better way to describe what it's all about. SEAF is a celebration of thoughtful, inspirational and even beautiful dirty art. The atmosphere is avant-garde, the performances are mesmerizing, the attendees are glamorous, and the art is dirty, dirty, dirty. Dirty, I tell you.
By Geoff Carter | February 27, 2008
Gentle Snark
Studio 1000 and 13 Coins have "re-launched" their respective operations. Some of the changes are cosmetic and some are gastronomic. And while I can't speak to the long-term prospects of each establishment, I feel confident enough to say that I will drink in both places -- a blight on the moneyed, self-possessed urbanites that they're plainly angling to draw.
By Geoff Carter | February 28, 2008
Here's a piece of dating news just in time for Valentine's Day: You're three times more likely to meet someone if you have a dog with you.
By Lisa Wogan | February 4, 2008
Gentle Snark
Ballard Loft, a new sports bar at the south end of Ballard Avenue, opens officially tonight. I visited the bar for a quick drink and am pleased to report that it left no lasting impression on me whatsoever, good nor bad.
By Geoff Carter | January 31, 2008
Convergence Zone
There's an old saying: "Whenever fate closes a neighborhood bowling alley, it opens an ultralounge that happens to have a few bowling lanes."
I must confess that when I first heard that phrase, it didn't make much sense to me, but dig this: Last week it was announced that Ballard's popular Sunset Bowl, the only bowling alley on the Northwest side of town, will close forever this April. Two days after I heard that sad news, I checked out the grand opening of Lucky Strike Lanes in Bellevue, an "upscale bowling alley and lounge." It's funny the way those old adages find ways to fit modern-day situations.
By Geoff Carter | January 16, 2008
Daily Find
Have you changed your drawers lately? That's the salient question posed by Travis Powell, who launched Red Drawers, a Capitol Hill men's underwear boutique, last month.
By Kathy Schultz | December 27, 2007
Life Behind Bars
Located on a section of East Madison Street that most people simply pass through on their way to Madison Park or up to Capitol Hill, the Bottleneck Lounge is something of a rarity: It's a fancy-pants lounge that could hold its own against the spendy upscale lounges of downtown, while steadfastly maintaining a cozy neighborhood vibe. All the class goes into the glass -- where it belongs.
By Geoff Carter | October 19, 2007
Life Behind Bars
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.
By Geoff Carter | October 16, 2007
