West Seattle, Washington
03 Sunday
A coffee stand opens next Friday at 35th/Barton. And this little stand has a big backstory.
(Photo courtesy Animated Café)
In the photo is Melanie Robbins, a West Seattle resident who is opening Animated Café in the Tony’s Market lot on the northeast corner of the intersection. She wants other young people to know you can chart your own path. She dropped out of high school just before the pandemic and went into training to be a barista (eventually getting her GED). Instead of going to work for somebody else’s coffee shop, she’s launching her own. She says a year and a half of online studies inspired many of her peers to “carve their own path in the world” too. In email before we spoke by phone, she wrote:
…I’ve watched nearly every one of my friends pursue an alternative lifestyle in order to feel less stuck in a world that seems to have forgotten about them. That means getting a job and fast-tracking their adult lives. The world that has historically valued school as the primary way of learning, and that has been disrupted. We are inspired by social media, do our research on Google, and learn how to make things on YouTube. School was day care for most kids prior to COVID. It turned into a joke during the pandemic instead of being the educational resource it is promised to be
I dropped out of high school 4 months before the pandemic started. Counter to social norms and expectations I felt extremely fortunate because this gave me a massive head start. While getting my GED I joined a program called Fare Start which taught me how to be a barista. At 16, when the pandemic started, I already had my high school equivalency, a job, and was enrolling in college all while my peers were facing the harsh reality of loneliness, fear, & a complete loss of structure. For the first time I felt like an outsider looking in. I had a clear mission, “Save as much money as possible, start a business, and take control of my life.” This seemed different from everyone else I knew at school, but I hope I can be a model for this generation of high-school students who feel stuck in time.
While in lockdown I fortified my love for everything animated. Disney+ just came out, and Hulu and Netflix had a deep library of anime. I always loved this genre of entertainment, and its popularity seemed to spike during the pandemic since people have been stuck at home looking for new shows to watch and mangas to read. 2 years later I have put every dime I earned toward that goal of taking control of my life in a world that seems so out of control. On February 4th Animated Cafe will become a reality, and I think more people my age should do the same thing versus waiting for the world to care.
She has advice for other would-be entrepreneurs, too, and it’s all on the Animated Café website. Starting next Friday, she invites you to come see what her hard work and planning has created. The “animated” theme will feature the proprietor serving guests as “Ana,” a costumed (“family-friendly”) character. “It’s going to be fun!” she promises. She’s planning to serve Dillano’s Coffee and pastries and sandwiches from Seattle’s Favorite. Animated Café will be drive-up, ride-up, or walk-up, 5 am to 5 pm for starters, until she sees what makes sense with the customer flow.
(Photo courtesy GoFundMe)
“I didn’t want to lose my business … I could not imagine closing.”
That’s why Jennifer West is going to drastic lengths, including seeking crowdfunding, to keep her independent drive-up/ride-up West Bay Coffee and Smoothies in business after weather damage threatened to end its 14-year run at 2255 Harbor Avenue SW.
The stand shares water service with the larger commercial building on the site. Pipes broke during the recent ultra-cold weather, West says, flooding the larger building. She says the property manager proposed just cutting off service, which would force her to move. Or, she could fix the lines affecting the stand, at her own expense. She also has no access to a restroom or storage in the main building. So she’s paid for the plumbing to her stand, a new porta-potty just delivered yesterday, and is working on a new storage shed.
All that costs money, so she launched a GoFundMe crowdfunding page this week. “It’s been a nightmare but we’re working through the logistics to try to remain open,” West tells WSB. As the synopsis on the crowdfunding page says, she’s already gone through a lot, as have so many businesses – “We’ve been through covid exposures, weathered ongoing supply-chain issues and enormous supply price hikes, while trying to keep everyone safe” – she can’t bear to throw in the towel now.
Today we’re welcoming a new WSB sponsor, West Seattle Liquor and Wine (4714 42nd SW). New sponsors get an opportunity to tell you about what they do, so here’s what WSLW wants you to know:
Using the adjective “premier” only begins to describe the recently re-opened West Seattle Liquor and Wine store on the outer west side of Jefferson Square on 42nd Ave SW. This is not your average liquor store – the slogan is Unique and Uncommonly Found Wine and Spirits.
West Seattle Liquor and Wine’s inventory includes unusual and rare spirits. “We have things you won’t find anywhere else in West Seattle: bourbons, scotches, tequila,” store manager Dolly Amend says, “including all the local Seattle area bourbons.” Continuing, Dolly says, “Our goal, which I believe we have achieved, is to have the best selection of scotch, bourbons, gins, liqueurs, tequilas, and vodkas anywhere in the state.”
(Davey, Sheryl, and Dolly @ West Seattle Liquor and Wine)
Furthermore: “The store’s scotch section is absolutely the best in the city, if not the state,” says Dolly. “You might never have found our single malts, for example, in Seattle before, such as Laddie Classic, Ledaig, Tobermory, to name a few.”
West Seattle Liquor and Wine also offers an extensive tequila section, which aficionados call “fantastic mezcals,” and a selection of liqueurs from all over the world: Italian Amari, pastis from France, Cynar, every possible fruit liqueur. And dozens of made-in-Washington labels are in stock.
The store does not skimp on their wine selections. The store offers a broad selection of wines from around the world. Unique selections not found in any grocery stores.
Its merchandise also includes martini shakers, and just about every tool and ingredient for making cocktails – including tipsy cherries, cocktail onions, many bitters, even a special salt to rim your Margaritas. The list of complementary merchandise includes ginger beer, soda, tonics, and many different vermouths.
Visit the store during its TASTING TIME, which is held each Friday from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm and Saturday from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm. The store’s tasting selections include varieties of bourbons, whiskey, rums, gins, vodka, tequila, liqueurs, and more.
“Grocery stores wouldn’t have room to carry the 3,000-plus brands and sizes of liquor we have now,” Dolly says, also pointing out that West Seattle Liquor and Wine has a “huge and wonderful selection of wine.”
West Seattle Liquor and Wine is located on 42nd just south of Alaska in The Junction, open 10 am-7 pm Mondays-Saturdays, 11 am-6 pm Sundays. You’ll also find the store at its website, WSLW-LLC.com (under construction), on Facebook and on Google. By phone: 206-923-5472.
We thank West Seattle Liquor and Wine for sponsoring independent, community-collaborative neighborhood news via WSB; find our current sponsor team listed in directory format here, and find info on joining the team by going here.
Thanks for the tips about an ownership change at Alki Beach Pub (2722 Alki SW). We had noticed a liquor-license application recently, and that led us to the new owners, West Seattle residents Jackie Mallahan and Dan Mallahan. Reached by email, Jackie confirms they took ownership this past Friday: “We are currently waiting for our liquor license to transfer and hope to be open for operations early this coming week! As of now, we are not planning to change the name or hours of operation. However, we are excited to announce a partnership with Geof Redd of Bigfoot Long’s, the elusive Sasquatch-themed hot-dog pop-up. “Bigfoot Long’s West Seattle Sabbatical” will be with us through the winter.”
You can read more about Bigfoot Long’s here. P.S. The pub’s previous owners say they sold it “to travel and enjoy life.”
Nine days ago, we brought you first word of the new identity of West Seattle Bowl‘s Highstrike Grill – Three 9 Lounge. Since then, we’ve stopped by for a look inside, as they finished the furnishings and decor, down to the glassware.
From the pineapple hanging lamps to the tinted windows, WS Bowl manager Jeff Swanson told us they’re going for a “warm” vibe.
With high-tech touches – USB jacks under the bar, next to the purse hooks.
They’ll have seven signature cocktails, and plan to offer 35 different rums from all over the world. As for the food, they’re continuing to serve classic American fare in the bowling alley, while Three 9 will offer island-style bites – from malasadas to lumpia to skewers. (You can see the menus on the website, just launched today.) It’ll seat 50, including huge padded corner booths on each end.
Three 9 opens Thursday (October 28th) and will be open 4 pm to midnight, 7 nights a week. 21+
(Texted photos)
Thanks for the tips/pics! What had been the Highstrike Grill at West Seattle Bowl since 2010 is getting a new identity – a “tiki bar” called the Three 9 Lounge (it’s on the corner of 39th and Oregon). Last summer, a reader noticed the space was closed for remodeling, and management told us they were planning a “new concept” but not ready to go public with it. Now, the sign’s up, and the plan is for an October 28th opening.
Before its decade-plus as Highstrike Grill, the space held the Terrace West Chinese Restaurant.
(WSB photo from last month)
Many have asked – and now we have the answer: West Seattle Liquor and Wine will open its doors at 4714 42nd SW (lower west side of Jefferson Square) this Saturday (October 9th). The news is from manager Dolly Amend, who also ran the store in its previous incarnation as Capco Beverages. That store’s original owner closed it after leasing the previous space (at 41st and Alaska) to Swedish; new owners bought the business and leased the new space to reopen it. “We have a great selection of spirits and wine,” promises the manager. She says the first weekend’s hours will be 10 am-7 pm Saturday and 11 am-6 pm Sunday.
West Seattle entrepreneur Jess Selander says her brand of wine, Jøyus, is “the first premium alcohol-removed brand that not only tastes as amazing as alcoholic wine, it’s actually made by a non-drinker.” She says it’s a fulfillment of her dream “to make a non-alcoholic wine that tastes like wine and to change how we think about drinking.” This month is “Sober October,” so she is getting the word out about Jøyus, which has two varieties on the market – sparkling white wine and sparkling rosé, both available at Wildwood Market in Fauntleroy (9214 45th SW) and online at drinkjoyus.com. Selander says she first started pursuing this dream five years ago, but stalled because “the technology and processes were not great.” During the pandemic, she decided to give it another try. Though she and her business are based here, the wine is made in California: “The process starts with alcoholic wine, then the alcohol is gently removed, all while preserving the delicate flavors of the wine.” Jøyus wines are on the dry side, she adds, and that means low-calorie – 90 calories in an entire bottle. She has one more dream: “I’m not setting out to be the only premium non-alcoholic winery whose products actually taste like wine. I’m doing this to normalize non-drinking culturally. I dream of the day I can walk into any grocery store and pick up a couple of different bottles of great tasting non-alcoholic wines. I want to go to a party and find there’s already a bottle of non-alcoholic wine there. And that means people need variety.” (She’s working on getting Jøyus into a variety of additional retail outlets, too.)
Many bars/beer gardens celebrate Oktoberfest, but Ounces in North Delridge is going the extra mile in its weekend-long celebration that started last night – with live music! In our video above, the Bonnie Birch Trio played last night; today, the Smilin’ Scandinavians are scheduled, 5-8 pm. Whenever you stop in, proprietors Laurel Trujillo and Andrew Trujillo invite you to raise a stein:
At 4 pm today, you can even participate in a stein-raising competition. The full Oktoberfest lineup is online. Ounces is open at 3809 Delridge Way SW noon-10 pm today, 11 am-8 pm tomorrow.
When we previewed the Taste of West Seattle last week – a weeklong dine-out benefit for the West Seattle Food Bank‘s work to end hunger and prevent homelessness – 20 food/drink businesses were in, Now, with The Taste starting tomorrow, the list is up to 27!
Bakery Nouveau
Best of Hands Barrelhouse
Box Bar
Coastline Burgers
Copper Coin
Flying Apron
Grillbird
Harry’s Beach House
Hotwire Coffeehouse
Itto’s Tapas
Lady Jaye
Locust Cider
Mission Cantina
No Name Diner Alki
Nos Nos Coffee House
Ounces Taproom & Beer Garden
Pecos Pit Bar-B-Que
Phoenecia
Pot Pie Factory, Inc.
Soprano’s Antico Pizza and Pasta
Talarico’s Pizzeria
The Bridge
The Good Society Brewery & Public House
The Westy
West 5
West Seattle Cellars
West Seattle Grounds
During Taste of West Seattle week – Monday, September 20th through Sunday, September 26th – participating establishments will either “donate a percent of sales from a special ‘Taste Menu’ created by the restaurant, or a percentage of sales.” Also, remember that there’s potentially more in it for you than the knowledge you’re getting good food/beverages and doing a good deed – note that this is an update since our last preview:
All participating restaurants will be listed on a restaurant “passport.” The more stamps/ signatures someone gets on their card by ordering from participating restaurants, the more times they are entered into the drawing. Each stamp = 1 drawing entry. We will select 5 winners for a $100 gift card to a West Seattle Restaurant or Whole Foods. Customers will need to mail/drop off their passport to the WSFB by October 3rd to be entered into the drawing.
Pick up your “Taste Passport” at a participating restaurants, at the West Seattle Food Bank, or email your address to breanna.bushaw@westseattlefoodbank.org to have one mailed to you.
Again, this all starts tomorrow. (WSB is a Taste of West Seattle community co-sponsor.)
A month and a half ago, we reported that New Luck Toy co-proprietor Mark Fuller had confirmed to WSB that the establishment WOULD reopen. And tonight – it just has. Here’s the announcement:
Surprise! We’re open at 5 pm tonight and serving food till 10. Bar’s open till midnight. Due to nationwide staffing shortages we’re not offering takeout or to-go at this time in order to help protect our staff from takeout burnout. (It’s a thing) So in-person dining only. New hours are 5-10 for food, bar till midnight. Wednesday-Saturday.
New Luck Toy is at 5905 California SW. It’s been closed for 10 months.
We’re now less than a week away from the Taste of West Seattle, which again this year is happening as a weeklong dine-out benefit for the West Seattle Food Bank‘s work in fighting hunger and preventing homelessness. Here’s the list, so far, of local food/drink businesses planning to be part of it:
Bakery Nouveau
Best of Hands Barrelhouse
Box Bar
Coastline Burgers
Copper Coin
Harry’s Beach House
Itto’s Tapas
Lady Jaye
Locust Cider
No Name Diner Alki
Nos Nos Coffee House
Pecos Pit Bar-B-Que
Pot Pie Factory, Inc.
Talarico’s Pizzeria
The Bridge
The Good Society Brewery & Public House
The Westy
West 5
West Seattle Cellars
West Seattle Grounds
During the Taste of West Seattle week – Monday, September 20th through Sunday, September 26th – participating establishments will either “donate a percent of sales from a special ‘Taste Menu’ created by the restaurant, or a percentage of sales.” More venue-by-venue info as we get closer! Also, the WSFB notes:
● Stamp card: All participating restaurants will be listed on a restaurant “passport”. The more stamps/ signatures someone gets on their card by ordering from participating restaurants, the more times they are entered into the drawing. Each stamp = 1 drawing entry.
We will select 3 winners for a $100 gift card to a West Seattle Restaurant.
Customers will need to mail/drop off their passport to the WSFB by October 1st to be entered into the drawing.
Pick up your “Taste Passport” at a participating restaurant, at the West Seattle Food Bank, or email your address to breanna.bushaw@westseattlefoodbank.org to have one mailed to you.
Again, this all starts next Monday. (WSB is a Taste of West Seattle community co-sponsor.)
A few people have asked for an update on West Seattle Liquor and Wine, the former Capco Beverages store reopening with a new owner and new location. State Liquor and Cannabis Board records show the store’s been licensed as of last month. So we checked in with Dolly Amend, who managed the store at its previous location and will do so here too. She says they’re not locked in on a date yet but hoping it’ll be in two weeks or so. The store closed in its old location seven months ago; that space has since become West Seattle’s main Swedish clinic site. The new store location, 4714 42nd SW, is on the outer west side of Jefferson Square, by Nikko Teriyaki.
With many more sunny days likely before fall and winter roll in, one local coffeehouse has again expanded its outdoor offerings, C & P Coffee Company (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor) added a covered patio on the north side of its property last winter, and now it’s turned a previously sloped area out front into a bricked patio. Add that to the garden area out back, and C & P has a lot of outdoor space to offer. Also note, as featured in the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar and our weekend previews, C & P has live music outside on Saturday mornings and Sunday afternoons.
When we reported Friday on the plan to revive the Admiral Benbow, we noted we’d happened onto that news while at 4210 SW Admiral Way researching something else. Now we have those details too. A liquor-license application was filed this week for the former Parliament Tavern space. The name on the application is one we recognized from past correspondence – Tanner Jitmongkonkul, whose business Sticky Treats & Sweets we’d spotlighted a few times when it had pop-ups at Itto’s Tapas.
He’s an Itto’s bartender and West Seattle resident who, with partner Erin, is working to convert the Admiral Way space into a cocktail bar called Otter on the Rocks. In our email exchange, here’s how he explains it:
We are so excited to bring a cocktail bar with a new concept to West Seattle. The focus will be properly prepared classics as well as signature cocktails. We will be doing a lot of house infusions and house syrups. As opposed to cocktail bars with a romantic setting, we are trying to introduce a much-more casual and approachable vibe, especially for those who are not familiar with cocktails. We like date nights, but we want Otter on the Rocks to be become a friends-gathering sort of space. We will be looking at some open mics, lots of themed nights, and some live music that fits the space. As far as food, we will be serving a rotating selection of “flatbreads” – a much lighter version of pizza with a lot more room for interesting ingredients. We are working with some local chefs to get this dialed in.
No timeline yet – Jitmongkonkul explains, “The permitting process through the City of Seattle has been extremely slow but we are trying to be very patient. We do have a long list of tasks to complete in order to bring this space up to city code so please be patient with us.” The Parliament opened in the space in 2015; occupants before that included Vidiot and Shipwreck Tavern.
As they say, what was old is new again. Above is a photo we took this morning of the nautically themed Benbow Room, in the back of the west side of the building at 4210 SW Admiral Way, once upon a time the legendary Admiral Benbow Inn, more recently the Heartland Café, then the Admiral Benbow again, followed by Vidiot (which closed in late 2019). Now, it appears the Benbow name will be back. We went to the building to research a new plan for the ex-Parliament Tavern next door (more on that to come) and discovered something else – we found West Seattle restaurant/bar entrepreneur Mark Fuller, who told us he’s taking over the Benbow space and bringing it back under that name. It needs lots of work, he told us, so this will likely take months – not just the work, but getting the permits. Fuller’s other enterprises include Ma’ono, Supreme, and (reopening soon) New Luck Toy.
(Photo courtesy The Alley)
Starting tonight, The Alley (behind 4509 California SW) has four nights of live music to celebrate its third anniversary. If you haven’t already seen it in the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar, here’s the announcement:
The Alley is celebrating our three-year anniversary with live music from July 29th through August 1st. The four-night anniversary event will feature local Seattle favorites with a different musician or group who will play each night from 8 pm to 10 pm. We encourage everyone to have fun and come dressed up in 1920s to 1940s speakeasy attire and enjoy a fun night of live music and prohibition cocktails!
Dates – July 29 through August 1
Time – 8 pm to 10 pm each night
Lineup –
Thursday, July 29 – Emma Caroline Baker
Friday, July 30 – Kimball and The Fugitives
Saturday, July 31 – Patrick Rifflin
Sunday, August 1 – The Triangular Jazztet
As noted here when The Alley opened in 2018, proprietor Jade Nguyen (center in the photo above) is the daughter of the longtime operators of Be’s Restaurant out front. (Be’s remains closed for remodeling.)
Almost three months after we reported that Sharetea was on the way to the ex-Baja Taco space at Jefferson Square (4740 42nd SW), they have soft-opened and are welcoming thirsty tea lovers. We stopped by a little while ago after a reader tip.
Sharetea has more than 300 stores worldwide, specializing in Boba Tea but offering much more. They tell us the plan for this “soft opening” week is noon-8 pm daily through Thursday, noon-9 pm Friday and Saturday, closed Sunday, and they’ll figure out what’s next after that.
Three notes about West Seattle businesses:
TAILS TO ASTONISH: The new comic-book shop at 4850 California SW is now open. We stopped by on Friday – the inventory is still coming in, so it was mostly collectibles to start:
The plan for starting hours: Tuesdays-Saturdays 11 am-7 pm, Sundays 10 am-4 pm, closed Mondays.
ALAIR: Starting Monday, the gift shop at 3270 California SW will close for in-person purchases for about two weeks while work is done to consolidate the space with the former Coastal next door. But Alair will remain available for online shopping throughout the storefront closure – offering curbside pickup, free local delivery, and shipping options.
WEST SEATTLE LIQUOR: The former Capco Beverages, under new ownership, continues preparing to move into a new space on the outer west side of Jefferson Square (by Nikko Teriyaki). Dolly Amend, who will continue as store manager, sent the photo:
She says they’re aiming for a mid-July opening, adding, “We are still going to be the specialty spirits and wine outlet.”
You’ve got two hours until sunset … and almost two hours left with Thunder Road Guitars (WSB sponsor) in the house at Best of Hands Barrelhouse (35th/Webster), for the launch of No Surrender, a new brew with proceeds benefiting organizations working to save live-music venues. Outside, adjacent to the Best of Hands patio, visit the TRG table for $5 raffle tickets to turn up the volume on the cause – you could win a swag bag with a pint glass, gift card, and more. And if you haven’t had dinner yet, the Taqueria La Original truck is there too:
What about the beer, you ask? BoH describes it: “NO SURRENDER HAZY IPA features a boatload of STRATA & SABRO hops on a generous, pillowy body. Combining our mutual love for The Boss & for live music, this beer’s name is a nod to the Bruce Springsteen song of the same name. Our mission is to help the struggling independent music venues of WA state, devastated like so many industries by the pandemic.We need the arts and music more than ever. We will see them resurrected. As the song says, ‘no retreat, baby, no surrender’.” The festivities are on until 9 pm.
If you’ve been to Alki in recent weeks, you’ve probably noticed the remodeling at 2532 Alki SW, which has had multiple incarnations (including a bike shop and a PPE seller) since longtime tenant Coastal Surf Boutique moved out. The space is opening Sunday (June 20th) as Natalie’s on Alki, an expansion of Natalie’s Sugar Cane and Desserts in Tukwila. Same menu, the Natalie’s team tells us (see it here) – sugar-cane-juice beverages, milk tea, smoothies, desserts, and Vietnamese street food. Hours will start at 10 am to 10 pm, seven days a week.
Some neighborhoods are getting city permits to close sections of business-district streets for summertime “café streets.” Not the West Seattle Junction, though. Not for lack of trying, says Lora Radford, executive director of the West Seattle Junction Association (who provided the photo above of a north Seattle street as inspiration). The idea has come up in discussions here on WSB and elsewhere, and WSJA was looking to close a small section of SW Alaska – the half-block east of California, to the service alley. Radford says, “The closure request was June 15 – October 15 with the plan to activate the space with picnic tables and umbrellas for outdoor seating. The SDOT planners and permit review team took a long and thoughtful approach to the plan, with the Junction fully appreciative of their ability to think outside of the box. In the end though, the impact across multiple departments was too disruptive.” A major obstacle in this case was Metro; the city told WSJA that among other things, “Closing this stretch would result in significant service delays and degrade reliability” – that half-block stretch of Alaska is used by routes that total 373 weekday trips. The decision only affects the proposal to actually close that part of SW Alaska; curbside/sidewalk extensions of food/beverage establishments elsewhere in The Junction will continue, and WSJA says a few more Junction establishments are considering those.
Four notes from West Seattle Junction food/beverage establishments:
MA’ONO: Thanks to Eric for the tip. Ma’ono in West Seattle is temporarily closed, reopening June 23rd.
CUPCAKE ROYALE: The Junction shop is closed for renovations, reopening Thursday.
AZUMA SUSHI: Reminder that – as reported here – they’re taking a break, reopening Monday, June 21st.
LADY JAYE: This Tuesday (June 15th), 4-8 pm, Lady Jaye (4523 California SW) plans a Pre-Father’s Day Wagyu Meat Market, including both Wagyu cuts for you to take home and cook and Wagyu cheeseburgers they’re grilling up for takeout. More info in our calendar listing.
Got a biznote – especially as the June 30th reopening date approaches? Email info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
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