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Remembering the Carousel Room: Seattle’s First Hotel Cocktail Lounge
The "martini store," as regulars call it, is still cranking out cocktails.
This article originally appeared in the May 2017 issue of Seattle magazine.
When the Mayflower Park Hotel opened in 1927, the Seattle Daily Times raved, “Seattle Obtains Large Structure to House Guests!” The 12-story, Renaissance-style gem with stained-glass windows gave Seattle visitors an elegant home, and when liquor by the drink was legalized in 1949, it gave locals and visitors a playful place to hoist a glass. The hotel’s Carousel Room became the city’s first hotel cocktail lounge, with merry-go-round horses hung from the ceiling. There were no windows, due to moralistic “blue laws” that forbade windows in bars, lest passersby glimpse sinful drinking. When blue laws ended in 1976, Birney and Marie Dempcy—who bought the hotel in 1973—restored it and turned The Carousel Room into Oliver’s Lounge, Seattle’s first bar with windows. Known for its martinis, Oliver’s has won Seattle’s Best Martini Challenge so many times (seven) that some regulars simply call it “the martini store.” Mayflower Park Hotel, downtown, 405 Olive Way; 206.623.8700; mayflowerpark.com
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Restaurant Roundup: 3 Pearls and Restaurant Week Redux
Here’s what was served up recently in the Emerald City.
When something tastes good, you gotta go back for seconds—and that’s exactly what we’re doing for this fall’s Seattle Restaurant Week, Oct. 18-31. Building off a successful spring spread, this edition brings back curated menus at various price points ($20, $35, $50, and $65) at restaurants, bars, cafes, and pop-ups across the greater Seattle area….
House Special: A Taste of Ecuador at Bad Chancla
Chef José Garzón brings a coastal Ecuadorian classic to his 335-square-foot Capitol Hill kitchen, where he hopes to introduce more dishes from home.
There is not much room at Bad Chancla. The bright pink walk-up on East Olive Way seats a handful of people elbow to elbow, mostly outside, and the kitchen behind the counter is small enough that chef and co-owner José Garzón can talk to you while he cooks. Garzón grew up between Guayaquil and the…
Opening Night: GoodMart Makes Lunch Feel Like Luxury
Victor Steinbrueck, owner of Fremont’s acclaimed Local Tide, opens his second seafood-centric restaurant in the heart of Ballard.
On a Thursday afternoon I was able to walk right up to the counter at GoodMart on Ballard Avenue and order lunch, which surprised me. GoodMart is owned by Victor Steinbrueck, who opened Local Tide in Fremont during the height of the pandemic (August 2020) and built it into one of Seattle’s most acclaimed seafood…
Where to Warm Up With a Drink This Fall and Winter in Seattle
From swanky speakeasies to a cozy literary bar, these spots serve inventive cocktails and zero-proof options.
Seattle’s drearier days are slowly arriving, but it’s not all gray and gloom from here. Finding a cozy spot to warm up is part of the trick to enjoying the darker, colder months. The right place lets you bring a friend, a book, a journal, or simply yourself, and let time pass by. Whether you…