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5th Avenue Theater
Built in 1926 with an opulent Asian motif, the 5th Avenue opened as a vaudeville house; it was later turned into a movie theater and closed in 1979. An influx of funding and a heritage award saved it in 1980, and now it's Seattle's premier theater for Broadway musical revivals. It's worth going just for a look at the architecture.
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Alibi Room
The perfect place to hide from the perfect crime, the Alibi provides entertainment as well as a hideout, with regular DJ nights, art installations, standup performances and experimental film screenings. Good eats, too.
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Annex Theater
Seattle's main experimental/fringe theater group is the Annex; with offices inside the Capitol Hill Arts Center, it produces shows and a monthly cabaret at various locations, including the adorable, swanked-up Jewel Box Theater on 2nd Ave.
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Baltic Room
Classy and high-ceilinged, with wood-paneled walls, paper lanterns and an elegant balcony, this Capitol Hill club hosts an excellent mix of local and touring DJs in a range of genres, from reggae and house to DJ Darek Mazzone's monthly global dance party, Juice .
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Barça
Velvet couches, filmy curtains, plush booths, a serpentine bar - this is one sexy, decadent lounge. Settle in among the other pretty people for seduction or quiet conversation.
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Bauhaus
Bauhaus looks like the most beatnik library in the world, with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and stylish-looking people of all stripes sitting around reading. Big windows make it a good spot for Capitol Hill people-watching.
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Big Time Microbrew & Music
A fun hang-out in the U District, this expansive brewpub is quiet and casual in the daytime, but gets hopping at night. During the school year, it can be crowded with students still testing their alcohol limits.
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Borders Books & Music
Borders in downtown Seattle plays host to readings by touring and local authors, plus occasional live music shows and children's events, mostly during the day.
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Brouwer's
Shaped like a giant industrial oubliette, this dark cathedral of beer has rough-hewn rock walls and a black metal grate on the ceiling, plus two curved metal balconies, a bunch of cozy black-leather couches, snug booths and an epic bar behind which are tantalizing glimpses into a massive, expertly stocked beer fridge.
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Bungalow Wine Bar & Café
Above the Open Books store in Wallingford, this balcony nook offers a light menu and 2oz tasters of wine (about US$4 each).
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Café Racer
Conspicuously friendly to two-wheeled transport, this tiny bar has a rec room upstairs where you can lounge on couches and watch movies from the bar library on the bar TV. Downstairs there's a short counter, a couple of tables and a microscopic open kitchen, and decor includes the occasional taxidermied gazelle poised above a MotoGuzzi gas tank. Check the bulletin board for community goings-on.
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Caffé Vita
Vita is known for small-batch roasts and expertly poured shots. The café also hosts seminars and other educational events, many to do with teaching people about sustainable coffee-growing practices.
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Canterbury Ale & Eats
If you can get past the suit of armor guarding the door, you'll find that everything else about this Old English-style pub in a pretty, black-and-white building makes for a cozy hangout, from the snugs to the tapestried booths to the fireplace and friendly service.
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Capitol Hill Arts Center
In a brick and timber warehouse from 1917, this arts organization maintains three performance spaces and produces theater as well as supporting various other events around the community.
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Cc Attle's
A self-proclaimed 'drinkin' bar,' CC Attle's is a little cheesy, but it's a longstanding favorite hangout for gay men. The drinks are famously stiff and cheap, and the crowd is pretty well mixed and welcoming. A large outdoor deck adds to the fun in summer.
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Central Saloon
An old-fashioned blues club turned nu-metal, the Central is key to the Pioneer Square party circuit and gets crowded on weekends. Weekly theme nights include Metal Mondays and Punks and Pints.
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Century Ballroom
Dance lessons followed by an everyone-out-on-the-floor dance free-for-all makes a night at the Century the perfect combination of spectating and participating. Dance nights include everything from the Lindy hop to salsa. Check the website for a schedule.
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Chop Suey
Chop Suey is a dark, high-ceilinged space with a ramshackle faux-Chinese motif and eclectic bookings.
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Comedy Underground
As its good deed, this gritty club hosts a weekly nonprofit comedy show, currently on Tuesdays - go and have a laugh for a good cause. Other nights are just as funny if a little less virtuous.
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Comet
The diviest dive on Capitol Hill, the Comet's a blessed refuge for anyone allergic to the surrounding plethora of basil-infused cocktails and shimmery clothing. This is the domain of cheap pool tables, tattooed barkeeps and loud rock and roll. Live bands play on the weekends.
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Contour
This plush venue is open late and has a more extensive food menu than you might expect of a club whose top priority is clearly to keep your booty shaking until dawn. Contour hosts local and visiting DJs, with after-hours dance nights until Thursdays through Saturdays.
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Copper Gate Scandinavian
Formerly one of Seattle's worst dives, the Copper Gate has been converted into a bizarre upscale bar-restaurant focused on meatballs and naked ladies. A Viking longship forms the bar, with a peepshow pastiche for a sail and an assortment of helmets and gramophones as cargo. Barstools arranged two-deep encourage conversation. Food and drinks are Scandi-themed. Try an aquavit or an exotic bottled beer; the Sinebrychoff Porter from Finland pours like motor oil.
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Crocodile Cafe
One of the best rock clubs in the country and a Seattle institution, this Belltown space helped launch the grunge and alt-rock scenes and is now home to most of the city's best indie-rock shows, whether local or touring bands. The attached café also serves a decent greasy-spoon breakfast, lunch and dinner.
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Dad Watson's Restaurant & Brewery
This place is Fremont's representative of the McMenamins brewpub chain headquartered in Portland. It's roomy and comfortable, and there's a patio where you can sit and watch the street life at the so-called center of the universe.
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Dimitriou's Jazz Alley
Hidden in an unlikely spot behind a boring-looking office building is Seattle's most sophisticated and prestigious jazz club. Dimitriou's hosts the best of the locals and many national acts passing through.
