Radiator Whiskey — Restaurant in Seattle

OH MY GOD. This place.

I really wanted to like this place but I just wasn't "wowed" by it. I realize that Pike Market has been and still is all the rage, but realistically it's a big fish and farmers market with restaurants by the water. We have a lot of such places on scattered amongst the 5 boroughs of NYC. So, for a NYer it's fairly ubiquitous.

While I appreciate that it is considered trendy to have a restaurant in Pike Market, getting there is a wee bit of a hunt. From the Pike Market parking, you cross a bridge, walk through part of the market, out one door to cross the cobblestone street, then walk around the corner, up some stairs, and then an elevator to the second floor and down the hall. Whew!

The restaurant is quite small. The menu is also quite small. The view of the restaurant overlooks large Vegas-style billboards advertising a nude club. So, despite the fact that the restaurant and bar are geared to feel like a casual, but upscale, whiskey bar with complimentary food, it seems a little misplaced. It needs a bigger space in an old warehouse or historic building.

I had a reservation. Tables are placed tightly together in order to optimize the number of diners. Going to the lieux requires getting a key that is attached to a piece of wood that is about 2" x 24" and walking out of the restaurant and down the hall. Honestly, a wee too "trendy" for my taste.

The brisket was quite good. So was the beef bourguignon. The Brussel sprouts were also quite good.

So, all in all, a mixed experience. This restaurant has a lot of great potential. Even for just a place to drink whiskey, it could do with a better space...

Came to Radiator Whiskey because 1. It had great reviews on Yelp 2. It was close-ish to our hotel 3. A friend recommended it. I think all the great reviews are just for their extensive library whiskey because the food was just meh.

My fiancé and I came in on a Monday at around 5:30 so that we could make it in time for the happy hour from 4 to 6. The place is pretty tiny but luckily, we grabbed the last two available seats. It's a bit difficult to find. We thought it was inside the Public Market, but it's actually across the street from the market on the second floor.

We decided to start the night off with one of their happy hour specials - a $7 shot of Four Roses and Britt's Pickle back. I didn't care for the pickle juice - it had a weird funk to it. For food during happy hour, there was $2 off "starters", so we ordered the Cornflake Crusted Chicken Livers (franks buffalo sauce, shaved celery blue cheese custard), and the Sticky Smoked Pork Belly (sweet & spicy sauce, assorted pickled veg). First bites were good, but as we ate a bit more, we noticed it was incredibly salty. They are SUPER generous with the portions though. These "starters" were more like entrees. I've never ate so much liver in my life. This is all we ordered and we were stuffed and struggling to finish. Our bellies were too full to try any of their whiskeys, which I regret 1000%. I wish we started with that instead of the Four Roses pickleback.

If I ever find myself in Seattle again, I'm going to make sure to 1. Not be lured in by the happy hour specials 2. Skip the food 3. Drink the...