written and photographed by Jackie Dodd
“We realized that most people who live here only go to Pike Place Market when they have guests in town. If we want to be a place for locals, we have to go where the locals are,” said Pike Brewing president Drew Gillespie about the decision for an additional location for the historic brewery.
Evolution is about growing with your consumers while staying true to the core of who you are, he explained. A quintessential hometown brewery mostly visited by out-of-towners was an identity marker that needed to change. Gillespie and his team took over a space in the bustling Ballard Ave. in the former Bramling Cross space in Seattle’s craft beer heavy Ballard neighborhood.
With menu consultation from Seattle’s celebrity restaurateur Ethan Stowell the food is both pub-appropriate and elevated—a perfect match to the thoughtful yet highly drinkable beer selection.
The new location is just a building block in the brand’s redesign that included both new logos as well as a new head brewer, Leslie Shore. Shore teamed up with the talented team at Ballard fan-favorite, Stoup Brewing, to collaborate on New Kidz on THIS Block IPA to commemorate the space’s opening and debut the brand’s new look.
The new location feels both wholly new and entirely familiar. The comfort and reliability of the Pike brand offers beer that tastes like home but also exciting, food that is unique but also known, a space you’ve never been to but you also seem to be acquainted with.
Of all the breweries in Washington, a state with more than 450, Pike is possibly the most beloved. A reputation for not just good beer, but good people. A workplace that is known for being welcoming, a space that fosters goodwill, and a founder that has a reputation for kindness and hard work, all add up to a brewery you want to root for in a city with more than their fair share or breweries with heart.
If Ballard pub crawl is on your list of things to do in 2023, make sure to show up to Pike Taproom and order a pint and some food. If it’s not, make sure to add this activity to your to-do list as soon as you’re able.
5205 BALLARD AVE. NW
SEATTLE
www.piketaproomballard.com
Cocktail Card
Weekend at Barbara’s
Ingredients:
- 1½ ounces Oxley
- ¾ ounce Rhubarb Liquor
- ½ ounce lemon juice
- ½ ounce fennel simple syrup
- 2 dashes rhubarb bitters
Instructions:
- Combine first three ingredients, shake hard over ice, stain into a chilled coupe.
- Use a flavor blaster to deliver the infused bubble on top of the cocktail. The bubble can stay intact for up to 30 seconds or so for a longer infusion of the smoke, or lucky recipients can pop it and enjoy the aroma.
