Seattle Speakeasy.
I met a guy, that’s not too shocking, half of the population is male, who I decided I wanted to be friends with and had suggested that we hang out. He responded saying he would like that and asked if I would take him to a speakeasy. I guess there are only a few things that I talk about and one of them is that I like being obnoxious and pretentious and pretending I’m a time traveler, so I like going to speakeasies, please see other blog posts for confirmation. I agreed and called up Needle and Thread, probably Seattle’s coolest and most pretentious speakeasy.
I love Needle and Thread! I chose it on purpose. If you are going to experience Seattle’s Speak Easy culture you probably should start with Needle and Thread.
Okay, let’s start with the basics. You need a reservation to go to Needle and Thread. Go to their website and make a reservation. If you don’t you might still get in BUT you will have to wait a while and if someone who does have a reservation shows up, you will be rushed out and probably treated a little poorly. You also should not go in large groups, anything over seven and you’ll have to just rent out the whole place, I know because I also had my birthday “party” there and had to be very careful about who I chose to take with me (I put party in quotes because my idea of a party is six people sitting relatively close to one another eating ice cream). Also, if you go on a busy night and reach the end of your reservation time, you will be rushed out a little quickly as well. If you go on a night like a Tuesday, like I did for my whatever you call it when a guy asks if you will take him to a speakeasy, you will probably be able to chill out well past your reservation time with little to no problem. I would recommend making a two-hour reservation just to be sure you have enough time to enjoy yourself either way. The other thing you need to know is that it is going to be expensive, and I will explain why in just a minute.
Now that we’ve taken care of all the basic business we can move on to the fun part. Needle and Thread is associated with and located above the bar Tavern Law. Not the most speakeasy entrance I can think of except that you then have to go to the back, pick up a rotary phone, speak the password, and wait to be buzzed through the safe door. By the way, the password is, “I have a reservation under (insert name here).” You walk up the stairs and then, quite suddenly, are immersed in the jazz age.
The upstairs bar is small and cozy with dim lighting and eclectic twenties furniture and odd nick-knacks. It feels like it is owned by an eccentric billionaire who likes to travel the world and probably smoke cigars and chat with Hemmingway. I would definitely read a book about that eccentric billionaire, she sounds fascinating.
If it was just a place that had a cool atmosphere that would probably be enough for the hip and pretentious of Seattle, myself included, but that is not where Needle and Thread’s true appeal lies.
Needle and Thread does not have a drink menu. You can probably ask for a list of spirits they have but you’re not going to find a list of signature drinks or your safe and easy standbys. No, no standbys. You have to have a sense of adventure or you are not going to enjoy what really makes this place cool. Instead the bar tender will ask you a couple of questions about what you like and if you have any allergies or things you absolutely do not want in your drink. Then they go back behind the bar and create a one of a kind cocktail for you. When I say, “one of a kind,” I mean it. The first time I went to Needle and Thread one of my friends ordered his drink by saying, “I would like something that has been on fire in the last few minutes.” He was brought a really delicious smoked whiskey. When I ordered the same way the bar tender brought me a mixture of two different kinds of absinthe that was also delicious. You are never going to get the exact same drink twice. You can, of course, order by giving a list of things in a drink you like, and your bartender will bring you something similar, but it is a lot more fun to give them really minimal instructions and let them play. However, because every drink is crafted on the spot, you might not get exactly what you are searching for AND they charge a pretty high standard rate for all of their drinks.
All in all, Needle and Thread is one of the coolest spots I know of and you should check it out at least once.
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