Gastropubs

This was a good week. Yes, somehow we managed to visit three new-to-us pubs. 2 of them were even gastropubs. What exactly is a "gastropub" anyway? That word keeps getting thrown left and right in restaurant reviews, and we feel cool saying it, but is it really just an upscale pub? According to Wikipedia, THE information source online, gastropub "is a British term for a public house which specializes in high-quality food a step above the more basic pub grub." We'd like to add to that definition that it should also include many interesting microbrews on tap.

GPub 1 was Quinn's in Capitol Hill. We originally planned to meet Greg, Lauren and Shreya for dinner at Coastal Kitchen but we left after we found out there was a 2 hour wait. So off to Quinn's we went. The gastropub sits right near the busy intersection of Pike and Broadway, and from the outside, looks like a regular restaurant. It's a beautiful 2 story room with high high ceilings, a very large but sophisticated bar area and wood paneling everywhere. The catch is the wood paneling is done with 2x4s all lined up together, on the thin side. Yeah, that's a lot of wood! I ended up ordering the Wild Boar Sloppy Joe (good, but not as gamey/meaty as I would have expected) and Scott got the house-made pork sausage (too soft in texture). Lots of beer were on tap and I can't remember what I had (blasphemy I know!) other than the Pumpkin Ale draft special. There was also a very long and impressive single malt menu that Scott for sure wants to go back to order from.

GPub2 was Barking Dog, the local brewpub that supplied some food at the Shakesbeer Festival a few months ago. The awesome thing is they are walking distance to our house - yay! This place was packed and looked very family friendly (they even offer a kids menu). It reminded me of a brewery, except with lots of interesting and different beers on tap. I ordered a Nostradamus and the mushroom meatloaf. The beer was tasty, but the meatloaf was the best meatloaf I've had in a while. Scott ordered the Barking Dog - basically a bratwurst sandwich. Tasty! Way and Kevin like Marin Brewing Company, and I think this one tops it for being a casual but fun alehouse.

The last pub we visited was Sully's Snowgoose, a saloon down the street from us. We always pass by it and want to go in becuase it looks like a cozy little cottage. We happen to walk in during a Seahawks game and there was lots of screaming and yelling going on. They have probably 20 beers on tap, so I ordered some sort of Harvest Ale and then went to sit by the fireplace. When the Seahawks cheering got too loud, we went out to the patio and warmed ourselves next to the outdoor fireplace. Yep, definitely cozy! We hear from friends that the pub is packed especially when it is cold or snowy outside and we can definitely see why!