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Categories: Pubs, Restaurants [Edit]
Neighborhood: Queen AnneMon-Sat. 4:30 p.m. - 2:00 a.m.
Sun. 4:30 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
"I have been here a number of times since my arrival in the area back in December. I love this place. Simple, friendly, fun. I stopped by…" read more »
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Sunday night and besides my friend and I there was the bartender and three other people. Empty is just the way I like my bars. There is lighting which is unusual in a Seattle bar. It was refreshing to see everyone's face without shadows and glow.
Jabu looks like a converted basement. Not divey so much as it doesn't really give a damn. It is not here to impress you with fancy drinks and doesn't strive to attract your Ed Hardy wearing bitchasses which gives it many cool points. There is an outside smoking area. One pool table and two video games. One wall is metal and has those big colored alphabet letters and pictures.
When I walked in the bartender was outside getting his smoke on then came in to ask "What sounds good?" I liked his greeting.
Halfway into our second drink and third pool game the lights went out. Almost all of Queen Anne was in the dark but the bartender took it in stride asking if everyone was okay, finding candles to set around, and still serving drinks. What a champ.
I liked Jabu despite the black out mishap. This is the kind of bar I can see myself coming to again. What more can I ask for than little to no costumers and beer?
Didn't love it, didn't hate it.
Pros: Metal wall with alphabet magnets, lots of space to sit and talk or stand around and make fun of other patrons with your friends. Nice dog hanging out in the back room.
Cons: Poor beer selection, gross bathrooms. (You may remember that I have next to no standards when it comes to bathrooms. If I think it's gross it's got to be pretty disgusting.)
If I were in the neighborhood and my friends wanted to stop here I wouldn't object but I probably wouldn't pick it out on my own.
My friend and I were looking for a quick place to grab some food before a movie, and we saw Jabu! The only reason we went in, really, was because the sign out front said "Great food!" Well, we wanted to make sure they weren't false advertising.
Turns out they were absolutely right. Seriously, it was delicious food. It took a while for it to come out, but it was well worth the wait.
Oh, and the bartender! Even with his bandaged hands, he was the most polite and helpful guy in the world.
I don't know. I got major good vibes from this place.
Well, it's kinda hard to say. the place was empty, which I liked, but it felt vacuous. I like my empty bars with low ceilings, dark and dingy. This had high celings, lots of concrete. I felt kinda like it was an off hours meat-market, or maybe an empty furniture store or something. I'll go back if someone really wants to go there, and maybe it will kill it next time, but, well maybe three people just isnt enough to lively up such a big space.
Great little pub! Strong drinks, great jukebox, pool tables, bands and bar food. Bummer that I only tend to get over here during Bumbershoot and Folklife Festivals. Once seated in the lower bar level, during Happy Hour, it feels like a sanctuary of good tunes protecting you from the Seattle Center mob-like crowds and over priced beer gardens. The bartenders here have always been great, they don't miss a beat even when it gets busy. Jabu's is THE place I go before/during any Seattle Center Area event. I would like to try to get over here for Trivia or something someday.. as I do hope to visit Jabu's before next year. Thank you Jabu's for your Bumbershoot day salvation!
Went in here a couple of weeks ago. This place is not the same. It saddened me, Jabu's used to be so comfortable and have the best service.
The new food menu is overpriced for what you get. I had the buffalo chicken wrap and it was two smallish chicken tenders with an excessive amount of lettuce. Boring, gross and dry. Next time I'm in the neighborhood I'll go somewhere else.
After living in Queen Anne for two years, this has become my neighborhood bar. It's a welcome… Read more »
At one point in history, this place was a great, comfortable neighborhood hangout. Now, when there is service, it's slow. The drinks aren't as strong as they used to be. And there seem to be more trashed people falling over my table, spilling our drinks and then crashing onto the floor than there used to be.
Decent food though. I like the burgers a lot.
killer dive pub. went with my friends feras and ben when visiting last year. great low key place to hang out. also the bulldog there is the best.
I've never ordered food here, but who goes to a bar to eat, amiright?
Most of the bars in the Lower Queen Anne/Belltown area are shit. People dress up to go out, wait in line to get into bars, drink watered down drinks, and suffer through bad service. There are easier ways to get laid, people! Try Craigslist.
Me, I go out to bars to drink alcohol, but there are a few things that I look for in a good bar:
1. Not busy. I want drinks quickly and I don't want to stand in line to pee.
2. Mac & Jacks. Manny's is an okay substitute, but the African Amber is a god among beers.
3. Tom Waits on the jukebox. Just reading that made your balls bigger.
4. Touchmaster with the titty touch game. I don't actually play it, I just like knowing it's there.
5. Pool table. Keeps you humble.
6. Trivia night. See above.
7. Dark, nearly pitch black. Because the people you drink with can't always be attractive.
So Jabu's Pub is almost the perfect place to drink, they just need to turn the lights down.
Went last Thursday night for my friend's birthday and I must say that I love this place. The place was quite slow on this night which made for a good vibe for her birthday party. The drinks were quite stiff and very reasonably priced. I ordered 4 jagerbombs, 1 crown/coke, 3 vodka/tonics and the total came to $43 dollars. There is one video game machine and a pool table in the bar.
The bartender was a little quiet but then again, he was always there when we needed more drinks. Didn't order any foods on this occasion so a friend and I ended up walking to Dicks down the block on Mercer to get a deluxe, fries and shake. It was a good night and I'll be back!
I have now visited Jabu's twice and both of my visits were within one week. I am in love with their Blues Burger...crumbled blue cheese on a slab of juicy cow with bacon, lettuce, tomato, and onion. If I could marry a burger, I would marry this burger. It is so yummy, that everyone who likes blue cheese must run to Jabu's to try it. I recommended it to a friend and he fell in love as well.
The bar is dog friendly and I had the pleasure of meeting a dog named Maki on my first visit to Jabu's. She jumped up next to me to sit with my friend and I in our booth (only after being invited) and hung out with us while we sipped our drinks. She is super sweet and smells like Aveda shampoo for dogs. A dog friendly bar with super sweet dogs...how awesome is that? Way to go Jabu's!
Jabu's wins every star in my book because it hosts Seinfeld Sundays. Drink specials could be better, but the servers are nice enough and they leave you alone.
It's more fun to sit in the front by the windows and people watch. The back looks more like a small town pool hall, but there's definitely enough room and Jabu's is very pet-friendly.
Jabu's also has a great menu. We ordered beers and a hummus plate, which was excellent with two kinds of sauce, fresh veggies and plentiful little triangles of pita. They have a fair amount of vegetarian fare, and lots of healthier items mixed in with their traditional bar food.
It's easy to eat bar food while quaffing a moderately priced drink because they play a healthy mix of our favorite nineties tunes.
Jabu's Pub.
I was afraid of this place. I thought it was pronounced, "Jab-You's." I kind of have a difficult time going to places where they stick me with sharp things, including finger nails. I was surprised when fellow Yelpers suggested we head there. Mostly at the pronounciation. Oh. Jab-OO's. Maybe it won't hurt so much after all.
I walked in there with my gal-pal, wearing a green st. patty's day wig and a green st. patty's day hat and my green shoes and her green stockings. Wait. She was wearing the stockings. I was wearing the shoes. Wait. We were also fully clothed otherwise. I've been ordered by the Seattle PD to not walk around naked in my green shoes anymore. I've found it's ok to walk around naked without my green shoes. They also want me to renew my tabs.
We walked in and I felt like I was in a Mannfred Mann's video. "BLINDED BY THE LIGHT! REVVED UP LIKE A DOUCHE..." seriously is that what they say? "ANOTHER RUNNER IN THE NIGHT." Let's go back a second. They seriously say revved up like a douche? Well there was a reason. The lights in this place were at an uncomfortable setting: ON. Like... all of them. I immediately assumed that Jab-You's must have a problem with people sleeping on the job (of getting sloshed) and decided to Jab-YOU in the eye with blinding light. There was a boisterous crowd doing some game on the ping pong table where they were bouncing balls and waiting for someone to land a ball in a cup so they could all drink. LAME. I say you drink WHEN YOU MISS. You get drunk a lot faster that way.
I like getting drunk fast, so I ordered a Bushmill's and drank it regardless of who was dropping their balls in my cup.
Um... yeah I'll just leave that last alone.
There was a really interesting little area through a door and down some steps. Being previously toasted on green beer and ham, Sam I Am walked down the steps and didn't fall. Take that stair gremlins!
And then proceeded to fend of drunken regular from putting his hands on my gal-pal, or any of my other female friends, by taking one for the team and talking with drunken regular about... well... I will respect the poor guy and guard his secrets. But he sucked and I felt sorry for him for his sad bard's tale. I was BLINDED BY THE LIGHT. He was REVVED UP LIKE A DOUCHE. I seriously wish I wasn't such a nice, peace loving guy. I really wanted to bury my elbow in this guy's ear, give him a purple nurple and drag him out by an awesome Will-Wedgie.
In my attempt to ward this guy off from following my gal-pal into the women's bathroom, I wound up not looking and running into another regular and helping her boyfriend get to do a body-shot off her chest. Sorry babe, you're welcome dude! I bought them a drink, but I talked to her later and she was still pissed. Apparently he was too pansy to really get all the whiskey off. Pansy.
Anyway, thanks to my fellow Yelpers for providing what entertainment I could draw out of them while I tried guard my eyes from being BLINDED BY THE LIGHT and fend off REVVED UP DOUCHE. And if anyone could explain what I was doing with the ketchup bottle for half the night, I'd appreciate it.
There were more ladies there than Dinah Shore Weekend and an Olivia Cruise combined !!
Ahh well......atleast it seemed that way !! I think it was the post "Storm" game crowd. All in all, a good time was had by all. A great
neighborhood place to unwind.
The hummus and tzadziki were tasty and the bartenders friendly !!
I totally underestimated this place - there's nothing wrong with it at all! I was once gawked at by some dudes outside as I walked by and had determined it was no place I'd want to step into. But when a theater has an opening nearby, there are few options if you don't make plans to get tables at nearby restaurants.
So - we went for Jabu's. Being greeted by the cuuuuuutessttttt boxer ever inside was a great way to start. What a lover! It reminded me of Colorado, where dogs are welcome at a lot of neighborhood spots.
I had the chicken wrap, which was very good, though way too thick to take bites of without it falling apart. Know your wrap circumference potential - don't overfill! The G&Ts were just fine though, and we ran into other theater peeps at the bar, making it feel all the more homey. I'll go back for sure. Probably not late-night, but for a quick bite before a show will do just fine.
I was confused by Jabu's. Here is why:
1. I couldn't figure out which freaking door to enter. I felt like I was on one of those game shows where you get to pick one of three doors to reveal your prize. "Door 1, you say? Sorry! So sad! This one is locked! Try again..."
2. Once we found the correct entry, as another reviewer mentioned, I was met with a somewhat chaotic environment. Bright lighting and drunk frat boys and their lady friends (can I call them ladies??? That might be a stretch) playing drunken beer pong left me feeling disoriented.
3. After finding a stairwell, we entered a whole new world of cozy pubness that I enjoy. Finally! But the disparity between the dark, warm, cozy lower section and the bright, garish, scary area left me puzzled.
Once I settled in downstairs, I had a nice evening. I'd like to visit here again on a non-drinking holiday and see if the vibe in the larger, brighter room is calmed down at all.
Oh, and I had the chicken wrap thing. It was decent.
Jabu's seems like a pretty ordinary, fairly sporty, mildly divey bar. They have a fairly laissez-faire (i.e., unenforced) smoking policy. A pitcher of PBR is a very acceptable $7.
But: we totally won $25 in drink certificates at their Monday night "pub quiz", so that kicks my opinion up a notch! (Silly Seattleites, everyone knows it's called Quizzo, and it should be run by a surly, sarcastic Irish man. Maybe that's a Philly thing.)
I wouldn't suggest it for a night out.. unless that night was pub quiz night! (Pub quiz is $10 a team)
Jabu's was my home turf. The bartenders are really friendly and always quick. The food has it's ups and downs, although now that the kitchen has been open for a while it's usually ups. The jukebox has a couple good discs in it, but you'll hear Sweet Caroline about 10 times a night when it's crowded. Crowds are few and far between though so most weekends you can grab a table or a booth. Fortunately the Seattle Center crowd typically steers clear of this place, so they don't mess up my night too often.
They gots an always occupied pool table and an old tabletop Pac-Man machine. Come by, give it a try and meet the regulars.
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So I'm changing my tune a little. This place changed hands since my original review. They turned the lights up, ripped out a bunch of the booths to replace them with high top tables, and they now play effing beer pong on the pool table now. Don't get me wrong beer pong can be fun, but save it for house parties. The whole place just has a cheap frat house feel to it now.
The lower half is still much as it was before: dark, cozy, quiet(er) and friendly.
Love this place! We went in late Sunday night. Great atmosphere, small.. very cool. Bartenders are super nice, and they've got strong pours is for sure. I will definitely return.
Two Ja-bu's way up!
I went to Jabu's on Friday and had a good time. It is very much a neighborhood bar. It's not a two-bit sleazy dive, just a decent place to have a beer and visit with friends. I met several fun people there, and they were all from the neighborhood, so there you go.
Previous reviews are also correct. Emily the bartender has everything on lockdown and does a hell of a job running the place. The big-screen TV has to go, as it just dominates the room it is in. I didn't have any food, but my new-found friends said it wasn't the best, but I saw someone else get a burger, and it looked pretty decent.
I'd go back there, no problem
This is bar far my favorite bar in Seattle. I regulary went to Jabus in 2005 before moving to Chicago in the beginning of 2006. While it has lost some of it's charm due to the big screen tv, loss of the dirty couch, and weird graffiti now adorning the bathroom walls, I would still be parking it at one of the comfy booths on Thursdays if I was still in town.
Over the Christmas Holiday I want to Jabus a few times, and the service was still EXCELLENT mainly due to their FABULOUS waitress EMILY. She basically runs the whole place, filling all orders at the bar and even bringing pitchers and drinks to your table once you order them at the bar. Her service doesn't stop there, though. She even pours the beers (never spilling, which for me is an amazing feat) and often stops to chat when it's not busy.
Jabus may be becoming more popular, but it maintains it;s small tavern charm, cheap prices, and great service -- three qualities that will keep me coming back for years.
Oh and I forgot to mention the jukebox -- it has an amazing selection. Anybar with such a large selection of Neil Diamond gets 5 stars from me.
They used to have a "liter mug club" where after drinking a butt load of pints you got to have liter upgrades for the cost of a pint. They stopped this after I was about to put them out of business. They said it was because it was a pain in the ass to manage and people cheated but I know what the real reason was.
Anyway this is a great little pub. Not too much of a dive to run away but not too nice to worry about wearing the right stuff and acting the right way. I guess you can call it comfortable. I loved the caulk board in the bathroom. Don't trust him he lies.
Review updated due to new management showing their true colors.
My favorite time to visit WAS during the week when it's mostly empty. It's just waaaay too loud and crowded on the weekends (still is). There's no place to sit and all everyone wants to do is scream about football and knock people in the butt with pool sticks.
During the week is when you get to talk to the nice/hot folks (um...not so much anymore) who work there and the regulars who hang out. The atmosphere is chill, especially in the smaller bar area. They have good stuff on tap and some pretty decent eatins. Maybe we were a bit tipsy, but their Bleu cheese bacon burgers WERE to die for (about three cooks ago).
My first visit was by far the best. We strolled in on a lazy Saturday afternoon and watched as a liquor sales slut tried to flirt with the owner...while his wife was working the bar not five inches away. Hilarity ensued.
It USED TO BE our favorite local bar.
UPDATE: The new owners treat regulars like crap. For example, we did the owners a personal favor and in return they made us feel really really awkward when we tried to cash in the promise of free drinks (two beers, WTF?). They're all business and make no effort to create a friendly or even interesting environment (unless you count abrasively loud music) during the slow weekdays, even if they know you're a regular. Customer service is lacking in a big way and they don't act like they're striving for repeat business, which is why we stopped going.
We visited again this weekend with guests and was sorely disappointed again. Just because they are packed doesn't mean they should be assholes. One of our guests got a long island iced tea that was dark with coke and filled mostly with ice. When we convinced her to go return it, all the bartenders (and an owner) were jackasses about it. I should have "dropped" the drink on their fucking toes.
So what if it was half (more like a third) empty? Since when do drinks get served filled to brim? And it was mostly filled with ice and coke anyway. And if you know anything about physics, one sip could easily empty out half the drink if it's mostly ice (Archimedes...look it up fuckers). The owner even knows me and she was such a cunt. Seriously, do they not have ANY integrity or customer service skills? We brought three new people to her place. At least we know they won't be going to Jabu's again either.
We only went there for the smoking alcove anyways.
Strong pours, cute bartenders, big jukebox - pretty much the perfect dive. Any place you can find a seat on a Friday night gets good marks from me. Although the guy who played Wallflowers should be dragged out onto the street and shot.
Decent neighborhood place, it's nice because it doesn't get so much of the Seattle Center crowd, and is more locals. Good place to meet with a few friends. The sandwiches are OK, but in general it's about the drinks and relaxing.
Don't eat here but its a good place for drinks with friends. Stands out as one of the more tolerable places on a Friday night in lower Queen Anne. My friend JRod frequents here and has drug me along a few times. The crowd seems very laid back and they have some good beers on tap. Fun place for sure and I'm sure I'll be back more than a few times. My friend who purports to speak Zulu claims that Jabu translates to "happy" but I think he was lying.
Where else are you going to this kind of diversity in a bar crowd? Don't like what you've found one night? Stop back another. Consistently great service. Strong drinks and great beer. Some brave, young new owners are constantly trying new things. If you have an idea let 'em know!
I don't think I would ever eat here, but for a bar, this place is great. Godod beer on tap, friendly drunks and quick bartenders.
not bad.
my wife and i live right up the street from here, but i've only been a couple of times. not exactly frat-boy material, but nothing that i've placed up at the top of my list for 'must go back'.
was there on a trivia night. can't remember what day it was
So.... there was this moment tonight when I was in the middle of my buzzed bliss while peeing when I zoned out on the tile floor of Jabus and it hit me.... this might be my bar on Queen Anne where I WANT to go... I have not found a place yet to replace THE BEV (Beveridge place pub west seattle) but this place made me pretty happy.
Granted I went there because I worked with one of the owners at a previous, non related event where we dressed as fifties people (me-cigar girl, owner- paparazzi of the fifties) so I walked in wanting to like the place.... but I think I actually did.
It actually has a beer selection to be proud of, as in if you don't know beer besides the "lights" you won't know what to order. Which is an A+ automatically. Our server was sweet. AND the bathrooms have this sort of "open door" deal, so when people in the pool room all begin to sing to the song playing on the jukebox you feel as if you are being serenaded. Pretty sweet if you ask me.
I love Jabus. I used to live a block away and it was always the go-to spot for a relaxed weekend or for the ridiculously cheap happy hour. The billiard table is a joke but it's fun to bounce balls around the table with friends.
Love! Went for a friends birthday on Saturday night. Good size space, they let us decorate the whole place, great jute box, friendly service and they have cool t-shirts! All around solid bar! I'll be back :)
This looked promising, but maybe I was just drunk........oh wait....I didn't drink anything. I went with my older friend of mine (100) years old......yes 100 and he loves to dine out. We were short on time so we decided on this place because it was close to where we live. We ordered cheese fries, deep fried mushrooms, and deep fried ravilois. I was expecting small button mushrooms, instead I received giant lousy tasting ones. I ate the batter off the mushrooms only because I was starving, couldn't eat the shrooms. The raviolis were late arriving because our waiter forgot our order, I ended up wishing he would of just forgot the order all together. The were little cheese raviolis instead of the big ones I usually have tried at other places. The end of the raviolis were tough from over cooking and the middle was slightly cold.....go figure. The cheese fries I would order again, if intoxicated enough. In all fairness the place is a cute little place with some decent looking beers they offer. If your hungry go drunk! After eating my 100 yr old dining pal looked at me like I was trying too shorten his life span, I had to remind him I wasn't in his will.
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Neighborhood: West Seattle
Neighborhood: Queen Anne
Category: Restaurants
Neighborhood: Queen Anne
Category: Bars
Neighborhood: Queen Anne
Category: Bars
Neighborhood: Queen Anne
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Neighborhood: Queen Anne
Category: Bars
