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Categories: Pool Halls, Restaurants, Dance Clubs, Bars, Arcades [Edit]
731 Westlake Ave N
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Well I agree with the rest of the band wagon here. MEH!
The service was weak. We had to flag down our waitress or just walk back up to the bar. (fyi, this is 2pm) The food was typical bar food, but bland and cold.
The only reason we went here was because our alumni met here for football games. Luckily they changed the venue this week.
The one plus is they have tons of room, games and pool tables.
Since I had to keep getting different waitress's and bartenders to serve me, I left without my debit card. When my final waitress closed my tab she did not bring my card with the bill. Partly my fault since I was tipsy after the game, I signed it and walked out.
Rrrr, now I gotta go back...
"...I shouldn't be afraid to order; I'm still hungry, and definitely thirsty but I can't trust anything! Even water!" I actually said that last night as I tagged along and joined a great trivia team for a charity event. And while the trivia and company were definitely fun the following things were NOT. AT. ALL:
1. Please don't assume that I'm okay with a "Pepsi" when I ask for a "Coke". 99% of servers verify this, and there's a reason for that.
2. When I order a refill, it's supposed to be of the same beverage, not the diet version. But that was sort of okay because the aspartame took the edge off of the...
3. Incredible amounts of salt used to prepare nearly every food item our table ordered. Pork sliders? Truly INEDIBLE, and my friend was going to suffer through them until another friend persuaded her to send them back.
Fries: Suuuuper salty - which is crazy because usually the problem I have is that they aren't salted enough. You could see copious amounts of large salt crystals, and my mouth is drying up right now just thinking about it. (And stragely enough, two separate orders were equally salty, but one was crisp and the other soggy limp. wtf?)
Baked Potato Soup: Not really a soup I guess, but tasty aside from the TOO MUCH SALT. As in when Riss said, "Hey, stir some of your sour cream from the quesadillas in to cut the salt." I stared at her as if she was a friggin *genius*. The Chicken Quesadillas were fine and worth $3.99 Happy Hour pricing, as flavorless as they were. Protip: Condiments shoud enhance the flavor of your food, not *be* the only flavor present.
Water: Now I know this is going to sound ridiculous, and that's because it is COMPLETELY RIDICULOUS, but here it is: the water was salty. It also wasn't water, I guess? Basically my friend ordered some water, sipped it and coughed. She had a few of us taste it to make sure it wasn't just salt from the food lingering in her mouth. Personally, based on her expression I thought it might be a tall glass of straight vodka - but tried it. I then took it to the servers and made two of *them* taste it. Verdict? Somehow her water glass had been refilled with a pitcher that somehow contained SPRITE and SALT WATER.
...
...
...
...
...
Don't look at me like that. I told you it was ridiculous. =/
I was really sad because I paid $11 for food and drinks that were not only terribly below average, but as much as I wanted to continue to eat, drink, and snack couldn't trust anything brought to our table. Even water. I was honestly *afraid* to order anything else. Even beer on tap.
So, our waitress was nice and Mondays are the $5 Unlimited Game Play. But if I were you I'd stick to cocktails from the upstairs bar or just eat and drink someplace else altogether.
Came here the other night for a small farewell get together for the last remaining Aussie PAXers. We… Read more »
Stick with the games.
I thought I had ordered a salt lick when I took the first bite of my pork sliders. Thinking that my palate was off because of a recent cold I took a second bite . . . . and am still regretting it.
I'm not one to return food, but this plate along with my cohorts cobb salad with the blue cheese in the salad - as well as on the side like she requested - had to go back.
I was happy to receive the water I requested to wash down the salty food before she brought out my meal replacement. That happiness lasted all of a minute when I took a large mouthful of some sort of 7-Up/salt mixture and then spit it back into my cup.
Our waitress was gracious and accommodating and ready to right wrongs - hence the one star - but I won't be going back for food at Jillian's.
This place is always a good time. Awesome stuff happen on 2 floors. Also a great staff with really friendly bartenders. I recommend going on a week night. You get to know alot of regulars and get to avoid the busy weekend crowd.
Besides relatively cheap pool, ping pong, and alcohol I think this place has almost hit ROCK BOTTOM!
My friend and I wanted to go outside to get some fresh air(few minutes after midnight), but the security guard told us that once we leave we weren't getting back in because they were getting ready to shut down even though they close at 1 and he said and I quote "I am getting ready to KICK people out of here!" We were the only people there! Are you fcuking serious?!
To be honest I still probably would return simply due to the fact they are convienently located to my work and they have cheap everything there with a pretty decent facility, but I would probably go earlier next time though.
It was such a shame to see this place empty on a friday night! I came here with a friend to shoot… Read more »
As if Jillian's needed anyone adding to the chorus of "Eeks" and Mehs"....
I had a horrendous experience attending a Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Team in Training fundraiser here recently. The fundraiser itself went well (a silent auction and live bachelor/ette auction). It was a little chaotic, and a little amateurish, but it still helped to reach the TNT team member's goal. The food was...BEIGE: the entire spread was deep fried (chicken strips, tortilla chips, crab cakes, calamari) with four or five unlabelled sauce bowls. It's a form of Russian Roulette, I think.
But that was not what was horrendous. After the fundraiser was done, I saw and heard the event coordinator accuse the Team in Training fundraiser for not covering enough of the costs. From what I witnessed, the event coordinator wanted to collect money for a DJ and a photographer, and unlimited free drinks for the bachelor/ettes (of which she was one!)--all of which the fundraising individual had claimed she already objected to on previous occasions.
Whatever the details are here of this deal, mind you, IT ALL TOOK PLACE AT THE BAR IN FRONT OF ME AND A FEW OTHER CUSTOMERS! I heard and saw most of it because I was sitting a whopping one seat away from the action!!! There had to be an office somewhere in there where the event coordinator could have exploited the poor woman in private.
So, although I had been to Jillian's many times before (never my own choice, usually to meet other people), I vow to never return. Looks like the biggest douchebags in the joint aren't the clientèle, they are the ones working "hospitality!"
I will keep this brief.
Saturday night, $5 cover, boys and girls. Booo.
All the video games in the arcade are either dated or out of order. No DDR or any other rhythm-game for drunken silliness - the drum game they had was out of order...
Lots of pool tables - when we arrived, there were 5 tables opening up from some event where the tables were being used as well, tables. We go to the main counter to request pool play (at $14/hr for 3+people, btw who the hell charges per person and not just per table by the hour?!), but apparently there's a wait. Okay, fine. We sit for 15 minutes next to the empty pool tables and only 2 are actually taken.
We left.
I went to Game Works the next morning : )
OOOOOOOHHHHH!!!! Jillian's Special cheese sauce! made with 3 different cheeses, WOW! best side i could have ordered with my already amazing Fries!
11pm, just got out of work, what to do? what to eat? whats this place across the street? Jillians?… Read more »
Pretty, pretty, pretty disappointing.
Went here last night to catch a football game. Everyone who worked here seemed to hate their job; our waitress didn't smile at a single customer and didn't ask if we wanted anything -- her idea of service seemed to be "if you need something, you ask me."
Food: mediocre at best. They serve their fries in a deceptive basket: looks like you're getting a lot more than you actually are.
Guess it might be ok for pool or video games, but I can't speak to that b/c we didn't try em out.
Let me just say this: when ABC preempted our game and started showing Oklahoma vs Miami instead, Jillian's didn't offer any reason to stay. We left promptly.
Went here a few weeks ago to celebrate the birthday of a friend of my boyfriend. It was a decent place for him to celebrate the big 3-0 (although it was rather sad because he was sick!), but nothing special.
We managed to get inside before the cover, which was a nice bonus, but I think it's ridiculous to have a cover for this kind of place to begin with. Since we got there before cover started, parking wasn't much of a challenge.
Our waiter was probably the best experience of the night. He constantly came by taking our order and bringing us drinks and food. He also provided us with plates and silverware for the birthday cake we brought with us.
The bathroom was extremely messy, which was very off-putting. I felt like I should be wearing gloves while in there!
I never tried the arcade, so I can't say anything about the games, but the billiard tables were solid and it was nice to be able to rent them out for a period of time.
I was unimpressed by the food menu. There were some solid appetizers, but when it came to food there was little I could eat (I'm a vegetarian). Would it kill them to make a veggie burger? Or at least have the ability to sub a veggie patty?
Overall, this place is extremely underwhelming. I didn't know what to expect going in, but came away rather disappointed overall. The night was definitely fun hanging out with my friends, but I just didn't dig Jillian's as a whole.
went here for a b-day party,and first of all they had a $5 cover,big turn off for me,to pay and not know what's inside first hehe.
we went there a little early so just in case we didn't like we could take off early,so we were waiting for our friends and ordered some drinks and food the drinks and food came promptly the service was quick but not super nice which i understand being that kind of place,the atmosphere that i sense it was a bunch of young and frat people wearing baggy jeans hats etc etc .. personally not my cup of tea.
the pace itself is big has a lots of pool tables videogames,but again not to my liking...our friends came chit chat for a bit and we were ready to leave but we decided to stay since some friends came and asks us to stay for more drinks and let me tell you i had lots of drinks that i ended up till the end of the night here.
they also have a dance floor which was empty dunno why but oh well
if you like pool,video games sports and thats all you do on a sat night this is your place,but if you want a upscale sports bar and nicer service go somewhere else,if you don't mind there you go!
ipb
Came here to watch the Washington-WSU basketball game. Food was okay, nothing special. had the chicken sandwich with fries. Fries were very limp because they had absorbed the oil. Make sure you keep the oil temp high enough!
Arcade was nice, most of the games are older - Circa 2000.
I've never eaten the food, tried a drink, or played a game here, but I was forced to patronize this establishment because of its one and only real asset: an old school photobooth. We came in around 1:00 specifically to use the booth, and the place was a tomb. A dark, sticky, stinky tomb. The only other people there were one ragged biker playing pool and one sad sack yuppie getting drunk in the middle of a Sunday afternoon. We took our pics and got out of there. The lone dude at the host desk watched us leave like he didn't really blame us.
Seemed a little low energy and not too many new arcade games to get excited about.
Left early and didn't mind. Never saw more than 5 people dancing on the dance floor at one time.
Let's make this fast and dirty... the review.
I have never been asked to pay a cover in the random times I've been here, so I'm not really sure how that works.
PROS:
- The bouncers at the door are nice enough.
- There is an arcade if you have a short attention span.
- The table area near the bar is nice enough.
- There are quite a few pool tables.. but, hopefully, you come during one of the not-so-busy nights.
CONS:
- Food is eh.
- Waiters are hard to find.
- There are probably only about 3 games I want to mess with at the arcade.
- I don't think anybody cleans the tables until they close for the night. (Ick!)
It's an alright enough place to hang out in... although I think we go there only because friends want to play pool.
I'm taking Jillian's down a notch to 2.5 stars.
Our last visit was my first foray into the arcade area. We went in there 'cause we were with a group and wanted to do something fun together besides pool. What we found was, lots of really old games, pre-teen girls running around (isn't this a bar?!), very low (bordering on creepy) lighting, and most importantly a total absence of feeling like I got my money's worth. Some games in theory let 3-6 players go head to head in the same race, but in practice we had trouble getting the games to join everyone in.
It was a lame and disappointing finish to what had started out as a good time at the pool tables upstairs. I will never, ever return to the arcade area.
Our waitress was really nice, but on average the server experience here has been mediocre.
I still love the many pool tables (pool is really cheap on certain days), and the big TVs, views of Lake Union, etc. Nothing special about the food, but it's not bad either.
We've been here casually, and as part of group parties. The place is so big, there's something for… Read more »
I dare you to come with a hot date. The only thing you'll be leaving with is a pair of blue balls... and I don't mean from the 2 and 10 balls from the billiard set...
Jillian's seems like a great place to visit. They have plenty of pool tables, 2 ping pong tables, video games, a full bar and food. They have plenty of flat screen TV's and the decor at first glance looks like a fabulous place to take a girl out.
But when you first drive up you'll realize that the parking sucks. The few spaces near Jillian's are always taken. You'll have to park a few seedy blocks away.
After you get in you'll get a pool table. They'll assign you a table and about a third of the time someone will be playing on it.
Even if you move you'll notice the obnoxious 40 plus year old overweight guys in Hawaiian shirts or over sized football jerseys talking about how awesome their fantasy football team is doing.
That's right other than the few nights Jillian's has a cover, the clientele tends to be 40 plus and over. I'm not saying that's bad but when you're trying to impress a young lady and Brian Wilson from the Beach Boys is screaming after every crappy shot, looking cool is impossible.
The worst thing about Jillian's is the service which absolutely SUCKS! The service staff is large and you can tell they hate their jobs as they'll take it out on you. First off as soon as you step onto the second floor you'll get sniped by a waitress. They'll ask you if you want something to drink which I don't find too bad. But the last time I went I also asked for a menu so I could get food. After 45 minutes the waitress finally came back to see if we had decided on what to eat.
And though you'll see the army of service staff running back and forth in their black shirt/tie outfits like a bunch of commie commandos, there's no logic to it. You'll see your waitress disappear in the ranks and when you want another beer or order your food she won't be around. When you ask one of the 30 people working there if you can order they'll tell you that you have to find you waitress and order through her. Of course they won't help you find you waitress who will remain MIA for the next 20 minutes. This is a huge problem when you're trying to close out your bill because you'll literally wait a half hour to get it. It's so bad that I've learned to close out my tab at least a half hour before I plan to leave.
That food itself is decent. It consists of mostly bar food: fries, nachos, wings, sliders, etc... They prices are OK but the food is definitely not gourmet. They also have a full bar and plenty of beer on tap and the drinks run about $4 a beer and the other specialty drinks are about $7-8 each which isn't so bad for such a douchey place.
The pool tables are much better than the ones at the Garage in Capitol Hill but not by much. The felt on the tables are worn but it's acceptable. There are plenty of cues that aren't broken and the spacing between the tables is pretty adequate so you don't keep bunching into each other. Of course the douche bags that go to Jillian's aren't the most conscientious of people so you might have to ask people to move about 20 times a game so you can take your shot.
Then after you play pool and your date kicks your ass 15 times in a row you might take your luck on the arcade. But the video games are just as dilapidated as everything else. The games are outdated and many don't work. http://www.yelp.com/bi... You have air hockey table http://www.yelp.com/bi... which are missing the "air" part of the game so that the puck simply doesn't slide across the table. There's the basketball shooting game but the basketballs are all flat. And apparently the arcade is so highly thought of that the area is also used as storage for extra chairs and tables. http://www.yelp.com/bi...
I'm going to be brief of the restrooms but they are nasty. I'll let your imagination take over one how bad it is but you'd think that if they have 15 servers and various staff members running around that someone would unclog the toilet or restock the toilet paper.
Jillian's is a mixture of douche bag establishments like Rock Bottom, Fox Sports Grill and Gordon Biersch mixed in with a broken down arcade and pool table.
So I'm still a virgin and it's all Jillian's fault!
That and I ran out of AXE body spray again!
Update:
Kimberly K from Texas says:
Oh, Dan, no one has taught you that getting the ball in the hole is just not that big a deal...
Oops!
It looks so nice, shiny and big from the outside but inside? A sad sad illusion. 5 bucks for a cover which is pretty lame to begin with. The place is huge with pool tables on both floors, an arcade and a "dance floor" (if you could call it that) but I doubt this place ever has enough people to make it seem hopping.
Nothing against the older crowd but came here for a friend's 22nd birthday and we were the youngest by 10 years. Didn't have to wait for a pool table and a lot were empty (actually, probably not a good sign now that I think about it). Jillian's has no logical method of assigning waiters to certain spots of the bar, I had to track down somebody each and every time we wanted something which is ridiculous.
... I guess the fries were good.
Let's get one thing straight: if you're into UFC, slutty girls, HORRIBLE music, paying $15 for a game of pool, AWFUL drinks or looking like a complete and utter douchebag, Jillian's is the place for you.
For the rest of you: avoid at all costs.
Company Christmas parties are awkward. Thankfully, my company chose to reserve a room at Jillian's for our holiday party this year. I should state that I've never been to Jillian's on my own, nor do I think I ever will, but for our big, awkward group it was a good setting for our party with a little something for everyone.
The upstairs room that we reserved was large and was complete with a couple pool tables, a beer pong table and leather sofas by the window. Just outside of the room, we had our name on a couple ping pong tables and darts. In other words, I had plenty of opportunity to occupy myself with something other than talking to clients that I don't know.
There was a large selection of food that we could have served at the party. Our buffet type table had meatballs, steak bites, crab cakes, burrito-esque things, makings for sandwiches, dips and chips, and so on and so forth. While not extravagant, the food was moderately priced when we ordered and tasted pretty alright. We also had an open bar, which can either add to the awkwardness of the party or help smooth things out. We had one server making the rounds in our room throughout the night. For our group, which hovered probably around 30 people at a time, we could have used another server. While she was friendly, she seemed a bit scattered during our party, which she showed through forgetting drinks (which would have been easy to do).
As for the loo, well, I would have preferred to hold it for hours until we got home, but we did have an open bar. The bathrooms were generally messy, out of soap, missing a lock on the door and soggy paper towels left on the counter. I'll pass.
I expected parking to be a challenge, since our party was held on a Saturday night, but there were a few spots right out front and a parking lot just down the street. Although, it was the night of our first snow, so perhaps less people were out.
All in all, Jillian's was a laid back place to host our event. It's not everyday that you can beat your boss at beer pong.
I was there on a Monday and was using it as a pool hall and will review it as such. ID checked to go in. The bar was nice and people ended up doing Karaoke. By Karaoke, I mean these people have probably been singing in choirs, etc, for 20 years. They were rather impressive.
Pool was good, but spendy. The tables were very well maintained, nice 9 foot tables. They were clean and had no nicks in the cloth. I played rather well on them. They have no 8 foot tables if you are so inclined.
I liked the place. Will play there again.
I had a friend in junior high named Jillian, and she became an anorexic drug dealer, got kicked out, worked at Hooter's by age 17, and now has several kids by different fathers. Hmm... it's funny how similar the two Jillians are....
I've been here a few times for happy hour (only because it's convenient and it lasts until 8pm), but I say: NO MORE! I will never again go to Jillian's. This last time, I left feeling sick and pissed off, not my favorite things to be. Here are the reasons Jillian's gets a 1/2 star:
*Dark and dirty (the dreaded double-D's)
*Service is extremely slow--are they brewing the beer themselves?
*Reminds me of Chuck-E Cheese.
*Tables are never cleaned off before you arrive; tons of plastic water cups everywhere.
*Food is mediocre--my grilled chicken sandwich was dry (needs more honey mustard), nachos are a ton of chips with little meat, etc.
*The waitress forgot to bring us silverware, then she brings us a single fork each. No napkins, no knives--wtf? I guess I'll spread my sauce with the end of my fork, which I did, and proceeded to grab said fork 3 minutes later and ended up with STICKY fingers. Grosssss.
*I got hit with a freaking ping pong.
1/2 star for the fries and the happy hour until 8, which more restaurants should observe.
So let me get this straight.... You want me to pay $5 when you're only open for 2 more hours and once I get inside I have to pay more money just to do anything?? Really???
Congratulations Jillians - you have regained the ultra douchy status that made the naive 21 year old me drawn to you back in the day... unfortunately, I'm not naive anymore.... or 21.
Fail.
Last year, our office holiday party was held here.
The service was shitty.
The food was worse.
We were surrounded by The Duke of Douchbaggery and his Douchy Dozen.
We shimmied (actually, shifted uncomfortably from side to side) to the sounds of the Fabulous Thunderbirds and Puff Daddy or P. Diddy (or whatever the fuck he's calling himself now) blaring over the sound system.
We bobbed and weaved to avoid being knocked to the ground by tiny women in five inch heels, five inch skirts and five inch tube tops.
They did have Centipede and booze so they get two stars. I still have tokens left over from this shit.
Pros: Friendly, occasionally prompt service. Huge location, tons of places to sit or play pool. Lots of TVs to catch sports or news. Arcade has lots of machines. Food quality is decent.
Cons: No Golden Tee Live in the arcade (only an old non-live 2005 version). Vegetarian food selection is not the best. Drink specials are not great in my experience (happy hour has $1 off drafts).
It's dark. It smells a bit like old man. I think that if all the lights were turned on you'd see the stains in the aged wood from years of non-cleaning. So it's probably best the lights stay to a dim...
Plenty of space for pool and even room for a pair of ping pong tables. I think I even saw an arcade downstairs....Apparently this place has it all. But only enough for a couple of stars.
Met up with another couple of dinner on valentines day. I have never been in here and was quite sure what to expect. I think my list of dislikes is a lot longer then my list of likes.
Dislikes:
1. They had a cover lame
2. When my date went to get our drinks at the bar the bartender was so rude. After taking our drink order he just turned around and continued to talk to the other bartender.
3. Our waiter was a complete airhead.
The Likes:
1. We didn't have to wait for a table to open up to play pool.
2. My wine is good.
I would go back but just wasn't overly impressed.
To top the night off my friends car got broken into and they stole a whole bunch of stuff out of their car. We were parked pretty much across the street from there. Not the safest place i guess.
We went to said venue for a friends birthday, we'd been there before, for another party, with reserved pool tables, party platter, free gaming tokens, but these privileges come at a price, not sure what it is, but its not free :)
The bathrooms are small, the over-served girls bring their drinks into the bathroom (ew!) and when I went in once, there was broken glass all over the floors because someone was drinking and peeing.
The games were broken, though the ones that weren't were fun. After the night was over, our waitress in our reserved area informed us that she let us have the pool tables an extra 2 hours for free so we needed to tip the front desk $5-10... WHAT? We didn't even know there was a time limit. We were also unaware of the cover charge that obviously left our friend Betsy and who knows who else, out in the cold. We had a friend show up for 30 mins before we all left and we felt bad that he had to pay to get in. Lame.
I'll go back if someone else reserves an area and pays for it, but for no other reason. ;)
What is it about this place? I was kinda underwhelmed in a lot of aspects...the food, the service, the games. Me, being a HUGE nacho fan, must always sample the fare for comparison purposes...I was so disappointed, I couldn't even finish! Oh, the audacity! Once we finished our beers, we journeyed downstairs to play some games, many of which were out of order!
After getting my a** wooped on Air Hocky and Skee-ball Basketball, we decided to call it a night and journey on to another venue...All in all, I don't think I'll be headed back to Jillian's any time soon....
So, this place has so much potential, and yet they fall so short of it.
Things I like:
* Pool Tables
*Ping Pong
*Full bar
*Decent appetizer platters/food
*Air hockey
*Semi truck arcade
My company had their Holiday party here last year and it was a really fun time. But I think we had a large area of the place reserved so we had tons of pool tables, and didn't seem to have to wait in line for video games, and we got endless coins.
Turns out the experience is much different when you go there on a normal night. I got there before the cover started for a birthday party. I actually didn't even know they had a cover, so was rather disappointed when Betsy couldn't join my group because of lack of funds (and I was lacking funds to get her in as well). Some friends and I sat in the upstairs seating area for a few drinks and chicken strips before the party began. The waiter was seriously distracted by something. He was moody, took forever to get our drink orders and to bring us said ordered drinks.
We moved to the reserved pool tables for the party and it was better. The waitress in charge was super dedicated about making sure we had what we wanted. She even tracked me down in the game area to get me another drink. That was super cool.
Now, about those games... almost ALL of multi-player games are broken. The left Star Wars racing game just turns in circles, several of the shooting games just eat your coins and do nothing. Now, the staff was really nice about it when I told them and gave me refund coins. But why not fix them and make everyone happier?
Went here for lunch during the week with coworkers to relieve some stress. If you buy food pool is free so after ordering we enjoyed the pool tables in this empty establishment.
The food wasn't anything amazing. I ordered a taco salad which was quite large and was impressed however I had lowered my expectations for it. At least one coworker ordered a Philly cheese steak which came on a ciabatta and was probably over priced for the size. Another ordered a Salmon sandwich which looked a little small. Since no one was there during the week the wait staff was very attentive but the food did take some time to come out.
Here are words that come to mind when I'm in Jillian's.
Plastic
Hair product
Cologne
Sorority
Rude
Shady
Dated
WTF cover?
Exit
One of the many stops from a bday party...
Paid $5 cover (what the heck?).
Assigned pool tables..
but used by another party.
Dance floor had weird music.
Wayyy older crowd.
Bartenders was fast.
Didn't go to the video game area.
I've heard of this place before but never came until recently. This place is ok. I would return for the pool tables at a slower night.
If it weren't for the clientele, I might like this place. For some reason, this place attracts the sort of people that you would normally try to avoid. I've been here a number of times and I either get a bad vibe or someone actually offends me.
The pool is crowded but okay. They have ping pong. The video games can be fun.
I realize that by reviewing Jillian's I am admitting that I've been there...multiple times. :-/ But they're relatively clean, and they have quite a few pool tables - each time I've been there, we've gotten a table right away.
Too bad someone is *always* on the table we're given. We've been assigned tables by the window twice, and both times they were taken. So we had to move to a table in the middle, which are pretty close to the tables on either side, so I constantly had to watch myself to make sure I didn't hit the trying-hard-to-be-cool girl or her know-it-all boyfriend at the table next to us.
The first time we went, we ordered drinks, which came out timely enough, but when the time came to settle the bill, the waitress was no where to be found. It always perplexes me when waitstaff disappears right at the "I'm-about-to-be-paid" part.
The arcade area downstairs leaves a lot to be desired. Not because of game selection (I am perfectly happy with old-ass arcade games), but because nothing actually worked!
First the change machine - the woman behind the counter had to hand us the tokens because it wouldn't take the bill. Then, I wanted a basketball rematch after the trouncing I received from the 1HMF earlier in my trip...but all the balls were flat, and the machine on the far right was completely off. The shots I made didn't register, and some of the ones I missed were counted.
The trackball for Centipede was off as well - it made for a very very short, low-scoring game. And the fans for the air hockey were *really* weak, and the scores didn't register (for my side only...which was okay because I barely scored anyway).
Bottom line: go for the pool tables but not much else.
-------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------
And in case you were wondering:
1HMF Kerrie L
Pool 0 5
--(this is for that day, the above score was not a normal occurrence)
Basketball a lot 0
Centipede 1 0
Air hockey 2 0
(We're a bit lopsided.)
If I never have to set foot inside a Jillian's again, I will be a happy woman. I've been to the one in Boston before and should've known this one wouldn't be any better. In fact, it's worse.
First of all, there are no old-school games in here. The last video game I played was that Sonic Hedgehog thing and before that it was Mario Brothers. Please, give me something I can work with. All they have is a bunch of shoot-em-up or sports related shit. Boring. The Mrs. Pac-man was broken and it was about the only game other than Centipede that looked familiar.
I think their air hockey machine was broken because I got my ass kicked four times in a row. Even when my date played with his less dominant hand!
I did enjoy shooting hoops, but most of the basketballs were flat and again, I only won once. They should have a built in "Let the Lady Win" feature for guys that are looking to score. Because I'm a sore loser and if I don't win at least a few times, you're not getting any.
The food: typical fried shit.
Service is actually good, hence the extra star. Everyone was nice, but maybe they were just bored since it was a Sunday night.
Please Lord, don't make me go back.
Hmmm... well, I'd never come here on my own, but had to go last night for a work event. My two previous visits to Jillian's have led me to the conclusion that I just don't belong here... Too many fratty people in my vicinity tend to make me cranky and uncomfortable....and (I know this will come as a shock to many) cranky Lydia is not so pleasant. :-(
Fortunately, there were many co-workers who were "designated drivers", and were willing to give me their drink tickets. Hurrah!! Vodka never hurts in these situations. Vodka, and a bottomless bucket of game tokens. Yay! I became slightly enamored of the "Crazy Taxi" game (you don't lose points for running over people) and the motorcycle race (which I sucked at, but used most of my tokens playing).
The food: Nothing I'd order if I had to pay. It was a buffet style situation, so naturally, they put the "filler" at the head of the line. Who did they think they were dealing with here??? Naturally, I bypassed the cheese, crackers, and bread... gave the overcooked veggies a cursory glance, and dove straight into the hot spinach dip (that was probably dumped out of a #10 can)... not that there's anything terribly wrong with that... I'm a fan of processed foods. Bring on the salt I say! Next was a penne pasta that tasted strangely of dill pickles (I chose to believe I was tasting capers, but I dunno). The next pan contained breaded chicken on a bed of more of the dill pickle penne. Hmmm.. disappointment. Finally, the dessert tray. Everything looked dry and unappealing... I didn't try it.
All in all, I had a decent time. But I chalk that up to vodka and video games...
This has been my most difficult review to date. The reason why; I hate to dog a place that has so much potential to be great. Jillian's is a sports bar with food, pool tables, video games and ping-pong but Jillian's is not great. This is very easy to figure out why too. Jillian's doesn't belong. Whether it is corporate or local management someone just doesn't have a clue. This establishment is better suited to operate in some suburb far, far away. The kind of suburb where teenagers with fake I.D.s can sneak in and cause trouble. You know the kind of trouble you got into when you were 18. That's the crowd they seem to prefer instead of the crowd that wants to have a fun-filled, worry free evening playing or watching games over a few beers like myself.
These are my reasons why I have come to loath Jillian's:
#1. I was asked to remove my hat. Sounds like reasonable request but really it isn't. I have never walked into a "sports" bar in Seattle and been politely asked to remove my Seattle Mariners hat. This is not a fancy restaurant; this is a sports bar/pool hall so they must have problems with gangs or something. Please leave my neighborhood if you are attracting gang members!
#2. They charge $5 for entry after 10. Maybe this is a way for management to make money off underage kids with fake I.D.s that just play pool and don't order drinks. Maybe it's because after 10 this place becomes some kind of crappy nightclub wannabe for suburbanites that want to visit the city.
#3. The crappy nightclub wannabe for suburbanites that want to visit the city thing they have going on. Its creepy, it's crappy and it doesn't belong. They blast bad top 40 music, the kind of bad top 40 music underage kids in suburbs listen to. I know this because like many of you, I was once an underage suburban kid myself. Awful, tasteless music!
#4. Its remodel time. However, its not gonna happen so in the meantime, it feels dirty and outdated. Like the bad top 40 music they play.
To be fair, some positives can be attributed to Jillian's. The wait staff is usually friendly and attentive unless of course if they are doing the crappy nightclub wannabe thing. Once that starts you begin to get treated like your ordering a drink in some kind of crappy nightclub wannabe place. They do have other events; everynight is not crappy nightclub wannabe night. They do trivia night and host sporting events, just remember not to wear the hat of the team your rooting for and you should be fine.
I'll go back, either against my will, completely drunk and bored or for sheer convenience. I have never had a bad experience at Jillian's, I just always leave felling like I wasted my evening at some crappy nightclub wannabe place, ears ringing from tasteless bad music....
More asian girls in tube tops than any place I've ever been in my life. Glorious!
The pool tables are decent but not awesome. No talc that I could see, but no big deal.
The games are okay. I didn't find too much to play aside from some air hockey, ms pacman, and some pro skater. I always have fond memories of playing pro skater after that first time I played it in a suit and had a ton of people wtf'ing. I set the high score on ms pacman that night. If it's not reset every morning, consider the gauntlet thrown.
This Jillian's is better than most, actually. They use tokens instead of weaksauce magstrip cards. They have ping pong upstairs. They serve drinks and food and deliver it to wherever you are.
You can also dance here, but I suggest leaving early if you don't want some jerry springer outtakes in the parking lot and people looking for a fight because they're not getting laid. Chill out, guys. It's asians and pissed-off hiphop in that end of the place.
Seriously this place smells like little kids who have hardcore nicotine addictions!! I don't even know how's that possible but Jillian's pulls it off. Oh and the bathrooms there were dingy and unkept. I totally understand that a sports bar doesn't have to be uber nice but it doesn't have to be gross like Jillian's either. So sorry Jillian's the referee just ejected you for being extra foul!
Holiday Parties
Seattle, WA
Happy Hour Everyday
Bellevue, WA
Neighborhood: Pioneer Square
Category: Dance Clubs
Neighborhood: Queen Anne
Category: Sports Bars
Neighborhood: First Hill
Category: Pool Halls
Neighborhood: First Hill
Category: Dance Clubs
Neighborhood: Eastlake
Category: Sports Bars
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