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Categories: Pubs, American (Traditional) [Edit]
Neighborhood: Ballard
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First off, let me say that I'm a BIG fan of deceptively named businesses. I just wish they'd take it one step further and actually sell hardware...not that I'd want to buy anything. I'd just find the idea of that awesome.
Anyway, if I lived near Ballard, I think you could probably find me here more than my apartment. Obviously I'm a fan.
The nachos here are CRAZY! They have all the normal stuff, like tortilla chips and cheese and salsa and beans and jalapenos but at the bottom of the platter (yes PLATTER, it's insanely huge) is a soft tortilla! Brilliant I say! You can tear off pieces of it and eat it with the toppings that are always left when the chips are gone!
Other things I appreciate:
Heated deck (with a secret bar)
Attentive servers (even on a Saturday night when it's packed)
Gluten free beer (my roommate can't have regular)
Oh I do like a good burger. And this place has a variety that is sure to please just about everyone.
First off, I want to congratulate them for having one of the few remaining peanut butter burgers left in the city, titled humorously, the Afterschool Special. I've had it and it's delicious.
I've also had their Bacon Blue Cheese burger and it's equally phenomenal. Juicy burger patties cooked to order (medium, please). Fresh veggie toppings (leaf lettuce, tomato, onion) and crunchy pickles. And a bun that holds together under the pressure of all those toppings.
I love their regular fries and their tartar is the perfect compliment. My friend swears by the sliders. I've heard great things about the sweet potato fries.
A frosty beverage in their outdoor seating area during the summery months just puts it over the top.
The key to Kings is to go in on the off hours.
I've been to Kings many times and at many different hours. I have enjoyed that back deck in the day time and the night time.
The Bloody Mary's are solid and come with plenty of treasures. Today's had a stalk of celery, carrot stick, 2 green beans, asparagus, 2 olives, slice of lemon, slice of lime. Perfect for this sunny Sunday afternoon.
I also ordered a burger w/ bacon and cheese and ask them to swap it for a garden burger. I consider it a yin-yang burger. When asked if I wanted fries, I opted for the sweet potato fries. I really didn't need to swap it for a side salad because the Bloody Mary was the side salad.
This joint can really get packed on a Fri/Sat night. I've heard woes of waiting too long for a drink and some sort of "see and be seen" mentality which I have not experienced. If you have fear of either of these scenarios go in the off hours. You will enjoy it more when there is room to move.
Oh and... eat your veggies!
Only an establishment run by the same jackasses that own Linda's would host an auction to go on a date with one of their employees. +1 because their bloody marys are practically appetizers.
I think this is one of, if not the best, bar in Seattle. The atmosphere is great, the burgers rock, and you can play skeetball.
The only down sides are that it can be a bit loud and the servers suck. But you're at a bar, you can't expect awesome service anyway. It's always a great place to hang out late at night that is nothing like late night on 4th street.
King's has definitely got some character! None of the stuffiness of other trendy-hip watering holes, just plain fun. Right down to the tongue-n'-cheek rustic decor and added bonuses (skee ball, patio, etc.) King's is about letting loose, socializing, libations and classic bar eats!
How many places can you put beer, haircut, jackalope, slider, and Hall and Oates all in one sentence? You totally cam at King's. My sliders were pretty hood, they have my favorite beer on tap and my server gave just the right amount if attention. I like that you can relax and eat before getting a haircut next door at Rudy's. Good way to spend a Wednesday. Can't wait for dessert after the haircut.
Like most truly cool spots, do yourself a favor and go on a weeknight. On weekends, steer clear.
I am kicking myself that I didn't walk far enough back into this bar to see their patio OR the skee ball. I am a skee ball fiend. That would have been so fun - maybe next time.
Anyway, we ordered only beer here, so I can't speak for the food selection. There were a few obnoxious patrons, but maybe to them we were boring and that annoyed THEM. Who knows.
I love the decor here - can't really describe it. It's such a mish-mosh. Dead animals, an entire wall of old photos taped up like wallpaper, lots of hardwoods, nooks in the wall full of glass bottles, a King Kong arcade game (in use), booths, tables, a long bar near the entryway -- all in sort of half-darkness. Menus that look like they were stained with coffee or tea to look vintage - most with actual spills still on them.
It's like a hipster diner / lodge, I suppose. I think maybe I am too old to fully grasp the concept, but still, it was a good place to sit and enjoy a beer. I asked the server what darker local Seattle beer he recommended and went with the one he selected. Can't recall the name but it was very good.
There are a few cool guitar stores in this area, and one wine bar that I'd probably avoid. King's just seemed to be the best bet for a chill evening.
My favorite bar in Seattle. It's unfortunate that I don't get to travel there on the company dime as much as I used to. I'm always down for King's Hardware for an awesome burger and just cool decor and location.
The fries there are also a thing of beauty as well as the Mt. Rainier tall boy cans which are dirt cheap (or is that just the New Yorker in me?).
Last time I got there, the crowd was a little much, but otherwise, I've had an awesome time every time I've been there. Love it.
This place IS cool, but I feel like I have yet to really have a good time here. Too trendy & crowded. I am stifled by hipsterdom.
It's not all bad, love for terrible beer (Ham's), shuffleboard, an attached barber shop?, and open air seating are pretty pimp. It is definitely going for awesome dive bar, but is to classy for that. This seems to leave it a bit caught in the middle to me. I don't hate, but maybe I just need to avoid the place except for down times. :(
Hollar 'atcha patio!
It was quite a sight, last Saturday afternoon...
Tables. Empty tables. During the SeafoodFest.
The service remains to be fine. The food is decent enough. The beer- fresh. I've heard rumors that the Wedge salad has returned to the menu. I'll be back for food and more hot patio action soon!
The sister of Linda's on Capital Hill, or rather the brother (?) is a pretty sweet place to be if… Read more »
Kings.... Well, it has Skee ball.. which seems to be hard to find in Seattle.. So, for me.. thats a +.. Kings Ale is cheap and pretty good..
What else? The food? A one page menu that consists about 80% of burgers. Decent burgers and fries, nice atmosphere with a great deck out back.
Add some Skee ball . and its way deserving of 4 stars.
Great beer selection - like most places in Seattle - along with a helpful staff make this place a great spot to visit.
The interior decor is largely brick, but the inclusion of all the game hunting heads and furs seemed a little counter to the rest of the atmosphere of the bar.
Just as a warning, the menu is almost exclusively burgers, which wasn't a problem for me, but might be for others. I had the Five Alarm burger and added bacon (per the waitresses' suggestion) and loved it. Certainly better than your average burger.
Wish I had a few spare quarters to play the Skeeball in the back.
My night at King's was one of the best nights I've had at a bar in a long time. I don't think there was one time in the 4 hours that I didn't laugh like a Hyena.
Our waiter (Ian) was witty and attentive. He also informed me they carry Molly Moon's ice cream which is for lack of better words "sweet!" There is always a mile long line at the actual Molly Moon's location, so just go to King's and get it there.
We ate two plates of sweet potato fries (yum) and consumed various beers, while we played a game of guessing names and occupations of the people around us. The whole point of the game was to guess, then go up to them and tell them your guess and see if you were right. So needless to say our night was interesting and we met a bunch of new people.
For the record, if you see me at a bar and you're guessing my game - I like to lift boxes in a New York accent and my name is Kimberly.
It's Saturday night
You can't get a drink
You can't sit down
You can't find toilet paper
You can't hear your friends
Why are you here again?
In search for the best burgers in town, I saw King's Hardware as one of the reader's choice in Seattle Metropolitan Magazine. So we headed here not expecting it was a bar thus the indoor seating was full and doubt anyone was leaving any time soon. We sat in the Backyard and it was cold and windy. The heat lamps were turned on yet the wind seem to have beaten it by a lot of knots! I just wished they had an option to cover the half of patio so guests won't have to freeze as they enjoy their awesome burgers!
Yes, I loved the burger! I had the King's Burger and the meat was just perfectly cooked! Thick enough to satisfy and still juicy inside for awesome chewing! I love how the vegetables are still evident in every bite and the bun was nicely toasted. The fries are also amazing in their own way but I came for the burger and I would come back but maybe during lunch or before the happy hour folks start gathering there. I'm giving it 4 stars for the burger but I am still bummed about the seating areas :(
Do I care what people at a bar think of me?
Yes.
So it was with great apprehension that I ordered a glass of white wine tonight while waiting for the rest of my party to finish up at Bastille.
Luckily I had Tony G to break my school girl intentions of fitting in and I shook caution to the wind. My wine came in an oversized shot glass, which took care of me looking like a puss. Everyone probably thought I was drinking some bad ass whiskey or something.
That's why King's rocks. Beautiful people hang out there getting their hipster on! And not so beautiful people like me go there to "fit in" in trendy Ballard. But you'd never know it from the look of the place.
Expertly decorated in a rustic theme complete with Buck Hunter in the back.
P.S. Who else is bothered by the word "nosh"?
Our party of three had three burgers, each with big chunks of nasty gristle. I've been here a dozen times - usually the burgers / turkey burgers are pretty good. These were disgusting.
I've never found the server very good or friendly. Atmosphere is ok. Music is usually pretty loud - I find it too loud for conversation, even during weeknight dinner hours.
I'm giving this place 3 stars even though I found a long blond hair in my food. Just for clarification, I have extremely dark hair and know when I accidentally eat my own hair versus somebody else's. That was a gross find but luckily reached in the first bite of fries. They kindly brought me a second batch but I was hesitant to eat anymore.. Had a fine cheeseburger and enjoyed a pitcher of random beer for a few hours. Our server did check back with us often to see if we needed more beer. That was nice. It's a loud trendy place most all of the time. And it has creepy dead animals on the walls. I could do without a bear pelt as an accompaniment to my dinner..
Maybe I got lucky, but I had fantastic service. Dig the atmosphere and who doesn't like the chance to play a round of SkeeBall? Nice and very full bar. The food is bar food, good bar food. I recommend the sweet potato fries.
This was stop #2 during a pub crawl. I was trying to figure out the whole "liquor before beer"....or was it "beer before liquor" quandry.....I couldn't remember, so I went for a margarita. It was so so. It was a bit too salty for me. Second round was a rasberry vodka sour, and that was actually nicely made and helped redeem the mixologist.
But the most memorable items for this bar....two things: patio and skee ball!
Yeah, I played skee ball, but ended up with two lame scores (210 & 190)--damn you, 100 point holes!!! They're just bait for the dreamers (like me).
The patio was tight. It's huge. There's another bar adjacent to it (also outside). The weather was awesome. A very cool place to chill out with a group.
Oh, and if you wanna get your hair cut...there's a barber shop attached to this place---I thought of getting my fade hooked up, but I thought better of it.
If you enjoy convenient parking and have a love of animals, you're gonna hate this place! After 20 minutes of driving back and forth Ballard Ave, I finally crammed into the smallest parking space on the street imaginable (picture Austin Powers-esque parallel parking), and when I went inside the bar I see a ton of dead animals on the wall staring at me. Quite a surprise, I get to eat Bambi tonight! I hope there's a side of Thumper....
Our waitress was very friendly and recommended me the Tijuana Burger (because that was her favorite). After we ordered we killed time with a couple pitchers of beer and a few hundred rounds of Skee Ball. Yea that's right, Skee Ball, only the greatest carnival game in the world! For only a quarter too! After successfully cheating my way to victory, our burgers came, and I'd give it a 7/10. The patty itself was a little dry, flavorful yes, but a whee bit dry for my liking. Otherwise, a pretty damn good burger. The bun was soft but toasty, there was enough guacamole to smother the burger, but not enough for it to pour out like diarrhea. And if you like Dick's fry's, you'll definitely like King's sweet potato fry's, sweet n' soggy. So lucky me, I ordered onion rings, and they did not disappoint
Overall: A good burger, many other exotic types of burgers on the menu I wanna try, more Skee Ball to be played, I'm definitely going back.
My coworkers and I come here a lot for happy hour. I've liked all of their food thus far... their nachos rock and the drinks are stiff and good. I just wish they had more happy hour food prices, but what can you do?
I definately reccommend this for happy hour.
Obviously I don't get it. (Which is weird, I usually do!)
Everyone is always telling me how much they love Kings, how it's the best bar around because it's so much fun and how I'll love it.
I went. It sucked.
What I will say is the décor is rockin'. I like the vibe of the place, but I can't waste time at a bar that makes bad drinks! Is a gin and tonic a difficult drink to make? Apparently at Kings it is. There were so many different bartenders working at once I couldn't keep them straight. Or maybe I should say they couldn't keep me straight, I had three separately helping me for just one drink and it wasn't what I would call busy in there, it was Sunday afternoon! Customer service is a small part of their job right? We didn't get menus and everyone's drink was off with the exception of the can of beer. My friends and I had one drink each, played a quick round of skee ball and headed elsewhere. Since there are literally a million other bars in Ballard I doubt I'll be back.
Oh alright. I'll be back, but I'll mostly likely be drunk before I get there.
Stopped into King's Hardware twice on my last visit to Seattle. Four stars for the tea leaf infused vodka cocktail, the large back patio, and the skee ball, three for the food.
The ceaser salad my husbot ordered was basically lettuce and dressing, no croutons, no parmesan. I got the deviled eggs, why? because for some reason they were the most appealing thing on the menu to me. They were pretty good, being deviled eggs and all. I'm sure they were supposed to be ironic, King's Hardware seems like *that* kind of place.
This would of been a 4 but the first impression really blew that, They did not acknowledge me for a long time and I was just going to leave and give them a 1 star, Fortunately the bar tender informed me it's sit where ya like type of place...though there is no sign explaining that awhile everyone that works there was just hanging out for the most part.
My waitress finally gave me good customer services and was very friendly.
The decor with taxidermy critters everywhere, ski ball and dim lights.
I saw a big selections of unique burgers that ranged from Bacon to Peanut butter.
I had their Sliders and they were the best ive had. Juicy burgers with special sauce,caramelized onions and a pickle. I am not a pickle fan but it really brings together all the flavors.
I sided ordered Awesome fresh cut Sweet Potato fries that were just perfect.
For desert They were serving Molly Moons Ice cream and that days flavor was Maple Bacon. It's actually sounds more "interesting" then it is. it's really good and it just comes off as Maple and Almond Icec ream but it was a real good and a unique eating experience
I would totally come here again, they just need to acknowledge newbie patrons.
I came to King's Hardware with a friend one recent sunny evening to participate in the Dine Out For Life program. And what a fine evening it was, lounging out back on their patio with tasty drinks and juicy burgers! I had two different IPA's and my friend enjoyed her G&T's, although I think she got some serious drink envy when we saw our neighbors' bloody mary and maragarita.
My friend ordered the "after school special," their notorious peanut butter and bacon burger. When she found out the peanut butter is creamy and not crunchy our super-cool server offered to bring out some crushed peanuts for her to add! Unfortunately they turned out to be cashews and arrived after her burger... but +1 star for effort! I got to sample her burger and it was tasty. I'm not sure it's for me, but if you love peanut butter, you are required to order it.
I felt like a break from my beloved blue cheese & bacon burger, so I gorged myself on their yummy Tijuana burger (bacon + cheddar + guacamole). The fries weren't super-hot, but they tasted fresh and crispy. They're the home-style variety that has skin on them--kind of like Dick's but without all the soggy. The sweet potato fries are popular here too, but I'm not a fan.
King's has a good bar, a great selection of beer on tap and they cook up an excellent burger. It's definitely my go-to burger place in glorious Ballard. On a sunny day I recommend showing up early (before 6) and grabbing a coveted table in the sun.
The patio was perfect for a post-Sunday Market nosh in the shady-sunlight.
The bloody Mary mix was good enough that my pregnant escort questioned adding vodka to it.
The sweet potato fries were a sure hit, not too greasy & full of crispy flavor.
No complaints from the burger department either, just enough variety to satisfy all from the menu, but straight forward & still simple. The county fair & a big kahuna left the two of us full & satisfied for the rest of day (at least until it was time for ice cream at dessert o'clock that night!).
Wandering solo in Ballard for some bourbon on a Wednesday night, I breezed through Hazelwood, but couldn't find a seat. So I meandered down Ballard Ave and for some reason ended up at King's. I've been here before and as I sit here by myself with an Old Overholdt at my side, I begin this review.
This place is pretty big. On this particular Wednesday night there's a obnoxious group of girls a the bar celebrating what looks like someone's 21st birthday. The bartender was nice. I commented about a bottle of whiskey made by the infamous Rogue Brewery and he said "Don't even bother...it's gross"
I would actually give King's 3.5 star if I could. The music is too loud to actually write a cohesive review....or maybe it's the whiskey...bye...bye.
I go here occasionally to meet friends and hit the deck.
However, it's just ehh.... To many people trying to hard to be "non-conformists". Servers seem to be more focused on showing off their tatoos than doing their job.
Basically... Not impressed at all.
I've only ever been to King's during happy hour. And it is an excellent one, 5-7 with $2 PBR, 2.50 micros & wells, 7.50 for a micro pitcher. I normally head over on Mondays before square dancing at the Tractor. Get there around 6, have a pitcher and some whiskey, and occasionally the sliders or a burger. They also have some delicious sweet potato fries. The back patio is also quite excellent in the summer.
It is however normally a madhouse on Friday and Saturday night, and would recommend staying far, far away.
What a fucking nightmare this place is. Yeah, it was Saturday, but jeezus, I have never seen such a huge clusterfuck in my life.
This place is pretty huge, and we were supposed to be meeting some people there, so Alex stopped at the bar to get drinks, and I attempted to navigate the room. Good fucking luck. I guess the fact that it was so crowded I couldn't walk through the place at all says: "They're popular! This place must be fantastic!"
Whatever, comparable to Linda's or the Cha Cha on Capital Hill, those places at their absolute most horrible worst are a dream compared to what I experienced here last night.
I finally managed to get back to the bar (without having been able to find our friends because it was so crowded that I couldn't see them) Alex handed me two drinks. I asked which one was mine (I had ordered a double Jack and diet coke, and they both looked the same) and he said they BOTH were - that was their idea of how to serve a double. WTF??? In any other case, I wouldn't have minded, but now I had to navigate this writhing mass of humanity with a drink in either hand.
There was no where to sit, so I positioned myself in the most out of the way spot that there was and pounded those two drinks while being constantly bumped into by anyone trying to pass or just within ten feet of me.
At one point, some drunk older woman who looked like she must have been someone's mom, actually laid her hands on me and attempted to move me so that what I assumed must have been her precious daughter could walk through the space in which I was standing. I mean, this person grabbed me by the upper arms from behind. She's lucky I still had a drink in each hand, otherwise she might have woken up this morning wondering why she has less teeth.
Needless to say, it was fucking louder than shit, and impossible to socialize at all.
I suppose I should go back at a time when I could guess it wouldn't be so damn crowded, but I'd also have to guess that the same people will be there, just less of them, and there wasn't a person in the who didn't irritate me on sight.
It's a pub with a different kind of feel. For one, you can play Skee-ball in the back. For another, there are real, stuffed animals on the wall... everything from deer to moose to... bobcat?
Happy hour was 5-7pm, and that, along with some satisfying burgers, made us pretty happy campers. You can also get sweet potato fries here, which made me excited, but they were on the soggy and salty side. Excitement dissipates.
We also wanted to do Irish car bombs, but somehow, King's ran out of Bailey's. How does that happen? Our waiter felt bad and was nice enough to give us a drink on the house though.
Solid joint.
This might be a fun place if I weren't consistently dragged here on the busiest nights. The venue is large, but so are the attitudes of the multitudes of hipsters that call this place home. If you want a good place to be seen, go here. If you want a good place to hang out with friends, skip King's Hardware.
King's Hardware is Seattle's Tower of Babel.
Walk through King's doors and you'll see people from all walks of life united for a common goal. No, that goal is not to build a tower that reaches into the highest heavens. Instead, tattoo covered hipsters, fake n' bake sorority sisters, teva and fleece wearing dog owners, and other Seattlites gather under King's roof to build up their alcohol tolerance.
King's is a fun place to grab a drink and play some skee ball, listen to Interpol and munch on some sweet potato fries, or grab an Elysian Pilsner and relax on the large outdoor patio.
Centrally located in the heart of Ballard, King's Hardware is worth a stop.
This is my favorite beer-garden bar. I'm a vegetarian but I love the taxidermy. They have ski-ball and the best summer drink, Fresca Fantastique. Ask the bartender for it, they don't tend to advertise it often. Overall fun atmosphere; used to be a hardware store it seems, and the hair cut place is adjoining next door, Rudy's. Interesting! See you soon, King's!
The only awesome thing about this bar is the Skee-Ball, but there were a bunch of douche bags hogging it all night. The music was just a tad bit too loud. You could barely hear what the person next to you was saying.
But perhaps I didn't enjoy this place because i was with bad company. The world may never know.
Peanut Butter on my burger, side of sweet potato fries and Skee Ball? Yes please!
As stated many times before, this place has an odd decor. Lots of wood, paintings and dead animals! It definitely reminds me of back home in Idaho. I think the weirdest part is that it shares space with Rudy's barber shop. Also, it should be noted that the bathrooms suck, unless you like peeing in an ice filled troth, not my thing.
Now for the food. I had the "After School Special", it's basically a bacon cheese burger with a special ingredient: peanut butter! It sounds kind of weird I know, but once I saw it on the menu I knew I HAD to try it. I like bacon cheese burgers and I like peanut butter so I figured it would be a win/win situation and it was! Now it's not unfreakinbelievably good, but it's pretty tasty, my only complaint was that it could have had a bit more PB and possibly the chunky kind, since that's what I prefer. I knew I had to try the Sweet Potato fries too, since I'd never had them before either. They were delicious and complimented my PB burger perfectly. I also had a couple Manny's too, yes I know, "I would!" Manny's is fast becoming my go to beer when out and about as it's regularly available and tastes great!
I also played some Skee Ball, I hadn't played Skee Ball in years. It was fun and I was getting the hang of it by the second game, not that it takes that much skill, lol.
All in all, this is a nice place, if not a bit loud, with good food and good service too. My waiter was fairly attentive and I only had to wait around for him one time during the evening.
Came here on a weekend with the girlfriend's co-workers. I have never been surrounded by more greased up, orangey fake tanned ex-sorority and fraternity kids in my life. There was also a bunch of Euro, Armani-exchange wearing kids as well. Although the company can be left wanting, the place itself was pretty kick ass.
The place is nice. It's divey without being dirty. It's great overall decor with a great dark woody feel. It's a surprising bigger place than I thought it would from judging from the outside. They have a pretty big indoor bar area and a smaller but way less busy bar outside. The outside area is really nice. Refreshing during the summer, and quiet during the winter.
My experience with most bars is there is a reverse correlation between wealth of patrons and strength of drinks, I mean that the richer looking the crowd, the weaker the drinks. However at King's Hardware, I was pleasantly surprised, the Long Island I got was very strong. It got me pretty buzzed after the first one.
I definitely want to come back during the week to see what its like. I've found you can't judge a bar by how it does on weekends. Because EVERY decent bar gets busy on weekends so the real culture of the bar gets kinda covered by the sheer mass of people who just want to get crunk. During the week, you have the regular customers who just come to chat with the bartenders and have a couple drinks too. (or they want to get crunk too) I'll be back someday. Maybe for Alli D's Birthday Ballard Pub Crawl!
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