The Lookout Bar and Grill

Their back deck is so lovely and shady on a hot day! My drink (the fresca) was a strong pour which was a surprise! The food was SO good! Their jo jo’s were SO well seasoned, they were delicious! I would go back a million times for those alone. We also had the deviled eggs which were good, but not worth the price. (I do love deviled eggs though.) Lastly, we had the hummus plate. It was a great size with lots of veggies and pita, but my problem is that it was red pepper hummus, not regular hummus, which I don’t like. The menu also does not clarify that it’s not regular hummus either which I find disappointing. If you are going to serve specialty hummus, please include that in the description on the menu! All in all though, I thought it was a great place and I’d love to go back!

Found this bar with a few friends on accident. Friendly staff, great selection of drinks and the view was awesome. Look forward to returning again!

Nice dive bar/​restaurant. Very homey and the burgers were delicious. The view from the back patio is great.
Overall, a hidden gem known to locals… Check it out if you’re in town.

Keep wanting this place to be better it’s so close to my home! Over the years I have wandered in and the beer is always funky tasting. I don’t think they clean the hoses on the taps ever… About 3 weeks ago I went for a beer because it was nice out and no joke the bartender coughed while pouring my beer right above the glass. I couldn’t believe it! It looks so dirty in that back kitchen as well. I will never go back!

Great location and food. The bartender is a blast too. Place your order at the bar, and they will bring it to you. Get there early on a sunny day to grab a spot on the patio or back of the dining area. The view is wonderful. Happy Hour food was delicious.

Favorite spot in Seattle, especially on a sunny day. Karen is one of the coolest owners/​bartenders you’ll ever run across. She’ll have you in pain from laughing so hard! Always remembers previous customers and it’s DOG FRIENDLY! Nothing like a good Manny’s on the back patio or bottomless mimosas inside while the jukebox plays!

The view — awesome! The staff — so friendly. So-​so draft beer selection, would not come for dinner. Okay for snacks when drinking. Great neighborhood «locals» spot.

Great spot for late happy hour! It goes until 7pm Tuesday through Friday and all day Monday. Happy hour includes $ 5 appetizers and discounted wells and beer. They have a good selection of beers and a lot of appetizers included in happy hour. The coconut shrimp is great, and the Mac and cheese is good. The quinoa nuggets don’t have a lot of flavor, so I’d opt for something else but all the other apps are good. There is also an amazing patio in the back with a view. Can’t wait to put it to use when the weather gets nicer! There are also additional patio tables in the front. It’ll be a good summer, outdoor drink spot.

First time in here — pretty chill!
It’s 10:30pm on a Saturday night. Got a couple with their cool pup on my left and a group of about 10 people 20 feet to my right. Then a few randoms like myself. Not a crazy joint — nice to just relax and have a brew/​chat

With exceptional views, super friendly and accommodating staff, I can confidently recommend The Lookout. With superb service from Karen and the girls to the views, the good brews and good company. The nibble are fantastic and their simply is no better place to spend a happy hour with friends. Be sure to check out their All Day Monday Happy Hours!

Cozy neighborhood bar with a great happy hour! The staff is super friendly and attentive and the food is BOMB… I could live off of their coconut shrimp! They have a beautiful outdoor deck over looking the city. Great place for a date or for a night out with a group of friends! I would definitely recommend checking it out!

You’ve gotta get here when they’re bartender Karen is working– she is LIFE, so great. If Karen’s not working I won’t be here, but if Karen is working, the lookout is the place to be

This place rocks. Great neighborhood bar. I live right next door. Clientele is cool and authentic. Not pompous and capital hilly. Owner is this chick from Boston who is both a great proprietor and a good neighbor! Amazing view from out back. My new spot for sure!

Great vibe, awesome bar staff and those Jo Jos are on point. Honestly, th best Jo Jos in seattle. #thisbaris5star

A good selection of rotating taps and daily food specials keep things interesting while Karen, Pascal, Anya, and the rest of the crew make this a fun, unique neighborhood bar. When the weather cooperates, the patio is a great place to take friends and out of town guests for a cheap, postcard view of the city. The jojos and the hummus plate are my go-​to food items, and the burger and the chicken club are both solid as well.

Smaller place than I expected it to be. Came in with a large party (~15 people) on a Friday around 6pm and it was pretty cold and dreary so we ended up just pushing together a bunch of tables inside and essentially commandeering the entire center of the bar. Their happy hour goes from 4−7pm, each appetizer item is $ 5 and $ 4 wells/​drafts. Their bar food/​happy hour menu isn’t that bad. We tried them all and here are my tips:
Mac & Cheese: very very cheesy and hearty portions, nothing too special unless you add bacon for an extra $ 1 which I recommend, def makes it taste a lot better!
Jo Jos: $ 5.95 instead of $ 5 (not part of happy hour), but it’s essentially potato wedges with tartar sauce, wasn’t anything fancy, wasn’t bad either. Tasted like potato wedges from KFC.
Hummus Plate: Exactly what it sounds like, they give you sliced pita bread, cucumbers, and tomatoes in a circle fashion surrounding the hummus in the middle. Hummus wasn’t anything extraordinary either, tasted like a tub from trader joes.
Almond Baked Brie: Really liked this appetizer, the brie was tasty and warm/​sticky. The only downside is that they don’t cut the bread very well so we were using our hands to tear it apart and the bottom of the bread is sticky since they drizzle a balsamic concoction on the bottom of the plate.
Coconut Shrimp: This was my favorite, they give you about 6 pieces and you can taste the coconut shreds. The thai peanut sauce is tasty and the orange marmalade mustard sauce is interesting (I personally liked the thai peanut sauce better).
Drinks: Don’t follow their draft drink specials. They don’t have any of them pretty much, so you have to ask what they have. They really need to update their menus.
Service: Overall, I would rate their service as pretty solid. We had a large party and they could keep up.
Overall rating: Not too impressed with their bar food or drinks. Could have been better.

I went here to grab a bite to eat and the service was horrible. Actually I had no service. I walked in with my fiancée and stood in the door way for 3 min to be seated. After a while I figured it was just bar style and seat your self… Which I did. We sat at a table in the back and no one came over for 10min. We moved tables right in front of the bar so maybe the employees would see us. We sat at that table for about 5min. Someone should have come over or at least acknowledged us. I figured we ordered at the bar since no one came over to us. I walked up to the bar and the bartender still ignored me. The place wasn’t even busy. Eventually we just walked out. I have never been so ignored by an establishment. DO NOT GO HERE!

Worst service I’ve ever experienced — actually we had no service because no one even acknowledged us the entire 15 minutes we were there.
Walked in, bartender saw us and said nothing — didn’t know if we should seat ourselves or not so after waiting awkwardly for a good minute we just sat down at a table. No one came over, so finally my fiancé just went up to the bar to get us drinks and a menu. Bartender made eye contact with him and turned her back to him and continued to ignore him. The view at this place is not worth the terrible service. Won’t be back.

Service was slow and food was mediocre at best. Cocktails were just ok but drinking a cold beer on the patio was great.

It’s fine for a beer and a view but the food and service is definitely lacking. I’ve had them forget to put my order in on more than one occasion. I wish it was better because it’s a great location!

The Lookout is the best bar on the hill. Karen (the owner) is not only gorgeous, but an amazing bartender. She will make you feel welcome the second you walk in, with her warn personality and quick wit. I highly recommend this bar, but be warned — once you drop in, it’s hard to leave!

This place has a great HH and it lasts until 7. The bartenders were extremely attentive and the drinks/​food were super on point. We had a group so we got to sample most of the HH menu (wings, coconut shrimp, almond crusted baked Brie, joe joes) and our drinks were nice and tasty. The only reason I give this a 4star is because of the lack of «lookout’ view you see. The patio was really small even though photos made it look bigger. We will definitely be back ($ 5 PBR pitchers on Wednesday during HH)!

Best neighborhood bar in the city.
The owner/​bartender is one of the best anywhere.
She should charge for the Karen Show, a brilliant experience every time, can’t wait to go back.
May bring her a little step ladder so she can reach all the booze

2 bad experiences and won’t be back. I give it the extra star for Jo Jo’s and the awesome back patio.
First time went here and ordered a drink at the bar when it didn’t appear there was a server outside. The unseen server was apparently offended and made sure to come over and gripe about it to us saying we should only order from him, then never bothered to make eye contact or come by again. We left instead of getting a second round.
Second time’s a charm? Tried it again this weekend. Went here for brunch and sat outside. Everyone seemed to be having difficulty getting the server to take an order or drop a check. And by everyone I mean the only 3 tables with people. Hangovers suck, I get it. I eventually was able to order a burger. He asked what kind of cheese. I said Swiss. When it came out it was American. I didn’t really care, but why would you ask what type if it wasn’t going to come with said type. Just say cheese or no cheese. A guy at the table next to me had the same problem. As for the burger itself, it was a charred hockey puck and they forgot to put any sauce on it. Apparently everyone working there was on the same wavelength of not giving a crap. I get it, this is a dive bar known for cheap drinks. Well Capitol Hill has a ton of those. Either put some effort into it or don’t expect new business. Plenty of other places to go.

An earnest but still vibey dive with an eclectic crowd and cheap drinks.
This place gets most of it’s points for atmosphere. It was a fun spot to hit Thursday night with Karaōke gearing up into full swing. There came a point where each person’s eccentric performance topped the one before. The service was very friendly and attentive despite being pretty busy. There was an eclectic crowd, yet a bit of a community feel. People seemed pretty comfortable talking across tables to strangers.
The Moscow Mule left much to be desired. It didn’t pack much of a gingery punch, but on the other hand, it was extremely strong. I can’t speak to the food. This place is fairly cramped and there aren’t really any bars next door to scamper to if there’s nowhere to sit. Not a great option for groups, although there was one large table with about a group of eight. The name is a little misleading in the winter. There are only a couple tables by the window.
I wouldn’t hesitate to come back here, especially for Karaōke, but would maybe try to arrive early to make sure I get a table.

Was in seattle for the weekend and had a great time here on two separate occasions. View from the back windows and patio is beautiful. Food was considerably better than I expected for a bar. Drinks were good. overall very happy vibe at this bar, made friends easy too. Their Sunday steak option was also very good. They are worth a visit, If I lived in seattle this would be my bar!
Only recommendation would be to add some heaters outside so it can be enjoyed year round and at night :)

2 months of the year, it’s sunny out in Seattle. I highly recommend coming here at least one day to sit out on the patio. The view is gorgeous.
I don’t want to brag too much but I live next door to it and have pretty much the same view from my bedroom. Just sayin!
I like this place. Food is okay. Drinks are okay. The interior is cool. The service is good. I like it.
The jojos are amazing for inebriated eats, btw. The dogs that come in are adorbs!

The Lookout gets cool points because it’s tucked away in a fairly residential part of North Capitol Hill. It definitely maintains that «Capitol Hill hipster vibe» and also has a «great view».
Not going to lie, after I saw the view, I remember thinking «this is what all the hype is about?» They have some outdoor seating (maybe would seat 12 people total) but not any sort of «expansive» panoramic view — more of a peekaboo view between the trees. But I guess what you can see is nice, and I suppose nobody actually told me there was a panoramic view, I just assumed based on the raves about it. Lol. Anyway, the area stays cool during hot summer days so if you can find a seat outside, it’s quite pleasant to drink there.
I probably wouldn’t try to come here during peak hours with a group of more than 4 people. Bathrooms are clean. Prices are decent. Staff was fine. Didn’t eat here but would be interested to see what they offer for munchies. Finally ended up here because I was hanging out with a friend who lived nearby — not sure this would be my first choice if I drove into the area and was picking a bar BUT if I happened to be around and about I might stop in for a quickie.