Conor Byrne Pub (Cooperative)

A lovely evening surprise wandering by and hearing a wholesomely authentic band, Townsend's Solitaire, playing guitar, cello, violin, keys, clarinet, and flute together. The community vibe for this pride friendly event was lovely and the cover they did of "I Won't Be Afraid Anymore" by Will Carlisle was a highlight to finish off their set. Utterly charmed to see this place still thriving after all these years.

I just love Conor Byrne. Vintage-old place, with a cool, down to earth vibe - no bull. Opened in the beginning of last century, some furniture (and feel) from that same time. To me, it's magic! I've been there on Sundays, open mic day: people of all ages and walks of life united by music.

Two requirements satisfied - great music, good drinks. Brian, the bartender, was so nice and friendly to us. The place is charming and I love sitting at the massive wood bar. We had a great time and would come back again.

A great by-the -numbers bar and performance with an incredibly warm and welcoming staff and dedication to serving the community. Great vibes, great music and a menu that demands exploration.

Great spot for local music, especially if you are visiting Seattle! Their ginger cocktails (such as a good mule) are TOP NOTCH as they use real ginger. Beautiful lighting into old wood, great spot to bring a buddy, read a book, or see some live music!

Conor Byrne is one of my favorite venues in the city! They're always kind and welcoming and the sound is always great. So glad they reopened as a co-op!

Lovely neighborhood bar. Ballard residents should be popping in for a drink, the great live music and a twirl in the dance floor. And, lovely for a date night!

Classic old school rustic Irish bar! Love this place! Great music and smooth Guinness all night long.

Hi there! Wanted to flag this bar has re-opened as a cooperative! Still an amazing music venue with fun drinks! I love the country dance nights on Tuesday. Please go visit this wonderful pub.

Visiting from DC and was lured into Conor Byrne Pub by the band Snafflehound. Lead singer Natalie and mates performed a terrific set accompanied by a pint of Guinness.

Great music, great food, great drinks, great atmosphere....one of the hippest bars in Ballard with the most amazing staff and some of the best local acts you never knew existed! ADRIA FOR PRESIDENT!!!!

Great neighborhood pub. A Ballard landmark. It's better for open mic than it is for full band because there's no green room for bands to put all their gear so it gets really cluttered in the seating areas. Plus the sound is harder to control in bigger band settings vs open mic. I suggest checking out an open mic on Sundays tho! Gotta keep the music venues open and running in the days of seattle condos taking over.

This place gets some pretty solid music acts! Worth checking the schedule as they have a dance floor which can be fun to go Two stepping at on country night! I only come for shows usually but the staff are always friendly and their drinks are decently priced. I can't speak to their food as I haven't ever eaten here but enjoy it for music! Check ahead as sometimes they have a cover.

What a joke! Dolly Parton tribute @ 8 still no music @ 9 .PAYED $20 for what??? No Dolly here. Would not recommend next year.

I've gone to this establishment several times for shows. The staff is friendly and I think the drinks are well made. I always had a screwdriver when I drank. The first time my song was released I heard it being performed live by a local band at this venue, so it has a special place in my heart. The only reason for the 4 stars is sound quality, I think it could be better.

Wow, so glad I stopped in! This place has lots on tap and a really relaxing vibe. Seemed like a lot of the "proper" locals and not the pretentious Balladites. (whatever that means; you know what it means) There's live music pretty often, so stop in and make some cool music-minded friends, the bartender was cool.. there's really nothing much to eat, but they will let you bring stuff in from the outside. So total win.

Poor service. Rachael acted annoyed that she had to wait on us! She served us lukewarm/flat beer and cider. She seems really tight with the regulars-oh well! She did give us happy hour prices, so 1 star it is!!

I come here almost every Sunday for open mic nights. The local singer-songwriter scene is fantastic in Seattle. They host open mic from 8 until midnight or so on most Sundays. During football season, the Seahawks game is on. I've never seen them run a drink special. I see 3 regular bartenders here. Two are pretty decent but one can be a bit surly. The Boilermaker is the best deal here! Can't be beat. Listed prices don't include tax, which is annoying, but only mildly so. They have a solid list of craft beers on tap and decent whiskey, too. Good spot on Ballard Ave.

Guy carding the door was stoned out of his mind, so you can imagine the service. Girl behind bar was good but the beer was warm both tap and bottle. Cute pub but management lacking. Didn't order food cause I was warned by a local.

Somehow in all my years of being 21+, I hadn't made it to Conor Byrne until my sister-in-law invited us to see live music one night recently. It's a fairly laid-back, standard Irish Pub, but they don't serve food. I was a little disappointed about that, but I assume they can get away with it because they're essentially a music venue. At any rate, when you come knowing there's no food, it's a decent little bar. We were sitting close to the "stage" so we could hear the music really well, although I don't know how the acoustics are for the rest of the bar. It wasn't too crowded, at least not when we arrived close to 8pm, although it started to fill up more as the night went on. I ordered a Harp so I can't speak to drinks, really - there was usually a line at the bar so service took a little while, but wasn't too slow. All in all, a-OK with nothing really standing out on either end of the spectrum.

Stopped in to watch the Seahawks whomp on the Rams. Bar is dive, which is fine, but probably comes to life later than 2:00 pm. The place was pretty full, and there was only one bartender for the whole place, tables included. Bartender was polite but not especially urgent; we had to walk up to bar from our table for first round. Beer selection was passable, but not phenomenal and without a large number of local brews, something I look for. My biggest issue was that this was yet another bar that thinks an Irish name, some Celtic font, and Triquetras on the signage make it an Irish pub. Nope. Give me some Irish ambiance, and we'll talk.

They wouldn't let my 70 year old parents visiting from Ireland in the pub because they didn't have their passport, even though they had their Irish drivers licenses. Every other bar in town waved them in. Nothing Irish about this place.

One the last places on Ballard Ave that still feels like Old Ballard. Great open mic; the selection of beers and whiskeys is superb. Whoever owns this place is definitely a drinker and who knows his or her booze. Best nights to check out are the Sunday open mic (where Head & The Shart allegedly formed) and the Tuesday country dancing night, which is a hoot and free!

I always have a good time here. They serve Guinness in the original Guinness pint glasses!!! Music is good, they have a very lively open mic I will always recommend this place

Bouncer was flat out rude, enough to ruin the otherwise pleasant night out. We had made an effort to arrive before the website said there was a cover, but the bouncer had arbitrarily decided we would be the first to pay, and said as much. It's just unfortunate when the first bald head bearded face you are forced to interact with on your night out is a jerk.

The drinks were nice and strong. Went on a Sunday and the music scene was quite delightful.

Simple Equation= ZERO cover (I'm friends with the door guy) MINUS 3 Guinness and a Magners over ice PLUS 1 hot team of Hurlers- think 'Rugby/ La crosse' http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurling PLUS 1 for Reminiscing with your old HS friend you just happen to run into.. = ... -1? Sorry.. my head hurts a little today. WHATEVER. Who cares!??! Oh, and the bartender rang the bell halfway through the night for no reason at all.. DRINKS on him! Seeeriously.. I love Connor Byrne. THE END.

I knew I had to be at an Irish pub for St. Patrick's Day and Conor Byrne was the spot. My boyfriend really likes this place, so we ate the $10/person cover to get in. The place was packed, but not overly so. By the time we got inside, it was standing room only, but there was plenty of space for us to stand and chat. We spent the evening sipping on some good, solid cider. I'm usually not much for hard cider, but even I was impressed. The inside is pretty welcoming and the layout and lighting are both nice. The bartenders are quite friendly, which is a welcome change from some of the other bars in Ballard. The music was a bit lame that night, but it didn't put too much of a damper on our mood! I will definitely be back to this place!

Soup of the Day: Whiskey Seriously? You are my favorite bar now. The ginger and Jameson is pretty much heaven in a glass as well. Perfect place to go if Walrus & Carpenter gives you a "1 to 2 hour" wait for a table. More perfect place to go if Jameson is one of your food groups.

Seems more like one of the forgotten bars along Ballard and I can't remember the reason why. It's actually pretty nice. I liked the brick interior and it's a little bit bigger than you expect from the outside. You've got a small space in back where the stage is which seems like it would be great for live music. The stage isn't much off ground level and you could almost reach out and touch the performers. Or easily pelt them with produce, such as with a Crosby Egyptian. Which I recently learned is a type of beet. One downside is that they don't serve grub, but do allow you to bring in other food. Sadly I learned this fact after I had contemplated eating the fliers off the walls most of the evening. Other than the PBR cans, another highlight is that they serve Great Lakes ($4) on tap here! But I was here for trivia, which was pretty good. They do a wide variety of categories and have a bonus round which seems to be random: this week the bonus was a fashion show (eh, sort of). All in all a good time. By most scoring systems our team did not win (for example, the most correct answers), but that really doesn't take into account the concept of trivia momentum. You see, we were doing better in the later rounds of the game and clearly had momentum on our side. The way I look at it, if the game had gone on much longer we certainly would have won. The other teams should consider themselves lucky that we ran out of time.......

I started going to Conor Byrne when a friend invited me to see her Irish step dance group. I continued to go back because it is the least pretentious bar in Ballard. They only serve beer and wine, they always have a great music lineup during the week and weekend, and the staff have always been friendly.

When my band was booked to play here, I thought, "Oh, just another Irish pub". However, Conor Byrne turned out to be far better than any other Irish pub I've been to in Seattle. The atmosphere here is probably the best part about this place. On a busy Saturday night, the crowd was cheerful and friendly. Everyone seemed like they were just out to have a good time with their friends...no sleaze or pretentiousness or anything like that. Perhaps this was because the crowd was a bit older than the Cap Hill bars I find myself frequenting. I'd say most people at Conor Byrne were in their late 20's or 30's. The expansive dark wood bar is the centerpiece of the establishment and gives the pub a beautiful classic look. I love the mirrors behind the bar. In many bars, mirrors can look cheesy and cliche, but Conor Byrne pulls it off well. The bartenders are great! All the staff members I talked to were extremely personable and gave me great recommendations for food and drink. I am not sure about the food situation here. A co-worker told me that they have good sandwiches, but when I asked one of the bartenders about food he said their kitchen wasn't open yet and advised me to go next door to Lock & Keel to get take-out sandwiches. This was around 9pm...so if the kitchen isn't open at 9pm, when *is* it open? Forget about the food, though. That's not why you're here. (Else the kitchen would be open more, right?) Let's talk about the important stuff. Conor Byrne is definitely an awesome place for live music! The stage is elevated and quite large (for a bar). There's a great honky-tonk piano and generous space in front of the stage for dancing. Cover is also very reasonable. When my band performed, we were on a bill with two other groups. Cover for the evening was $7 - excellent for 3+ hours of music! The two bands we played with really brought the house down, especially the headlining act! Everyone was cheering and dancing. The music was very much the focus of the evening. You could tell that most of the people were there specifically for the music. This is great for the musicians and captive audience, but might not be so great if you're looking for a quiet place to gossip with your BFF or whisper with your honey. Just be sure to remember that on Saturday nights, Conor Byrne is all about the live music.

Dear Conor Byrne, I love you. In fact, Conor Byrne: if you weren't a neighborhood institution, I'd marry you. I love you for your total unpretentiousness. I love you for your lovely staffers. I love you for the other patrons, who also love you. I love knowing that I don't have to painstakingly strategize my night in Ballard, that I can always come to you and hear great live music, at a wee nominal cover (buying tix in advance is so annoying). Sometimes I even take your hula hoop for a twirl, or play cards with friends over beer. It doesn't matter. It's always a good time. Mostly, I love knowing that even though you've changed hands, that you are still a gem of a neighborhood pub. Yes, this is true love...and I hope it's 4-ever. xoxo, Shannon

Wednesday night at Conor Byrne = Brainiac Beatdown Trivia! It was tricky competing against the regular teams. Their smug we-won't-even-smile-when-we-win expressions told me they had been there a time or two. Or nine thousand. Well I was perfectly happy with my third-to-last place, thank you. You can take your team hats and do a jig for all I care. ANYway, this was one of the best trivia nights I've been to, and not just because I knew one of the awesome Trivia Masters. It wasn't crowded, it wasn't loud, and heckling was encouraged. The bar itself is also great. They don't have food, but allow you to bring in food from outside. Dante's Inferno Dogs, anyone? Throw in $2.50 PBR's and the Mariner's game on in the background, and you've got yourself a fine evening ahead of you.

Good Irish neighborhood joint in Ballard. If you don't feel like driving to Pike Place and dealing with parking for Kell's, this place is a good fill-in.

Great place. Open mic on Sundays are awesome, such an awesome line up of local musicians. It might be hard to get into the list of performers since it's pretty popular. And as someone who doesn't drink, this place has the best homemade ginger ale. Obsessed.

I've been wanting to come here for a while now and finally made it out after dinner at Bastille a couple weekends ago. We happened to be out on the night of the Ballard Jazz Walk. At around 10PM, the bar was already packed and most seats were already taken. We found a little space standing at the bar and hung out there for a couple of the jazz band's songs. While it was really crowded here, it was a great intimate venue for jazz. The bartenders were very attentive and they had some great beers on tap (Hale's, Fremont Brewing, etc.). I'll definitely be back here again!

Nice little pub (beer and wine). Service has always been good. Great place for local music....bluegrass, alt-country, etc... My friend's band used to play here a lot when they first started out. Always enjoyed the bar.

Saturday night Karaoke minus the Karaoke machine & monitor. Pick a song book out of the bin and the resident piano man will provide the music. Bartenders were friendly even though they were busy busy. Oh and... if you are looking for a place to hang out after your wedding we saw an entire wedding party come through the door. Could be an Irish thing though.

Made it here for an early NYE Ballard scamper. I do have to say that this was a great place to start the night. The warm and big bar was chill, and the barkeep was cool. Since this is an Irish pub, my bro and I went with Black & Tans (Smithwicks with Guiness layered on top). My sister in law had a Hot Totty, which I stole a drink of and found mighty tasty. They played some nice music---good drinkin' music, and they were fixin' ta get ready for a band on this particular evening (I heard they have bands here most nights). So yes, I now have a new pub to call home when I'm haunting Ballard.

Came here on a a Friday night. $8 cover and the horrendous music started after we paid for our $6.60 beers. The place cleared out so fast once the music started. It really was some of the worst music I've ever heard. I hope it's not like this every weekend, but I won't gone back to find out.

Yeah, you heard me. One star. Why is this? Well, on my second visit to this fine establishment, I had a run-in with a drunk. It was my first such experience in 2 years in Seattle, and left a rather bitter taste in my mouth. I can't really fault the establishment for this itself, but what I really didn't like is after it happend, the old drunk dude who basically had a major problem with people under the age of 30 being out in Ballard on a Tuesday night socialized with the bartender AND waitress for a good ten minutes before leaving, thus making our table completely unattended (and no we weren't drunk or even buzzed). They continued to ignore us until we finally closed out and left. It's a nice place and all, but when you come in to a bar on a slow night, pay a voluntary cover, order a round of drinks, then find out the attention of a drunk is more important than your night out, how can you possibly give it a favorable review?

Yep, yep, yep. I've been to Conor Byrne a few times and have always had a blast. Great place to go if you have a hankering for some live music and some great people watching. My sweetie and I popped in on a Saturday night and had the great time we knew we would have. My biggest gripe is that I wish they would check the line on their tonic water... I'm a hardcore Vodka tonic drinker whenever I go to my favorite pubs. It is my go to drink when I'm not in the mood for a delicious beer.. and I swear their tonic tastes like Sprite. Which was icky as I hate drinking any type of too sweet drinkl! But, Conor Byrne is such a cool place and such a deliciously divey place with great beer on tap and great live bands, you let stuff like that slide. And it is pretty cool that you can buy little bowls of peanuts and chips for $1! Perfect when you need a little something salty to snack on to tide you over until you get to put some food in your tummy! Conor Byrne is simply an awesome place, I enjoy it the most because it always has such a cool mix of people that wander in to enjoy the music and this cool pub always reminds me of why I love Seattle and the Ballard neighborhood, the diversity rocks! Look around Conor Byrne and you will see twentysomethings-fortysomethings, hipsters, hopsters, blue collarers, white-collareres, white people, brown people, pink people, red people and yellow people mixing, mingling, drinking and bobbing their heads to the music and everyone is having a damn good time! Cool pub... great drinks, great live music from local bands, and overall great place to hangout on a Saturday night! Go check it out!!!

I like places that don't serve liquor. Why? Because it deters the people who like to order buttery-nipples and cosmos and attracts the people who like to avoid puking in the bathroom or wet tee-shirt contests (whatever, you get my drift) ... this makes for a relaxed environment, conducive to conversation. They have their share of nights with live music and trivia, but even with these events the place is calm. I love how they have one amazing bartender who is always on top of things even though she can barely see over the counter. Ten thumbs up!

Stopped by here not too long ago for a show. This place is pretty good by my book! The staff was friendly and they had a few ciders to choose from, which is always a plus. Sound was decent too. Overall, I loved the vibe. Felt nice and cozy on a chilly night!

well in response to Johnny's H.'s comment I'd have the exact same reaction and rating. However, personally I've had nothing but great times at this bar. It's typically got decent live music and a cool vibe. I kind of wish they had an open mic these days but no worries. The bar layout is so typical to the Ballard style of watering holes but somehow they made room for music in the back. Let me just say you did the right thing! Close to the Tractor Tavern but this place provides a much chiller atmosphere. Sometimes that's better.

I went here the other night during the Ballard Jazz Walk. It was standing room only, but I was lucky enough to have a seat and enjoyed the show with some great friends. The small stage is set in the corner, making the performances nice and intimate. Overall, it's a great spot to see a show and have a pint or two with some friends.

Great music, usually. Great drinks, and variety. Casual enough for a good friday night. WAY better than King's. For sure.

Dear Fall, I'm glad you're back. Don't get me wrong, I love your cousin Summer with her long days, warm sun and backyard BBQs. But I REALLY missed you. Long nights, wet days, cold weather... and more time for drinking at Conor Byrne. There's no place better for enjoying a pint, losing at trivia, or chatting with the bartender. Plus, there's no shortage of local culture. Old timey music night, old timer Ballard residents, old spice cologne - everyday it's something different. xoxo Your Girl KG

Word is you'll find some amazing bands playing at Conor Byrne's, and I'm looking forward to catching some music there soon. For now, I love their monthly Brewers' Night, held the first Monday of each month. Last month was the inauguration, and you can read more about it here in this artice from the Ballard Blog: http://www.myballard.com/2011/01/03/conor-byrne-launches-monthly-brewers-night/ In January I got to sample a few beers from the Fremont Brewing company, and it sounds like they are featuring Two Beers for February on the 7th. At $2.50 a pint for microbrews ALL NIGHT on Mondays, this pub has one of the best deals going in Ballard.

All of my visits to Conor Byrne have been for shows. It's a pretty cool bar and a good venue for a small band with a local following to have their show at. Many of my friends have played here. The staff is very friendly. The drinks can add up, I feel like it's a bit too expensive for the divey bar that it is.

I've been coming here off and on for many years now, and still have yet to feel the traditional warmth that other Irish pubs are intrinsically known for. I believe it stems from the overwhelming Victorian layout with a grand bar to the left and stage in the back with tall ceilings and dark wood which leaves it feeling cold and gravely lacking any intimacy. Also, the staff can be a bit slow and ineffective at times, even as much as never hearing of the common cocktail you're attempting to order. Ambiance aside, the music is the main reason to show up. Connor Byrnes is renowned for its long history of Irish folk singers coming from around the globe, choosing to play here over all other venues. That alone, is worth the step inside!

It's pretty low key, it's local and the liquor shelf looks really cool, oh and the bartender was really friendly. I haven't been for a little while but I am planning on making a return trip soon. And the music and entertainment during the week is a nice addition to the bar, but it can be a bit loud if you're trying to go to a quiet bar for the evening.

Has an intimate feel, and interesting decor. Drinks are a bit on the expensive side, even for a Rainier, but it's one of the better Irish emulating bars in Seattle. Music shows are relatively cheap for some good bands. The bar goers are diverse in all categories. Good show, fam.

Heard a band playing and dropped in . Sounds great in here. Homemade ginger ale. Wow. The band just played a funky version of a Nine inch nails song.

Just a short note, went with a small group to see some music and have some drinks. Really friendly and warm bar staff, good pours, reasonable pricing. Definitely would come back.

On my arrival to Conor Byrne, I had been to three other bars that same night...could you say I was on a bit of a bar crawl? This bar even through the haze of the earlier drinking was still a hit, I could say that it's a great Irish bar. I loved the the setup in the back with the stage. There was tons of seating, both bar stools and tables. This particular night has some amazing live music! As I looked at the lineup, it seemed like there is plenty more good music to come! There were a ton of great beers on tap, as well as, your good ole cheap beers like Pabst Blue Ribbon. The bartenders were friendly (so tip them appropriately.) This bar definitely gets packed so try to get there on the earlier side. You might just be able to snag a seat right up close! So get down to Conor Byrne Pub and step on the good foot and do the bad thing!!