Kimmy L.
Yelp
Inside Passage is a sea-themed speakeasy connected to the bar, Rumba. Reservations are a must, especially on Friday and weekend nights.
My boyfriend and I grabbed the last reservation for Friday evening at 10:30pm about five days in advance. Parking like in most of Capitol Hill is street parking only and so we were fortunate to get a spot only a few blocks down.
We checked in and were escorted to the side of Rumba where the atmosphere was transformed into what resembled the inside of a ship compete with a steering wheel and fake sea creatures, including a big kraken on the ceiling. Seating is tight as to be expected at a small speakeasy.
We browsed the menu and the first couple of pages are just merchandise you can buy. I'm not sure who buys the items though because the mugs were the priciest mugs I had ever seen at $85-$125 each. You could also buy a fresh copy of the menu for $35 which I thought was an odd item to sell...
The next few pages had their drink menu. They had 10 different signature cocktails and then a list of their more classic cocktails on the last page. They had a small separate food menu too with appetizers to share.
I ordered the FOUR BOYS cocktail which had Jamaican and Bajan rums, mango, rice milk, Ube, lime, and ginger served in a mini rice cooker. The mini rice cooker was very cute and came with dried ice. The drink itself was very gingery with a hint of fruitiness; I can't say I tasted much of the rice milk or ube. While the drink container was big, it was mostly ice which was slightly disappointing.
My boyfriend ordered the BALLARD FOGS CUTTER cocktail which had cognac, gin, absinthe, lemon, orange, honey, Angostora, and salt. It was served in a Viking's horn and topped with a salmon crostini and lots of dill. I definitely tasted the cognac and absinthe. Similar to my drink, there wasn't much liquid volume in it.
Lastly, we ordered the SLIDERS to share. The sliders were cooked medium-rare and topped with cheese, lettuce, onion, and all the good slider condiments. They came in a set of three.
Our total for the two drinks, sliders, tax, and tip came to about $79 and so it was definitely on the pricier side but comparable in price to other fancier speakeasies in the area like Canon and Needle and Thread.
While Inside Passage was a splurge, it was a great date night experience with good vibes throughout the entire experience.
Overall: 4/5 for food and drinks, 4/5 for service, 5/5 for atmosphere