Merchant's Cafe and Saloon
Bar · Pioneer Square ·
Historic bar with burgers, craft beers, and ghostly tales
Historic bar with burgers, craft beers, and ghostly tales
"Seattle’s Pioneer Square has no shortage of old ghoulish bars, but Merchants Café & Saloon may be its most historic. Dating back to 1890, the dive leans into its allegedly haunted past with a dusty padlocked bar downstairs that looks like a dungeon, a 19th-century portrait of a lady that may as well have eye holes cut out, and even a creepy doll. While the snacks are generally forgettable, it’s still not a bad place to sip on a local draft or stiff bourbon and ponder what spirits may be haunting the backrooms." - anne cruz
"Pioneer Square has no shortage of ghoulish old bars, but Merchants Café & Saloon may be its most historic. Dating back to 1890, the dive leans into its allegedly haunted past with a dusty padlocked bar downstairs that looks like a dungeon, a 19th-century portrait of a lady that may as well have eye holes cut out, and even a creepy doll. For scaredy cats, the best time to visit may be during the day, when the mellow street-level bar is usually filled with tourists and a few friendly regulars watching a game on the big screen. While the snacks are generally forgettable (skip the under-salted fries), it’s still not a bad place to sip on a local draft or stiff bourbon and ponder what spirits may be haunting the backrooms." - Gabe Guarente
"Claiming to be Seattle's 'oldest restaurant,' Merchant's Cafe and Saloon seems like the real-world analogue to Orsini's, and its actual sale to a private-equity firm feels eerily Crane-like in the potential for a hospitality disaster." - Gabe Guarente
"Merchant’s Cafe in Pioneer Square is similarly mentioned as one of the establishments that stake a claim to Seattle’s oldest-bar designation." - Gabe Guarente
"Billed as “Seattle’s oldest restaurant,” Merchant’s carries ghostly history: in the late 1890s it served as a brothel and, according to legend, a “lady of the night” still wanders the premises. A recent purchase by a private real estate firm makes now a good time to visit this old-school dive and take in its colorful, haunted past." - Gabe Guarente