For most Northwest restauranteurs, comprehending beer is part of local vernacular. For Paul Reder, owner of Seattle-based restaurant group Reder Enterprises, it is necessary for ale dialect to be as fluent as his mother tongue. Best known for the two successful beer-centric Tap House Grill locations (in Seattle and Bellevue, Washington with 160 tap handles at each), Reder and his group launched STOUT in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood in January.
“Capitol Hill is one of my favorite places in Seattle and the people who live, work and frequent this area share my passion for craft beer, cocktails and food,” Reder says. The Olympia, Washington native (who recently relocated to Southern California) has worked almost exclusively with restaurants since the impressionable age of 14, falling in love with beer (at a legal age, of course) over time and first opened the original Tap House in Bellevue in 2002.
With STOUT, Reder says ambitions were set on creating a “premium casual neighborhood pub and restaurant” with a primary focus on craft and nods to local, from the beers to the design. Housed in high warehouse ceilings with exposed pipes and all, the decor is mostly made up of work from local artists, including the chandeliers, metalwork and a large mural behind the bar by artist Tina Randolph. This is all enhanced by the natural light streaming from the floor-to-ceiling windows and the jumbo HD TV screens that can be seen from any seat. A beer bar by design, STOUT is not necessarily a sports bar but has become a bar to watch sports in since it “coincidentally” opened on Super Bowl Sunday.
The beer list, as it should be, is extensive and filled with regional craft breweries, massive and miniature. Twenty taps line the wall (with one reserved for cider), including selections from local favorites like Double Mountain, Bale Breaker, Georgetown and Breakside along with cult classics like Ballast Point, Unibroue and Anderson Valley. The bottle list nearly quadruples the offering of ales, from 12-ouncers from Maryland to 22’s from Denmark, Colorado, and, of course, specialty local bottlings. Following the growing trend, STOUT also lists a handful of proprietary boilermakers for those who just can’t decide between beer and booze.
Not to be disregarded amidst the sea of suds is the cocktail list, also supplied heavily by Northwest producers. The Marga-Vita puts a Seattle-spin on the minted tequila cocktail, combining both tequila and mezcal with Rain City Drip coffee liqueur, lime, agave and rimming the glass with coffee grounds and cinnamon. It might sounds peculiar—because it is—but Reder’s attentive barmen mix the smoky sweetness of the booze with the roasty, spice of the liqueur for a surprisingly cohesive fusion. Also to note is the signature Old Fashioned is comprised of 3 Howls rye, house stout (the beer) syrup, Scrappy’s Chocolate bitters and Angostura bitters, producing a bittersweet collaboration of flavors.
For the eating, STOUT is not too dissimilar from other beer bars plating gastropub fare and there is nothing wrong with that. Highlights include the white hummus with fried cauliflower, artichokes, seasonal veggies and pita, the warm pretzel rolls with apples and cheese fondue for dipping and the generously portioned beet salad with oranges, fennel and a warm ball of pistachio-crusted goat cheese. Flatbread options range from a basic Margarita amped up with a pesto focus and Cambozola cheese to Mexican-influenced pizza of roasted cauliflower, chimichurri, roasted corn, tomatoes, cotija and more. The house-braised Reuben with apricot ginger mustard and caraway kraut hits the spot served next to a crisp beer and the bacon and cheese burger with steak sauce pairs well with the aforementioned Old Fashioned.
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