Columbia City Ale House

Columbia City Ale House is doing the whole English pub thing. They've got a warm, wooden interior with 20 oz. pours of UK beers and a few local offerings as well. The selection won't knock your socks off these days. I was surprised to not see a lot of food staples on the menu, but I didn't notice any fried foods so perhaps we can chalk this up to not having a fryer. Service was friendly. I was in the neighborhood killing some time before a flight and before 4pm, beer destinations can be sparse.

This is the closest beery place to my house. Its just a block away from Flying Lion. I am satisfied with it due to its location to me but I would not seek out a visit. English themed bar but not kitsch-y. Despite the English theme you will find all kinds of food on the menu that would never see the light of day across the Atlantic but also some bangers and mash. Beer selection does not change much. A few English staples and some locals. Imperial points available (a rarity in Seattle). The food is a bit pricier than I want it to be. Beer prices are fine. The best part is every week there is a special bottle that is priced at store level. So, that is fun. I come here when I need to watch a TV and want a decent beer without going to far. Dogs are not allowed, unfortunately, so I rarely come anymore. If I am in Columbia City I would grab a beer to check it out and go over to Flying Lion. But definitely choose Flying Lion over this place. Service is always consistently good.

Nice atmosphere. Not a family friendly location (21+). The food was not overpriced but towards the high end for a fun, small Seattle location.

Decent place, but overpriced (especially the food) and could use a bigger tap selection.

Not bad, but nothing really stood out to me about this place, sort of a standard PNW brewpub.

I’m impressed with this group of ale houses and their neat selection of taps. Comfortable seating arrangements and non-fried, low-noise atmosphere, this alehouse definitely brings mainly locals and others meeting up for a friendly chat and leisurely pint. They don’t have a billion taps, but the assortment that they do have is well thought out and quite expansive (with an a). Parking can be a problem on a busy weekend evening, however the gentrification of the neighborhood has been in full swing for some time now and it is becoming friendlier. Sandwiches are tasty, quite filling, and are served with potato chips and (my favorite) a pickle on the side. Notable: they had the anniversary Guinness on tap and it came with a free Guinness glass.

I’m a fan of this whole chain--Columbia, 74th St, Hilltop. 74th and CC have the best environments, IMO, due to being in the two friendlier of the three neighborhoods (though the people are prettier at the Hilltop location). There’s no deep fryer in the place, which I really dig. The food is thoughtfully prepared--maybe not 5-star, but definitely well-made pub grub. Always a nice selection of well-cared-for local beers, including some of the less mainstream kegs. They’re definitely not a venue for the rarest of the rare kegs or anything, but, oooooh, how I wish there were more well-run, friendly ale houses like this in some of the under-served neighborhoods around town (like where I live, for instance). You can also find belgians in bottle, along with a few other fairly meaningful imports.