Happy hour at the Ballard Loft!

We decided to check out the Ballard Loft  http://www.ballardloft.com  for happy hour recently on a Tuesday evening.  Happy hours are Monday - Friday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and another from 10 p.m. to midnight.  This sports bar is located 5105 Ballard Ave. NW - a bit South of the plethora of bars and restaurants on Ballard Avenue.  On a previous Saturday evening visit I had consumed an awesome french dip sandwich, so wanted to check out their happy hour menu and see if it was less noisy and crowded at happy hour.

A large patio area sits in front of the Loft and the retractable garage type door was in the raised position, making the normally darker interior quite light and airy.  However, June in Seattle is just a tad too chilly for outside dining, so we opted for an indoor table near the patio to enjoy the daylight and breeze.  The patio did have several tall heat lamps but I doubt they were turned on at that early hour.  The interior is rustic, with exposed wood structural elements and warm lighting, and it manages to be spacious without feeling like a barn.  Flat screen televisions pepper the walls, allowing a view from any table of whatever sports d'jour is being broadcast.  There is also an upstairs area that I didn't venture into.

We arrived around 5:30 p.m. and at that time the place was probably only a quarter full.  Mainly older crowd at that time and lots of men nursing a beer while looking at the tv.  By the time we left an hour or so later, the place had filled up, the patio was nearly full and the patrons more diverse.

Our friendly and attentive waitress greeted us promptly and proceeded to recite a long list of international beers available (in preparation for the upcoming World Cup games).  Neither my dining companion nor I are beer aficionados however, so I opted for my usual vodka/soda ($3) and dining companion chose Bud Light on draft ($2.50).  Drinks arrived quickly and I was pleased to see that my request for "lots of lime" was heeded - there were four lime wedges on the glass!

We then proceeded to order three appetizers.  The Parmesan Artichoke Dip, a tasty mixture of seasoned artichoke hearts, romano and parmesan cheese. Baked & served with toasted pita bread.  ($5.50).  This was warm and delicious - not too mayonaisy or sour.  Next was the Hummus Plate - a large plate of soft and warm pita slices, hummus, fresh feta, tomatoes, pepperoncinis and sliced cucumbers.  ($5.50)  Last was the Mexican Lettuce Cups - another LARGE plate with a pile of sautéed ground chorizo sausage, with red and green peppers, red onion. Accompanied with a pile of large lettuce leaves, sour cream, guacamole, jalapeños and a side of pico de gallo ($5.50).

I was impressed with both the quantity and quality of these appetizers.  I liked them all but probably the Mexican Lettuce Cups were my favorite...a south of the border version of the more commonly known Thai lettuce wraps.  The chorizo was nicely browned and spicy and with all the ingredients piled onto a big lettuce leaf, it was delish and allowed us the fantasy that it was also healthy!

This was a very reasonable and filling dinner for two - plus two rounds of drinks - and the total tab came to $30!  Happy hour dining is a fun and thrifty way to enjoy a variety of restaurants.

Outdoor seating is always a welcome feature in any restaurant - if summer EVER arrives in Seattle this year!  I would definitely return here for another visit on a warm day to sit outside and try the sliders (which I hear are awesome) as well as to indulge my overactive sweet tooth with either the warm chocolate chip cookies served with a shot of milk or the Warm Chocolate Brownie drizzled with caramel syrup and served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.