9 Spots Around KeyArena for March Madness Eats and Drinks

Blue Water, Sport and more are serving up specials for the NCAA basketball tournament

By Sara Jones March 16, 2015

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March Madness is back in Seattle! For the first time since 2004, KeyArena will host a series of NCAA Division I men’s college basketball championship games this weekend, Friday, March 20 through Sunday, 22 (second and third rounds). Also, a first since that year: Eastern Washington University made the tournament! The No. 13 seed will take on No. 4 seed Georgetown on Thursday.

Whether you’re attending games at KeyArena and looking for refreshments before and after, or just seeking the best venue to watch all the action on screen, Queen Anne has you covered with food and drink options galore. Here are our picks for the best restaurants and bars around the Key to make a day (or a weekend) out of it.

1. Blue Water Taco Grill (2 locations) 

515 Queen Anne Ave (right next to the SIFF Theatre);  206.352.2407

A block from the arena, this Blue Water branch will feature two TVs showing the games on site, a large outdoor patio, $3.50 and $6.99 margaritas all day, and its regular happy hour specials from 4 to 6 p.m. daily. Highlights: double margaritas, mojitos and Mai Tais ($4.99 each); 4 Coronitas or 2 Mexican beer buckets ($6 each) and $6 Mexican food specials.  

305 Harrison ST, in the Seattle Center Armory (old Center House)  

Located in Seattle Center Armory, this 200-seat Blue Water also has an outdoor patio and boasts a full-service cantina (possessing the only full liquor license in the Armory). It will show games on 3 TVs and will offer free chips and salsa for NCAA ticket holders (must ask & show ticket).  

2. Sport

140 4th Ave N #130; 206.404.7767

Seattle Center’s classic sports bar will open early (8:30 a.m.) each morning during the tournament weekend to serve up pre-game breakfasts including veggie and sausage frittatas, breakfast pizzas, maple-glazed bacon and egg sliders and (for the healthier set) quinoa with spinach and poached eggs. Cocktails will include the Sport Bloody Mary, a morning Mai Tai, B-52 coffee, and classic mimosas and screwdrivers. 

3. Red Papaya Ale & Spirits 

530 1st Ave N, 206.283.6614

This Vietnamese-American tapas bar will feature the NCAA tournament games on screen along with its usual happy menu from 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and nightly starting at 9 p.m. Dishes to try: shrimp and pork crispy rolls ($6), five-spice chicken salad ($10), fried crab wontons ($8), salt and pepper fried tofu ($6).

4. Taylor Shellfish Oyster Bar 

124 Republican St; 206-501-4442

Taylor Shellfish’s Queen Anne outpost will have its regular farm-to-table shellfish and bar happy hour specials from 4 to 6 p.m. Friday. Dishes to try: daily oyster special ($1.50 a piece) and house-pickled vegetables ($3) for food; Cava ($5 per glass, $20 per bottle), house martinis ($7), Bloody Marys ($6), Bitburger beer pints ($4) for drink.

5. Plaza Garibaldi  

129 1st Ave N; 206.397.4088

This family restaurant will dish up its standard happy hour menu from 4 to 7 p.m., including calamari and seviche ($5.95 each); quesadillas, nachos, taquitos and jalapenos poppers ($4.95 each); house well drinks ($4); house margarita ($5); Bud Light on draft ($3) and Mexican drafts ($4). If your teams win, come after 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday to toast properly with karaoke!

6. Tin Lizzie

MarQueen Hotel, 600 Queen Anne Ave N; 206.282.7407

Along with their signature Prohibition-era cocktails, this hotel speakeasy is offering two specials for the basketball weekend: Uli’s Italian sausage topped with grilled onions and peppers and served with roasted root vegetable chips ($5), and Rainiers with a shot of whiskey (also $5).

7. Ten Mercer 

10 Mercer St; 206.691.3723 
 
This new American restaurant bar and grill is TV-free, but its March Madness drink specials make it a festive stopover for those en route to Key Arena. In addition to 10 Mercer’s regular happy hour fare ($2 rotating small plates from 3 to 6 p.m., and half-price appetizers (including over-roasted Penn Cove mussels and grilled beef tenderloin, each $7 from 10 p.m. to midnight on Friday and Sunday), the eatery is serving up a Buzzer Beater cocktail (an “old school Old Fashioned” with Woodinville rye whiskey, a touch of simple syrup and a good dose of bitter(s) ($7.50), as well as some “great courtside Washington wines” from Terra Blanca and Proletariat ($8 per glass).
 

8. Triumph Bar 

114 Republican St; 206.420.1791

Again, no TV here (rev up your March Madness Live app), but Triumph is still well worth a stop for game-goers. With influences from Italy, the deep South and the Pacific Northwest, Triumph will offer its normal happy specials from 3 to 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. until close, pairing playful bites with inventive cocktails (or a vast wine selection, if you prefer). Highlights include fried pickles with spicy mayo ($4), beef tongue tacos ($8) and pork belly mac ‘n cheese ($10) to eat, and the gold rush ($7; bourbon, honey and lemon) and the rotating batched jug juice ($5) to drink.

9. The Sitting Room

108 W Roy St, 206.285.2830

Our last screen-free pick is a calm bar and bistro with an unhurried European feel to wind down after games when you’ve reached your noise limit. This weekend, the Sitting Room will serve its signature tapas for sharing during dinner or happy hour, which runs 5 to 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. to close. Highlights include tapenade & croccantini (Italian flatbread crackers; $6.5 dinner, $4 happy hour), $6 classic salami ($9 dinner, $6 happy hour) and paté au poivre noir ($10 dinner, $6 happy hour). Happy hour drink specials include $4 draught beer, $4 wells, $4.50 sparkling Brut, and $4.50 featured red and white wines by the glass.

 

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