It was Friday, we just got off work, and we just wanted a cocktail and a bite to eat. In my search to find a place to meet this criteria, was close to home, I stumbled across Barnacle. I had never been to Barnacle, but just passed on my way to Walrus and Carpenter (which is right next door). Barnacle is a small little bar (probably sits about 20 people), and is considered an Italian aperitivo bar. A place to get a pre-dinner cocktail and small bites to eat with your cocktail. Never been to Italy, it reminded me of a Spanish tapas bar. You grab a couple of snacks and a drink, and then you move on to another bar or go to dinner. Most of the customers were doing just this while they were waiting for a table at Walrus and Carpenter. Since usually the wait at WC is always over an hour, it is quite genius to place this right next to the restaurant
Great selection of wines and creative appetizers in a noise ambient. I'm just not so sure about their automatically self given 20% tip at the end.
Jason Price - The Hungry Dog Blog
+4.5
Meet Chef Renee Erickson - one of Seattle's best and brightest culinary stars and owner of Boat St. Cafe, The Walrus and the Carpenter, The Whale Wins and her newest venture - Barnacle recently opened in Ballard.
Great selection of Amaro, you can get a flight! This is truly the house of increasingly strongly flavored things!
Excellent service & quaint atmosphere!. The servers were very friendly and helpful in helping us navigate the menu and recommend dishes we would enjoy (and did!) They were very knowledge about the food and we enjoyed learning more about the food when it was delivered. The fresh oysters were excellent and the pairings on the cheeseboard were well done. The asparagus salad had a lot of fennel (which my friend does not enjoy, just a personal preference of hers)/ We really enjoyed our stop here and will definitely be back!
Best cocktail bar I have ever been to.
Had everything on their menu, it was their 3rd night open. Everything was excellent, everything was very fresh and well prepared and presented. Would go again, only complaint was the music was loud.
The restaurant presents a varied selection of fresh oysters that are carefully sourced and skillfully prepared. With attention to quality and craftsmanship, Barnacle provides a destination where both seasoned oyster connoisseurs and newcomers can savor the flavors of the sea in a refined setting.
I love this bar. It's very fortunate that more bars have discovered and offered a nice selection of Amari, but there's nothing else like Barnacle. Barnacle has an amazingly large collection of beautiful complex bitter herbal elixirs to enjoy. This is truly one of Seattle's hidden treasures!
Spent some time in Barnacle waiting for our table at Walrus & the Carpenter and honestly sort of wish I had just stayed here. You can get some small bites along with fresh shucked oysters (and that tasty bread service) as well as cocktails, beer and wine. I preferred the service at Barnacle as well.
The are about 15 bar seats and one larger table table in the back that will accommodate about six. There's also a railing to stand when things are crowded. All first come, first serve but most people move quickly so hanging out at the railing should get you a seat before you finish your first drink.
Of note, they will come get you when your reservation is ready next door and transfer your tab for one payment post-dinner.
Delicious food and drinks. Perfect spot to wait for a walk-in to Walrus & Carpenter (W&C), or just a chill delicious spot in general. Even thought the space was completely full (sitting and standing) the service was very attentive, we got our food and drinks in the perfect amount of time, and they automatically transfer your tab over to W&C.
Barnacle is the perfect spot to have a drink while waiting for a spot next door at The Walrus and The Carpenter. They have a unique and tasty drink menu, which is accompanied by a food menu featuring small plates and tins of seafood. The tile work is beautiful and the space is quaint and comfortable. There’s one long bar lined with stools, and a small booth in an alcove off the back. The bartender couldn’t have been any nicer, and gave us some recommendations of her favorite places in Seattle. Solid spot.
If you're going to Walrus just for the oysters and want to skip the line, go to Barnacle. Same oysters, same kitchen, just technically a different bar in the same building owned by the same folks.
We went for the Walrus & the Carpenters oysters but the wait was over an hour long. We noticed that the Barnacle was being served food from the Walrus kitchen so we went there instead. There was no wait and several seats open in the small bar room. We got a drink and a dozen oysters for around $4-4.25 each. It was pricey but delicious. When I looked it up, found out Barnacle is indeed owned by the same person as Walrus and I'm pretty sure we were getting the same oysters we would have waited over an hour for had we stayed on the wait-list for Walrus. The Barnacle bartender was friendly and great. We got our oysters pretty quickly.
Tiny little bar attached…. well…. like a barnacle to the Walrus and Carpenter. Good selection of craft cocktails and wines. The bar tenders were friendly and helpful, they doubled as servers and handled the prep of the many foodie small plates they had.
A large selection of amari. Great drinks and service. Small venue though, so you may have trouble finding a seat. The olives were great and my wife loved the sardines. Love that they sprinkle salt on the butter for their bread and butter plate.
Using the bathroom means finding the Ginger with the beard and man bun in a butcher's apron and asking the code. There will be a "sea breeze" in the hallway. There is a ham stand on the bar. Cocktails with essence of black licorice are my favorite. I don't have "upside down spectacles" to view this menu board.
Very good oysters and cocktails. Though they don't normally make cosmos, the bartender made one for my wife and it was the best she's ever had. Busy, but attentive barkeeps keep the drinks, snacks, and happiness flowing.
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