re: For those going to Seattle: What are your plans for GameDay?

There is another bar called the Duchess that is also a very good place near the stadium to grab drinks. A bit more divey than the Ram, and therefore louder and a bit rowdier. You can get as crazy as you want at the Duch.

It's a new hotel (renovated). I actually was there for a Happy Hour a few weeks ago. They serve many different types of absinthe there. It's a pretty classy place, but not a "rowdy" place.

The good thing is you're within walking distance of just about everything downtown, from the stadiums to the south all the way to Belltown to the north (good bars throughout Belltown). There aren't a lot of great "bars" in the business district downtown (which is where the Arctic is, which is pretty much central downtown). The bars are either south towards the stadium in Pioneer Square (bit scummier and sketchier in general, but still some good places) or north in Belltown (generally more haughty/snobby).

what kind of rates is everyone finding? me and the wife will be flying in on Friday and leaving Monday..

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what kind of rates is everyone finding?

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A lot of people got $139/night at the W, but that special ended on July 8th... many people have said you can plug in anywhere between $80 and $130 on priceline for a 4-star downtown hotel and get the Westin...

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Can you give us a brief rundown your recommended restaurants within walkin walking distance of The W? Where is a good place to have breakfast downtown?

Good to hear the W Bar is a hot spot! You'll have to come drink with us after work on Thursday or Friday night, or both! I believe there is quite a few LSU fans staying at the W and also at the Westin downtown.

Thanks for your input!@

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Happy to help. I'm looking forward to making the trip down there when we pay you a visit, so hopefully we'll get a chance to party it up a couple of times. I'll probably be on this board looking for suggestions for places to stay and things to do when that time comes.

Places for breakfast... I have no idea. I never eat breakfast. There are a ton of little bakeries around that part of town (like Specialty's). The better breakfast spots are really a bit north in Belltown, but I'm not sure that I have any great suggestions. I believe the Dahlia Room might do a breakfast brunch type thing. The W probably has a good breakfast. There are a few restaurants north of downtown on 4th ave that do a breakfast that I always see people hanging out in when I walk to work (Belltown, where I live, is about a 20 min walk north of downtown, where I work and where the W is located).

Good restaurants.. any particular type of food you're looking for? We obviously have great and fresh Pacific Ocean seafood here in Seattle. McCormick and Schmick's has good seafood, as does Ivar's and Anthony's Homeport. Ivar's and Anthony's are on the water and have great views. My favorite restaurant is a bit of a drive - not sure if you'll have a car or not - it's over on the ocean and is called Ray's Boathouse. It's a good 20-25 minute drive from the W, but you can see some neat things on the way, including the Ballard Locks (watch the fish climb the fish ladder that time of year).

Another option is to head over to Alki Beach (water taxi or medium length taxi ride) and hang out at the little restaurants that dot that Beach.

We also have great steakhouses in the Metropolitan Grill and El Gaucho (my favorite). The Met is near the W. El Gaucho is in Belltown where I live.

If you like wine, Purple is good, and there are a ton of other wine bar/restaurants in Belltown.

If beer is more your thing, the Taphouse Grill (near you), Pyramid Brewer (south down by the stadiums - 15 minute walk) and Fox Sports Restaurant (by you) are good.

As far as going out on Thurs and Fri night... Yeah, I can give you plenty of recommendations for those nights. I'm sure I'll be out and about and would love to party it up with some fellow purple and golders. Just figure out what type of bar you want. Thursday is a popular night over in the University District by the UW - it's a bit of a cab ride, but it can be fun. I have a particular favorite if you want to find some cute Seattle ladies, but it's not that big so if your group is bigger than 15-20, that'd be out. Plenty of other options, though. Frankly, you can't go wrong ending your night at the W, at least on Friday night. Not sure how Thurs night is there.

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Hey dawgs... is this the address for The Duchess Tavern?


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2827 NE 55th St
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If so, that appears pretty close to the Ram. Which of those two places would you recommend for GameDay, or both? Our main goal on game day is to find a place to kick back for a couple hours, have some drinks, get a bite to eat, and watch the other games on TV... and obviously we want a place close to campus so that at some point in the day we can walk around campus, etc. We gotta walk over to Ivars about 4pm for dinner and the Ivars boat.

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That sounds like the right address. It's up the hill a bit from the Ram and a bit north. Definitely short walking distance. The Ram gets pretty packed on Saturdays before a game (you won't find a table at 4 pm on Saturday before a 7 pm game) and has more of a "corporate" feel. If you're looking for more of a college dive bar where people will be drinking cheap beer and being louder, the Duchess is the way to go. I like them both depending on the mood I'm in. The Ram has significantly better food. The Duch is typical bar-quality food (not terrible, though - I eat there).

My recommendation is NOT to take the boat back to Ivar's after the game unless you really just want to ride on the boat again. Instead, walk out to the tailgates and party it up a bit with Husky fans, or head over to the Ram or Duchess. The Duchess tends to get pretty crazy after games. The Ram often opens up a back patio outside where people will hang out.

BTW, Ivar's is a good hike from University Village and the stadium area. You're probably not going to walk that, although you could. If you're doing the Ivar's boat, I recommend you hang out at the Ram or the Duch, walk up through campus afterward (take time for the campus, it's big and lots to see), and that will take you to the Ivar's side of campus. You can then jump in a taxi and get to Ivar's quickly or walk the rest of the way to Ivar's (you'd be about halfway there at that point, if not more). I would plan over an hour for a straight walk from the Duchess or Ram to Ivar's.

The only downside to taking the Ivar's boat is that you miss out on the giant parking lot tailgate prior to the game, which is where all the Husky fans will be. But taking the boat to the game is definitely a unique experience that you should take advantage of. I've taken the Ivar's boat to the game several times. I just don't take it back.

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BTW, Ivar's is a good hike from University Village and the stadium area.

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Its less than a mile...

I think people tailgate at LSU a mile from Tiger Stadium...

dawgs4ever and I will be hosting our UW-LSU tip cup challenge. Last year we had to take down ASU and figured it will be our new tradition...

For 25-35 year olds, Fremont or Belltown is the place to be...

For great seafood, try Waterfront. It's on a pier downtown Seattle (same one that RealWorld was filmed). For Italian, try Il Terrazzo Carmine or Il Bistro. For French, try Campagne, Crush, or Place Pigalle. For NW, try Matt's in the Market. For sushi, try Nishino's or Wasabi. For steak, El Guacho or The Met. (reservations for all of these places is recommended). For a great burger, skip Dick's and hit up Red Mill.

The Ram is definitely a corporate feel. Great beer they brew and a ton of TVs. Duchess is a complete dive bar which could be fun. I too would agree to skip the boat ride back and tailgate with the Husky fans after the game. You should also tailgate before the boat ride too...

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Oh, and as per what bars we would be interested in ... we're all in the 25-35 age range, so nothing too "college" but we certainly all still like a little rowdiness at the bars we go to.

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That's cool. I'm 35 and my friends are all in the 30-35 range. I pretty much have the same taste in bars, so Belltown, Fremont and Capitol Hill are all good places for your group.

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ETA: One question ... if for some reason we are having a blast at The Ram or The Duchess and just want to go straight from there to Ivar's at around 4pm, will catching a cab from University Village to Ivar's be difficult at that time of day?

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Shouldn't be too difficult if you call for a cab about 15-20 minutes in advance of when you want to leave.

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Based on your recommendation, we'll probably skip the boatride back from the game to Ivars. We'll just walk over to one of the bars close to campus like you suggested.

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Good call. We'll be in the parking lot drinking after the game, so if you're doing the whole boat thing, you'll have to swing by our tailgate.

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You said you've been on the Ivar's boat? Is it fun? Do you think we should definitely do it if we can't find an "all day" tailgate boat?

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It's not really a party boat. I'm sure you guys could turn it into that if you bring enough people, but it's a pretty short boat ride. Ivar's itself is kind of an old fashioned Seattle fish house. It's more of a steakhouse feel and not generally inclined to be a party place. It gets a little rowdier when the boat people are there, but don't picture a sports bar or anything of the kind. It does have fantastic food, though.

If I was coming into town as a visiting team fan, I would use the boat as a fallback if I couldn't find another boat to rent (even a smaller one that I could fit 8-10 people on) or another LSU party barge. It is a fairly unique experience taking the boat to the game and walking off the boat onto the dock right by the stadium. Most of the pre-game festivities are in the lots to the north and south of the stadium, though, and the boat arrives too late to join in much of that partying. Seems kind of silly to go tailgate with all the folks and then run over to Ivar's just to catch the boat back unless you really just want to ride on the boat. But if you want to eat, then the Ivar's boat is a good idea because they do have great food and you can get some food in your stomach after a day of drinking and to prepare for the night.

BTW, at halftime, the boats on the dock open up and you can go out there and drink.

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Most of the pre-game festivities are in the lots to the north and south of the stadium, though, and the boat arrives too late to join in much of that partying. Seems kind of silly to go tailgate with all the folks and then run over to Ivar's just to catch the boat back unless you really just want to ride on the boat.

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This is what I was thinking. I am hoping to find some peeps to tailgate with around campus after watching some football earlier in the morning/early afternoon.