Cypress Lounge & Wine Bar

What downtown business hotel closes for lunch? Major negative when one try’s to consolidate a stay, a business meeting and a meal with the convenience not having to leave the hotel –won’t be back

Just came for wine and thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Very attentive service, great wine, and wonderful music by jazz guitar trio (Eli Meisner). The music was top notch and the ambiance was very relaxing and fun.

Stopped in to attend a birthday party and found Danny Quinteros Quintet playing with a number of Seattle’s jazz luminaries. Service was quick, food was great, and drinks done well. But this was really the best jazz night I’d had in Seattle in a long time. Very cool.

This has been my go-​to place for after-​work drinks with friends for over a year now, and between the comfortable ambiance, generous pours, and perfectly-​sized small plates, I expect it’ll stay that way for some time.
I can’t speak to the general menu here– I usually do dinners at home– but the bar has a wonderful Happy Hour and the staff, again, is fantastic.
Other pluses: Cypress has outdoor seating in the summer, a fireplace in the winter, and tends to be a little quieter than other wine bars in downtown Bellevue.
Negatives: The place is sometimes closed for special events, and the acoustics don’t do the Friday night bands any favors.

After reading so many great reviews about their happy hour, my boyfriend and I decided to check it out. When we arrived, the server told us he could give us a deal on a merlot, cab and Chardonnay but failed to describe what this «deal» was or anything about the wine despite asking for more information. When we asked for the food specials, he gave us a menu but said they didn’t offer happy hour anymore. And they adjusted the small plate prices to reflect all day happy hour. What? The menu’s prices were not half off like other reviewers described. It was super confusing and the server was difficult to understand. It sounded like a scam and we were immediately turned off. We got up and left. With no one else it the bar, it was clear why. Don’t waste your time.

Friday nights are when they have live band play which I thought would be fun and so went with coworkers for drinks. First alarm, we went in, it was way too loud. Second alarm, none of us were fascinated with our drinks. Third, we were pratically yelling at each other bc we couldn’t hear each other soon to give up and just sip our drinks till the guy singing was on a break. It wasnt like we were listening to an up beat banging head kind of tune. he was singing that song from Begin Again (hello~?) and we still couldn’t hear each other. Anyway ended the night going to Earl’s and had a better night with better drinks.
Star for free parking and possibility it might be better on a diff. night.

We had a couple of Saturday dinners and wine downs here with a larger group. Not full service dinner but more of small plates and drinks. The food is just passable as in any hotel bar and lounge. The drinks are ok too.
There are some good specials on food during the every day Happy Hour which runs from 4 PM to 7 PM. Not much of a happy hour for drinks though as the house wine is still pricey at $ 7 during happy hour. There are some special happy hour cocktails on the menu too, but the regular menu prices are not too different.
The ambience is upscale casual and in the winter it’s nice to be seated near the fireplace. The couple of times our group was there on Saturday evenings from 7 PM until close, our server Manoj, was attentive and very patient with our multiple separate checks. The ambience and service was 4 stars but food was 3 stars (Kobe beef sliders came a bit cold, drinks were just ok) and overall I would give it 3.5 stars.
Definitely a nice place to just hang out with a friend. I believe they have live music on Fridays but I’ve never gone during that time. I’ve been told by friends there is no cover charge during live music nights.
Update:
This place is a regular haunt now and I’ve been here at least 6 – 7 times this year. They recently changed their small plates menu and there is no more happy hour but an expanded selection available all times for a little more. Not too bad, it’s adequate for the large group meetings we hold at this location. The spot by the fireplace is great for our group of 20 – 25 people.

Big fan of Cypress and they offer one of the best check in deals around. I’m a sucker for their steamed clams and nice glass of wine, especially after a long day at the office. Cypress also boasts one of the later happy hours, going to 7PM nightly. It’s a nice environment to come with coworkers after work if you’re looking for a place to unwind and review the day’s events.

One tip is not to get their breakfast on a Sun morning on a typically checkout day — 30 min for room service, and even 15 min. for a table of 2.
Your typical hotel breakfast food, though have to say their waffles were surprisingly fresh, as pic shows.
But wouldn’t recommend to waiting in line, that’s for sure.
And for my starhot rate, 50% isn’t too shabby. But has to be billed to your room, so clever. It’s like spending money without taking any room on your credit card lol,
Located inside Westin. Bright, corner spot, high ceilings and table napkins, bonus.
Good service, as you’d expect from a Starwood.

The wait staff here are very attentive and bar tenders make a nice strong drink and really know their stuff to make suggestions. The food menu is pretty limited, but I suppose you could always go somewhere else nearby if you’re more concerned about food offerings. The TVs are also not placed the best for watching games. Happy hour does run until 7, though, so it’s a good place for a drink in a comfortable setting after work. Heads up, though: they don’t validate parking for Lincoln Square garage.

It’s a very badly managed place. I was sitting for 3 hours and no service. Now that’s another thing that I was deeply engrossed in something else but I still should have been served well. They do have good musicians playing on weekends but definitely pathetic service may stop me from going there again.

It’s located in the lobby area of the Westin. It’s actually pretty nice. They recently renovated the bar and lounge area. It’s a great place to relax and have a drink. The bartenders and waitresses that we’ve had have been great. The even have wine events.

We went for happy hour on a Friday. The place was empty except for a few customers trickling in as we were eating. The ambiance is nice. They have comfortable couches and a nice fireplace area that is cozy during the winter. We have been here a few times because they have pretty good happy hour prices on their food.
The menu on their website is not current, so I can’t give the exact names of the items that we ordered. We had the ahi, the pork sliders, and a bread and spreads plate. The ahi was OK. The pork sliders were dry and flavorless. The bread and spread plate consisted of an olive tapenade, roasted garlic, and a goat cheese spread. It was pretty good except that it only came with four tiny pieces of bread. We requested more bread. They brought two pieces for which they charged an additional $ 1.00. This was maybe 2 cents worth of bread for $ 1.00!!!
The service was very inattentive. The employees spent their time chatting with each other on the other side of the bar, which was very unprofessional. We had to stand up and wave to them to get the server’s attention every time except for when we originally sat down, as they never came by the table to check if we wanted more drinks or food.
The website menu still lists that happy hour is all day on Saturday and Sunday, which another reviewer noted that it is incorrect. Perhaps they should be more attentive to their on line information and menus in addition to their service.

There appears to be some miscommunication between the Westin front desk and the Cypress Lounge.
About a month ago, I was looking to check out the Cypress Lounge for happy hour. However I noticed on the Westin’s website that the lounge was under construction and that it may be closed during certain times during that week. So, before heading to the restaurant I called ahead to see if it was open. I was assured that it would be open like normal for happy hour. When arrived, the restaurant was closed for construction.
Tonight, I was looking at the happy hour menu and noticed that it said all day happy hour Saturday and Sunday (
). However on the restaurant website listed Saturday’s HH hours as 4:30 to 7. Since there was a discrepancy, I decided to call ahead just to make sure that it was happy hour. When I called, the person at the front desk confirmed that yes, it was Saturday, so there was all day happy hour. We arrived at the lounge at 8:15 and were informed that it was NOT happy hour. Our server was apologetic and offered to comp an appetizer, but we just decided to head to John Howie’s after a drink.
I feel a little bad for giving two stars considering I haven’t even tried anything here, but to call ahead on two separate occasions and be told that the restaurant was open and that there was happy hour when there really wasn’t is pretty disappointing.
If I ever do get here for happy hour, I’ll update this review!

Amazing happy hour prices! Butter Manila clams and crab cakes are served hot — never too salty or too bland. Truffle fries are a hit or miss — they’re burned mine more than once. I’ve tried everything on the dessert menu and nothing is special i.e. go elsewhere for better dessert. I ordered their pork belly once, which came with the perfect velouté sauce and delicious mushroom risotto cake; too bad the pork belly itself was a little too hard that I had trouble cutting them.
Very smart of Cypress to have a fireplace, especially since Seattle is cold and rainy almost all year round. Ask to sit at the booths by the fireplace if you can! What could be better than escaping the Northwest rain to crackling fire, wine, and cheese (though not French)?
They also have outdoor seating for summer months, though I tend to avoid that since the wait staff do not check on the outdoor tables as often (and because I don’t want my hair all messed up by the wind: D).
Overall, good small plates, great prices, and awesome staff!

It was a lazy sunday — our party of 6 decided to enjoy Happy hour here. Despite having all day Happy Hour specials on Sunday, the place was NOT crowded at all.
We seated ourselves and the server bought us iced water shortly. The ambiance was great for a causal catch-​up session with friends. However, the service was very slow. Our food took about 20−30mins to arrive after we ordered. The server tried to be friendly but seems in a world of her own — we told her our orders, she didn’t write it down and we got to wait for her to get paper&pen and repeat our orders again. Besides that, a glass of ice water slipped and fell from her hand — she did pick up the larger glass pieces but there were still some glass pieces on the floor, hope she will deal with them after we leave
Food was alright. The Happy hour prices were pretty good. We thought the rustic bread was HUGE for $ 4.50 — this is very filling. Crab cakes, served in 2 pieces for $ 8 were generously stuffed with crabmeat. The fries were crispy, not spectacular. It is surprising that with only a handful of people in the restaurant, the food took a while to come and it was only warm, not hot.
I feel that the drinks selection for happy hour is quite limited. There were only 3 special cocktails on the menu to choose from. As they were out of lavender that day, only 2 drinks to choose from. I didn’t try any
I don’t think I will come back. Then again, maybe i would, IF I am with a large group and we can’t find a place to chill out

The reviews looked good so I went to check it out. I was surprised to find it located in a hotel lobby. I sat at my table for quite some time waiting for my date to arrive and never got served a glass of water, and even after my date showed up we had to flag a waiter down to get a glass of water. For these reasons its gets 3 stars.
Complaints aside, this place has a chic and modern vibe to it. This is an upscale place! My drink was perfectly prepared with mint and lime and cucumber, a new combination for me that was savory.
The peppered tuna was also served on a very fancy plate that seemed designed for the dish, and the the fish was carefully prepared to reflect the skill involved in its creation. Well done!
I might go back, but this place seems like it is more suitable to hotel guests, date nights, and business-​client gatherings. Not the most social place.

I can’t say I’m excited about the food served at this restaurant. All the items on the menu are just OK. You do get a discount for checking in through Unilocal.
I’ve been on nights they’ve had live music which is a nice touch but not that important to me.
If you’re just having wine and want a low key place to chill this is a nice place for that. They have a fireplace which is really nice for those colder months. Fairly private and romantic.
Parking is plentiful at Lincoln Square but the lounge itself is tucked away and not that easy to find — inside the Westin Hotel.

Double dipping downgrade. The stars aligned to give me the most perfect imperfect happy hour. Imagine…
A long, dreary, stressful day. Finally, it’s quitting time and starving to the point that the stomach is roaring and in pain. The first place on the mind, Cypress, good ol’ Cypress inside of the Westin, yea, that’s the ticket. An hour of fighting traffic to get to downtown Bellevue, thinking about how satisfying a great HH would finish the night.
I finally arrive and only not too busy, probably 20% occupied with patrons. The server takes my order. I get my water pretty promptly but then 10 mins go by, 15, 20, then at the 30 min mark, I had to get up and ask for my freakin’ food. The manager seemed to care and told me it’ll be right out. Five mins later, the food does come out! Eh, maybe they are short-​handed tonight so it takes longer I thought.
The food looks good so I start munching:
Crab cakes: just as I remembered it, but a bit lukewarm.
Mini burgers: Cold bread and meat. Yuck. I place that aside, angry but went on to the next dish, dying for sustenance…
Manila Clams: Again, not warm at all and most of them were sandy! Argh!
Bruschetta: No one can mess this one up, right? WRONG! The toppings tasted like they just came out of a refrigerator! Bread base soggy to make matters worse.
My theory here is that someone dropped the ball and did not pick up my order from the counter for at least 10 – 12 mins causing the food to drop in temperature, then was eventually fetched.
Disgusted, I brought up yet another complaint to the server about this mess and thankfully they didn’t charge me for the nasty meal I waited 35 mins for. Grabbed my stuff and left for Din Tai Fung (DTF) and never looked back. What a change from my first visit, so disappointed and swearing in my head all the way to DTF.

Tried happy hour here for the first time and I’m quite impressed with the menu! half off appetizers and small bites so everything was around $ 5 – 7.
This is inside the Westin hotel in Bellevue and opens at 5pm other wise it’s closed after 2.
I highly recommend the chicken wings/​drumsticks here because they give you generous amounts of buffalo/​ranch sauce to dip them in.
The portions are generous but I didn’t enjoy the ahi tuna here. The taste of it was lacking and pieces were cut small and slightly overcooked. Presentation and service of the food was nice though!