Pennyroyal

Nice place to relax and hang out in the Belltown area. Good craft cocktails without being pretentious! Very nice, and knowledgeable bar staff has great recommendations and friendly service! Its attached to a Kimpton hotel but there’s a street entrance and you don’t have to pay hotel prices. Also there’s great food and appetizers available from the restaurant. Would definitely recommend this place to anyone in the area!

It’s unfortunate that the Pennyroyal uses the same kitchen as the adjoining restaurant because my experiences of the food there have been horrible and absolutely not worth it. My friends loved their beverages, fries, and burgers, however, the four grilled prawns on my plate were cold, mushy, and flavorless and I couldn’t continue eating them. Once again, fabulous service, but I wish I had been more persistent when I said I was reluctant to eat here again.

Asked for 1 beer, keg kicked, asked for a substitute that was kicked too. Lady ordered a drink off $ 6 happy hour and was charged $ 8+2. Shady business while place was empty. Watched two drinks get comped on the other hand. This can’t last much longer. Avoid

This place has a cool ambiance, great liquor selection, and features a quality cocktail menu. However, the bartenders are a couple of wet blankets. Service was never bad, so I cannot complain about that, but it would have been nice to actually get a smile or even faked interest in basic conversation from the bartenders. The «night» bartender was much better than the other, he at least didn’t give you the idea that he hated his job like the «day time» bartender seemed to (never even once saw him crack a smile). My husband and I came here several times over our stay at the adjoining hotel, the Palladian. Although it is not a bartender’s job to entertain hotel guests, we do enjoy some light conversation with bartenders or other locals when we travel. Despite the fact that it was dead, our bartender could not be bothered to do anything other than look down and act put off when we would try talking to him. I think this would probably be much less of an issue to me had it not been attached to a hotel, where guests are possibly more interested in socialization.

Seeing some of the other reviews, I think perhaps we came too late in the night (10pm??) or it was an off night. I wasn’t wowed by this place, it was simply a-​ok for me.
Bestie and I felt like one more drink before heading home and, having peeked in the window on our way past earlier in the night, we thought this would be a fun spot.
It turns out it’s a hotel bar, which definitely changed the atmosphere drastically from how we thought it would be. It’s still a nice space, but it feels a bit less intimate than I’d hoped. We were served fairly quickly at the drinks were pretty good, and not crazy expensive for a hotel bar.
I might come back, but there are certainly places higher on my list!

I really wanted to give this place 4 stars, but there were just a couple of things that kind of irked me. First off, it is actually really nice looking. It’s very quiet, so if you’re looking for a place to hide in a dark bar and enjoy the quiet music, check it out. It’s just A-​OK in my book.
We visited here while we were staying in the hotel. During our first visit, we stopped by on the way back from the Izakaya next door. We had a few cocktails at the Izakaya and wanted to grab one more before heading to the room for the night. I ordered a vodka martini which came in a super small baby sized glass, hardly worth the $ 11 he charged for the top shelf vodka he used (without asking my preference). My girlfriend couldn’t make up her mind and he suggested «pink bubbly» which turned out to be a Brut pink «champagne». She didn’t like it much, but I knew she wasn’t into champagne. My gripe is that one glass of pink champagne cost $ 20. $ 36 for two drinks and tip later, I found myself wondering what just happened while I sat down in my room.
The second time, my girlfriend went up to the room after a long day, but I needed to wind down some so I stopped in here. It was a different bartender this time, but I got a similar greeting of a water and a menu. He seemed busy chatting with one of the other patrons at the bar. I ordered a martini, this time, he asked what I wanted and I said «cheap». I had three martinis for $ 30. This bartender was a little more talkative once he acknowledged me.
All in all, it’s really just a hotel lobby bar that is priced like a hotel lobby bar. There are plenty of options in the area with more affordable cocktails for sure. We are members of the hotels rewards program, so we did get a $ 10 credit to spend at the bar, that would be the only reason I’d suggest going.

I came here with a couple co-​workers for drinks. The bartender was great with helping us select drinks that matched the flavor profiles we each wanted. He also recommended some popular appetizers. They were all delish! We had the deviled eggs and chips. I also loved the trail mix we received when we sat down.
I’m definitely coming back. The ambiance is beautiful and the service was great. He was very knowledgeable about the menu and drinks!

Located in the lobby of our hotel, we stopped in after dinner one night for a night cap.
I wanted a coffee and Bailey’s. As they don’t have Bailey’s, the bartender-​ess offered to make up something that could be similar to Bailey’s. So, sure!
It wasn’t great, but it was ok. The nice thing was, she offered to give it a shot.
One night on the way out, they had something called Tiki Night (I believe it was a Sunday night) and they were playing interesting classic tango sounding music and everyone was dancing like they knew what they were doing… I watched, wanted to try but had plans and had to run out the door. It was neat though.
I cannot comment on the food but they do serve breakfast/​brunch, all day bites and happy hour.

They have a scrumptious lunch menu! The curry squash soup is perfect for a miserable rainy day. I always like to grab a cucumber sandwich with it. Unless I’m going to spoil myself then I order the clams with bread service.
The breakfast is solid. You don’t need to be over the top, you just need to be well done. They have the best sausage for their breakfast sandwich. If you want to do something less savory and more sweet they have a massive cornmeal pancake to satisfy a sweet tooth that comes with a bunch of berries.
If you work in the downtown area this is a perfect quiet spot to get some work done, have a small lunch meeting, or if you just want to get away from the office for a meal. There are spots to plug your laptop into so you can stay connected wherever you sit. Incredibly tech savy!

The (surprisingly) trendy bar located in the Palladian Hotel in downtown Seattle.
If you’re a guest, they have complimentary glasses of wine/​cocktails during certain social hours, and if you’re not, they still have a fairly impressive assortment of drinks on their menu.
I don’t know if I’d go out of my way to check it out, but if your room is just upstairs, why not?

This is their breakfast review:
This fine summer morning before work, I decided to treat myself a good breakfast, why not!
I walked by Pennyroyal every morning but wasn’t sure if they are open for breakfast since the Unilocal says not. I just buzzed in and wow…
Deco: I loved the setting — quiet & simple and peaceful. Interior was very gentle, welcoming, classic, simple and fun to look around.
People: The ladies were just so great, giving enough attention, not too less or not too much. There goes a perfect 5 star it self for them.
Food: Let’s talk about their menu. I ordered a breakfast Sandwich w/​over easy egg, sauon Ciabatta. I have not had a THAT goooooood of breakfast sausage for a looooong time! It wasn’t salty or greasy. It was very flavorful, herbal & earthy. Even if you are not a sausage lover, you will enjoy this one. OJ is house squeezed. Coffee is by Caffe Vita.
Price: The Sandwich-​$ 14 /​Fresh Squeeze Vegetable Juice-​$ 8
Am I going to bring my friends? Yes, most definitely!

This is a great place to go with a friend or two, or a date. It has an intimate setting that’s just right for wanting to go out but not to a place that is loud/​crazy. They have an amazing and unique selection of cocktails. I like to go out once in awhile and have a drink but I want something unique and tasty, not just a margarita or martini. This place definitely makes me happy with their selection. A drink will range around $ 11-​$ 15.
They have a very small snack menu, so don’t go hungry, like I was. The menu had locally made (some in house), and fresh ingredients but my 4 stars comes from the drinks only.
Service was good but not outstanding.
Parking can likely be found on a nearby street and is free after 8pm.
I’ll be back for another drink.

Cute little dive bar that’s a couple of steps nicer than the dive bar that was there before. I can’t remember what I ate there but it was tasty, some kind of sandwich, maybe a crab cake sandwich? Drinks were good, if a bit overpriced-​seeming. Keep in mind, this was like my third bar of the day so the details are a bit hazy.

Staying at the Palladian and they gave us a couple free drink vouchers. Nice. So we decided to hit Pennyroyal and have a couple drinks and bar snacks. The bartender seemed uninterested in serving us. We got our drinks and had been looking at the menu but the drinks were dropped and bartender ran off to do other things. By the time we saw him again we had already finished our drinks with a decision to go elsewhere for bar snacks. Down the street to The Whisky bar, which was not a bad choice at all.

My friends were staying in this hotel not long after it opened so we came for drinks and to check out the atmosphere.
I was surprised to see that the lounge was very bright. Definitely not what you’d expect from a boutique hotel bar.
Octopus ceviche was not bad but portions are as you can imagine, not very big. My $ 12 fruity cocktail, jasmine infused, was alright. Not as sweet and fruity as expected.
My friend ordered a fruity cocktail that came with fire and tasted good.
Hubby got a beer, $ 9.
Service was good but the drinks and food were not mind blowing for the price and atmosphere.

There are only a few things you need to know about Pennyroyal:
1. The drinks are delicious, this is because…
2. The bartenders are talented, and use great ingredients.
3. The space is cool, even though it’s in a hotel lobby.
4. Despite the hotel-​lobby-​ness of the bar, see #1.
5. They have super rad black coasters with gold crowns on them. I want some.
6. Fernet on tap, and the only thing better than Fernet on tap is…
6. Serving shots of tap Fernet in lego shot glasses.
Seriously if you don’t know what good cocktails are all about, it’s time to get educated. While there are plenty of places to do this in Seattle, Pennyroyal is an excellent option. Especially because the bartenders are skilled, have a great back bar, and lack the normal level of pretense that comes alongside all of the things listed above. However if you’re out looking to get wasted off of highballs, hit on people, be part of a scene, or for any of those those reasons other than to enjoy a solid cocktail in a chill but upscale environment, this may not be the place for you.
It’s that easy.

We decided to stop here before a performance at the Moore Theater. So happy that we did. Well mixed drinks, excellent attention by the bar staff and while you will not fill up on the small plate bar fare its pretty tastey. Prices are pretty Seattle standard, no great deals but the atmosphere, attention and location make up for that. My favorite part was the metal stirrer/​straw my friend got with her blended drink. Fun. Glad we tried it.

Wow! The drinks are inventive, gorgeous and tasty! The bartenders were friendly and talked to us about the drinks they were making. Chad (I think), one of the bartenders was testing a drink he created in a blender that I decided to try. I was hesitant at first because of visions of sickly sweet blended drinks but I didn’t need to be! It was delicious, light and delicate — I have no idea what was inside but some wonderful jasmine infused concoction. I also tried the special rum punch of the day — This was the happy hour special and it also was delicious and unique, not your typical rum punch. My friend ordered a Manhattan and had one with a recommended bourbon. Fantastic! We ordered some snacks as well and were surprised to see the bartender preparing the bar food too. They make their own potato chips and we had fried chick peas and other yummies.
The vibe is elegant, friendly and comfortable. Couches, tables and chairs and a great, long bar. If you like watching your drinks made, sit at the bar and watch the craftsmen do their thing.
We will be back and probably often!

What am I, nuts? This place is five stars all the way. Came back tonight and had a fantastic cocktail, a great glass of sherry, and enough small plates to make one of the best dinners I’ve had in a long time.
I have friends who say, «I don’t eat the service.» And while I agree and I don’t often ding a place for mediocre or even bad service, Pennyroyal has fantastic service. Like, THE BEST.
Friendly, knowledgable staff who will engage you if its not too busy. Sitting alone at a bar has never been so fun! Made some great friends tonight and will definitely be recommending this bar to friends.
Try the ceviche and the salt cod sandwiches. Stellar stuff!

If I were to judge Pennyroyal on its drinks alone, it would earn 4 stars; however, that is not how Unilocal works. The service, prices, and lack of happyhour left me hoping for more.
The service is not quick. On two seperate ocassions I stood at the entrance near the bar waiting to be greeted. The first time I left because after 5 – 10 minutes I remained invisible to the bartenders and staff. The second time I had to call for their attention.
The drinks are vey expensive: beers range from $ 8 – 10 and all cocktails are more than $ 12. Now, they do make their drinks with solid ingredients, which partially makes up for their steep prices. But, given these prices, I think Pennyroyal will not survive without a happy hour that is at least 4−6pm on weekdays.
If they start offering a happy hour, I could seee myself returning, but at the current prices they are just a little too expensive.