Easy Monkey Taphouse

Great beer selection, decent food, free peanuts and a friendly staff. Trivia on Thursday evenings, live music on Saturday nights. It’s my favorite place to watch the Hawks! Several TV’s scattered through out the bar make it a great place to watch sports. It is well kept, and very clean. You can also play shuffleboard !! check it out!

Awesome beer and free peanuts minus the alcoholic crowd across the street equals a good time!

Moderate amount of taps, small menu is lacking and is very basic, and there’s just not a lot of character here. It’s not horrible, it’s just not notable. Was almost library quiet when I stopped by, too. I don’t need a crowd, but I’d expect more activity for happy hour.

This would easily be a 5 star if there was better food. The beer selection is outstanding as is the service and location. Currently they do offer sandwiches which normally would be fine, but they really are lacking. I had a turkey/​cheese pannini which was greasy and was lacking any sort of flavor. I understand they do not have a full blown kitchen, but even without all the amenities there are lots of creative sandwich solutions. Honestly Easy Monkey, listen up, you can be so much better if you would just put a bit of creativity into your food selection.

Was there last night food was off the hook an price wasnt bad at all I totally recommen this place to everyone

This place is quiet, clean, nice people. Small but good beer selection. This is not a gastropub or brewery so don’t expect that. But expect a place to chill on the sunny back porch, have a snack, some good beer and some tunes.
Also, the brown ale here is the best!

I LOVE this place! They feature all local beer, wine and ciders and support other local businesses and charities.
My husband and I come often for entertainment, be it comedy or live music and love it.
The menu is sparse but DELICIOUS. My husband will even say the next day, «Man that was a good sandwich last night [about his go-​to, the french dip]» — who is still talking about a sandwich the next day?!
The staff is very nice and the owner is awesome — so great to have a sweet spot to go in the Shoreline area.
I don’t quite get what other reviewers have beefed about: they don’t have too much crap on the walls and their food isn’t foodie? Ooooook… I’ll take clean and delicious any day of the week!

New neighborhood place for us, really nice staff and insanely delicious food! Two visits so far and a total winner!

As much as they’re trying, I, as well as the majority of the group I was with, don’t plan on coming back.
Why?
Food — Although there was no expectation to have a great menu with elaborate options, the items they did have were incredibly basic. We tried the sausage and cheese plate, the veggies and hummus plate, the french dip, the German sausage with baked beans, and the chips and salsa. The sausage from the plate was reminiscent of a simple summer sausage and the cheese looked like it came from a pack of slices from Costco. The German sausage was a glorified hot dog. The chips and salsa had a ton of chips with a disproportionately little amount of salsa (the salsa was good though). Also, chips that came with the french dip and the German sausage were bags of Tim’s which could have been brought up a level by not just tossing the small bag on the plate.
I get it. It’s simple and easy to manage for a place that doesn’t have a full kitchen but it could be tackled in a better way: artisan cheeses, artisan meats (plural. We were informed that the sausage on the sausage and cheese plate was from a local place but it really didn’t seem like anything special), chips on the plate and not in a to-​go bag.
Service — It’s a small place and there were 3 people working (maybe 4 but definitely only 3 providing service which was plenty). We came on Thursday for trivia night and there were eventually 8 of us. Total in the establishment was ~40−50 people. We were having the hardest time getting anyone to come to our table and were constantly looking to order food or drinks, especially as time went on and people were leaving after trivia. They were really having a struggle balancing the timing of their attendance to the tables.
On the plus side, they were really good about splitting up our bills; they just took forever to get the bills to our group.
Environment — As I mentioned, we came here for trivia. At places most of us had been before for trivia, there’s usually a presentation or some sort of visuals. The establishment didn’t have a projector or use a TV to support this attraction that they advertise (there was one TV above the bar which had the NBA playoffs on which made sense). The whole event just felt a bit awkward. Overall, the place is clean and simple but there’s nothing there to make it stand out or make me want to come back.
Other — This is just a tap house; they do not brew any of their own beer. They have beers from Salish Sea, Big E, American Brewing, Georgetown Brewing, and Two Beers Brewery as well as some cider. Aside from being able to get beers from all of these breweries at one place, there’s nothing that would make me come here over going to those breweries. I have been to all of the listed breweries aside from Two Beers and I can say, in my opinion, that they all have a better setup and more appealing atmosphere than Easy Monkey Taphouse.

Lots of tasty beers on tap. A really nice place to go if you want to hang out and have a couple beers without the loudness or bar atmosphere.
It is pretty minimal seating but it is nice because you are not packed in like sardines.
The last time we were there they were charging a pretty hefty cover because there was a band playing.
My one other complaint is they are not open very late. Great place to get a beer with a friend and then boom you’re forced to go somewhere else. I think they’d make a lot more dough staying open until at least 11 or even midnight.

Great place in North City. Jazz playing, good local brews. A time to wind down.
Reminiscent of what bars/​pubs used to be in the early days.
A hidden gem in Shoreline.

Nice new place. Love the small plates although the sausage on the sausage and cheese plate was not to my liking. All local brews on tap and friendly staff. They support Parkinsons research big time so stop in to donate and grab a drink. The only thing I did not like was the forced $ 10 cover if you were there before and still when one of their comedy shows started. i think if you’ve spent more than that per person it should be waived. Minor complaint, will check schedule before I go again.

North City is a quieter side of Shoreline to some extent – not a lot of people drive through here on a regular basis compared to, say, Lake City Way. There are enough locals to give the place a small crossroads of businesses. But, speaking as someone who lives just a few miles away, it’s rare for outsiders to drive through here on their way to anything else.
So it’s hard to get a clear read on how Easy Monkey will shake out.
They kinda wanna be a live music spot and stopover spot for a decent-​sized crowd. They have seating for about 50, and standing room for a bit more than that. They emphasize their live music side, but I didn’t see a schedule. I’m sure it was around somewhere if I looked. They do for sure have a disco ball, and some paintings of musicians playing live.
What you get is a nice little neighborhood joint with a little bit of parking and a pretty understated sign. You walk in across brand-​new laminate floors, past a whole bunch of tables and stools that are all brand-​new. It’s super clean and has just enough art on the walls to not make you feel like it’s their first day of business. Still feels pretty brand-​new, though, no matter how you slice it.
There’s a bar to the left, and then a little space past that where the bands set up. Windows at both ends. This should be a good space once it gets a lived-​in feel.
The staff are nice, and they check on you regularly. They know the menu and the beer list reasonably well, but they’re clearly not aiming to specialize as a beer bar. They DO, though, get local kegs from smaller breweries, which is cool to see. They had multiple kegs on from Salish Sea, Two Beers, Big E, and American when I was in. All stuff brewed not only in town but most of them as physically close to the pub as possible. That is *so* cool to see places plugging in to the community that way.
You can’t get most of the food on their menu from literally that close, but the menu is short and fairly thoughtful. A few easy pub snacks, a dish of peanuts, and a couple sandwiches. Nothing fancy, but you can at least put something in your stomach after a couple pints. We had the sausage and cheese platter, which was just a bunch of stuff from the supermarket all sliced up, but there was plenty of it and it was dirt cheap ($ 9). I’d rather pay that for inexpensive items than $ 25 each for a cheese and charcuterie plate that’s too small, but very fancy (yes, this point of comparison is very valid; that was the option at the place we hit the night before). I’d far, far rather save 80% and eat the fancy stuff at home after hitting a fancy supermarket myself. So, even though I tend to like fancier cured meats, the Easy Monkey option is the smart play here by far.
We had three roundss, peanuts, and that sausage plate, all for $ 43 plus tip. Definitely happy to hit this place up again. I’m also curious to hit the place across the street which, despite being a bar, flies a 7-​Up sign. It has clearly been operating since the last world war, and might be worth a visit. As long as I’m not wearing any clothes that are too nice.

I’d misread the start times for my movie at the Crest theater nearby, so I had an hour or so to kill, and I ran up to 15^th looking for a place to grab a pint and maybe a snack. Please don’t make me go into the dive bar and please don’t make me go the bar in the Chinese restaurant!
Easy Monkey to the rescue!
Clean, quiet (when I went in — the music wouldn’t start until later), and they had my favorite local beers. My Big E Copper Ale was delicious and the hummous plate was just the right snack!
However, they lose a star because there’s no real atmosphere. The first reviewer, from last year, remarked that there was no art on the walls. That hasn’t changed! Almost totally bare walls!
From the lack of atmosphere, I was figuring the place was a week old, not the 9 months old it actually is.
Have some fun, you guys! Go hit the antique stores in the area, and cover the walls in tasteful junk, secure in the knowledge that it’s all deductible. Or maybe not so tasteful junk. Go wild!

Good local beer and wine, clean and quiet atmosphere, helpful, friendly staff. Could easily become somebody’s Cheers-​style «everybody knows your name» kind of place.

VERY nice place! The lack of greasy food makes it feel like a much lower key, friendlier cocktail lounge. Very fresh atmosphere and good selection of beers on tap, as well!

My wife and I went on a slower night recently. We’re new Shoreline residents recently transplanted from Fort Collins, CO; home to some of the best beer in the country. I will have to say that I was disappointed to see that they have around 10 beers on tap and ciders take up more then their fair share of the taps. The selection was dominated by only a few breweries. While I enjoyed my IPA and ate peanuts with my wife, the employees were engaging and funny. They definitely made a point to make us feel welcome and well cared for. I will definitely be back. Maybe next time on a live music night.

Love this place! Especially when Third Train Running is playing! The Gluten free cheesy bread is a must! Delicious!!!

There are several things that I LOVE about this place and one thing that could be better…
I LOVE:
— that they have 3 ciders on tap!
— that they care about causes (some profit from one of their taps is donated to a Parkinson’s disease foundation, the pink tap)
— that I happened upon jazz music last Friday night!
— that the people who work there (I think they are the owners?) seem like nice friendly people. They got me more drinks right when I was emptying my glass, but they were not overly attentive where I felt like I was being watched. I like that balance :)
Room for improvement:
— food. I want more food options! I know it’s a bar and I should be ok with snacks, but I like to eat more substantial food when I’m having my cider
All and all, I’m glad this place opened up in the neighborhood! I’ll be back

We saw the sign go up about a month ago, and have been eagerly awaiting the opening of Easy Monkey. There aren’t a lot of options for highbrow brew in the North City area. EM has about 10 beers on tap, most from local breweries Two Beers and Salish. There are limited food options — mostly appetizer dishes — as their kitchen is small. The german sausage was good, as was the hummus plate. They also have cheese and fruit platters. Nothing fried, which is a nice change from typical pub fare — no gutbombs here.
The interior is brand new and nicely appointed for what there is. The walls are in need of some artwork, and I suspect that will evolve. We were there for the soft opening, and they’re still working out the minor kinks, but overall the service was good, and the staff friendly. There’s also a patio out back which is being finished and looks to be a great place to hang out on a summer evening.
There’s definitely a market for good beer and grub in North City, and if they keep it up Easy Monkey will do well.