It's all over for Juju Lounge, papered-over and up for sale. Says Marcus Charles, the genial owner of a string of restaurants and bars, from Capitol Hill (the original "Bad Juju Lounge") to Pioneer Square (the defunct Marcus Martini Heaven) to Belltown (Local 360, Crocodile, the new Alley Burger), "Change is good."
Charles tells Seattle Met's Chris Werner that he's sorry to see it go, because of all his properties, Juju is the one which spoke to him the most. And yet, with a dozen bars on the 2200 block of Second Avenue, the spot (wedged between Lava Lounge and Shorty's, needs a full-time owner-operator, not someone like himself, who is "distracted" by multiple ventures. This means Alley Burger is also closed.
In the meantime, Jessica Gifford of Bathtub Gin will expand into the Lava Lounge space next door to Juju. Mike McAlpin, the owner of Mama's Mexican Kitchen, confirmed the deal to Seattle Weekly earlier this week.
A new Executive Sous Chef for Ray's Boathouse: Joe Ritchie, seen here with exec chef Wayne Johnson. Young Joe's been on the line at Poppy and the Herbfarm as well as Cyrus in Sonoma, Calif.
Ray's itself is still in the throes of remodeling. They got through the Thanksgiving weekend by opening the catering facility to regular diners, and by serving a buffet in the less formal café. The too-cute-for-words website chronicling the remodel, "raysthebar.com" is a week out of date. Hmmm.
This content originally appeared on Seattle.Eater.com
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