Two months ago, a tugboat captain named Wayne Allen, who had never owned a bar or run a restaurant, took over as proprietor of the Karma Lounge in Belltown. He changed the name to The Mix Martini Lounge and set about remodeling the premises, assisted by his two sons. For the time being, Allen is keeping his day job at Olympic Tug & Barge, a division of Harley Marine.
Two weeks ago he reopened, with a fresh face behind the bar (Justin DeLong, formerly at Tin Lizzie). Among the cocktails, a Toro Rojo (tequila, red wine syrup), a Violette Femme (gin, violette liqueur, cucumber), and an aperol fizz (with egg white and grapefruit peel). DeLong is a disciple of the great Murray Stenson, whose latest project--just down the street--was revealed yesterday.
Happy Hour small plates include a shrimp cocktail whose cocktail sauce is actually shaken with Crater Lake pepper vodka, so that you've got a couple of swigs of what amounts to a spicy Bloody Mary along with your appetizer.
The Mix Martini Lounge, 2318 2nd Avenue, Seattle. Nothing on Urbanspoon yet, but there's a Facebook page.
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