Love to go here for drinks before dinner. The regular menu of cocktails is fantastic, and the special drink of the day is usually really tasty too. The vibe is pretty funky, 60s style. Good for small groups. I've only eaten off the happy hour menu. Definitely recommend the fried cheese curds.
Review Source:food was nice. Â some usual suspects with unusual twists in the breakfast menu...i'm convinced there is a curry element to the biscuits and gravy. Â must try next time. Â i ordered a scramble style dish for my breakfast. Â it was good, but served in a cast iron dish that made it almost inedibly hot for quite some time. Â once it cooled down, i dove right in.
Review Source:I have been here two times now. First time, was during Happy Hour - got a salad and fried cheese curds (figured that was a good balance :) Both VERY tasty!
Going the first time gave me the idea to host a party in their great, back room, with a 60s theme. We just went this past week and it was wonderful. Staff put out popcorn for us (which is DELicious!) and were very attentive to us. I worked with Jodi, one of the owners in reserving the room, and she was excellent. I got to meet the other owner, Kevin, on my first night. The place is great, trendy, food is delicious.
Highly recommend the place for a happy hour, drink after work or a big party to rent the back space!
I have two words for you - Comfort Food - and it is delish!. Â Very pleasant decor and absolutely the most comforting food you can imagine - Mac n'Cheeze to die for, grilled cheese sandwiches - pork, chicken - all the good stuff - oh and meatloaf! Makes you feel like Mom's taking care of you but with great drinks!
Review Source:We threw a party in the back room of The Gerald and I really can't say a single bad thing about our experience. Â From the first e-mail we sent to Jodi (the owner) seeing if the spot was available to reserve to cleaning up to leave- we received amazing customer service and personalized attention to our party.
The food was top notch, everyone was raving about it- it was devoured quickly. Â The drinks came fast and they came strong. Â I really recommend The Gerald to anyone wanting to throw a great party in an excellent location- cool decor, great food, great service- what more could you ask for?
Line were large everywhere we went so it  was a very nice discovery to find this place. We found some nice seats at the bar and enjoyed a delicious brunch. Bloody Mary's were spicy good, coffee flavorful. We were impressed with the creative menu items and presentation. The maple chicken waffle sliders were as good as they sound. Give this place a try.
Review Source:Modern and clean vibe with an attentive bartender. I had an amazing salad, that upon the first reading was not convincing. I'm not a big bacon fan but they did something interesting to it (sugar and liquor?) and it added so much to my bowl of greens! The only reason I'm not giving it 5 stars is this simple reason: please don't serve salads in bowls. It's hard to use a nice and fork and creates quite a mess. But overall, a very very very good salad. So good that I can't stop thinking about it. I'll be back (in an Arnold voice)
Review Source:OK, I know The Gerald is mainly a bar, but we only had food so please read this as a restaurant review.
We went on a Friday night, but there was no wait for seats. Maybe it's because they were blasting awful remixes at a club volume, and we couldn't carry a conversation across the table. Why does a bar outside of college zone need loud music? The waitress was very nice, but she forgot about our food order for 45 minutes. The appetizer came right away though; fried cheese curds were delicious and you should definitely get them. The sandwiches were OK for the price, but nothing special.
The bench seats were very uncomfortable; try for one of the booths.
From the start, I loved the atmosphere. Â It's modern and hip, uncluttered and comfortable. Â I went here for happy hour with a friend on a Wednesday night and there were only a few other people there. Â The service was great. Â I had the $7 cocktail of the day, 2 actually because it was that good. Â The drinks were the star of the show here. Â Despite the fact that everything on menu sounded amazing and I had a difficult time deciding what to order, I was not blown away by the food. Â I found it to be just ok, not great. Â I'd like to go again and give another couple items on the menu a try.
Review Source:Meh! We made the mistake of unwittingly going here for restaurant week, so I'll give it one more shot but I was very disappointed by the quality of the drinks, the food and the service. We sat at the bar and waited a full 15 minutes before anyone even acknowledged us. Having already decided from the write up in Seattle Magazine that we wanted to try the Draper Point, we knew what to order. Another 20 minutes while the bartender chatted to other people before making our cocktails. Neither of us cared for it, too strong and the flavors were not well blended. This is definitely no Whale and the Carpenter. Â The food was also average - bland and fried, certainly nothing special - no organic or local ingredients which seem to be a staple at restaurants in this area. I had the grilled cheese which had way too much bread and not enough cheese. My friend had a salad. We both tried one more cocktail - the Ducati Manhattan and the Paper Planes. Neither was well balanced and the spirit completely overpowered the cocktail.
Too many other great bars in this neighborhood to waste time at the Gerald.
The food is quite good, as good as any place on Ballard Ave. The meatloaf was delicious from first bite to last, the polenta with chicken and chevre quite tasty, too. Served with veggies, excellent. The service is warm and just friendly enough. The tap beer selection is small: Stella, Manny's, and one rotator. The wine selection is good, however, and this is a cocktail bar. There are two rooms - one lovely Perry Mason '60s modern, and another very casual sitting room.
To get five stars? There are a lot of beer joints on the ave, but the food here is especially good, so that would get us there. The mac-and-cheese that was a side to the meatloaf was not so good, the cheese had been reduced to oil, but just a whisper of complaint to the server brought a comp of house-made potato chips, which were extraordinarily good.
This is a good place!
We came in for brunch on a lazy Sunday morning  - completely uncrowded. I was so excited to try their chicken & waffels which turned out to be quite a bit different than I was expecting; the sliders wouldn't cooperate and had to be eaten separately - the maple apple butter needed a syrup counterpart and the appleslaw wasn't doing it for me for some reason. They weren't very busy, and yet the service was spotty.
Its a super sexy place that would probably be best to come back for drinks sometime - has a big space in the back that would be fun to check out with a group of friends.
I came here with a group of about 8 on a busy Saturday night.
We were lucky enough to snag two side-by-side tables at the front. Â Our waitress was friendly and attentive, if a bit aloof to new arrivals. Â Everyone showed up at different times and gave orders for various drinks and foods and she managed to keep everything straight for separate checks when we were ready to make our exit; I was very impressed.
I wasn't in love with the truffled popcorn and couldn't decide if it was over or under seasoned; either way it didn't seem to be abundantly fresh, which was a bit of a let down. Â My drinks (Ruby Gin Fizz and Gerald's Sombrero) were strong without being overwhelming.
My only complaint would be that they opened a window over the door and cold air was blowing right on me. Â I understand other parts of the bar may have been too warm, but our table was definitely left a bit chilled.
Overall I'd say it was a positive experience. Â Note to self to return for the chicken and waffle sandwich!
We came here for Seattle Restaurant Week and had a great experience. My boyfriend had the fried cheese curds (think awesomely chewy mozzarella sticks) and I had the beet salad. The salad actually had fried goat cheese on it... as you can probably tell, I'm a HUGE fan of fried cheeses.
The entrees were good. Nothing that I remember as being particularly spectacular, but definitely good.
The dessert, especially my boyfriend's nutella and bacon waffles, was to die for!
Drinks were good and stiff, too stiff for me. The Old Fashioned definitely tasted like Bourbon. :-)
I can't wait to come back!
BRUNCH REVIEW: we went for Saturday at 10am with the parents. We were only diners in there the whole time, but can't really figure out why, thought decent service and food. Â Plus side, didn't have to wait for brunch.
Atmosphere, clean and sleek in old ballard with brick and black and white decor. They played really loud raggae music which I wish would have been turned down by about half as much. We asked once and they obliged, but still waaay to loud Saturday at 10am. Weak spot. I know, I know, could have just kept asking, but feels weird I guess.
Food: The potatoes, sublime. The best I've had in ballard brunch so far (on par with the dish, waay better than firehouse or the fat hen's golden potatoes. Gerald potatoes are crispy with great ketchup. Â Dining partners agreed. Â I ended up finishing some of other's peeps. The portion sizes are perfect: filling but not stuffing. The plates appear on small side, but actually more on plate than you think. Didn't get the greasy "blah" you get after brunch even though I had sausage, egg, potato breakfast. The eggs, light and well cooked with cheese, sausage standard. The Frittata of my GF I thought standard, but nothing special.
Also, a smaller menu, which I enjoy, takes the thought and the 10 minute awkward menu scans out of the party, good for atmosphere. Plus who wants to wake up and read all this decisions too early?
Coffee I thought excellent! Not oily, crispy, a highlight in my book. They didn't make up decafe but all good.
Would go again for the potato and eggs.
This place was great all around. The drinks were well mixed, the food was delicious and the overall vibe was fun and welcoming. It is now in our permanent restaurant mix. Only possible drawback for us, it's not a family restaurant, but the need to escape the wee set exists and this is a nice place to do just that.
Review Source:Water and smiles are Free on the menu. We got 1 of the 2... Sort of...
Walked in with 5 friends on Friday night. A few of us had wanted to try this place out after seeing it crowded other nights. Tonight was pretty empty, 3 other tables and 5 people at the bar for 3 front of house employees. So we walked right in.
2 different people greeted, seated, and served us some water. We got enough water for 5 of the 6, with a promise of more water to come. 20 generous minutes later (maybe even 30), no more water and no waiter returning for our order. We were ready to order from the late night happy hour menu, drinks, food, the works. Instead we walked out.
So many great spots in Ballard. I have no desire to give this spot another chance. Oh well.
First off, only go here if you like specialty cocktails. Second, expect to go to chill. The service was horrible. I waited roughly 40 minutes for my drink after reminding the server 3 times. She finally brought me a drink, which was different from one I ordered without an apology until she finally gave me the drink.
It is a small bar with loud music and no dancing. Be prepared to talk loudly. We went on a Saturday night, so it may be better during the week.
The drinks were good. A little on the pricy side. They also ran out of some of one of the drinks on the menu and were out of some of the food as well, which was frustrating.
Yeah. Â I like this place. Â I don't love the prices, but I don't hate them either. Â Just steep enough to make you go "ouch, that's not cheap." Â Food's solid. It doesn't blow your socks off and I've had several over salted preps, but I've also had some baller dishes. Â Brunch pretty damn good. Â I feel like this is a really well kept secret in Ballard right now for some reason. Â Bummed they ditched their trivia night, but they gotta do what they gotta do.
Their happy hour not the best. Â It's not really blanket discounts. Â A small menu and the cocktail of the day. Â $1 off draft beer. Â Doesn't really draw me in. Â When late night happy hour is broached no one in the group mentions the G. Â
Go into it knowing your paying $12 for a sandwich and 10 for a cocktail and you'll be happy with the results.
Solid. People watching, great drinks, and tasty food to boot.
It's one of those, crowded but not too crowded sort of places. We opted for the companion (whiskey and orange bitters concoction with a touch of apple cider vinegar) and the draft Elysian. Awesome.
Food options are about $7-12, BLT highly recommended, so, so good. Chicken and waffle sandwich on the other end of the table that was ultra tasty.. remember Ventana ? (...sniff) Right up there..
Great service, great vibe, definitely coming back. Grab the window seats!
Thanks for listening!
I've been here only twice but had a great experience both times. Â The bar isn't that big, but it's a nice place to be. Â Upscale, minimalist decor. Â Both times I got overwhelmed by the many tempting cocktail choices on the list and the server just asked what I liked. Â I love this option. Â Both times I ended up with a Corpse Riviver. Â It's good, but not my new drink or anything. Â
Our server was very sweet and on point. Â They should treat her right and keep her around.
I definitely need to get back here for food. Â Just like the cocktail menu, sooo many things looked so good. Â Even after I had just eaten dinner. Â It seems like they do modernized comfort food and classics. Â I really really wanted to try the Poppycock (caramel corn with nuts and candied bacon) but was successfully distracted by the more responsible of my party.
Great place for date drinks or drinks/dinner with friends. Â Definitely recommend.
Love this place!
I've only been here once for brunch, but it was so good, the food is great, portioned well, and they have great drinks (never too early for a champagne cocktail with breakfast)
perfect brunch spot!
and it's in a small cute location
am definitely coming again when the opportunity strikes
After wanting to experience The Gerald for months, I finally had the chance to meet my friend for happy hour. We sat at their very lovely bar, which has great potential as a setting for many a conversation and evening.
Unfortunately, the bartender killed the buzz by never cracking a smile, never greeting us, and acting like he was completely clueless when presented with an off-menu drink request. He stared out the window above our heads when we placed our food order, then --when I paused my order due to uncertainty about having his attention-- he said snottily, "I'm listening!"
Ballard has too much competition to enable a guy like this, so we left for another venue as soon as we'd had our food. I was excited to love this place, and sorely disappointed.
If the crew from Sterling, Cooper, Draper and Pryce needed to unwind after work, they might come to the Gerald.
The attention to detail that the designers used for this space is flawless, so much character and Mod-inspired elegance.
The cocktail selection is thorough and the food choices run the gamut of bar food. Sandwiches, salad, and a few other choices of nosh. We came on a Saturday night and the joint was jumpin' and service was initially very good then disappeared a bit. Â
We all enjoyed our sandwiches and the table shared (scarfed) a bowl of house-made chips with fresh French onion dip. The dip wasn't my fave but those chips were lip-smackin' good.
Beware vegans, there aren't a lot of things to eat that don't involve meat or dairy, and they try to accommodate special needs but this place is firmly planted in the late 50's-early 60's revelry, which clearly revolved around animal based goodies.
I just had my 26th birthday party at the Gerald in their private party space. Their assigned staff member, Jodi, was an absolute pleasure to work with and communicated with me prior to the event to make sure that everything I needed was in place. She even coordinated to have our ordered cupcakes brought out with a candle and the whole deal. The food was a huge hit with the guests, and it wasn't difficult to have everybody order on their own tabs.
The space was very well laid out-- with a couch area, high tables and even a shuffleboard table. Great for mingling and having seated conversations as well.
I would absolutely use the Gerald again!
A solid two star. We came in sat at the bar and the bartender was remarkably unwelcoming. My husband said a jovial "Howdy!" and the guy just stared at him. That interaction set the standard for the rest of the visit. Â It felt like we were bothering him to place our order. We just ordered a few appetizers and two Ballard Old Fashions. The drinks were comically labor-intensive and the end result was weak. Our vegetable chips were soggy, the rest of the food was "Meh. I've experience better."
We're heard good things about this place but maybe they should consider replacing their bartender with someone who actually enjoys talking to people.
But damn, they did a great job on the interior of the place.
Great place this. Lots of different seating options for your mood - booths, tables, bar. Had a really great cocktail that was the special of the day, and ordered most appetizers from the menu -- all of which were right-sized and tasty. Great service, too, and a not too distracting dj was spinning good tunes on vinyl in the corner.
Review Source:Stopped in with friends for Happy Hour and really enjoyed myself. We sat in one of their oversized booths, which were cozy and cool at the same time. This place really feels like you've stepped back in time, but with a modern twist (whatever that means).
The Happy Hour menu isn't huge, but it does have a few great options! Draft Beers $4, and House Red and White $5, all appetizers $4. We ordered the cheese curds, poutine and pigs in a blanket. I'd definitely recommend the cheese curds, they were fried and served with a spicy, sweet duo of sauces. The poutine was tasty, but not traditional, so no surprise there. The pigs in a blanket were really tasty, cream cheese and puff pastry wrapped around a little sausage, only let down there was our order only had three of them .
I really look forward to my next visit here so I can try more drinks and food.
The service was not unfriendly, but I would have love a bit more interaction. It was such a cool place, I would have loved if our server shared a bit more about it or at least made some recommendations about their signature items or drinks. He didn't seemed concerned too much with us, but wasn't ignoring us either.
I hosted my wife's birthday party here and it was a perfect evening. The room was very stylish and had a nice variety of seating. Working with the staff (Jodi) was totally trouble free. I got numerous comments from all of our guests that they thought the party was fantastic. The options to partially host (guests bought drinks, I bought most of the food but if someone wanted a bit more they could order off the menu). The food minimum and room rate was VERY reasonable.
The food was quite good as well. It made for some swanky party eats.
The service during the party (again thanks for Jodi!) was just spot on. I felt totally at home there and had a very memorable night which required almost zero effort from me other than a phone call and a few simple emails to sort out the menu. They boxed up all the left over food when the party was over. I focused on the guests the entire time and it was just fantastic.
I would have another party here without question. I look forward to coming back to try to the food and enjoy the space and service again on my own.
I hosted my and my boyfriend's Golden Birthdays (23 on the 23rd, 25 on the 25th) at The Gerald and it was awesome. They assigned us a personal server to our group of 30. The Bar staff ran drinks to us and even the owner was in the mix helping out. The service was great, even though it was so many people!
The food was awesome (like it always is!) everyone ate and no one had any complaints.
The process of getting the room was really simple. The owner just took the room rental fee over email and let me fill out the forms via email. They were open to negotiations on the fee and food/drink minimum, so negotiate! They kept in good contact to make sure I had everything I needed for the party. The owner greeted me at the restaurant when i arrived and helped me get the private sound system and television system set up.
I would for sure do a party here again and if you are considering a private party for up to 40 people the Gerald is a great no fuss option. They handle clean up, help you set up and you don't even need to decorate because the private party room looks great as is.
Cute retro bar in the heart of Ballard. Great music. Fun bartenders who know how to make a drink. Tasty bar bites - devils on horseback (bacon wrapped dates) were outstanding. Bar menu celebrates cheese - features poutine, fried Beecher's cheese curds, Beecher's flagship mac n cheese.
HH daily 4 to 6pm, $4 apps, $4 drafts, $5 wine, $7 specialty cocktails.
This place is so great! Â I went here for a night out with a friend, and then another time for happy hour with girlfriends, all of us were pleased. Â Happy hour is 4 to 6, and the cocktail of the day is jut $7. Â I've had great luck both times with the cocktail...it's delicious! Â Pair that with a $4 app, and you've got a happy hour that can't be beat.
The interior of this place is awesome. Â It's got a 60's vibe to it that's so fun: awesome wall paper, some wood paneling, and honeycomb shaped mirrors on the walls. Â The seating is minimalist without being uncomfortable, and the whole place is open and inviting.
I'm so excited to continue to visit this place. Â Not only is it awesome trendy new ballard, but it's a place i totally feel at home at and love to visit. Â You've got to try it out.
Two thumbs up! I had never even heard of this place until my friend (who used to live here) suggested we try this place after reading a blog post by a Seattle fashion blogger that she follows. I'm always down to try a new restaurant especially in a neighborhood that I don't visit often.
I'm going to say that finding a parking spot took at least 30 minutes so we were really expecting a fabulous meal. We definitely were hungry and impatient.
This is the type of restaurant where you have to spend at least two hours at. It's the best place to order a bunch of plates to share with the group, family style. Our group of four was the perfect number because everything could easily have quarter portions, like the Swedish meatballs and bacon-wrapped dates. The truffle popcorn was really addicting too. The dates were SO good! The bacon-wrapped dates were amazing because the texture of the dates tasted a little like potatoes, but sweeter. And I don't usually like dates.
The other memorable dishes were the deconstructed chicken pot pie and chorizo mac n' cheese. Who doesn't love a good pot pie and mac n' cheese anyway? Those two were my favorites. Other plates we got were the cod sandwich and chicken and waffle sliders. I liked the waffles because the honey was infused in the waffle, but didn't really like the slaw inside. The chips were tasty too, but be careful when eating, because I cut my gum biting on them...
Another thing that I really have to note is the service and restaurant's goals. I asked our server to have the bartender make me something with cucumber and mint because there's an option that is basically like "Trust Your Bartender" drink, so I was feeling adventurous and opted for that. When I tasted it, it was pretty strong, but didn't have any real objections to it. The server asked me and I said it was fine, but I guess I looked really unhappy and so when he came back with my next drink (my usual vodka cranberry), he said that the first drink was on the house because they always want their customers to be happy and return. I thought that was such a sweet gesture!!!
I would definitely recommend this place for a small-knit group of 3-4. It's beautiful inside and dimly lit, perfect for an intimate get together with unique cocktails and fabulous food.
I have had mixed experiences here so far (okay, only 2 really) but it seems like their still getting the kinks out of the system. One evening we came in there and sat at the bar at the window, and no one game to take our order or even acknowledge us for 10 minutes. We just walked out at that point.
We came back a few weeks later for brunch, which was a surprisingly nice experience. They menu was kind of limited (maybe 8 or 9 dishes total), but included such sumptuous items as chicken & waffles, eggs benedict, and some twists on classic sandwiches. It was surprisingly hard to decide. The place was pretty packed, but the food came out in good time, and was reasonably priced. I have to say, I was pretty pleased.
Next time, we have to come for drinks. The bar is pretty darn cute, and they have great windows looking out to Ballard Ave...
Woah. I'm totally in love with this adorable bar. I was meeting up with a friend in Ballard and he'd mentioned to me that this is his go-to spot. Having only heard of it briefly I thought, "Ok... Well, I'll see you there, I guess." And like a hint of what was to come, I got a parking space right across from the bar. PERFECT!
I cross the street walk in and saw pretty much the cutest bar I've seen in ages. All of the decor is mid century modern and the bar top, stools and most of the furnishings (even the walls?) are wood. But not just any wood. Perfectly sanded, primed and sealed dark woods. It's incredibly cozy right down to the cute plaid carpet. It's almost as if your grandparents had a kick ass bar in their house.
Better than the decor, the drinks and the food are top notch. I ordered a Ballard Old Fashioned and the Pigs In A Blanket made with housemade sausage. Everything was absolutely delicious. My drinking buddy had a Manhattan with chicken and waffles and I have to say, I was pretty jealous. My first thought was that I should have gotten those too! Then about 15 mins later some other folks came in and a guy ordered what smelled and looked like the best fish n chips I've seen in a long time. So basically the drinks are great, the food is great and if you haven't been here yet, you're seriously missing out. I have a whole new reason to hang out in Ballard again!
I would highly recommend the Gerald for private parties. The room is so nice, well-decorated, and chic. The service is above and beyond (music tailored to your request, passed appetizers, they'll even play a movie for you on the huge flatscreen).
Jodi, the owner, made sure that my party went without a hitch. She even designed custom cocktails to fit my theme.
My guests were very impressed, great experience overall!
Oh, Gerald....you sexy little minx you! Your Mad Men-esque retro cool vibe, expertly crafted cocktails and warm, inviting staff keep me coming back again and again. The Gerald makes me nostalgic for an era I haven't even lived through!
I recommend the grilled cheese and beet salad. Sunday brunch is also a favorite. Minus one star because I can never seem to get out of here for under $50...but I guess that's sorta my fault. Besides, when has sophistication dripping in sex appeal ever been free?
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