Seattle
You're flying out of Seattle Airport, you have 90 minutes to kill, and you'd like to do better than a Pret. Good news: airport drinking has improved more in the last five years than the previous fifty. Pre-flight drinks at Seattle Airport range from chain reliability to surprisingly polished hotel-style bars in the airport hotels. This is barsforKings's editor-curated guide to drinking better at Seattle's airports.
City centre · $$$
Artusi is the Capitol Hill Italian wine-and-aperitivo bar from the Spinasse team — a 200-bottle Italian list and a serious vermouth programme that's one of the
Capitol Hill · $$$
Bar Melusine draws a steady local crowd in Capitol Hill. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
City centre · $
Get featured across our city and category guides. Reach serious drinkers.
Belltown · $$$
Bathtub Gin & Co. draws a steady local crowd in Belltown. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening.
Want a real drink before flying? The fastest play is to get to airport hotels next door — most run polished bars that beat anything post-security. We list them at the bottom. If you've got 60 spare minutes pre-airport, see our shortlist of bars in Seattle proper at the end.
Plays for Seattle Airport: post-security, pre-security, lounges, and the airport-hotel cheat code.
Pre-flight drinks, hotel-bar reviews, and the openings we're watching across 176 cities. Friday mornings, no filler.
Looking beyond Seattle? See our guide to the best airport bars worldwide, or compare airport bars city by city.