A Rash of Restaurant Closures Marks the Passing of 2017

The holidays are a time of celebration often accompanied by some dark reflections, and there’s a sobering number of restaurants in Seattle that closed out 2017 with big celebrations before closing permanently. Farewell to the following eateries:

Queen Anne’s Lloydmartin (1525 Queen Anne N), a creative, upscale spot that Eater considered one of the city’s most underrated gems, closed after its New Year’s Eve dinner. Via Facebook, owner Sam Crannell thanked his wife and family for their support over the past six years, tipped his cap to his staff, and shouted out “to the guests that loved me and even the ones that didn’t.”

Just down the hill in Lower Queen Anne, wonderful wine bar Ten Mercer (10 Mercer St.) also closed after New Year’s Eve service, ending a 17-year run as one of the top spots to drink and dine (particularly gluten-free) near the Space Needle.

Two Bells Bar and Grill (2313 4th Ave.), Belltown’s burger-on-a-baguette institution dating back decades, also shut down after New Year’s Eve, sharing a brief farewell on its website. In a eulogy for the bar and its famous Tavern Burger, Crosscut reports that owner Jeff Lee is retiring and planning to sell the building to Security Properties, which “is likely to develop a high-rise residential tower on three Fourth Avenue parcels currently occupied by Lee’s bar, an adjacent parking lot and a shelter for homeless families.”

Magnolia’s outpost of neighborhood cocktail bar Oliver’s Twist (3217 W McGraw St.) had its last day December 29, and will be replaced by a sushi restaurant and bar called Yume, according to a Facebook post. In the same breath, owners Dan Braun and Sarah Hughes-Giles announced that they’re passing the business to a new duo (Karuna and Audrey) who will continue to operate the original Phinney Ridge Oliver’s Twist (6822 Greenwood Ave. N). It’s a changeover that has been in the works since at least April 2017.

Revolution Pizza Music, aka RPM (240 2nd Ave. S.), a pizza-and-vinyl combination that replaced Pizzeria Gabbiano in Pioneer Square last summer, ended its short run in December.

And throughout last year all but one of Wild Ginger’s casual Wild Ginger Kitchen spin-offs closed. Locations for grab-and-go Asian fare at Swedish Hospital’s First Hill campus and in Redmond shuttered because the volume simply wasn’t sustainable, a spokesperson said, while an outpost at 365 by Whole Foods in Bellevue closed when its host store did. The only remaining Wild Ginger Kitchen is the flagship downtown, a walk-up window for weekday lunches at the owners’ Triple Door events venue.