It's a pleasing contradiction that one of Seattle's most exclusive bars is also one of its least pretentious. The Shanty Tavern in Lake City is a honky-tonk throwback, open only on Friday nights, when it features live music, usually with a country twang. Affable owner John Spaccarotelli has been behind the bar for half a century.

Along increasingly hip Ballard Avenue, full of new restaurants and bars, this live music venue represents the best of the good old days. Listen to country, folk, rock, and blues performers while knocking back PBRs served without a hint of irony.

Russell’s is a rare phenomenon: a thoroughly modern neighborhood joint. On most nights you’ll find Joe Russel, the owner, behind the comfortably stylish bar, mixing classic cocktails and pouring a small but choice selection of beer and wine on tap. The food menu includes meatballs, a Cuban sandwich, and a house-made pretzel on weekends.

A soothing blond-wood interior, squeezed-to-order mixers, and friendly, fastidious bartenders combine to give Liberty its unique aura: It’s a cocktail lounge with the wholesome vibe of a juice bar.

This Capitol Hill bar is a good spot for someone looking for an excellent drink in a colorful environment but doesn’t want to brave the traffic of the neighborhood’s main nightlife strip on a weekend. The boozy slushies are perfect for a night of partying in the summer, and rotating cocktails like the Delores — made with tequila, smoked chili, mango, lime, and a tajin rim — are always well-balanced. The food includes snacks like deviled eggs and queso fresco poutine, burritos, and a variety of sandwiches.

It’s not seedy enough to qualify as a full-fledged dive, but there’s something admirably durable and dive-like about Linda’s. It’s the wise, seen-it-all matron of Capitol Hill bars, decked out in country-western attire. Dogs are also welcomed. Check out Linda’s sister bar, King’s Hardware, in Ballard for a similar vibe and menu.

“Viet style tree house” Phocific Standard Time (PST) is an intimate bar right above Pho Bac’s downtown location that serves cocktails made with Vietnamese ingredients and flavors. Try the trung muoi, made with a pho fat washed Japanese whisky, cream sherry, carcavelos wine, and salted egg yolk; or nuoc mat, a cocktail with soju, Cocchi Americano, logan, and citrus and jasmine flavors. Co-owner Yenvy Pham has whipped up a playful menu with offerings like a creamy, cheesy crab dip that perfectly compliments PST’s drinks.

You're in your 20s and you want to spend a night drinking cocktails, eating corn dogs, and showing off your tattoos. For this sizable Seattle demographic, Capitol Hill's Unicorn is heaven. It has over-the-top carnival decor and food that's way better than it has to be. Expect X-rated cocktail names like “unicorn jizz,” on the drink menu, a claw machine full of dildos, and a massive phallic unicorn hat reserved for those who visit on their birthdays.

This wonderfully grungy Belltown haunt features a huge collection of retro pinball machines along with some other old-school arcade games. The music is also generally from the 70s and 80s, and the walls are painted with large murals of scantily clad men and women and neon signs writing words like “fuck”. The drinks and food are serviceable; the vibe is what makes this spot stand out.

Belltown’s spin on a speakeasy is a secret within a secret. It’s a “hidden” bar on an alley between 1st and 2nd Ave, but once you get past the novelty of the location, the real discovery is the fantastic list of skillfully executed cocktails.

The alpha dog of Seattle craft cocktail bars earns its lofty reputation with a spirits list of over 4,000 labels, which the business claims is America’s largest spirits collection. The cocktails are also delicious and inventive, including cocktails using decades-old spirits that often cost hundreds of dollars. The food includes bites like Taylor Shellfish oysters and beef tartare as well as larger portions like pork chops and steaks.