Grog

This place was pretty good. The service was so so. I ordered the oysters Rockefeller which were great but they came after our main course. I also ordered the 12oz ribeye which was good but was room temperature and tasted like it had been sitting for a while. I would give it another shot.

Cool little spot for drinks. Went on a Thursday night after dinner so it was almost empty. I had a bourbon neat while my friend had a gin and tonic so you can’t really mess those up. The bartender was super friendly and attentive. We hung out in the «champaign room» which was pretty cool. Good place to just chill and talk. It’s basically connected to the Ballard Annex.

We came with a larger group and got some amazing service. The bartenders are all friendly and serve drinks with knowledge and flare. They openly admit that their best drinks are whiskey drinks, and they aren’t lying.

This is very cool spot if you’re looking for a nice discrete place to come with friends, a special date or significant other. It’s owned by the same manger as Annex downstairs.
My girlfriend had the muscles and pasta, she like the muscles, but not the pasta so much. Their wine list was spot on. Mike our waiter was very nice and he catered to our every needs, just a real nice guy.
I recommend the spot, service and I will be back to really try the menu. Make sure you ask for Mike.

My boyfriend, a friend and I went to the Annex for NYE. The hostess said that they had no room and directed us to the bar in the back room instead. The space was dark and had wonderful taxidermy specimens hung throughout. We chose a booth in the corner. Our server took a while to take and bring our orders out, which was understandable as he doubled as the bartender too (poor thing, working alone on NYE). I was happy that he wasn’t in a grumpy mood and didn’t make us feel rushed at all. We ordered the poutine which had New England clam chowder as the «gravy». OH MY GOD. Amazing. We also tried a bowl of the New Jersey clam chowder since neither of us had heard of a New Jersey version before. It was a cross between the New England and Manhattan style and we all loved it. We also ordered the cheese/​meat platter. Everything was delicious! I live 10 minutes away and will definitely make this a regular spot.

I loved you once, Grog. You had an amazing cook, a savvy attentive bartender and delicious, delicious food and drinks. I loved hanging out in your dimly lit bar, feeling pampered by your staff. But then, one day…
YOU F*ing FIRED EVERYONE.
Maybe that’s an oversimplification and no, I have no idea what happened behind the scenes but I’ve been back a few times and you have clearly cleaned house.
IT IS NOT A GOOD CHANGE.
Now, you’re just the Ballard Annex’s bar, with the same over-​priced seafood and boring cocktails as the front of the house. I wanted really badly to like the change, to see some sort of new vision come from your Big Shakeup. Nope. Just the Annex, with more space. Fuck that. I want McGregor and Matt back.

Drinks were pretty tasty and food wasn’t too bad. The drink names were very unique and enticed many of us to order them. They were able to accommodate 18 people in one go, so I give them props for that. However, for not being busy, food took longer than expected. It took about 20+ minutes for one or two dishes to come out. Presentation was standard and the price was a little higher for the food they served. Service was okay. Overall, the experience was so-​so.

Truly enjoyed this place. Food was delicious great for sharing too. bartender Matt went above and beyond to make my Moscow mule. I Only drink them in copper cups and they don’t have any so he went to another bar to borrow some. Was so nice! Definitely going back. Five stars all around. We’ll done grog!

Really, really good.
Super quiet (at least right now), but awesome cocktails and excellent food. They’ve got a rotating menu where they switch out the whole cocktail and food selection every once in a while.
We hit the Godzilla themed selection, which was a selection of Asian-​fusion stuff. Everything was great. Can’t wait to come back to try the next menu!

Good cocktails, interesting food, friendly and attentive staff.

Pretty good bar. My wife and I just went. She had the Mexican hot chocolate and I had Gojira’s breath. Both hot beverages on a cold night. The drinks were great. The chef came out and checked everything was alright. He was really nice. Décor was cool too. The only thing keeping me from a 5 star review was that the service was a little slow. It started strong, but kind of petered off. I will definitely be back here.

I loved the tacos. Oh my god, the tacos are so good.
The ambience is nice, but the drinks are weak and the service is so-​so. (The bartender was not very busy and wasn’t super attentive, and had to reference recipes for the signature drinks.)
I’ve heard that it is new, though, so maybe we will return and try again when the kinks are worked out.

I talk about this place all the time. My partner gets annoyed, even though he loved it too.
I’m known for being a pretty enthusiastic person about food, and if I really like I place I will talk about it for a few hours non-​stop. I talked about this place to friends for the next couple days. Ah Grog *sigh* — In my head, I couldn’t stop replaying the moment I first bit into that hamachi deviled egg.
I hadn’t heard about this place before and it’s tucked away next to Ballard Oyster Annex House. In fact, we walked through BOAH to enter Grog upstairs. When I looked at the menu, I about lost it. Kimchi Fried Rice! Katsu Curry Popcorn Chicken! Bib Bim Bap Burger! I had all of these. I didn’t say a word to my friends because I was too busy savoring it and whispering sweet nothings at my plate.
The cocktails menu was also really fun and impressive. I tried the Kaiju — great presentation and taste.
Lastly, service was friendly and timely. No complaints in this area.
The server did inform me that they change up the menu, so I’m not sure if they will still have the same plates in a couple months time, but hot damn — I don’t care. I’ll go again and try everything:)

I am «not» a bar guy. As as a matter-​of-​fact, this is the very first time I’ve done the bar hopping ordeal and I finally enjoyed it after the 4^th spot, which was Grog.
The drink was literally the best I’ve ever had (In regards to taste, not exactly potency). It was called the «MOTHRA». Incredible, everyone. The vibe was chill (it was on a Sunday evening) and I’m used to the night club experience; so the bar was a bit of a change ha. But like I said. I wasn’t impressed by the previous three places but this one I really enjoyed. Hope this helps everyone.
By the way, Karl was my bartender. He was awesome, polite and professional.
Sincerely,
Kenny Pierce

Grog! Grog?! Groggggg! Im typing it out repeatedly cause I KNOW some of you have no idea where/​what I’m talking about. Picture a drunk sailor yelling it, and it will always remain in your head. I promise.
I’m guessing this because it just opened a bit ago and not enough people know about it yet! just after it’s mama restaurant, Ballard Oyster Annex House (whatever, stay with me here) opened up over the summer, Grog opened up in the upstairs area with it’s own backdoor entrance kind off 22^nd NW and Leary Way. Kinda. (Don’t PM me that I made you lost if you believe me here).
Despite us being almost the only ones in there, I enjoyed the nautical themed wooden space, the friendly and attentive service, and the food. Spicy popcorn to start with accompanied our drinks, and then we moved on to some really, really delicious popcorn chicken that managed to be fancy and not crazy breaded and served over rice with hot sauce. Perfect booze accompaniment. Beer prices were a little high for the area, but nothing to be shocked over.
It being quiet, I highly suggest it as an after work or chill ladie’s night place. You’ll have the place to yourself, can stretch out in a big booth, and have great attentive service and delish food. Definitely an option to come back. just wish it was a little more lively in there!

It’s hard to narrow down my review of Grog to anything other than a novel… but I’ll try. There is just SO much good stuff to say about this place that I have to confine myself to bullet points!
–Cocktails menu is AWESOME and very inventive!
–Space, vibe, service were perfectly suited to Ballard — great spot!
–Must Try Cocktail: The Long riffle served with Hum and Grapefruit beer. This is an awesome experience and you HAVE to try it!
–Favorite Cocktail: Black Flag
–Hot Grog: Ben Nevis is a wonderful winter sipper
–Cold Grog: Dainty Canal is a dangerously good … I could drink that one for days!
–Food: We tried half the menu and between the Spice Market Short Ribs, Julio’s Citrus Salad, Sichuan Sandwich, Popcorn Chicken, and Donuts
Favorite Food: Sichuan Sandwich hands DOWN stole my taste buds heart! The rest of the dishes were GOOD but I had to name a favorite
In short– go here immediately and follow this plan:
Round 1– (Optional– depending if you want dessert) Order off the Hot or Cold Grog menu to get the party started
Round 2– Order a smaller plate and The Long Rifle
Round 3– Get the Sichuan Sandwich and Black Flag
Round 4– Donuts and either a hot grog or branch out
End– Happy tummy, happy person! Repeat weekly for best «happy» results :)

It’s really hard to review a business as newly opened as the Ballard Annex’s back bar, Grog. I thoroughly enjoyed my Twice Round the Equator cocktail. It had fernet, chartreuse, and orange tea among a few other ingredients, and was tasty and served to the brim.
The bar menu features small plates only and I am dying to go back and try the cocktails in servings of ½/​4/​8. The space is lovely and service seems decent.
That being said, if you can’t make a standard like a Moscow Mule taste good, something is missing.