My new best bar: Zig Zag Cafe in Seattle

I was in Seattle last week on an assignment, and my labors included going to the Zig Zag Cafe. This was my first time here, and I have to say this unassuming place tucked off some stairs below Pike Place Market has instantly vaulted to the top of my list of all-time favorite bars.

The Zig Zag was relatively empty when I showed up on a Monday night. Co-owner Ben Dougherty was behind the bar, and I asked for a rum drink — no surprise, there, I guess. I counted 36 different rums on their list, and there wasn’t a one I would be ashamed to have on my own shelf. (Among them: Zaya, Pusser’s Blue, Westerhall.) Ben suggested I pick a rum, and he’d make up a rum old-fashioned for me.

I went with the Angostura 1919, which I knew would be oakey — and a preview sip showed it was, although not nearly as full of wood as the bottle I’ve got at home. I guessed it would make a nice old-fashioned, and I guessed right. The drink was sublime — the exact right balance of sweet and bitter, strong and weak. And it came with a house-made maraschino cherry, puckery and rich with almondy goodness. (And not an alarmingly lipstick-red color.)

Other impressive details: they keep a bowl of citrus on the bar and made twists to order — no stockpiling in little bartop sarcophogi. They have several shelves lined with eight-ounce ginger ales, tonics, and club sodas to ensure customers get the right sparkle and zest — no shooting insipid soda from a gun. The highlight of the evening came when someone down the bar ordered a Spanish coffee. A great blue blaze flamed erupted up thanks to generous dollop of Stroh’s 160 rum, and then with a understated touch of theatricality Ben sprinkled cinnamon from high into the cauldron, and the grains snapped and sparked like Fourth of July fireworks. It made a flaming orange twist seem like a sputtering sparkler.

And then there was the house-made falernum, which was pure ambrosia. Not to mention the Fernet Branca cocktail I ordered up next. Concocting something that can offset the powerfully bitter flavor of Fernet is a real test, and I admire anyone who can pull it off. At Zig Zag they do it with not one but two house cocktails.

Later on in the evening, Ben pointed out the two engraved plates mounted up on the wall above a door — Zig Zag won two Spirit Awards last July at Tales of the Cocktail: for Best Classic Cocktail Bar, and Best Drinks Selection. No argument here. Sadly, I had time to sample only four drinks while I was in town. But my short sampling gave me ample reason to head west again as soon as I can.

The Zig Zag Cafe, 1501 Western Avenue, Seattle WA 98101. (206) 625-1146.