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COLUMBIA BAR
as Midori
1/4 ounce triple sec
1/4 ounce simple syrup
Sprite
Ice
Orange and lime wheels for
garnish
Wee Irish cocktail lags for
lair (optional)
Irish Iced Tea
By RYAN HUME
Photo by Matt Love
The Pitchwood Inn is in Raymond, Washington.
A G LIMPSE I NSIDE
An occasional feature by MATT LOVE
Pitchwood Inn
The entrance to the Pitchwood Inn in Raymond, Washing-
ton, seemed rather drab, uninviting. More utility shed than
saloon. It didn’t exactly scream: great dive bar stocked with
“Cannery Row” characters!
Nevertheless, I had time to kill before a gig at the library,
so I walked inside. I learned long ago not to judge a dive bar
by its cover.
Thirty minutes later, I left the Pitchwood with a serious case
of literary vertigo; I could not believe what I had just seen be-
cause in my long years of chronicling the cultural life of Pacific
Northwest coastal taverns and bars, these images were firsts,
and many quite inexplicable to me:
• A 16-point buck on the wall;
• A blue neon sign advertising oysters;
• Ice in the gleaming metal urinal in the men’s bathroom;
• The ability to check into one of the Pitchwood’s motel
rooms — right at the bar — while sipping a double Malibu
Rum;
• Onion rings so thick they resembled the bracelets worn by
Pharaoh Ramses (Yul Brynner) in “The Ten Commandments”;
• People actually eating a whole plate of these onion rings;
• At least 30 former Korean and Vietnam-era Marines and
their wives drinking beers, bloody marys, gin and tonics and
even one Jack Daniels and lemonade;
• A poster advertising a performance — in the Pitchwood
— by the semi-legendary punk-country-rock band The Super-
suckers.
I nearly threw out my neck doing a double take when I saw
the poster. Over 20 years ago, I saw The Supersuckers open a
show for Social Distortion in Seattle. I nearly went deaf from
the experience. How in the world this band could be headlin-
ing a show in Raymond, Washington, in winter was beyond
my comprehension. These dudes must be in their 60s by now!
Who says rock is dead? No one in the Pitchwood.
Matt Love is the author/editor of 14 books, available through nestuccaspitpress.com
The middle of March ofers much more
than just the Ides. While St. Patrick’s Day is
a recognized national religious holiday in
Ireland, commemorating the death of the
island’s most famous patron saint in what’s
roughly clocked at 461 AD, the celebration
in the U.S. tends to center on the culture
and contribution of the large Irish diaspora
swept to our shores and deeply immersed in
our melting pot.
With this in mind and a Pogues song
trapped irmly between my ears, I decided
to check out The Irish Pub at McKeown’s,
an over-21, down-the-road satellite of the
established restaurant on the corner of
Holladay Drive and Broadway in downtown
Seaside. Like all the best pubs, The Irish is
essentially a neighborhood joint kept awake
by the personalities of its bartenders and
patrons.
Since leprechaun hats and green beer
are the rue of street cleaners everywhere, I
would implore you to hang up that emerald
Mardi Gras necklace and try this non-tradi-
tional concoction instead.
Not your usual green tea, this cocktail is
essentially a slightly carbonated, Irish whis-
key-based margarita. Amazingly, the promi-
nent lavor of the Jameson hides behind the
melon liqueur, a la Long Island-style. It’s a
nice reminder, too, that no matter what day
we are celebrating, no culture is stagnant,
and we’re all in this together. Sláinte!
Ingredients
1.5 to 2 ounces of Jameson
Irish Whiskey
1 ounce melon liqueur, such
PAPA
Directions
Add whiskey, melon liqueur,
triple sec and simple syrup into
a cocktail shaker. Shake with ice
until cold.
Spill, ice and all, into a high-
ball glass. Top of with Sprite,
garnish with citrus wheels and
tiny lag if using.
—Recipe courtesy of Darian Neilson,
The Irish Pub at McKeown’s, Seaside
Once Upon a
Mattress
For the rollicking, sidesplitting spin-off of The Princess & the Pea!
Not your average hum-drum fairytale!
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Lyrics by Mary Rogers and Marshall Barer
Book by James Thompson, Dean Fuller and
Marshal Barer
March 10, 2016 | coastweekend.com | 23