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THE WHET SPOT OPENS
IN SEASIDE
Tap room and bottle shop
opens on North Holladay
By EVE MARX
FOR SEASIDE SIGNAL
F
or a long time, Tracy Linder had it in
her mind that she would open her own
place.
She knew it would be a neigh-
borhood place to enjoy craft beer, having
developed a passion for it while enlisted in
the Army.
“I was stationed for three years in Ger-
many,” Linder said. “Germany is where I
learned to appreciate good beer.”
It’s not just beer she’s spent time learn-
ing about. She’s also something of a wine
maven. “I learned a lot while working at
the Montinore Vineyard in Forest Grove,”
she said. “I was there one day, and I was
offered a job. I was in grad school. The
next day I became part of the winemaking
process. I was covered in wine. It was a
revelation.”
The Whet Spot opened on North Hol-
laday Drive in Seaside to little fanfare in
early December.
A tap room and bottle shop, The Whet
Spot offers patrons a rotating selection of
20 craft beers, with four or five local beers
on tap all the time. Linder also offers
three hard ciders and a selection of wines,
white, red and rose.
Take a gander at the refrigerated
case and you’ll find about 150 different
beers, wines and ciders by the bottle. “By
March, I expect to offer 200,” Linder
said. “You can also buy beer to go by the
growler, or bring in your own growler,
which I’ll fill.”
Also on offer: a small but delightful
nibbling menu of chips and salsa; chili
and soup; a hummus platter; an antipasto
platter of red wine salami, garlic white
cheddar cheese, smoked black pepper
cheddar, figs, olives and chocolate. A
chocolate hazelnut brownie made by
Patty’s Wicker Café and made with the
Hazelnut Brown Ale by Rogue rounds out
the food choices.
“We’re working on pretzel bites next,”
Linder said. “Dough Dough Bakery is go-
ing to make them for us just up the street.”
Friendly but sophisticated
Linder grew up around Seaside and
Cannon Beach. She graduated from Sea-
EVE MARX PHOTOS
Tracy Linder of the Whet Spot
THE WHET SPOT OFFERS
PATRONS A ROTATING
SELECTION OF 20 CRAFT
BEERS, WITH FOUR OR
FIVE LOCAL BEERS ON TAP
ALL THE TIME.
side High School and studied communica-
tion at Portland State University where she
received her master’s degree.
After the Army, she became a govern-
ment contractor, working ground mainte-
nance on vehicles left behind when troops
left for Afghanistan and Iraq. She lived for
a time in Kuwait and also in Watertown,
New York, returning in 2013 to the North
Coast to be closer to her grandparents. “I
took a job in the Columbia River Gorge.
I also drove for Uber for six months in
Portland,” Linder said.
So how did she come to call her place
The Whet Spot?
“That was Kelly Hall’s idea,” Linder
said, referring to a friend. “She’s the one
who came up with the name.” In a few
months Hall will be joining the Whet
The Whet Spot
Spot’s crew of bartenders working the
taps; anyone wishing to know more about
the origins of the name, can ask Kelly
when she’s there.
The Whet Spot promises to be a friend-
ly but sophisticated place to try local craft
beer. Linder is all about the independent
brewery. Looking ahead, she envisions
live music some evenings, and possibly
great art for sale on the walls.
“We’re still developing what this is go-
ing to look like,” Linder said. Stay tuned
for great stuff.
The Whet Spot is located at 12 N. Hol-
laday Drive. Winter hours of operation are
noon to 9 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday;
noon to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The
phone number is 503-298-3645.
“I love pouring beer,” Linder said.
“Come on by.” CW