The Atmosphere: Mission is like a little hideout smack dab in a residential neighborhood just a few doors down from the Admiral theater. It's a slender piece of unassuming property sandwiched between two other restaurants making it quite easy to miss. It's where you go when you don't want to run into anyone you know while you knock back a few strong drinks or catch the game on the flat screen. It's not uncommon for the bi-level Latin-inspired restaurant to host private parties in its upstairs loft, making the place a haven for boisterous fun and great people watching.

Brandi Moery brings more than great boobs to the bar.

The Atmosphere: The spacious neighborhood, pirate-themed pub called Pillagers is something of a cross between dive bar and favorite local brewery tap room.

Some of the boozers bellied up to the bar bring with them the odor of persons who maybe aren't over concerned with regular bathing and reek of tobacco from their regular trips outside for a smoke. But as the home to Three Skulls Ales and Baron Brewing, local brew aficionados are also on the bar stools, enjoying pints alongside their harder-living brethren.

Bartender Andrew Flewelling

The Atmosphere: I arrived on the Friday following the big snowstorm of 2012 to a packed house. It was a very dark house, but packed nonetheless. I couldn't see much, but thanks to the glow coming from the back-lit bar, I could see every wooden table-top, booth and bar stool was taken. I could make out a bunch of happy souls surrounded by an ambiance sewn from much of the same fabric as the other restaurants in Laura Olson's empire, specifically Grim's. The same salvaged, dark wood, odd wall art (like the ram with M-16s at the end of his golden horns), concrete floors, textured wallpaper and other it's-so-reclaimed-it's-modern decor, as if everything was rubbed with an antique varnish. And if you feel something rub up against your leg while sitting at the bar, don't be alarmed. It's just the cowhide paneling saying 'hello'.

The Atmosphere: Chopsticks is the Chinese restaurant our family frequented when I was growing up in Edmonds. While I was never allowed in the bar as a youngster, I would sometimes peek inside while we waited for take-out. My dad, a building contractor, knew every blue-collar worker in town. And they could be found in the bar at Chopsticks, joining the after work crowd.

The restaurant has been in business since 1963. It is now located across the street from its original location, but the dimly lit lounge--called the Cathay Room--looks pretty much the same as it has since its inception. Vinyl, rolling lounge chairs circle round tables, while swivel bar stools line the faux-wood bar. An electric fireplace flickers on one wall, red lanterns hang from the ceiling and the carpeted floor absorbs the chatter of regular patrons here for cheap drinks, sweet and sour pork, almond chicken, and other staples of Chinese-American restaurants and their adjoining lounges. Sure enough, my dad saw someone he knew in the bar when we stopped in for lunch recently. Yup, some things never change.

Photo by Keegan Hamilton

Sexton barkeep Adam Fream and his Sweater Weather

The Atmosphere: The latest and greatest addition to bustling Ballard Ave, the bar's decor is a blend of old and new that's difficult to pigeonhole. The booths and tables are made of elegant, dark wood that makes the place feel like it's been there forever, while the bar itself is comprised of dozens of white cassette tapes encased under glass, one of many modish touches. It's also vaguely southern-inspired, with mason jars serving as water and beer glasses. The lighting is soft, with candles and vintage bulbs, and a young-ish crowd trickles in early on a Tuesday evening.

The Atmosphere: Located on a busy strip of Bothell Way in Kenmore, Cozy Inn Tavern sits quietly on the side of Highway 522, all but ignored by the cars and buses streaming past it on the evening commute home. Its neighbors include carpet shops, travel agents, hair salons, and fast food restaurants. The low-slung wood building doesn't promise much, but once inside, it's surprisingly, well...cozy. Beer signs cover every inch of wall space, including the ceiling, and there is a deck overlooking the Burke-Gilman trail and the North Lake Marina. The after-work crowd is laid back--some shoot pool for 50-cents a game, others play pull tabs and pinball, while others relax in the padded pleather chairs and booths that fill the room. Occasionally someone will pony up for a few songs on the jukebox, but otherwise the room is filled with the light banter between patrons, as everyone sips on their drinks.

The Atmosphere: The clean and minimalistic space is in direct contrast to the adjoining rustic and homey Spinasse. The delicate paper-like cylinder chandeliers dangling from the ceiling, the bright abstract paintings that line the pale walls, and the eclectic mix of early 90s hip-hop music (or whatever else happens to be playing on the bartender du jour's iPod) punctuate a pretty drinking parlor that modestly turns out some of the most delicious, well-crafted cocktails in the city. The egg shell-colored hex tiles on the bar provide a stark backdrop for the colorful drinks that await your arm's reach. Sibling Spinasse may get all the culinary glory, but Artusi is creating a welcomed booze-soaked rivalry.

Jeremy at his post. He claims he was "not having the best hair day," but was kind enough to let me take his picture anyway.

The Atmosphere: Nestled on top of Capitol Hill on the northern edge of the 15th Avenue business district, the Canterbury is an elder staple of the neighborhood -- they just celebrated their 35th birthday in October. On weekends, the whole joint from the table-service alcove to the bar to the cavernous southern room is packed and rowdy, but weeknights usually see a different crowd. On this particular Sunday night, even just the group seated at the bar is across the board, ranging from a woman in her early 20s having a few drinks to a bearded man in his mid 50s having breakfast for dinner by the light of a Toy Story marathon on the muted television. One outspoken regular occasionally poses discussion questions like, "What's your favorite movie of all time?"

One patron pestered me no less than three times to include him in this column once I had shown my cards, eventually handing me a sloppy chain of glow bracelets in the most pathetic attempt at a bribe I have ever seen. (To be fair, apparently it worked.)

Photo by Julien Perry

The Atmosphere: The tasting room, built in 2008, is a sleek, super fun and casual, come as you are, we can't wait to pour you our wines-type of space that truly feels like a living room. You know, if your living room was equipped with a pizza oven, a plasma TV, a lighted wine bottle display case and a private events facility inside a barrel room. It leans towards masculine, but ladies will love it, too. During the holidays, its personality is even more beaming, trimmed with trees, sparkling baubles, gauzy lights, and an air of holiday cheer that you usually only find by crawling inside a big bottle of booze.

The Barkeep Winemaker: Brennon Leighton. He's been the winemaker at Efeste since 2007. And just a few months ago, one of his wines, the 2008 Jolie Bouche Syrah, ranked #15 on Wine Spectator's list of the top 100 wines of 2011. In 2009, another one of his wines, the 2006 Ceidleigh (KAY-lee) Syrah from Red Mountain made the list as well. So, you know, he knows what he's doing. But the man himself? His story is even more impressive.

This is what happens when microbreweries join forces.

The Atmosphere A cozy coffee shop crossed with a laid-back neighborhood tavern. Located a short stroll away from the Ballard locks, it is a dog-friendly establishment, Otis Redding plays on the stereo, and a jackalope is mounted above the bar. A wall to the right of the entrance is lined with dozens and dozens of custom beer schooners. The fancy glasses are property of the "Ballard Drinking Team," a group of approximately 150 beer aficionados working to sample at least 100 different ales offered by Kiss Cafe. Customers who complete this achievement get a glass etched with their name. If they drink another 100 beers, they can add an anchor symbol to their vessel.