Stopped in early on a Friday afternoon, like around 4pm. No one really noticed my friends and I grab a table in the back for about 5 minutes, until a person came to check on the table nearby. Then we got menus, drinks, and food ordered quickly. I tried the Irish nachos (potato chip nachos) with chicken. I ordered it without a ton of stuff, and the server was careful to make sure he got it right upon delivery. The chicken was probably some of the tastiest shredded chicken on nachos that I've ever had. Highly recommend! We had to get going (friend had to get back to her sitter), so went and asked the server/bartender for our checks, which he quickly got us squared away. One other notable thing about this place was the loud wanna be thug rap music. As one of my friends put it, "If I were drunk, this music would be fun to dance to because it would be funny." We chose a table in the back so we could actually sort of talk. So, if you're looking for a spot to chat with someone you don't know well, this may not be the place for you. read more

Really cool and welcoming spot. Ryan the bouncer and Zoe the bartender made our night worth it. Especially after our terrible experience at Canon down the block. read more

Remember what it was like to go to college? Well this is the bar version of it. And if you didn't go to college and get the drunk Thursday night out experience for roughly 100K in student loans, you're in luck because this place exists and for $30 you can have a heck of an evening that may include; 1)Karaoke 2)Bar Fight 3)Loud girls 4)Obnoxious guys 5)Low grade well drinks 6)Classic bar food 7)Dirty/sticky floors 8)Having your ID checked every time you go out to smoke and come back in I read my list and determined its achieving everything its supposed to so I upped the star count and am trying to find people to meet me there on Thursday now. read more

Thanksgiving 2011! Several friends of mine have told me about a few new places that opened up on 12th. During Thanksgiving, 2 friends wanted to meet for some beers and catch up after dinner so I suggested Canon, and then we headed to the Chieftain. Ordered beers, awhile later, I went to use the restroom -and one of the bartenders? workers? manager? followed me in and used the toilet while I used the urinal. - There's a point to this. LOL The bartender and employee asked us from the end of the bar (we were on the other end) if I noticed "piss the floors". I said ..."uh, no.". He replies: "well, it'd be hard not to notice it.". I didn't pay anymore attention to them as my friends and I were talking - then 2 of us stepped outside, and apparently they asked our friend at the bar who I was, how well does he know me... I had no idea, went back inside noticed the funky vibe, yet had no idea...we all finished our beers, then leave, and friend tells me the staff was accusing me of peeing all over their floors. No wonder he accusingly asked me if I noticed the piss on the floor! LOL! When consuming two beers, I can aim and piss in a urinal just fine. Learn some manners gentlemen! read more

When it comes to college bars with cheap bear and great food this is it! Love this hangout! To know that these low-key, casual, come as YOU are places still exist in Cap Hill is a rarity. To know you can come to a place to chill-out and just drink a beer on your time, and not rushed by a server or folks with reservations or pretentiousness of those around you is awesome. It's like drinking in the comfort of your own home surrounded by friends you've never met. read more

I'm a fan of The Chieftan just because the drinks are cheap and it's just a cool/chill bar in the Capitol Hill area. I don't come here that often as I live on the Eastside but when I do make it over the bridge I meet up with friends here just because it is so close to their place. They do some tv's in there to watch sports and also have a pool table in the back. I had no idea they had seating outdoors so when the sun was out we def. took advantage. read more

Tentative Review! It's hard to give a good write up for The Chieftain, particularly since yesterday was a very soft opening, with many of the drinks and foods not available. So, I'll review the things I can: first, the space is gorgeous. Lots of dark wood, airy space. Full-size pool table, and lots of different TV screens. The wall of liquors in the bar mean there will be a great selection. Looks like a lot of rotating daily specials (Tuesday Trivia night!) Also, the Irish Nachos were pretty solid, and the other foods that were being served seemed tasty. The prices listed on the menu look very reasonable. Not so great things: Definitely not priced like Fin MacCool's - more expensive beers ($4 coors lite, $5 microbrews, $5.75 European taps). Here's the real big kicker: the waitstaff is still really being trained right now, they weren't prepared for the crush of Seattle U employees that were there. Unfortunately, they weren't terribly friendly about it, either (which can go a long way toward smoothing things over). I'll certainly stop by and update my review, once they get into the swing of things. read more

Not a bad little place to have a few brews before class. I had the patty melt and so did the other half. Had a decent selection of beers.. I'll go back, for sure. read more

They're one of the few bars in the area that carry the Pac12 Network! :) The service is terrible. :( The nachos gave me food poisoning. :( :( :( I won't be back. read more

The Chieftain is a nice addition to the 12th + Pike area - it's the rare middle of the road between fancy foodie places like Spinasse and dive places like Cha Cha's. They have a good beer selection. The typical Irish beers - Guinness, Smithwicks, Harp, etc, but also some good West coast beers like Stone IPA, Mac N Jack's, Manny's. The Guinness did seem slightly fresher than other Seattle Irish bars, but it's hard to say for sure without doing more taste tests (which I plan to do). They have pretty good happy hours, including happy hour all day on Monday. Trivia nights on Tuesday @ 8. The menu is pub fare but with an Irish twist - there were at least two items with corned beef in them, there's Irish stew and fish and chips. The Three Cheese bacon mac is very rich and delicious. It's almost two meals in one. The bacon goes very well with the mac + cheese. The only thing missing is bread crumbs. The decorations and character inside are a little bit lacking - it feels like they built out the space and then bought a bunch of Irish stuff to hang on the wall. It doesn't have that lived in, old, quirky feel that most Irish bars have. But that may come with time. Service at the tables was somewhat slow. Hopefully that will improve once it's been open longer and they get the hang of things. They have 1 pool table (50 cents it looks like), 1 pinball machine (Lord of the Rings, 50c), and a golf video game. It's a surprisingly large space, with multiple rooms, allowing you to get away from the noisy main room if you want to. read more

So, I do believe I owe at least one staff member of the Chieftain an apology - my waiter of last Tuesday, and tonight, Eric. Upon my arrival at the Chieftain this Tuesday night for our Trivia tradition (after eating a delicious homemade dinner of stuffed bell peppers, courtesy of my roommate), Eric approached me and apologized for blowing my off my order last week, and offered to replace it. I was very grateful for his apology, and declined to order dinner, but when he offered to buy me a beer, I was definitely willing to accept. My roommate got hers free, too, even though she was fine with last week's service. I think it's her karmic repayment for having to put up with hungry and hangry me! They might screw up from time to time, but Eric at least knows how to make it right. For that, the Chieftain has earned another star in my book, and who knows? I may have to give them another shot on the dinner front as well. Thanks, Eric! Your apology and free pint of Magner's really turned this reviewer and frequent customer around! read more

I was so excited about this bar- our neighborhood desperately needs a pub-- and then I had the worst pint of my life poured there. I actually took it back to the bar, which I never ever do. To compensate, they poured me a glass of... the house white wine. The. House. White. And then my bill still had the beer on it. "But the wine was more expensive!" Not impressed. (Regardless, it's pronounced "Smith-icks", not "Smith-wicks", which was what I ended up saying to be understood.) The layout doesn't make sense to me either. The front area when you walk in wants a bar so badly it's like hearing "Shave and a haircut..." without the "two bits". Instead, the front area is kind of a dead space and you have to walk back and down a ramp to a space that is actually rather nice but definitely needs to be broken in. This isn't the local I've been waiting for. Yet. I'm willing to give it a second chance, but the service & the beer need to vastly improve before I become a regular. The next time i go, I'm ordering a bourbon on the rocks. That seems safe, right? read more

Best dive bar in seattle. Great for escaping the pretentiousness of nearby so called cocktail bars. Ask for ryan at the door and zoe at the bar! read more

Way over priced. Service was intermittent and it was difficult to get a waiters attention. A few from our group just gave up and went directly to the bar to order. And the prices are ridiculous. Even if the service was decent I wouldn't go back because of the prices They do get two stars because my coconut shrimp were delicious even though everything the group I was with ordered wasn't great. read more

My friend attended school across the street 3 years ago and when we visited this spot it was busy and well staffed. I came here on a Saturday night and the bar next door was a line of 60 out the door and Chieftan had less than 20 people in it. Our excitement of thinking we would get fast service quickly turned to shock at the fact they had only 2 bartenders and no servers to work the floor. In the middle of the 20 person wait at the bar one of the bartenders grabbed 2 drinks for themself and left, leaving just 1 bartender left to manage the midnight rush. This place has gone way down hill from the days of it being busy and well staffed. If I was running this place I would do some street marketing to pull some of the 60 plus line next door over to this bar. read more

I love the Chieftain. The staff is friendly and they keep changing things up, trying to make the place better and more accommodating, especially towards SU students. This place has been a second home to me after classes or group meetings. Many memories have been made at this place. They have the best fries here. Make sure you ask for the dipping sauces. Other great eats: corned beef hash, nachos, sweet potato fries, loaded baked potato, corned beef and cabbage,... I could go on, but then I would just be typing out their entire menu. read more

Great food especially "Taco Tuesday" prices are very generous as well as the portions. Also entertain yourself with pool, cornhole, horseshoes, and darts. The staff are very friendly and so are the regulars... I call it the living room, because when I'm there it feels exactly that! And don't forget about the beer garden in the back to soak up some sun! read more

See all

Mehhhhhhh. A large group of us came here on a Monday night thanks to the allure of an all-day HH. Unfortunately, the best thing that can be said about the place is that it was remarkably easy to find seating for 10 people, and that was very convenient. After unsuccessfully waiting 30 minutes for a server to come by, we gave up and went to the bar to order beers. Another 45 minutes went by, and a server still never appeared. Up to the bar we went again to order our sandwiches. I had the pesto chicken sandwich. It was decent--nothing to rave about, nothing I couldn't stomach, but filling enough and fine for $10. The Chieftain is most certainly a bro bar, with a healthy dose of local college students frequenting it. Their tap selection is also nothing noteworthy. HH beers are $4 apiece, but you can get much better beer for a similar price elsewhere. Stay away unless you have absolutely no choice in the matter. read more

We stopped by here yesterday for a snack & to catch some football after moving our son into his dorm. The spicy Bloody Mary is...well... spicy! We talked to our super friendly server who told us she muddled onions, peppers & spices with vodka - very fresh. We ordered the buffalo wings which are classic and done exactly as you would expect buffalo wings to be. We also had the Irish Nachos (thick potato chips-wedges instead of tortila chips) which was our favorite dish of the two. We'll definately be back, service is friendly, the pub has a nice atmosphere with pool tables in the back ... other tables had some great looking sandwiches and fries being served to them that I'd like to try. read more

Over 50 and the place is Spot On! Been here many times, as they are close to our work, so we do happy hour here often. While they do have a lot of college kids coming and going, the staff remember our drinks and usually have them ready for us in about 10 minutes from arriving. The food choices are really great, something for everyone and again, the staff are Spot On! It is a pub for Seattle U, however, they treat us old folks just as well. read more

The drink specials here are fantastic. $5 long islands on Friday's. If you order food the service is pretty slow but other than that the food is okay. Drinks prices are fantastic. read more

Great college bar and at the same time good food for cheap prices. Clientele here is awesome, expect to meet people and make new friends. read more

See all

I love this place! The service is amazing and I come here every Tuesday just for the best shrimp tacos I've ever had!

OMG, fire the architect or tear it down. It is the oddest pub/bar or restaurant set up I've ever walked into.. Hostess: n/a Waiter: 3.5 Food-taste, presentation: 0.5 Property-style, decor, ambiance: 0.0 read more

After a few days of being open, they seem to have things in order and running smoothly. Went for lunch and the food is delicious, but it was the french fries that sold me. Super crispy on the outside and perfect on the inside. The Chieftain burger was great and no skimping on the extras. All of my lunch companions were very satisfied with their meals as well. On top of the great food, the inside of the place looks great. Plenty of booths and tables with three separate seating areas. Several flat screens showing various soccer games in locations that all patrons can view with ease. The bar looks great with lots to choose from and the staff was super friendly and up to speed! Had the chance to talk to the owner a little bit and he is thrilled to be open for the staff/faculty of Seattle U coming in and looking forward to the return of the students. Very friendly and welcoming as he went from table to table to meet the dinners. Great addition to the Capitol Hill neighborhood! read more

I'll start with the negative. The service is slow. They had 1 server for the entire bar area even though it was pretty full and it was a Friday afternoon. It was a lot faster to order drinks right at the bar. The food itself was pretty damn good. My favorite was the Irish nachos and the steak bites. The nachos had a nice cheese sauce and the chips were very crunchy, and the steak bites had a nice sauce on it and was very tender. Definitely a place I'll go back to for happy hour. I'm just glad this place wasn't around when I was attending Seattle U or I may have never graduated. read more

Ok. They need more servers. Quite simple. Especially dying Monday night football. Still here, in the middle of the main area and still after 40 minutes have not been greeted or given a menu. In a way it's nice that I didn't have to spend any money while getting to watch the game. read more

The Chieftain - The game. Seahawks vs Red skins. - Irish Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Large and very loud bar and the draw was the poster outside saying 'TALL CAN OF PBR AND A SHOT, $5'...it drew us right in on a Sunday afternoon. We got to watch some of the Seahawks game in the back on the projection screen with lots of people and we had a fun time. The bathroom is in the very very back room and was fairly clean, thankfully. I'm sure if I am in the mood for a PBR and a shot again, I'll come by once more. read more

The Chieftain - PBR and shot--- $5! - Irish Near Me - Seattle, Washington

I was pretty excited when I heard a new Irish pub was opening in my area. The Chieftain satisfies as far as your typical pub goes but it's nothing I haven't seen before. I get the impression they've separated the bar area and restaurant area, but it was a little confusing. The place wasn't very busy at 8 something on a Saturday, but it wasn't dead, either. I had a pint of Harp and my boyfriend had a jack & coke, and we each ordered an appetizer. He had the Irish nachos (basically nachos on regular potato chips) and I had the quesadilla. It was tasty but something about the guacamole was a little onion-y for my tastes. I'd definitely come here again; it seems great for a chill night out or quick bite of pub food. I kind of want to check out their trivia and karaoke nights, too! read more

Great pizza, good beer. Generally nice quite atmosphere compared to most bars on cap Hill. Service can be pretty slow sometimes though. Also, real Mexican tacos don't come with sour cream and tomatoes. They come with cilantro, onions and salsa. read more

Update: They let a drunk customer stand by the door and act like a bouncer and be rude. Got kicked out for being a ducks fan/getting there at 1:30, right after last call. Bouncer (now aware was drunk customer) was very rude about being in Ducks gear after a Huskies loss and said that's why he wouldn't let us in. On a normal night this place is okay and has a cool spot out back, there's just not many people that go here on a typical night. When Rhein Haus is packed though this place is a fun spot because a lot of people spill over. Good dive bar. read more

I have been to this place a few times with co-workers. I am one who is familiar with the bar scene in the area so I do have certain expectations when bar hopping on the hill. This place is pretty solid. The food and drinks are pretty good. They have a nice variety and the staff is very nice. The only thing about this place is that nothing really stands out there. It have a college bare feel that im used to in the university district. The decor is very Irish pub-y which is cool! I would for sure recommend this bar to anyone that is looking for a small pub like atmosphere. read more

I went there and it was ok, the bartender brought us beers we didn't order which is fine, i guess i'll drink it. They did however charge me for extra stuff and then failed to void that transaction so I was charged twice. Not cool Cheiftain. I was a little nervous when it took 3 people about 15mins to fix my receipt... read more

I haven't been too happy with the service lately. Whenever my friends and I go in these days (we got a lot), we always expect bad service. Some of the staff are better than others, but there are a couple who 9 times out of 10 forget about us, our orders, our drinks, or the most common occurrence (though least bothersome), our waters. Had to ask for water 3 times once before it was brought. The staff really needs to write the orders down and they don't. We had a party of ten once and the guy took our orders by memory. One of the dishes came out WAY before everyone else, 7 came together, and 2 were forgotten completely until reminded. Once reminded, only one came out. The other was brought out after the check was paid and we were all standing up to leave. The kicker is we were still forced to tip 18% because of the auto-tipping on a 10 person table. If we didn't live like right next door to this place, I doubt we'd ever actually go there. The food is good, but the service just leaves a little bit of a sour taste in my mouth after so many bad service experiences. The manager(s) there really need to step up and handle their staff better or they might start losing more and more customers. read more

The bartender here named Shawn is the man! Always friendly and makes strong drinks. The Chieftain is the spot to meet up for Seattle University students, not so much the older crowd. Good for watching sporting events and cheap pitchers on Thursday nights. read more

Love the atmosphere in this place. We always stop by here when we bar hop and wanna watch a playoff game. I love there salmon risotto! And I've also tried their fish and chips. The fish and chips are a big too greasy for me. Great place for drinks and good company. Its also very convenient since its across the street from Seattle U! read more

The Chieftain - One of my favorite dishes ever. Salmon risotto - Irish Near Me - Seattle, Washington

See all

Good beer. Low key environment. Some type of deals every day. $6 pitchers on Thursday which is about as cheap as you'll find in the city

2.5 stars. I wanted to really like the Chieftain, I really did. It's a hop, skip, and a jump across the street from SU. It's not that there's anything particularly bad about the bar, but there's nothing particularly great about it either. Nothing out of the ordinary. Standard beers you could get at any other bar in Seattle. No good happy hour deals either. On the plus side, the servers and bartenders are really friendly and helpful, the nachos are pretty dang good, and they are always showing soccer matches on the TV. Other than that, io's just another standard Irish pub. If they improved their beer selection and had some decent happy hour deal, this place could turn itself around. Add a pitcher or pint deal, get a few more local off-the-beaten-path beers and I'd be more willing to go there after class. read more

Taco Tuesdays with $4 Mac'n'Jacks? I'm in. Had two fish tacos at $2 each - not the best tacos, but hey..they're $2! Our server was attentive but we did have to go up to the bar to pay bc he started serving behind the bar. read more

So I enjoy going to this place mostly because it is local to me and has a laid back atmosphere without any fuss along with good drink specials. For that I give the atmosphere and pricing 3 stars. However, the food is nothing notable. They have you're typical greasy and fried bar food but even on this tier I've tasted far better grub from other pubs. The combo of the two earn this place 2 stars. Basically if you are looking for good food this is not your place. If you are in the area I would try Ba Bar down the road or Cafe Presse. However, if you are looking for good prices and an unpretentious atmosphere, you should stop by. read more