All too often, “a night out” is synonymous with drinking. Terms like “nightlife” and “going out on Friday night” imply that consuming alcohol is a major part, if not the primary goal, of the evening.
But for plenty of Seattleites, that’s not really the case. There are those of us under 21 who can’t (or shouldn’t) be buying alcohol. There are lifetime non-drinkers. There are those who used to imbibe and realized for one reason or another that it wasn’t for them. And then there are those of us who do drink on occasion but might prefer the occasional non-alcoholic night out.
Tea
If there’s a mellow antithesis to a wild night of drinking, it’s relaxing in a tea room. With it’s cold, wet weather and large Asian population, Seattle has a great tea culture. Most of the best tea shops, including Wallingford’s Kuan-Yin and Capitol Hill’s Remedy, are open until at least 10pm. And unlike coffee, teas offer a wide spectrum of caffeine options, so you can manage how wired you’d like to be when it’s time to head home.
Coffee
Unlike the broad range tea offers, coffee gives either a lot of caffeine or none, so tread carefully if your tolerance is low. But Seattle’s late-night coffee culture is just about as essential to its personality as anything. In Seattle’s numerous late-night coffee shops you’ll find visionaries discussing the next great tech start-up, the next great indie-rock album, or maybe just the next great coffee shop. El Diablo in Queen Anne is open until 11pm and Capitol Hill’s Bauhaus closes at 1am.
Nicotine
With bars 100% smoke-free since 2006, the distance between drinks culture and smoking culture has grown. While bar-goers hastily sucking down a cigarette outside their favorite pub is still a common sight, the ability to enjoy a smoke is increasingly relegated to the small but vibrant hookah lounge scene. Unlike cigars, cigarettes, or pipe-smoking, hookahs provide a very light, cooler smoke and are enjoyed by those who consider themselves non-smokers. Tobacco comes in flavors like watermelon, vanilla, and apple and a hookah (but not the mouthpiece) is shared by as many as four people. While some hookah lounges are BYOB (bring your own beverage--for an “uncorking” fee), the vibe at these spots is very different from most bars. Some favorites include Cobra Lounge on Capitol Hill and Medina Lounge in the ID.
Movies
While plenty of theatres run movies at 9 or 10pm, the Egyptian on Pine offers midnight movie screenings every Friday and Saturday, running a different film each week. The titles tend to be edgy cult classics (recent and upcoming examples include The Big Lebowski, The Dark Crystal, Back to the Future, and The Princess Bride) and the crowd enthusiastic. While certainly a portion of that crowd has had a few drinks earlier in the evening, it’s just the right balance of raucous but respectful. The U-District’s Grand Illusion will also sometimes program late night fare, though it tends to be deeper into the cultish or camp classic (the upcoming Porkys, for example).
Music
Certainly there’s lots of great music to be had in clubs that serve drinks, but some of the best venues in town are all-ages. The Vera Project at the Seattle Center, Fremont Abbey in Fremont, El Corazon on Eastlake, The Showbox downtown (for some shows), and Chop Suey on Capitol Hill all program top-notch local and touring groups for all-ages crowds. Dmitrou’s Jazz Alley is also all-ages for shows before 9pm, which usually includes their biggest names.