Barrio (Capitol Hill)
1420 12th Ave
Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 588-8105
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Reviews/Comments (17)
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17
mediocre food & a bad attitude
This place serves up under-seasoned, mediocre, uninspired food and bad drinks both of which are just ridiculously over priced. All of it does, however, come with heaps and heaps of bad attitude from the staff, for which there is apparently no charge. That Barrio continues to attract anybody is a reminder that to some form does trump function. If you want good, simple, honest food at a very reasonable price, skip the glitz and walk around the block to Rancho Bravo
15
Absolutely one of the best places on The Hill.
I've been to this restaurant multiple times, during different months and different days, and the service has always been exceptional. It's not at all over-priced for the portion size and the flavor, and honestly if you want to go to a nicer, classier place on the Hill then you'll pay the extra bucks. The wait staff has aleways been very knowedgable and generous, and takes the time to answer questions about food and drink pairings. The bar area itself is only okay,and the drinks themselves are pricey, but the happy hour is one of the best in that area so hit that up if you want to get boozy. If you're not concerned about the supposed strain on your wallet but you know that quality food comes at a higher price, then you'll enjoy Barrio.
And to the ass-hat that said to "eat/buy local" in his review, FYI Barrio and its parent restaurant company Purple are owned and operated locally.
And to the ass-hat that said to "eat/buy local" in his review, FYI Barrio and its parent restaurant company Purple are owned and operated locally.
13
Went on a busy night and couldn't be seated. Unfortunately the wait staff would not admit that, so we waited an hour by the secret door while they served up two of the three drinks we'd ordered. After giving up and paying for what we had been served, the staff chased us down the street wanting to be paid for the missing drink.
12
Finally went there last week after walking past it every day for months. Had a very perky server who thought everything was *amazing*! Enjoyed my meal, but couldn't remember what I'd ordered the next day (looked on the menu and it was the enchilada). Thought it was a bit small for the price. The cocktail I had was amazingly good. It's not often I'll splurge on a $9 drink but this was worth it.
The walls of candles are amazing, but in general the atmosphere has a surprisingly frat vibe. Had no problem getting into the restaurant, but getting out through those annoying doors was another story - I feel bad for the hostess, who must have to open that door for people all damned night.
I didn't hate it but there are way better options on the Hill and I don't know that I'll ever go back.
The walls of candles are amazing, but in general the atmosphere has a surprisingly frat vibe. Had no problem getting into the restaurant, but getting out through those annoying doors was another story - I feel bad for the hostess, who must have to open that door for people all damned night.
I didn't hate it but there are way better options on the Hill and I don't know that I'll ever go back.
11
Beautiful and delicious
I love the candles and ambiance. I've been to Barrio several times and enjoyed myself each time. The service is always great and friendly. My whole family finds plenty of wonderful dishes to choose from and the drinks are delicious. My kids won't shut up about how much they love the churros and chocolate dipping sauce.
I'm particularly excited about the happy hour menu, which offers most of my favorite dishes at half off.
I'm particularly excited about the happy hour menu, which offers most of my favorite dishes at half off.
10
I really did not enjoy myself. My dinner was bought for me by a lovely person who was very excited to try it out. I have not been able to express my distaste till now. Actually, when all was said and done, I hated it.
The food was mediocre for the price. The wait staff had a pinched, hurried, and forgetful disposition. The chairs seemed to try to push my ass off of them. The front door is obnoxiously difficult to figure out at first, then hard to open. Even getting to the bathroom was a pain from the south side of the restaurant.
In general, it is a perfect representation of the kind of new establishments that pop up when you create brand new spaces with up to the minute rental prices. They go big on size, cutting corners and jacking up the pretentious factor so they can pack people in and fool a lot of douche bags into dropping a ton of money on very little.
I feel like my poor friend got ripped off.
The food was mediocre for the price. The wait staff had a pinched, hurried, and forgetful disposition. The chairs seemed to try to push my ass off of them. The front door is obnoxiously difficult to figure out at first, then hard to open. Even getting to the bathroom was a pain from the south side of the restaurant.
In general, it is a perfect representation of the kind of new establishments that pop up when you create brand new spaces with up to the minute rental prices. They go big on size, cutting corners and jacking up the pretentious factor so they can pack people in and fool a lot of douche bags into dropping a ton of money on very little.
I feel like my poor friend got ripped off.
8
work in progress?
went about a week ago - jan2008 - atmosphere is nice (though a bit too noisy), candles are very cool. staff was attentive & friendly.
cocktail menu is quite ambitious but could be better executed--designed by someone with better skills than the person who made my drinks.
food was disappointing, small, and pricey. besides a couple of minor standouts it was generally dry, flavors didn't go together, not very filling. taco bus on south rainier kicks barrio's ass.
i'm gonna chalk it up to "we haven't worked out all of the kinks yet" and try again in a few months.
cocktail menu is quite ambitious but could be better executed--designed by someone with better skills than the person who made my drinks.
food was disappointing, small, and pricey. besides a couple of minor standouts it was generally dry, flavors didn't go together, not very filling. taco bus on south rainier kicks barrio's ass.
i'm gonna chalk it up to "we haven't worked out all of the kinks yet" and try again in a few months.
7
Good atmosphere, good food, think it will grow into itself.
We enjoyed a dinner there on the opening weekend and had a good experience. Everything was pretty good and in time I think they will become really good. Same thing happened with the company's other place downtown, Purple Cafe, when it opened. Some of the food needed a little more heat and spice, but I loved the steak tacos.
Not sure why the reviewers above think that they are not local. If you look on this thing called the internet, you'll see that the managing partners moved (or moved back?) from Vegas in 2000 and opened the first Purple Cafe in Woodinville. Yes, they might be a little more corporate now, but it is a small, local corporation that employs lots of locals in their 6 or so local venues. So whatevs...
Not sure why the reviewers above think that they are not local. If you look on this thing called the internet, you'll see that the managing partners moved (or moved back?) from Vegas in 2000 and opened the first Purple Cafe in Woodinville. Yes, they might be a little more corporate now, but it is a small, local corporation that employs lots of locals in their 6 or so local venues. So whatevs...
6
LET ME JUST SAY that i wanted to go here before but i thought they had no door and you needed to slide down a pole from the inside to get in! which would have been rolickking fun!!! but then someone told to me that there is a secret door on the street but it is GIANT and wooden. now on the hill how are us nelly queens supposed to put up with that?!? you need to be an super beefcake man to open that door bario!!
and LET ME JUST SAY that having now eatin there, beefcake men would leave bario VERY VERY HUNGRY. i just want to say that i have seen prince alberts with a much wider circumference than bario's "TACOS!!!" the tortillas are smaller than most condoms. this is dollhouse food, sweeitie.
and LET ME JUST SAY that having now eatin there, beefcake men would leave bario VERY VERY HUNGRY. i just want to say that i have seen prince alberts with a much wider circumference than bario's "TACOS!!!" the tortillas are smaller than most condoms. this is dollhouse food, sweeitie.
5
will it last?
I'll keep it quick and too the point...
The atmosphere is really nice. Good acoustics, it was packed but it was still really quiet.
The waitress was nice, but getting drinks was very slow, and she made bad recommendations for food.
The Masa Cakes are delicious. The beet salad is pretty good too. The tacos are good, but very small. The octopus ceviche is awful.
It was sort of expensive for the serving size.
Maybe I need to get used to the idea of the Hill being taken over with expensive restaurants that aren’t that great?
The atmosphere is really nice. Good acoustics, it was packed but it was still really quiet.
The waitress was nice, but getting drinks was very slow, and she made bad recommendations for food.
The Masa Cakes are delicious. The beet salad is pretty good too. The tacos are good, but very small. The octopus ceviche is awful.
It was sort of expensive for the serving size.
Maybe I need to get used to the idea of the Hill being taken over with expensive restaurants that aren’t that great?
4
Why not support one of the many owner/operated non corporate offerings in the neighborhood instead? Do you really want the hill "malled"
3
Beautiful place, great food
I love Barrio. The food is delicious, the wall of candles is stunning, and the drinks are great. My children love it too.
2
Why go here? The food and drinks are overpriced and there are many owner operated places drying up because of economic woes. Eat local
1
Great decor, but way, way overpriced for what you get. We had a group of 5 that ordered small plates to share. We quickly realized that the plates were far too small for sharing and were good for about 2 bites. We all enjoyed our $10 cocktails. But left hungry and feeling we spent way too much for what we got.
Barrio
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