Last Sunday night, the original Red Robin near the University Bridge poured its last beer and served its last burger. The Seattle institution started as a tavern more than 40 years ago, with peanut shells on the floor and a very stoned red robin holding a joint on the sign. By some miracle, this sign still hung in the entryway—Red Robin is now a 400-plus-outlet, family-friendly chain with Denver management that presumably does not endorse marijuana use, even by drawings of birds. A long-haired old-timer who’d come to pay his last respects pointed it out: “It’s definitely a joint,” he said. All the family-friendly people waiting for a table (a wait of up to an hour) were amused. The old-timer expressed his hope for a different burger place on the site rather than “another Thai restaurant with foofy drinks.” The building’s owner is reportedly leasing it to a new restaurant tenant, details unknown.
A woman who grew up a few blocks away said her brother used to stop by the Red Robin on his paper route because two hippie chicks who worked there would give him beer. (She herself fondly recalled having her first teriyaki burger—a house special served with pineapple on it—at age 8, when the place went all-ages around 1973.) On Slog, The Stranger‘s drug-addled blog, commenter katee reported, “My dad once told me that he bought mescaline from the bartender there in the ’70s. RIP.” And University of Washington students drank underage there as late as the 1990s. Part of the current-day Red Robin staff uniform is a button that says they card people under 39 1/2.
A Facebook group called “Don’t close the ORIGINAL Red Robin Eastlake” with more than 5,400 “devastated” members did not have an impact on corporate, which said the “decision was driven by the need for considerable investment to maintain the building and make the restaurant more efficient from an operations perspective.” All the employees have been transferred to other local Red Robins. (The most famous employee, according to Seattle lore: Ted Bundy, when he was enrolled at the UW. During that time, Ted Bundy asked my aunt out on a date; she said no because she thought he was too square.)
On the final night, as the sun set on the original Red Robin’s sweeping view of Portage Bay, mascot Red the Robin entered the glassed-in atrium to a resounding cheer. A woman in the bar screamed, “I LOVE YOU!” and blew kisses; she was later seen attempting to pry a historic photograph off the wall. Red toured the restaurant, posing for approximately 5,400 photographs, giving babies high fives, and dancing. Was Red there to comfort the sorrowful? Red nodded affirmatively and mimed wiping tears from his/her/its big plastic eyes. But life goes on, right? Red held out its wing-hand and waggled it back and forth, making the international gesture for “so-so.” Would Red like a hug? Yes. 
*tear*
WOW! I had no idea Red Robin used to be a cool place to hang out! I live in Oly, and i guess there’s a reaason my friends that work there call it the “Dirty Bird”. Too bad it’s now just as corporate as the Olive Garden, Applebees, Outback, etc.
now we know why Bundy took the path he did – rejection sucks
That’s like the story of the original Starbucks siren, with her boobies hanging out. That won’t fly in most ‘burbs.
Ah, in the early days the burgers were outstanding.
It was always a gay friendly hangout as well – and yes – in harmony with the rec. drugs of the day.
Adieu. Another memory is – just memory.
So what are they doing with the original RR sign?
When we were kids in the mid-80s, my best friend and I lived for the times our parents would take us to “The Bird,” as we called it. Their steak fries and the blue ribbon burger were tops. I’m sad to be out of state during its last days, but happy I’ve visited the original location several times in the past year.
All I gotta say about Red Robin is good fucking riddance. I can’t even believe that Seattle would embrace a corporate shit-hole like Red Robin.
The last time I was at Red Robin…Wait, I should preface this story. Life size plushy-type costumed things freak me out.
I dunno why maybe early in my childhood I was secretly butt-fucked by one er’ something, but I just get freaked out by em.
Last time I was there, the costumed anti-christ was given instructions from my girlfriend to not pay a visit to our table. What happens next is just nothing but awkward. A couple minutes before our food arrives said anti-christ pays a visit to our booth.
The robin puts it’s hand out to shake mine and I just say “no I am ok, thank you” The Robin starts insisting that I do it via it’s body language, as we know that fuck isn’t supposed to talk or whatever the rule is. But at any rate I refuse.
I squeeze in the booth to the far side against the wall and the fucker decided that was it’s invitation to plop down next to me in the booth. I was just fucking outta my mind. The costume smelled of kid pee and dirty french fries.
I just freaked out and yelled at Red Robin to “get the fuck away from me” At which point the Red Robin got up shrugged and took it’s pee costume to another table.
I looked around and saw all of the families looking at me with contempt and children looking wide-eyed at our table confused. I apologized to the closest table for my coarse language, but by that time the manager was at out table asking if we would mind leaving.
I got kicked out of that fucking dump, vowing to never return. If I am the only one happy it’s gone, well I guess I am the only one happy it’s gone.
Good fucking riddance.
I was assuming MOHAI would get the sign, but that’s a bad assumption, I guess.
seattle can do better than red robin whateva
Here’s what I heard from a former employee:
–The official story on ‘Dirty Bird’ is that the robin is holding a French fry. With ketchup on it. And his eyes are red because he’s tired.
–The old sign, the Tiffany lamps, and other custom decor are going to be moved into storage at corporate HQ in Colorado until corporate finds a new U-District location, where they’ll install the old decor and call the restaurant ‘The NEW “Original” Red Robin’.
Bullshit. If they wanted to open up a new U-District location, they would’ve started looking for one BEFORE they let the lease expire. They haven’t started yet.
Thanks to the bartender who let us keep our tiki glasses on Sunday night! I hope the manager who grabbed our payment when we were leaving passed on your tip.
The old sign (that was above the door) is going to MoHaI. The other fixtures will be held by RR; last time I checked, the Dirty Bird mural was still on the wall.
Funny, I only go to Red Robin when I want food poisoning. Not that I ever actually ordered it, that’s just what happens almost everytime I go! Except when I went to the original one, says something doesn’t it?
The original just had their act together, unlike any of the hundreds out there in cleanliness and for that, this place had to go. It wasn’t up to their “Standards”.