It’s 10:37 on Saturday night at 9 Million in Unmarked Bills,
the new bar in Fremont where the Triangle Lounge used to be. A group of
guys—ebullient, well on their way—are getting an improbable
amount of mileage out of a blond surfer-style wig. Wearing it cranially
is hilarious enough, but now one man relocates the wig to his crotch,
holding it there as a furry straw-colored merkin, and performs
pelvic thrusts to the music. This is comedy gold. He thrusts some
more.
The evening has reached its turning point, from drinks-with-friends
to par-TAY. The soundtrack, apparently by DJ Short Attention
Span, is approximately 20 seconds each of favorites from every era:
Pearl Jam, Beastie Boys, Violent Femmes, Jimi Hendrix. It’s the medley
that never ends, which might be considered a special level of hell, but
a good time is being had by all.
The wig-guys are in T-shirts and shorts and flip-flops, while three
women in a row at the bar wear cocktail dresses in various
configurations of tight/short/strapless with high heels. The ladies
are dressed for Amber, the guys for the George & Dragon: 9 Million
in Unmarked Bills is the latest and most radical transplantation of
Belltown to Fremont. The Triangle’s neon “PRESCRIPTIONS” sign remains,
a relic of a more lived-in era. Now pillars of cream-colored light
outline stark tree branches, suede-ish upholstered booths have
marble-topped tables, and accent walls are padded in squares. The color
scheme ranges from dark to dark, and the tip of the triangle has a new
bar. They’re out of lamb sliders, but spicy shrimp with polenta and
Gorgonzola crostini with kale are above-average. Cocktails are named
after famous robbers and called “craft” (though one contains
vanilla Absolut).
By the entry, a manual typewriter has a this-is-a-stick-up note in
it, an homage to the bar’s name—which itself was inspired by
local Jeremy Bert’s artwork of mismatched salvaged neon spelling
out the words “Leave Nineteen Million Dollars in Unmarked Bills,”
formerly installed at McLeod Residence. Some controversy attended this
inspiration; 9 Million in Unmarked Bills owner (and former Triangle
bartender) Nate Rezac inquired about the piece, was discouraged from
buying it, then had his own, very different sign made.
Stranger art critic Jen Graves suggested that Rezac offer
Bert free drinks for life as a gesture of recognition. Saturday
night suggests that an artist who deals in salvaged neon might not find
9 Million in Unmarked Bills to be his scene, free drinks or not. (Bert
and Rezac are reportedly on friendly terms.) However, it’s noteworthy
that the service was outstanding—as befits a bartender’s
bar—especially considering the medley-and-wig par-TAY
going on. And happy hour at 9 Million in Unmarked Bills, with its
roll-up garage doors and outdoor seating, seems like it’ll be
well-suited to everyone. 
Roll-up garage doors and outdoor seating sounds great right about now. And I’m dying to see that sign.
Craft cocktails do not contain vanilla Absolut. While I love that seattle is on the cocktail bandwagon, there is a diffrence between a well made cocktail, and what many places are calling cocktails.
Vast improvement over the previous Triangle. Although the name is a bit strange. I have been therre on several occasions and found it to be a nice addition to the Fremont collection. As described in the above article the crowd has been as eclectic as Fremont itself.
I just checked it out, this place is pretty nice. If you find yourself in the fremont area its worth checking out, I was there over the weekend and it kind of seemed like belltown nice with a capitol hill DJ.
OFTEN REFERRED TO AS THE OLD TRIANGLE OR THE PLACE WITH THE STOLEN AND REDICULOUS NAME = SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIOUS. THE ARTICLE WRITTEN BY JEN GRAVES, WRITER FOR THE STRANGER REGARDING THE OUTSTANDING SERVICE – WAS REFERENCING AN EMPLOYEE WHO WAS PUSHED OUT TWO MONTHS AFTER THE REPORT IN JULY; WITH OUT REGARD OF HER PROFESSIONALISM, HARD WORK AND DEDICATION. WHAT TYPE OF SERVICE IS OFFERED THERE NOW MANY PONDER? I CAN ONLY TESTIFY FOR THE ACTIONS OF THOSE WORKING THERE DURING MY EMPLOYMENT. DURING WHICH TIME IT WAS ALLOWED FOR EMPLOYEE’S TO A DRINK ALCOHOL AND SMOKE DURING SHIFT AND ON PREMISE. THIS IS OBVIOUSLY ILLEGAL IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON… IN MY OPINION THE OWNERS AND EMPLOYEE’S ARE COWARDS. THEIR CONVERSATIONS ARE CONDUCTED WITH THE INTENT TO DEMEAN OTHERS. ALTHOUGH NONE OF THEM HAVE THE BALLS TO SAY WHAT THEY THINK TO YOUR FACE!!!! BEST OF LUCK TO YOU AS I AM SURE YOU ALL WILL NEED IT.
OFTEN REFERRED TO AS THE OLD TRIANGLE OR THE PLACE WITH THE STOLEN AND REDICULOUS NAME = SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIOUS. THE ARTICLE WRITTEN BY JEN GRAVES, WRITER FOR THE STRANGER REGARDING THE OUTSTANDING SERVICE – WAS REFERENCING AN EMPLOYEE WHO WAS PUSHED OUT TWO MONTHS AFTER THE REPORT IN JULY; WITH OUT REGARD OF HER PROFESSIONALISM, HARD WORK AND DEDICATION. WHAT TYPE OF SERVICE IS OFFERED THERE NOW MANY PONDER? I CAN ONLY TESTIFY FOR THE ACTIONS OF THOSE WORKING THERE DURING MY EMPLOYMENT. DURING WHICH TIME IT WAS ALLOWED FOR EMPLOYEE’S TO A DRINK ALCOHOL AND SMOKING DURING SHIFT AND ON PREMISE. THIS IS OBVIOUSLY ILLEGAL IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON… IN MY OPINION THE OWNERS AND EMPLOYEE’S ARE COWARDS. THEIR CONVERSATIONS ARE CONDUCTED WITH THE INTENT TO DEMEAN OTHERS. ALTHOUGH NONE OF THEM HAVE THE BALLS TO SAY WHAT THEY THINK TO YOUR FACE!!!! BEST OF LUCK TO YOU AS I AM SURE YOU ALL WILL NEED IT.