The Watering Hole: Mac’s Triangle Pub is in West Seattle (9454 Delridge Way S.W.), literally a stone’s throw from White Center, since it’s just across Roxbury from Rat City proper. If you can’t actually throw a stone that far, you suck.
The Atmosphere: It’s inside a neat old building which, as the name implies, wedges out from the corner of Delridge Way Southwest and Southwest Roxbury Street. The door to the bar is in the apex of the Triangle, and when you step inside the whole room spreads out before you, splayed and inviting like your mom’s thighs.
To the right as you walk in is the bar, running the entire length of the room. It’s a cool space with an antique wooden fridge. A large zinc tub holds what look like enough PBR tallboys to drown a battalion of hipsters. There’s also a shrine to the Seahawks, composed mainly of NFL T-shirts stapled to the wall. The best one reads: “Rawk out with your Hawk out” and depicts a silhouette of a man with the Seahawks logo protruding suggestively from his crotch. Translation: “DISPLAY YOUR PENIS TO PASSERSBY!!! “
The bar is very lengthy, with plenty of stools, but it’s occupied by a bunch of dudes so scruffy-looking they make Motörhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister look like an Exeter grad. These dudes strategically occupy every other seat, and don’t want to scoot over even though they’re talking to the dude next to them, because you wouldn’t want it to seem like you’re a pussy or something. So we crowded at the very end of the bar closest to the door, next to the rusty iron statue.
There’s karaoke at Mac’s Triangle on Fridays and Saturdays. If you’re into karaoke, it’s a great scene, since most of the participants are usually quite good. But if you detest karaoke, then you’ll be pretty pissed: Karaoke at Mac’s Triangle is very popular and very busy. It can be a clusterfuck. In fact, karaoke nights at Mac’s Triangle are among the most clustered of all known fucks.
The Bartender: Bee, who is as busy as the insect whose name she shares. She’s the only one working, and so must prepare the drinks and food. She’s making the “Super Bee,” a gigantic, sloppy sandwich modeled after a Philly cheesesteak, with sautéed mushrooms, onions, and melted Swiss cheese mixed with a half-pound of roast beef.
The Drink: Bee’s favorite drink to make is called the Sunshine Daydreaming. It’s a mixture of Captain Morgan’s Spiced Rum and peach schnapps, with cranberry, orange, and pineapple juices. Unfortunately, Bee sells so many of these things that they ran out of Captain Morgan’s. So we settled for the Ruby Slipper. Composed of Ruby Red Absolut, soda water, 7-Up, and grapefruit juice, the Ruby Slipper is tart, not cloyingly sweet, and deceptively strong. It’s a pearlescent lemony color, and you get an entire pint! At $5.50, it’s quite a bargain for that much top-shelf liquor. The Ruby Slipper tastes like what Four Loko would taste like if Four Loko didn’t already taste like the stuff they use to decontaminate old nuclear reactors.
The Verdict: Mac’s Triangle Pub is a friendly neighborhood hangout. Drinks are cheap—a PBR tallboy is $2.50—and the staff is quietly competent, if a bit harried. Plus, owner Geoffrey “Mac” McElroy is an aspiring local politician. Who knows, maybe one day he’ll run for President! Then you can tell all your friends you drank in this bar owned by this dude who ran for President. That will impress the fuck out of them!
