Ballardblog.com

If you missed the Tiger Tail’s Iron Bartender contest, never fear. You’ll have another chance to offer up your liver to the spirit of competition on Thursday, February 12 at the Hi-Life.

The’ll have a menu of specialty cocktails, one concocted by each bartender, and a panel of judges, who will start sipping and hand down their judgment beginning at 9 p.m. The mixologist responsible for the winning drink will get a paid day off work (which they’ll probably spend unofficially judging other bartenders’ concoctions). There will also be a People’s Choice Award to the winner of the most-ordered drink of the night.

Here is the charming Kathleen Manley, who has dreamed up a lively combination of gin, sake, cucumber, Thai basil and lime:

And just to get one more plug in (I admit it, I used to work here), don’t forget about the Closing Bell Blues special they’ve been running at dinner Sunday through Thursday, where the price of that night’s Blue Plate Special corresponds to the day’s closing numbers on Wall Street at the end of trading. That means that if the Dow closes at 8650, dinner costs $8.65. The worse the economy, the cheaper your pork roast!

Root Table opens its doors to the public Friday night, and after a soft opening performance Wednesday that won chef/owner Kalan Intawong a prolonged round of applause, the menu seems to be promising.

The Asian fusion offerings are heavy on Thai influence, light on the portion size, and always under $10. The crowd pleasers were the Ménage à Thai, a trio of yellow, green and red curries with jasmine rice and choice of meat for dipping; the Roasted Duck Spring Rolls with spicy peanut sauce; and the Spicy Sausage Capellini with fresh Thai basil. Everyone just felt sorry for Double-Fisted Duck, a poor creature whose time spent marinating in dark beer and Chinese wine should endow it with great glory, but couldn’t escape the giggles brought on by its less than fortunate name.

There’s a full bar with a brief cocktail menu, a well-selected wine list with ample choices from local producers, and a gloriously large 22-ounce bottle of Thailand’s famous Chang beer, which is a $4.50 no-brainer.

And if you feel inspired by the woodsy décor, there’s lots more where that came from at Intawong’s adjoining home furnishings store, Enlighten.

Root Table

2213 N.W. Market St.

I think it must be some new inverse law of the universe: every time a Scandinavian in Ballard dies, he is reincarnated as a pizza joint. There’s no doubt that the atomic-grade bomb of pizza restaurants exploding in the neighborhood lately has left every Ballardite scratching their heads trying to figure out just how all this Italian-ness has gotten into the water, not to mention trying to figure out how they all these new places expect to distinguish themselves from one another.

So here’s what’s different about the one opening today, ‘Zaw, at Leary and Market: the pizza here, at least for today and tomorrow, is FREE. And, instead of ordering it up all hot and melty, what you get here is a made-to-order unbaked pie that you take home and cook yourself.

On Monday, December 22nd and Tuesday, December 23rd, the first 100 people in the door after 4:30 p.m.  will get a free half-size pizza and Jones Soda to take home. The Seattle based mini-chain (with two other locations on Capitol Hill and South Lake Union), boasts 100 percent organic crust made from Bob’s Red Mill flours, in traditional, whole wheat or gluten-free versions. The signature sauce is made from organic ruby red tomatoes, and the beverages run the local gamut from Fish Tale Organic Ales to Snoqualmie organic wines and take-home six packs of other microbrews.

You can even order your pie online and have it delivered by bicycle. Just remember you still have to tip the delivery guy when it shows up cold.