(Image: The Canterbury)
There’s a new bar in the space The Canterbury has called home for 45 years on Capitol Hill.
But the old ale house isn’t going anywhere.
The new bar? It’s inside, secreted away behind a hidden wall.
Planned to open this weekend, The Apothecary is hoped to be a quieter, darker, more intimate companion to the sports bar and pool table scene with a new space carved out of the old pub’s north end.
The changes come three years after owner Ryan Lewis, who also owned the now shuttered Amber in Belltown and is not that Ryan Lewis, took over the Canterbury’s latest incarnation on 15th Ave E in an overhauled space in Community Roots Housing’s affordable Fredonia Apartments building.
2020 was a challenging year for Lewis and the Canterbury as the bar was targeted with property damage following its owner’s comments about the Black Lives Matter protests when he said looters should be shot. Last summer, Lewis told CHS he regretted the statement. This week, he said he understands if people continue to refuse to patronize his bar.
“Those people are still taken aback, I understand. You don’t have to come in,” he said. “We’re always going to be a family friendly, fun place. We won’t stand for looters, rioters, and those who break the law.”
This week, Lewis said, his challenge is staffing and finding workers to open the new space.
“We’ll have cocktails, small plates, a quieter, darker, more intimate vibe. Still an “olde English” feel but with infused cocktails, and interesting drinks,” Lewis said.
The hope is for The Apothecary to be a kind of “worst kept secret” hidden away inside the pub. You can also expect to see the trend in more Capitol Hill food and drink venues. Pike rum joint Rumba just opened its subterranean addition Inside Passage this summer.
The Canterbury, meanwhile, will stick to its 45-year tested recipe of beer, booze, free pool, and lots of TVs. “That part’s not going anywhere,” Lewis said.
The Canterbury and The Apothecary can be found at 534 15th Ave E. You can learn more at thecanterburyalehouse.com.
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Too bad the Canterbury’s owner is a shitbag who thinks BLM caused the police riots and the protesters “should be shot.” As if the crime of turning a beloved neighborhood dive bar into a characterless bro-bar wasn’t bad enough.
He specifically said _Looters_ should be shot. Not protesters. But feel free to get your moral high kicks in by twisting what he said.
Looters shouldn’t be shot either, trash man
“Those people are still taken aback, I understand. You don’t have to come in,” he said. “We’re always going to be a family friendly, fun place. We won’t stand for looters, rioters, and those who break the law.”
Yuck. Not that I’ve had any interest in going here since he ruined the Canterbury in the first place.
Sounds like a place for devil people
The Canterbury sucks and they should have changed the name when new owners took over. How many years has it been? I’m still bitter.
This is the first I’m hearing of the owner’s view that looters should be shot. Maybe those who promote violence shouldn’t own property or businesses, either.
y’all are fucking juvenile. The guy took a stand, he spoke out. He has way more guts than any of you on here condemning him for believing in property rights. How would you feel if your house or apartment was looted? How do you feel when your window is smashed and your car is broken into? Do you celebrate the burglars or damn them?
Spot on! Everyone has an opinion when it isn’t happening to them directly. Smashing some business window and stealing stuff? It’s angry people for a cause so we should turn a blind eye. Not the same story when it’s happening personally to people. You are correct in your comments.
I’m sure they’re horrified by other phrases too, like telling someone to break a leg, kill two birds with one stone, and zip it.