The Boozehound Diaries: Havana Daydreamin'

The bar at the Havana is perfect for scheming your life away, but the plush booths along the wide expanse of dance floor are nothing to sneeze at either. (Though frequently you have to put up with the Stranger's editorial staff camped in them; they're fans.) Quentin Ertel (formerly of the Viceroy) knows his ambiance. In the heart of the scrappy Pike/Pine corridor, he's created a bar that makes you feel like one sophisticated martini the moment you step inside.

Stepping inside, incidentally, involves spotting the black awning poking out into the parking lot mid-block, across the street from Caffe Vita. It's a little roundabout, but the way it works, you've mentally left the street by the time you make your way inside.

As the Weekly and Citysearch reviews note, this is first and foremost a drinking establishment. You can have a pizza from Via Tribunali delivered (seriously, you can), but if not, you're presented with potato chips (Tim's Cascade, we think). We'd prefer plantain chips, if that's how it's going to be.

Happy hour is 4-7pm. Two easy ways to make the shift to island-time are the Signature Move (Sauza Hornitos tequila, grapefuit, hint o' lime) and Hotel St. George (Herradura tequila, orange, lime, and pomegranate), the last being incredibly lovely to look at.

One drink we'd steer you away from ordering, oddly enough, is a mojito. We've had different bartenders make them there, but each one has tried to grind the mint into a jelly, leaving little strings of mint to festoon front teeth. (Muddling should just bruise the mint to release its flavor.) We also tried an El Floridita (white rum, grapefruit, lime, Maraska maraschino liqueur) next, and found ourselves once again repelled by anything labeled "maraschino." (For the rest of the drink menu, check after the jump.)

Sadly for salsa enthusiasts, while there's music on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday nights, it's DJ-style -- maybe that will change if enough salsa dancers descend upon the place, and why wouldn't they? It's one of the few places in Seattle where salsa fashion would fit right in.