Accessibility Review: Ballard Beer Company

Contact Info

Pros

Accessible Restrooms

Two single‐occupancy, gender‐neutral restrooms that are wheelchair accessible.

Helpful Staff

A super‐friendly staff that will gladly carry your beer to wherever you’re sitting (you just have to ask).

Smooth Flooring

Concrete floors and wide‐open spaces that make it easy to move around.

Easy Entry

The front door is usually propped open so it’s easy to enter and exit.

Dog Friendly

You can bring your dog (service or otherwise)! There’s a water bowl for your thirsty pup and the bartenders often have treats behind the counter.

Cons

Poor Seating Accessibility

The seating on the main floor consists of the the bar (standard high‐top bar with bar stools) and several long picnic tables. This means that you’ll be stuck sitting at the end of one of the tables since the benches consist of a single continuous piece of wood. For the most part, this won’t be a problem, but you may have to ask folks to scoot down a bit to accommodate your wheelchair.

Upstairs Loft

They have an awesome loft upstairs with small tables an nice couches up stairs. Unfortunately, it’s up stairs.

Hand‐written Menu

The tap list for Ballard Beer is on a hand-written chalkboard several feet off the ground (see their instagram). If you have any kind of visual impairment, you may find it hard to read. If this is the case, you can ask the bartender for a recommendation based on the kinds of beers you like to drink.

Noise

Generally speaking, all bars are noisy. However, because of the upstairs loft, Ballard Beer has extremely high ceilings which easily amplifie the sound of an already noisy crowd to levels that some folks may find uncomfortable.

Verdict

Ballard Beer Company is an awesome place that will do all they can to accommodate you, even if you can’t check out the loft. If you’re looking for a place to drink, I highly recommend them.