Marine Room, Seattle 1961
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The Marine Room was an iconic restaurant and lounge located inside the Olympic Hotel in downtown Seattle, Washington.
In 1949, Washington State voters passed Initiative 171, officially legalizing the sale of ‘liquor by the drink.’ This historic policy shift ended a post-Prohibition era where hard liquor could only be consumed in private clubs. The Marine Room made history as the first establishment to serve liquor by the glass and led the way in transforming Seattle’s nightlife scene forever.
It must have been quite a place. Living Marine Murals by L. C. Dillaway represented one of the largest private collections of fish in the United States. The tanks contained over 50 varieties of fish.
The largest inhabitant of the aquarium was the Leporinus Fasciatus, a torpedo-shaped fish marked with horizontal stripes, while the smallest was the Neon Tetra, a little fellow who reached only one inch in length at full growth.
Other fish inhabitants were the Scat, a hardy variety native to the Indo-Pacific, so tame they would eat out of one’s hand. Another singular fish was the Astronotu whose nickname was Oscar and who swam to the top of the tank to be petted. Yet another was the rare Archer, a silver, partially black-striped fish from the East Indies who’ shot’ flying insects with a spray of water and then consumed them.
The Plecostomus, with its sucker mouth, was the clean-up man and kept the tank plants, glass and bottoms clean of algae.
Acquatic plants, like the fish inhabitants, came from all corners of the world. Amazon Sword Plants, popular for freshwater aquariums, were in the center of most tanks.
The fish were attended by a permanent staff member who fed them daily with food that included crab meat and Brine Shrimp.
The Marine Room closed in 1974, and retail shops and updated hotel common spaces now occupy the space where the Marine Room and its sister venue, the Golden Lion, once stood. The Olympic Hotel is now called the Fairmont Olympic Hotel.
This lovely mid-century menu cover is from 1961.
Each order includes a print of the interior menu.
All printed in USA.
