The ‘Cheap Bastard’s’ guide to Seattle, Ballard

Humor writer and Wedgwood resident David Volk released “The Cheap Bastard’s Guide to Seattle,” the latest travel book in a national series targeted at not only tourists, but locals looking to have fun without breaking the bank.

“I think it’s for everyone in Seattle,” Volk said while relaxing at Ravenna’s Espresso Express. “Times are tough, and it doesn’t look like things are changing anytime soon. It’s really all about doing the things you’d already do for less, and working within the system while having a good time doing it.”

After the series received commercial success in New York, Chicago and Boston, Globe Pequot Press decided to tackle the Northwest.

“We needed an insider’s perspective for the book,” Editorial Director Amy Lyons said by phone from Guilford, Connecticut. “This one is very much for the person that lives in Seattle.”

“I’m the perfect person to do this book because I know how to pinch pennies till they scream,” declared Volk, who makes his living as a freelance journalist. “I wrote about what I’ve been doing for years — surviving on cheap haircuts and happy hours.”

A resident of Seattle for the last 20 years, Volk highlighted some of his favorite happy hours in Ballard:
• Hattie’s Hat at 5231 Ballard Ave. N.W.: I’m not sure who Hattie is, but she has a great old dive bar that appeals to old school Ballard fishermen and blue-collar workers as well as the hipsters…The stakes are raised during the late night happy hour on Monday through Thursday when the apps are…$1.50 fish tacos, $3.25 salmon quesadillas, and around $2 for a pound of fries with tartar sauce (pg.87).
• Moshi Moshi Sushi at 5324 Ballard Ave.: It’s not every day you can get cheap sushi, Pabst Blue Ribbon, and inexpensive sake all at the same place…The selection includes tiger rolls for $2.95, California rolls for $3.95, PBR in cans for $2, and small sake for $1.95 (pg.90).
• The Hi-Life at 5425 Russell Ave. N.W.: This Ballard favorite is owned by the same company as Endolyne Joes and the 5 Spot, so the concepts are the same. Everything on happy hour and late night menu is $3 including onion rings, small wood fired pizzas, and sliders as well as draft beers, house wines, and well drinks.

“I love writing about the happy hours,” Volk said with a huge grin.

(Tyler Steele is an intern for our sister site, PhinneyWood. He is a journalism student at the University of Washington.)