Tractor Tavern

Tractor rules. Been going to Tractor for 10+ years. Anytime a band I want to see books here I go if I can. It can get pretty crowded, but I love this place. Great neighborhood, great space, efficient service. Excellent venue for small live shows.

Get up close and personal to your favorite live acts! Seriously, the stage is so low and shallow you can reach out and touch ‘em (don’t though, I’m sure it’s distracting). Sound quality is great, even the sound check which sounded crystal clear from the street. There’s even seating around the wall so you don’t have to commit to standing the entire night. They also post a lot of flyers around Ballard so you might be able to snag a free souvenir ‘poster’ the morning after.

Came here for a concert so just to clarify, this is about the venue NOT the show.
Pros: It’s a really great intimate space for live performance and allows the audience to get right up close to the stage, and thus the artists can get really personal with their audience as they feel so inclined. There seemed to be enough separation between the bar-​area and the main floor to allow for all-​ages shows with minors in attendance, while keeping it open enough in the room that the bar-​goers didn’t seem totally closed-​off.
Cons: Not enough seating!!! And this was a BIG con for me. God forbid you actually get tired and need to sit and rest at any point during the show, because other than the stools at the bar and a handfull of benches along ONE wall, there is NOTHING. I’m sure that’s handy for their square-​dances, but otherwise, people better be willing to share or they’ll be making friends with the floor.
Oh and, I recommend bringing your concert earplugs because, although I def don’t mind a loud concert, in a small space with acoustics like this, there’s just not a lot of places for those sound waves to go other than crashing back over the audience. Jussayin, it can be a little jarring if you’re not prepared.

Tractor is fun, as long as you know this is a classic dive bar that you are going to. Can’t beat the sound system so its great for live music. I was disappointed the beer prices went up at midnight from $ 7 a beer to $ 11.

This place was awesome!!! I will definitely book here again!
The sound guy was easy to work with. Super nice guy. The door guy super cool and nice. 2 drink tickets per band. Load in was easy as pie. They do a pre show sound check at 6pm.
There is no food available but Hattie’s Hat is close by and offers a discount for bands playing at Tractor.
The room sound was great! I’m surprised at how many people were there for a tuesday night. We will be back!

Great venue for live music and a nice cold beer. The place hosts events ranging from a David Bowie cover band to a local blue grass band. The crowd tends to be mid 20 – 30’s locals who just want to let their hair down but not get wasted on a Friday night. Bouncers and Bartenders are friendly and efficient and the crowd is friendly.

Great live music (Cash’d Out) and fun evening at the Tractor Tavern! Be prepared to stand as seating is limited. Great bartenders!

Tractor Tavern is a great place to be, I like the music there, there band is awesome… I make it a point to be there if I am in Ballard.

The one, the only, Tractor! Always great venue to see and hear great artists! Damn good beer too!

What sets Tractor Tavern apart from your standard bars:
— Live Music
— Nice Bartenders (seriously!!)
— Even better bouncers
— Fun crowd
I was most impressed with the bouncers’ reaction time to an incident where a man had spilled beer on my friend’s leather jacket against the chair back, as he was making his attempt to sit in her seat while she was away. He was politely asked to leave, and that someone had that seat, and became very hostile. The bouncers came out from all sides to defuse the situation.
We purchased our tickets online to avoid any potential lines, but throughout the Friday night, the line seemed pretty light.

Kind of a dive tavern that hosts great bands. Not enough seating. I am too old and too short to appreciate a show that requires standing. Sometimes they set up chairs for shows, but not often enough. Most shows are standing shows. I try to get therie early so I can get a chair. They let people smoke in the doorway and the door guy smokes there too. This causes the room to fill with smoke. I won’t be able to take my asthmatic wife there again.
I’ll still go because some of the obscure bands I like don’t play anywhere else within reasonable driving distance
Adequate drink selections, not much food choice. They have warm nuts.

Looking for a great spot to see a band in Seattle?
The tractor is a great small club. Outfitted like your grandfathers barn, The vibe is very laid-​back and fun here.
There isn’t too much seating but we arrived half an hour after the doors opened on a Wednesday and snagged the cushioned bench right by the stage.
For $ 15 we saw an opener that was better than a lot of main acts that we’ve seen, and a headline act from Australia that was outstanding.
They had four IPAs on tap and about 10 taps total as well as a full bar. Not much for food except for peanuts so eat something before you get here.
Highly recommended. Come here and have a great time.

I went here last Monday for their square dancing night. I was actually dragged here by some friends of mine expecting to be bored or uninterested in square dancing. Square dancing makes me think of middle school, braces, sweaty palms and general awkwardness.
I could not have been more wrong. It was $ 7 per person but completely worth it. You can go with a partner or not. Half of our group had someone to dance with; the other half took turns dancing with others. There are many people who have never been before and others who are veteran square dancers who go to square dancing conventions.
I suck at dancing but the directions the person on the microphone gave made me feel accomplished and good at what I was doing. It was also fun because each dance was different so everyone started on the same playing field.
You definitely will get a work out, get to meet people, and feel confident (or at least not stupid) in your dancing abilities.
There are also cups and a do it yourself area for water so you don’t even have to bother the bar tender.
Side note: the women’s restroom has hilarious graffiti. Check it out :).

Great place to see a show in ballard, be advised that concerts do sell out here, so try to get there on the earlier side. That being side, they leave a reasonable amount of space, so you shouldn’t feel too cramped inside.

I am still catching up on my local reviews, therefore, this review was delayed for various reasons (still playing catch up on various reviews) however, better late than never. Came here to see 90’s musical icon Juliana Hatfield. The show was good (review is on my music blog and print publication). The bar itself is… a dumpster dive of a bar with character. Cheap beers. I don’t drink, the bestie does and he can vouch for the cheap beer in taste and cost. We saw Juliana in both Portland and Seattle. Customer service was decent for the bar. Not a lot of room to watch bands but Juliana made us forget where we were.

Good selection of drinks Non-​alcoholic and alcoholic!
Two cider options Seattle Cider dry and Anthem Cider. Anthem cider is the sweeter of the two, both were decently priced.
Small stage, standing room only with exception of a few seats. Can fill up very fast with no designated clear zones for beer run traffic.
Nice venue for personal and community driven show. Went to benefit-​ish show on ⁰³⁄₀₃. Star Anna, the Young Evils, and the Rockfords. All very energetic, seemed to have ties to venue or staff working it. Great place to watch a show and to feel the high school going to a rock show nostalgia.

Inexpensive with great bands.
Good acoustics.
Bench seating around the edges of the room which is nice when you’ve been walking Seattle for several days.
Saw Mother of Pearl there and they were so good.

A haunting tune plays on the pre set PA in the empty 2 room «Tractor»… This is rumored to be Ballards best music venue but the 8.00 show has a sparse turnout… A few scruffy hipsters all with big rimmed glasses clutch their PBR tall boys for dear life… The anticipation for this unpretentious show is less than vibrant with their understated passive aggressiveness.
A band playing for no one but me may sound exclusive… But it is only 7.45…

SQUARE DANCING — HOLY FUN! But FYI — square dancing is some serious, complicated business. Add alochol and it’s just swinging your partner round and round.
Came here for the first time tonight to celebrate a birthday on Square Dancing night. It was not packed, but enough people for it to be a good time. Lots of space for dancing, great band, fun «instructor» dude.
Bartender was awesome and friendly. Had a couple of really good ciders (Seattle Cider and Anthem), though my husband opted for a ‘rita, which was strong and tasty. Loved the décor and wished somehow I would have gotten married here. LOL. Maybe that was the alcohol talking…
Not too divey, but just enough ;) Will definitely come back — lots of fun to be had here.

My first Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) ever! I was invited by friends. I was not going to join, but drove in front of the tavern and got a parking spot right across street! I was like awesome! I went without knowing what was happening. All I knew was everyone was happy, dancing, and kind of drunk!
It was a concert venue and playing Mardi Gras style music, which is very interesting to me. It was very upbeat and really made me super happy. And, I can’t believe I only had a cup of water still being kinda high. It’s the music! It only cost me $ 10 by the door. And, the main show started at 10:30, which was late for me but I sucked it up. I was glad I stayed and had such a good experience.
Bartenders are friendly! Imagine water was all I ordered (it’s free) and they didn’t yell at me! Their bathroom! Oh my… It may be just slightly better than the bathroom in Baranoff if you know what I am talking about!
If I am lucky all the time with parking, I’d be here more often for sure!