Bellevue’s Lincoln Square

Used to going out to “areas” of town to find bars like Capitol Hill, Fremont or Belltown, Nick and I tried to do the same thing in Bellevue. After driving around looking for awhile (and making a side trip through the millionaire mansions on Medina), we ended up at Lincoln Square. Lincoln Square is basically the entertainment center for downtown Bellevue and reflects Bellevue’s character or lack thereof quite well.

Lincoln square is a very high-end mall/entertainment complex featuring a huge IMAX cinema, 16 screen regular theatre, Lucky Strike (overpriced bowling), Parlor (huge brand new pool & dance hall), Pearl (night club frequented by the Seahawks) and a variety of smaller bars and restaurants. Nick and I went to the Parlor and played pool for an hour, then spent most of the rest of the night in the dance area.

I was amused by how immaculately clean and nice everything in the building was… there was none of your usual stains, smells or weirdos that you find inside of bars. In the dance area, there were at least three security guards at all times PLUS two uniformed police officers…. all to defend against well-dressed rich kids. When I left and went outside, the streets of Bellevue were equally clean; no bums, whores, bail bond places, or even anyone who made under $40,000 a year. I got a little creeped out by the Big Brother feel of it all. I’m used to Seattle where there are bums everywhere getting drunk and harassing people, random fights, and crazies everywhere. Gotta say though: if I ever have kids they will only be allowed to hang out at places like Lincoln Square lol.