You may have noticed a lull in the Weird over the past few days. That’s because Archie McPhee‘s officially closed their Ballard doors on Thursday, so they could officially open their Wallingford doors tomorrow, Monday June 1st at 9 am (1300 N 45th St, where the liquor store used to be)!
Out on our bike today, we decided to see if we could get a sneak peak, perhaps by flashing our hyperlocal press credentials, or, in a pinch, sneaking in through the heating duct. Fortunately, while the front windows were sealed tight against prying eyes, we caught Shanna, who we met at a Wallingford Chamber meeting a couple months ago, heading in the back door and tagged along.
The inside is full of all the glorious Archie McPhee oddities you remember from Ballard, just piled higher. Fortunately, the nature of what they sell plays well to the crammed quarters: it gives the whole thing a wizard’s attic feel: voodoo dolls, scientific tubing and mannequin heads tucked into drawers and arrayed across towering shelves.
Julia, Aaron, Jeff and crew were hard at work unpacking, on schedule for tomorrow’s opening. There’ll be a free giftie for anyone who visits on opening day, so pop your head in and say hi.
(Thanks John and Kristi for the tip!)
Where are people going to park?
The lot is smaller than Ballard and every time I went it was packed.
Lots of bicycle parking out front.
I’ve probably been to Archie McPhee’s more times than I’ve been to the liquor store, so on balance this is good news for me, but do we now have no liquor store?
No liquor store anymore. Archie’s had/has a sign out front with directions to the nearest, which, ironically, may be the Ballard one on Market a little ways past Archie’s former location down by the locks. There’s also one at U-Village over by the QFC (west of it.)
What I can’t wait to see is the line down to Molly Moon’s on the weekends before Halloween and Christmas.
I’m opening a liquor store in my basement.
Doug, be sure to post the address/map to your basement as soon as you’re ready for customers! 😉
Lots of bicycle parking out front.
ok – i am sure that solves the issue.