Brown Lantern Ale House

The Brown Lantern Ale House at 412 Commercial Avenue opened in 1933, weeks after Washington voters ended Prohibition, and it is the longest standing bar in Anacortes. The building itself dates to the 1890s. The Rogers family owns it, Cheryl and Hal with their son Casey, and it has settled into the role of the town's living room and the place people wait out a ferry.

Breakfast runs every morning from 7 until noon, and the rest of the day is burgers that have taken multiple Skagit Valley best burger awards, fish and chips, oyster shooters, beer battered prawns, Reubens and street tacos, with blueberry cheesecake and apple pie to finish. There is live music every weekend, trivia with Boston Bob on Tuesday nights, and a heated patio and beer garden where dogs are welcome.

The chili cook off is the Lantern's own holiday. The 23rd edition ran in February 2026, the winning recipe goes on the menu for a year and is judged partly on how well it sits on a burger, and this year's champion was The Dark Side, cooked by Casey Rogers himself. Open until midnight seven days a week.