Roslyn, Washington · Founded 1889 · Building: 1898–99
Roslyn’s historic Brick Saloon traces its story to an 1889 tavern and served as a prominent Northern Exposure exterior.
The Brick Saloon is an operating bar and grill at the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and North First Street in Roslyn, Washington. The business says John Buffo and Peter Giovanni opened a tavern there in 1889 and rebuilt it as The Brick in 1898; a Central Washington University archival description dates the present brick saloon to 1898–99 and records its construction with 45,000 Roslyn-made bricks.
The Brick Saloon says John Buffo and Peter Giovanni opened a tavern at this location in Roslyn.
Source: The Brick Saloon, “About Us.”
According to the venue, the tavern was rebuilt with 45,000 bricks and took the name The Brick.
Source: The Brick Saloon, “About Us.”
An archival description held by Central Washington University dates the Brick Saloon building to 1898–99 and identifies Peter Giovanini as its builder.
Source: Central Washington University ScholarWorks, “Roslyn Brick Saloon,” 1900 photograph description.
During national Prohibition, local reporting describes the venue as operating as a soda fountain and café; claims of tunnel-based liquor traffic remain folklore rather than established fact.
Source: 1889 Magazine, “Washington’s Oldest Pub,” 2021.
Roslyn became the principal exterior setting for Northern Exposure; the Brick’s exterior appeared as the town watering hole, while some interior Brick Tavern scenes were shot in a Redmond studio.
Source: Roslyn Historical Museum, “Northern Exposure”; 1889 Magazine, “Washington’s Oldest Pub,” 2021.
Every claim gets rated. A business's own website can never earn "documented."
The Brick, local tourism coverage, and other writers regularly make this claim, and the venue traces its history to an 1889 tavern. But the evidence reviewed does not independently document uninterrupted operation through every period, and reporting acknowledges competing state-oldest claims. The title should be presented as unresolved rather than settled.
The venue describes a still-operating 23-foot running-water spittoon, and a feature article independently reports the unusual water feature. The reviewed sources do not establish its installation date or provide a formal historic-structure inventory for it.
Roslyn was used for the series’ exterior filming, and the Brick’s exterior appeared as the fictional town watering hole. The Roslyn Historical Museum specifies that some interior Brick Tavern scenes were filmed in a studio in Redmond, Washington.
A local feature recounts the tunnel story but explicitly says that no one knows for sure how the tunnels were used. It should be treated as local folklore, not verified evidence of illegal alcohol distribution.
The Brick Saloon’s current building was constructed in 1889.
The venue traces its tavern history to 1889, but the present brick building is described by archival and historical sources as dating to 1898 or 1898–99.
Source: Central Washington University ScholarWorks, “Roslyn Brick Saloon”; HistoryLink, “Roslyn — Thumbnail History.”
Northern Exposure filmed the interior of The Brick Saloon on location.
The Brick’s exterior was used in Roslyn, but the Roslyn Historical Museum says that some interior Brick Tavern scenes were filmed in a studio in Redmond, Washington.
Source: Roslyn Historical Museum, “Northern Exposure.”
The Brick remains a working gathering place rather than only a preserved set piece: it operates as a bar and restaurant while drawing interest from Roslyn’s coal-mining history, its distinctive bar fixtures, and Northern Exposure visitors. The historical record supports the building’s late-1890s origins and its television-era visibility, while some popular details—especially uninterrupted bar continuity and Prohibition tunnel activity—need more archival proof.
The Brick Saloon traces its story to a tavern that the business says John Buffo and Peter Giovanni opened in Roslyn in 1889. The venue says the tavern was rebuilt as The Brick in 1898, while a Central Washington University archival description dates the present brick building to 1898–99. The saloon later became a recognizable Northern Exposure exterior, although some interior scenes associated with the Brick were filmed in a Redmond studio.
The Brick Saloon is widely promoted as Washington’s oldest continuously operating bar or saloon, with an asserted lineage to 1889. The evidence reviewed supports that early origin story and the late-1890s building, but does not independently prove uninterrupted bar operation across every period or conclusively resolve competing Washington claims. Its state-oldest title is therefore unresolved.
The Brick’s exterior was used prominently in Roslyn’s Northern Exposure location filming. The Roslyn Historical Museum says that some interior Brick Tavern scenes were instead filmed at a studio in Redmond, Washington, so it is inaccurate to say all interior bar scenes were shot inside The Brick.
The Brick’s Prohibition tunnel story is local folklore, not established history. A 2021 feature reported that the venue operated as a soda fountain and café during Prohibition but said that no one knows for sure whether nearby tunnels were used to bring in or ship out liquor.
100 W Pennsylvania Ave, Roslyn, WA 98941
(509) 649-2643
The Brick operates as a bar and restaurant; its official site lists food, drinks, and regular live music, though hours may vary.