The Crocodile
A landmark Seattle live-music venue formerly known as the Crocodile Cafe.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
The Crocodile is a live-music and entertainment venue in Seattle, Washington, best known for its role in the city's alternative, grunge, indie-rock, and broader concert culture. It opened on April 30, 1991, as the Crocodile Cafe, founded by Stephanie Dorgan in a 550-capacity building at 2200 2nd Avenue in the Belltown neighborhood. The club rapidly became an important stop for local musicians and touring artists, helping establish a setting in which emerging Seattle acts could appear alongside nationally recognized performers. During its first operating period, the venue hosted artists associated with the Pacific Northwest music scene, including Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, Mudhoney, Mad Season, Green Day, R.E.M., Sleater-Kinney, Death Cab for Cutie, Harvey Danger, and many others. Its reputation was not limited to grunge: the program also encompassed punk, alternative rock, folk, roots music, experimental music, pop, hip-hop, and comedy. Mad Season played its first concert there on October 12, 1994, using the temporary name The Gacy Bunch. The venue also became part of Seattle's wider cultural record through appearances in the films Singles and Georgia. The original Crocodile Cafe closed unexpectedly on December 15, 2007, after Dorgan's divorce from R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck, who had become a partner in the business. A new ownership group involving Alice in Chains drummer Sean Kinney, Alice in Chains manager Susan Silver, Portugal. The Man guitarist Eric Howk, Peggy Curtis, and Capitol Hill Block Party co-founder Marcus Charles acquired the establishment. Following renovation, the venue reopened on March 21, 2009, under the shorter name The Crocodile. Free preview shows were held on March 19 and 20, and Soundgarden performed there shortly afterward during Tom Morello's Justice Tour. The Crocodile's profile was reinforced by outside recognition. Rolling Stone ranked it seventh among the best clubs in the United States in 2013, while The Guardian placed it among Seattle's top live-music venues. The club continued to stage special events, including an Alice in Chains retrospective and secret concert in 2018 connected to the band's Rainier Fog album campaign. The venue temporarily closed in March 2020 because of Washington State's COVID-19 restrictions. In November of that year, its owners announced plans to move into the former Sailors' Union of the Pacific lodge at 2505 1st Avenue and Wall Street. The new site, supported by a 20-year lease and substantially larger floor area, reopened on December 1, 2021. The expanded operation includes a 750-capacity main showroom, the 300-capacity Madame Lou's room, a cafe, restaurant bars, 17 hotel rooms, and the Here-After, a smaller theater and comedy club. The relocation broadened The Crocodile from a single concert club into a multi-room hospitality and entertainment complex while retaining its identity as a Seattle music institution.
History
The Crocodile began as the Crocodile Cafe on April 30, 1991, when Stephanie Dorgan opened a 550-capacity club at 2200 2nd Avenue in Seattle's Belltown district. Its first bill featured The Posies and Love Battery. The venue quickly became a central platform for Seattle's alternative and independent music communities, while also attracting touring acts from across the United States and abroad. Its programming crossed genre boundaries, encompassing grunge, punk, indie rock, folk, roots, experimental music, pop, and comedy. The club's early history is closely connected with the Seattle music explosion of the 1990s. Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, Mudhoney, Mad Season, Green Day, R.E.M., the Strokes, Beastie Boys, Cheap Trick, Yoko Ono, Sleater-Kinney, Death Cab for Cutie, Built to Spill, Dinosaur Jr., and many other artists appeared there. Mad Season played its first concert at the venue on October 12, 1994, billed under the name The Gacy Bunch. In 1996, Popllama Records issued Bite Back: Live at the Crocodile Cafe, a compilation documenting performances by several artists associated with the club. The venue also entered popular culture. The Crocodile Cafe appeared in Cameron Crowe's 1992 film Singles, and scenes for the 1995 film Georgia were shot there. Harvey Danger selected the club for its final performance during the original era. Dorgan later married R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck, who became a partner in the business and occasionally performed there with The Minus 5. After Dorgan and Buck divorced in 2006, the club closed on December 15, 2007. The closure generated uncertainty about whether the institution would survive. A new ownership group consisting of musicians and Seattle-area business figures acquired the establishment, renovated it, and reopened it as The Crocodile on March 21, 2009. The reopening was preceded by two free preview nights featuring local bands. Soundgarden made its first appearance at the revived venue on March 24, 2009, performing a short set with Tad Doyle handling vocals during Tom Morello's Justice Tour. The revived Crocodile continued to host both established artists and newer performers. In 2013, Rolling Stone ranked it seventh among the best clubs in America, and The Guardian listed it among Seattle's top ten live-music venues. In 2018, Alice in Chains used the venue for an album-related scavenger hunt, pop-up shop, career retrospective, and secret concert. The Crocodile shut temporarily in March 2020 in response to Washington's COVID-19 stay-at-home measures. Rather than simply restore the former site, the ownership group pursued a larger destination. In November 2020, it announced a move to the former Sailors' Union of the Pacific lodge at 2505 1st Avenue and Wall Street, supported by a 20-year lease on a roughly 30,000-square-foot building. The new complex reopened on December 1, 2021. It contains a 750-capacity main showroom, the 300-capacity Madame Lou's room, food and beverage operations, 17 hotel rooms, and the 100-seat Here-After theater and comedy club. The relocation transformed The Crocodile from a single historic club into a broader live-entertainment and hospitality operation while preserving its Seattle-centered musical identity.
- 2021
Expanded venue opens
[1]The Crocodile reopens at its new location with additional performance, hospitality, and food-and-beverage facilities.
- 2020
Relocation announced during pandemic closure
[1]The owners announce plans for a larger multi-room venue at 2505 1st Avenue.
- 2013
National and local recognition
[1]Rolling Stone ranks The Crocodile seventh among the best clubs in the United States; The Guardian also recognizes it as a leading Seattle venue.
- 2009
The Crocodile reopens
[1]New owners reopen the renovated club under the shorter name The Crocodile on March 21.
- 2007
Original venue closes
[1]The Crocodile Cafe closes on December 15 after its original 16-year run.
- 1996
Live compilation documents the venue
[1]Popllama Records releases Bite Back: Live at the Crocodile Cafe, featuring performances by several artists associated with the club.
- 1994
Mad Season plays its first concert
[1]The band performs its first concert at the venue under the temporary name The Gacy Bunch.
- 1991
Crocodile Cafe opens
[1]Stephanie Dorgan opens the 550-capacity Crocodile Cafe at 2200 2nd Avenue in Seattle's Belltown neighborhood.
Products and positioning
An independent, artist-focused Seattle entertainment venue rooted in the Pacific Northwest music scene and expanded into a multi-room live-events and hospitality destination.
Live music venue · 2021
The Crocodile main showroom
The principal performance room at the relocated Crocodile, with capacity for approximately 750 people. It hosts touring and local musicians across rock, alternative, indie, pop, hip-hop, and other genres.
Live music venue · 2021
Madame Lou's
A downstairs performance room with capacity for approximately 300 people. It provides a smaller-scale setting for concerts and emerging artists within The Crocodile's expanded complex.
Theater and comedy club · 2021
The Here-After
A roughly 100-seat theater and comedy space added as part of the new 1st Avenue complex, extending The Crocodile's programming beyond concerts.
Hospitality and food service · 2021
Crocodile hospitality complex
The relocated operation includes a cafe, restaurant bars, and 17 hotel rooms, making the venue a combined entertainment, dining, and lodging destination.
Marketing campaigns
- 2018Alice in Chains Rainier Fog secret-show campaign
Seattle
Alice in Chains hid signed copies of Rainier Fog around Seattle as clues and access points for a limited secret concert at The Crocodile. The venue also hosted a free pop-up shop and retrospective devoted to the band's history.
Outcome. The campaign culminated in a secret performance and an on-site exhibition featuring photographs, memorabilia, equipment, and limited merchandise.
Brand decisions
2020
Relocation to a larger multi-use buildingStrategyBackground
The venue temporarily closed during the COVID-19 pandemic and the owners sought a more expansive operating model.
Action taken
The ownership group secured a 20-year lease on the former Sailors' Union of the Pacific lodge at 2505 1st Avenue and planned a multi-room entertainment and hospitality complex.
Aftermath
The expanded Crocodile opened in December 2021 with two concert rooms, a theater and comedy club, food and beverage facilities, and hotel rooms.
2009
Acquisition and reopening under new ownershipM&ABackground
The original Crocodile Cafe had closed in 2007, creating uncertainty over the future of the Seattle venue.
Action taken
A group including Sean Kinney, Susan Silver, Eric Howk, Peggy Curtis, and Marcus Charles acquired, renovated, and relaunched the club as The Crocodile.
Aftermath
The venue reopened in March 2009 and continued operating as a prominent Seattle concert club.
Sources1 sources
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