Upon the high seas of downtown Bellingham, there is no vessel quite like El Capitan’s Gourmet Sausages, Pretzels and Taproom. Stepping inside the restaurant at 1201 Cornwall Avenue transports you to a world of treasure maps, nautical books and pirate paraphernalia.
Swashbuckling skeletons peer down at customers, while Captain Jack Sparrow’s steely gaze can be found in both lighting décor and a pinball machine. A trove of mustards and condiments await usage on a selection of bun-based meals, from classic hot dogs and Polish sausages to bratwursts, Louisiana hot links and vegan options.
All this is the handiwork of ‘El Capitan’ himself, long-time Bellingham resident Marc Ravaris. The 65-year-old grew up in Vermont and embarked upon his own pirate’s journey after high school, exploring the United States in the latter half of the 1970s. He eventually wound up in Sun Valley, Idaho, where he spent about a year as a self-proclaimed ski bum.
The Path of a Pirate
During his time there, Ravaris kept hearing about a place called Bellingham, Washington. Wanting to attend college and knowing it was home to Western Washington University, he moved here in 1979 and eventually graduated with a bachelor’s of science from Huxley College.
In 1986, Ravaris started an audio business called Mountain Sound Audio Production Services, eventually moving it to Snohomish. But in the early 2000s, pursuing a master’s degree in education saw Ravaris beckoned by Bellingham once more. His goal was to teach English to speakers of other languages, traveling Europe as a visiting professor at various universities.
But one day in late 2002, Ravaris wanted an on-campus hot dog and was unable to find one. Seeing an open table at WWU’s vendor’s row, he put $5,000 on a credit card and quickly started his own hot dog stand. The name for the business came indirectly from friends with whom he sailed aboard his family’s 1972 Irwin sailboat.
“My buddies and I used to go out on the sailboat and, you know, talk bad pirate talk and tell bad pirate jokes,” he says. “Since I was learning Spanish, they started calling me ‘El Capitan.’”
By 2003, Ravaris had sold his audio business to his partner, moved back to Bellingham, and graduated from Western with a master’s focused on English as a Second Language (ESL) and Spanish. But business was booming at his hot dog stand, and Ravaris’ efforts remained focused on El Capitan’s success. During the summers of 2006 and 2007, he even operated a floating hot dog stand at the Bellingham marina called “Dogs on the Dock.”
In the fall of 2007, Ravaris took the next step, opening El Capitan’s ‘Pirate’s Den’ at 1314 Railroad Avenue, in the garage space of the historic Spokane Building next to Hohl Feed & Seed. The business became a staple of downtown eating, especially on late nights and weekends, helping many a woozy pirate steady their booze-soaked bodies with sustenance.
“The style of food has been a perennial favorite,” Ravaris says. “I wanted to find something that was not something that I had to experiment with. I think people will always buy sausages as long as they’re in the right location and presented properly.”
Bounties and Booty for El Capitan
Ravaris closed his WWU stand in 2009, while the Pirate’s Den continued operation until the Spokane Building was sold in early 2018. The sale prompted the closure of the Railroad location and a search for a new port of call.
By May 2018, El Capitan’s was open again on Cornwall Avenue. The move turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as the Railroad space was gutted by fire in February 2019. The Crow’s Nest Taproom, adjacent to the current restaurant and featuring local beers, ciders and occasionally, during the summer, soft-serve ice cream, opened in January 2023.
Though focused mainly on link-based food forms, El Capitan’s has expanded its menu over time, adding pretzels, a pulled pork sandwich and, most recently, a grilled cheese sandwich made with garlic parmesan butter called “The Seven Seas of Grilled Cheese.”
Ravaris greatly enjoys the new sandwich, along with more perennial favorites like the classic hot dog and the “Pirate of the Chilibbean,” the eatery’s chili dog. While El Capitan’s originally sourced its sausage from Hempler’s Foods, the company’s move away from local ownership led to a carefully chosen variety of producers, including Nathan’s Famous (hot dog) and Cloverdale Foods (Polish dog, pepper and smoke sausage).
In addition to its unpretentious food, El Capitan’s taproom, which features a small stage area, hosts several live events. An alternating open mic and open jam occur each Thursday evening, and a weekly acoustic music mic happens every Friday evening. Karaoke takes the stage on the first and third Saturdays of each month.
El Capitan’s also runs an every-other-month coaster contest, in which customers can artistically decorate a blank coaster and drop it into a wooden chest. The designs are first sorted by employees, with the best half dozen or so voted on by customers online. Winners are summoned in for a ceremony to collect prizes, usually a T-shirt or mug.
A Part of Bellingham Culture
Ravaris has seen the nature of downtown business ebb and flow like the tides, but through it all, he is grateful that El Capitan’s has remained popular with locals and visitors alike. There is, after all, no other Bellingham place that combines the fun of piracy and pork sausage.
“It’s very gratifying that people come in and seem to really like the space,” he says. “I like that the customers seem to like the vibe, and feel very comfortable in here. I like the fact that it’s become a part of the community and a part of the culture of Bellingham.”
El Capitan’s Gourmet Sausages, Pretzels & Taproom
1201 Cornwall Avenue, STE. 101, Bellingham
