Etta's

Price: $$$
Thoughts: ☆☆☆☆
Etta's: Menu

---

This is a first in a while; an early dinner. Etta's was a missed opportunity when my friend Gilbert came to visit from New York, as I had work to do. Anyways, this place is located on the northern side of the Pike Place Market, which is home of the first Starbucks ever; expect a lot of tourists standing around.

Parking is actually really easy if you know where to look. Past dates have left a good memory of where to find them, which came in handy. I had made a reservation using Open Table as suggested by their website, so there was no waiting for our 6:15 arrival.

We were promptly served a very crusty olive bread along with two dry beverages, kumquat and vanilla bean:


Artisan bread with and without olives

The last time we had olive bread I was not fortunate to find any pieces with any in them. After inspecting and a minor discussion about all the possible baking methods, we concluded that there were just two separate breads that were served. Primarily because they were separated on the plate each time we were given more bread.


Kumquat Dry Soda


Vanilla Bean Dry Soda

We had already pored over their SRW menu and knew what we were getting. The baby spinach salad, and sake cured salmon bites; which wasn't a regular menu item:


Baby spinach salad -curried cashews, sesame dressing, crispy bacon

The dressing tasted really good, and had a subtle sweet aftertaste to it. I did not find any of the cashews with the portion I forked but with or without it, the salad still tasted great.


Sake cured salmon bites -hot mustard, cucumber

I did not realize that they had put horseradish into the mustard so I took a nice deep breath after taking in a good bit of salmon covered in the mustard. It was a simple but very flavorful meal. The salmon itself was nice and firm, although I ran into a piece that was a bit tougher than the rest. The cucumbers give the whole dish something that feels fresh, and helps with the hot mustard.

Dinner we had Etta's rub with love wild Coho salmon and Seared Washington chicken breast which was also not listed on their regular menu:


Etta’s Rub with Love wild Coho salmon -shiitake relish, cornbread pudding

The cornbread pudding had more attention than the salmon itself. Soft and had a taste that reminded me of the stuffing you eat inside a Thanksgiving turkey. The salmon was flaky and soft and easy to split apart without anything more than the fork. Apparently one of the asparagus was a little old, or possibly improperly cooked, but was your typical blanched vegetables.


Seared Washington chicken breast -sugar snap pea succotash, easter egg radish salad

Again, the main attention was not the seared chicken breast but the succotash that was underneath it. Cooking chicken breast and preventing it from being dry is something that takes a little bit of work. The breast was very juicy and had a nice crusty skin. I found the radish salad to be a little on the bland side as eating it separately or with the rest of the meal produced nothing that I could taste. The succotash on the other hand had a nice curry taste to it that left me wishing they served more of it with the dish.

Dessert was going to be an adventure. A triple coconut cream pie and the vanilla and rhubarb crisp; I have an allergy to ginger but love the taste.


Triple coconut cream pie + white chocolate

At a glance I was expecting this to be as rich as the mud pie we had from 5 Spot. But it was very light and easy to eat even on a full stomach.


Vanilla and rhubarb crisp + ginger ice cream

Luckily there wasn't enough ginger in the ice cream to warrant an allergic reaction. The rhubarb has a very strong tart taste that overtakes the Vanilla crisp part of the dessert; I could not taste any vanilla at all in-between the helpings of rhubarb and ice cream. It was still a pleasant order and very hot. I think pear or a more subtle fruit would have worked better with the ginger ice cream.

Etta's is definitely a place I recommend grabbing reservations for; the place is not very big. The tall glass windows that look across the Puget Sound is great as it faces the sunset.

Possibly due to the fact that the place is small, it ensures that the waiter or sommelier will always be checking up on you throughout the meal. At the end of the meal, if you give them your email address and your birthday, they will send you a gift certificate as an incentive. I definitely will come back again, with or without a certificate in hand.

Via Tribunali

Price: $$
Thoughts: ☆☆☆☆¾
Via Tribunali: Menu

---

Lately I noticed I have been eating dinner later and later. This was the first restaurant I tried during the Seattle Restaurant Week event which I will refer to as SRW from now on. They have many locations, but we chose the Fremont location due to the higher ratings, also it was conveniently closer to our homes. Finding parking was not too difficult, but then again it was past 9:30 at night. We were the only ones there save for one other customer at the bar, the interior had a very homely feel.

My friend was told to try the Margherita D.O.C. which was also on their SRW menu as well. The event menus are broken-down into a 3-course dinner or lunch for $25 and $15, an appetizer, entrée, and a dessert. The portions given as they should, so this is quite a good deal.

For our appetizers we got the Saute Di Vongole and the Misto Salumi:


SAUTE DI VONGOLE -fresh clams with olive oil, garlic, white wine oven fired

It's hard to go wrong with clams in garlic and oil. Nothing that made it stand out from anything we've had before, but it doesn't make it bad either. I was curious and imagined how good it would taste if they used the same garlic sauce that Ocho used on their prawns.


MISTO SALUMI -coppa, prosciutto di parma, speck, olives, grana padano

Served on a wooden paddle with the meats laid across and the olives in a ramekin. It was the first time having green olives that looked like green kumquats. I tend to consume a lot of prosciutto at home (wrapped around prawns) so my bias would make this my favorite on the plate. The grana padano tasted great when wrapped around with the prosciutto and speck (which is smoked prosciutto). The small slices of coppa had enough kick of spiciness to leave a taste lingering in my mouth. I ended up just popping the olives like they were grapes and removing the flesh around the seed.

For the entrée we got the Margherita D.O.C. and the Piazza Dante:


MARGHERITA D.O.C. -pomodoro, mozzarella di bufala, basil

A very basic pizza with three ingredients. This pizza is tied together very well with the fresh basil, which sealed the deal as the best pizza between the two. Served piping hot, but because of how thin it is, it cooled down really fast.


PIAZZA DANTE -pomodoro, arugula, prosciutto crudo, smoked mozzarella, cherry tomato

Served over literally a mountain of arugula and porsciutto. I chose this one because of my last experience eating pizza with some kind of tomato as a topping rather than a sauce. Eating the cherry tomatoes provided the similar bursts of flavor that the pancheta did at Tutta Bella on a much smaller scale, but still pleasant nonetheless. I think the most difficult part of the pizza was dividing it into quarters.

And for the desserts. Their Mezza Luna di Nutella and Tartufo Affogato:


MEZZA LUNA DI NUTELLA -chocolate, hazelnut calzone

This is BIG... it's the same size as the pizzas we ate for dinner, except fold one half over and stuff it with nutella. In other words, it is best to share this dish. Putting a little of the espresso from my dessert made it an interesting, but pleasant taste as it gave it a hazelnut espresso mix.


TARTUFO AFFOGATO -vita espresso over chocolate gelato

I don't drink coffee. Ever. But I still got this because I really wanted to eat the chocolate gelato. Their espresso comes from the Caffé Vita next to the restaurant, and is quite strong. With the gelato melting alarmingly fast into the espresso masked the bitterness that deters me from coffees in the first place. I found myself enjoying the espresso and the portion is small enough to keep you from feeling like you had too much, but large enough that you will be done for the night.

We both saved a quarter of our pizzas for leftovers which was a good idea, as we were already full after dessert. The water they served us was lukewarm, it would have been nice if they provided a few ice cubes especially with the weather slowly warming up. This place knows how to make pizza well and a wide variety of it too. I too, would recommend the Magherita D.O.C. to anyone as their first pizza here. Sometimes, the simplest pizzas just cannot be beaten.

Ocho

Price: $
Thoughts: ☆☆☆☆½
Ocho: Menu

---

It's 9PM, and I'm tired. I was reluctant to go out and eat tonight, but a spur of the moment decision to give Ocho a try. This small tapas bar was very difficult to notice despite it being on the corner of a busy intersection, is near impossible to find at night if you have never been there before. After walking past it three or four times passing it off for the "bar section" of AZTECA, the familiar two panel menu taped to the window caught my eye.

There were about six tables, and a bar. The music was on pretty loud and reminded me of my previous weekend's experience at the Last Supper Club, but the music was at the same time pleasing. The bar is lit almost entirely by candles save for a few light bulbs in the kitchen and some low-watt bulbs overhead. We grabbed one of the two empty tables and examined the menu. We ordered a LOT. The pictures were all done by our phones as usual, and with the very dim atmosphere they're not very good.


Gambas al Ajillo -spicy garlic prawns

This is the first time I've had a lemon sauce that just jumped out at me. I'm not sure what was in it, but I was sad when they took the bowl with the sauce still at the bottom (was hoping for some bread to dip and absorb the sauce with). The shrimp was nice and crisp and was served with their signature olive oil toast.


Huevo del Diablo -deviled egg, salmon roe, pickled onion, tomato dust, fried capers, dill

The saltiness from the salmon roe lingered nicely in my mouth for a while. I didn't want to gulp any water until the flavor was completely gone.


Setasde Ferez -sherried mushrooms, olive oil toast, arugula

I was intimidated with the size of this mound of sherried mushrooms and arugula. Biting into this piping hot mountain of mushrooms and herb was a messy but delightful experience. The olive bread was warm and soft in the center, and crisp on the edges, but held itself together well.


Bisteca -flank steak, white bean caper olive oil vinaigrette

Having previewed the menu while driving to Ocho's, I was under the impression this would be the dish that I would like the most. While the meat was tender and delicious, I found the olives hidden inside the white beans a pleasant surprise.


Banderilla de Boqueron -anchovy, piquillo pepper, fried artichoke, allioli

This was the best thing for the price as well, for $1.50. The anchovy and fried artichoke tied in nicely with the allioli sauce. We almost ordered seconds, but decided to continue expanding our selection of good food.


Pan con Chocolate -olive oil toast, chocolate, almonds, flor de sal, truffle oil

This was the only "dessert" oriented item on the menu. The nutty taste from the almonds mixed with the chocolate on the toast felt like a rich biscotti. I couldn't taste much of the salt or the truffle oil.


Tortilla Espanola -egg, potato, onion, brava sauce, artichoke allioli

When I saw this, it looked more like a cake than anything like a "tortilla". The texture was very similar to a quiche. The artichoke allioli was delicious, salty and garlic in one sauce is hard to go wrong. My friend cleaned the plate of any food leftover.

While Ocho would make a great date spot, the music takes away from making that a viable option. The food all around is solid, since we were able to sample almost half of their entire menu, and each dish provided excellent presentation and taste. Finding parking does not seem to be a problem, despite the location of many popular restaurants in the area. As expected, it is a tapas bar so most people come for a dish or two and to socialize rather than devour half of their seasonal menu, but if you choose to do the latter; you will not be disappointed.

Le Fournil

Price: $
Thoughts: ☆☆☆☆½
Le Fournil: Menu


Cloudy & Rainy to Bright and Sunny within an hour!

When the weather is sunny and warm my mood for eating gravitates towards cafes and places with lots of windows. Le Fournil has just that! My friend Shirley introduced this place to me sometime ago last year with her friends. The name literally translates to "the bakehouse" and is located along Eastlake Ave just after the bridge near the University of Washington. With a relatively narrow range of opening hours gives it a special feel (to me).

I have already been here a couple times so I have a good feel of what I enjoy getting: the lunch special, which is a pretty complete meal for $9; a choice of sandwich/salad/quiche/soup, dessert, and drink. My ham and swiss sandwich was quite delicious and warm, the strawberry-pistachio tarte, and a glass of orange juice.

Unfortunately I didn't take any photos as I just wolfed everything down without realizing! But I do have one from October of their delicious Opera and strawberry-pistachio tartes.


Opera + Strawberry-Pistachio Tarte

If you can get here before it's closed (6PM Tue-Sat, 3PM Sun, Closed Mon) I would highly recommend trying any of their pastries.

5 Spot

Price: $$
Thoughts: ☆☆☆
5 Spot: Menu

---

Another sandwich and burger craving this week. I've been meaning to eat at 5 Spot for a little while now with my craving for some good American food. This would be the first time visiting the heart of Queen Anne, and I definitely would never have run by this part of town without knowing about this restaurant. It felt like a small oasis in the middle of a huge hill. Finding parking without a zone-permit restricts you to 2-hour street parking; there is literally no space to build a parking lot in this area.

5 Spot boasts a diverse menu that rotates between different parts of America. The featured theme was Mississippi Delta Blues. It looks like when doing a theme, they include restaurant decorations; steam boats, paintings, some nice catchy southern blues. The drinking cups were glass jars printed with a fish logo and the word MASON, which I found really cool.


The menu cover and the drinking jars

We started with their fried green tomatoes because it was something new and sounded simple:


Fried Green Tomatoes with a side of salad

I really enjoyed the tomatoes, firm unripe tomatoes dredged in cornmeal works well with their Tabasco tartar. My friend seemed to enjoy the salad more, which was lettuce, dijon mustard and a vinaigrette.

For the main course I went with their Memphis Blues BBQ Pork Sandwich after finding out that it was pulled pork.


Slow hickory smoked pork smothered in sweet Tennessee BBQ & served with fries and slaw.

I would say the pulled pork was unbelievable, one bite and you could taste the smokiness from the meat. However their choice of using a hoagie bun wasn't appealing. I would've preferred something like a kaiser roll or something with a little more firmness. They seemed to have perfected the formula for the perfect fries to me, crispy but not crunchy.

My friend got the Longhorn Burger, which was quite large:


Big country Painted Hills ground chuck with roasted Anaheim pepper, bacon, pepper jack cheese & frizzled onions. Served with ancho dusted fries.

The Anaheim pepper that laid on top of the patty looked like it would give a nice kick to the whole burger.

For dessert, two orders of their mud pie to finish off the meal, which was also part of the Mississippi theme as well. The waitress double checked with us to make sure we really wanted two slices. In the past, several restaurants I've been to would question my judgement on how much I am capable of eating:


Vanilla fudge swirl ice cream with chocolate espresso chips layered with chocolate sauce & topped with homemade marshmallow creme.

I'm not huge on sweets, but this was very rich. The layer of toasted marshmallow was a little over 1" in thickness. After the fifth bite it became a painful struggle to finish it alone; my friend refused to assist! I managed to eat all but a small portion of it before conceding defeat. It left me with the painfully full feeling, rather than just full. But it was still quite good.

The atmosphere was nice and hip, the waiters were very attentive and added to the pleasant atmosphere and made the meal really enjoyable. At no point in the meal did I feel rushed or dissatisfied with what I was eating (in fact I think the waitress can gauge my stomach better than myself for dessert).

Even though this place has a wide variety of Dinner entrées, it feels like their breakfast/brunch dishes would be their true strengths. I'll have to find time to try it! This place is worth giving a shot.