by Jackie (Toddler parent)
Apparently, I like eating. I write about what to feed our kids, what restaurants are kid friendly… I eat 95% of my kid’s snack at coop (no shame).
Back in my free wheelin days, I had a food blog called Jackie’s Corner Table. It doesn’t exist anymore, which is good because, for some (obvious) reason, it makes me feel pretentious; people should care what I think of 150 restaurants in NYC? Literally NO ONE DID. I got about 1 hit a month.
But hey, here I am again, talking about what I know. We go out to dinner a lot. We order the tasting menu a lot. I regret it… sometimes.
Everyone is always looking for a good date night spot. But, not everyone’s husband follows chef’s on twitter or actively reads restaurant blogs and magazines. So, just in case you don’t have that kind of crazy person at your finger tips, here are some places that we like/frequent/have been to once. Follow me on a brief food tour of Seattle:
Art of the Table: For many years, this husband and wife team were in a pretty small and intimate restaurant. Initially, about 7-8 years ago, they had 1 menu for an evening, everyone sat at once and they rang a gong to introduce each dish. Then, the changed to a prix fixe (no changes, I tested them and got rejected once) only. Now, they are in a much bigger designer space on Stone Way with a choice of a la carte or prix fixe. While I stil love the food, we did calculate the price of the prix fixe vs ordering the ENTIRE MENU and it is fiscally irresponsible to go with the prix fixe.
Joule: This is quite possibly my favorite restaurant in Seattle. Get the Spicy Rice Cakes. Thank me later.
Salare: I mentioned this place as somewhere where you can surprisingly bring your kids! But, it is also way nicer to just sit down without them.
Sushi Kashiba: We went here for the first time this weekend. They do not take reservations, so we went at 630 and were told to come back at 830 for seating at the sushi bar. It was the best sushi we have had here. We frequent the neighborhood spot by us, Kisaku, who’s main sushi chef opened Sushi Wataru. Both of those are delicious. But, this place blew them away. Ambiance and food +++++
Blind Pig: This place is RANDOM. It is in a shopping center with a 7/11. I like to consider it a hidden gem. Cheap tasting menu and cheap ($25!) wine pairing. Can’t get much better than that!
Walrus and The Carpenter: Total tourist trap, but for a good reason. Yes, just like Sushi Kashiba, you may put your name down at 6 and not get in until 8, but there are enough places nearby where you can have a drink, just need to give the babysitter a wide range end time.
Single Shot: I think this popped up on one of those “hardest places to get into” in Seattle lists. But, we made a reservation and… got right in 🙂 The atmosphere was hip, food was good and drinks were A+.
Stateside: Several years ago, we spent two weeks traveling SE Asia. Vietnam had the best street food we have ever had. The Cha Ca La Vong isn’t exactly the same as Cha Ca La Vong Hanoi but it was nostalgic and delicious. Get the duck fresh rolls. Get everything.
Eden Hill: Small, quaint,… in Queen Anne… you know, that neighborhood allllll the way over thereeeee. Worth the trip.
Terra Plata: I like this place for the roof deck. And the food. But, mainly the roof deck.
MKT: Neighborhood spot, not a lot of seats, but a lot of good food. Next stop on the Ethan Stowell bandwagon for us is Marine Hardware.
I really need to stop eating. Instead, I’ll just stop writing.