Maneki - International District

Maneki is an unpretentious Japanese restaurant in the International District that has been around since practically forever. Surprisingly, I had never been here before, despite my many years growing up in the Seattle area. Maneki is one of those places you come back to again and again because you feel like you are being welcomed into someone’s home and are about to eat authentic, uncomplicated comfort food.

The drawback with being around so long and deservedly earning respect in the community for great food is that Maneki is a much sought after restaurant by locals. Thus, reservations are almost a requirement if you don’t want to wait all night to be seated. Because Tom had been here before, he knew this inside information, and wisely called ahead. However, when we arrived, there was still a back-up in the line, and we ended up having to wait 15-20 minutes. While I was content to be there early, Tom got anxious waiting and watching everyone else eat before us. Thankfully, there was plenty of reading material set to the side by the waiting area to keep the reverse-punctual people occupied.

After being seated, we perused the large and varied menu which ranged from noodle dishes to sashimi. We ordered the salmon namban, takoyaki, vegetable sukiyaki and black cod collar.

The salmon namban was an excellent cold appetizer. The lightly breaded and fried salmon was marinated in an addictive namban vinegar sauce and accompanied by onions, lemon slices, green onions and grated daikon. The sauce had a refreshingly sour and slightly sweet taste that paired very well with the richness of the salmon.

Salmon namban

The takoyaki was just okay. The octopus was fresh and not too tough, but the dough didn’t seem cooked enough and didn’t have a crispy texture. Instead, it was just soggy and gooey. We thought Wann did a better job overall on the takoyaki.

Takoyaki

The vegetable sukiyaki was also just okay; I’ve had a much better version at Izumi in Kirkland. This was one of the rare dishes that Tom (surprisingly) didn’t really touch. All the elements were present – vegetables, clear noodles, mirin/soy sauce, cabbage and tofu – but something was lacking in the flavor department. The important balance between the sweet of the mirin and the saltiness of the soy sauce seemed to be off. In my opinion, even if meat isn’t used, a good sukiyaki will be delicious even with only vegetables. It’s the sauce that matters!

Vegetable sukiyaki

Lastly, the black cod collar miso was served broiled on the bone with a miso sauce. While this dish seems to be very popular, I didn’t like it. The slimy, unctuous texture of the cod didn’t have a very good mouth feel and the sauce didn’t do much for this bland fish. I wouldn’t order this again.

Black cod collar miso

One of the best features of Maneki is the reasonable price for the food – the bill was under $30, including tip. The salmon namban alone was enough to make me want to come back again, even if the other dishes were mediocre. There are plenty of other dishes to explore on the menu, so I’m sure another review will be in order in the near future

Maneki
304 6th Avenue South (between Jackson Street & Jefferson Street)
Seattle, Washington 98104
(206) 622-2631

Serious Pie - Belltown

There’s something about eating with people who enjoy experiencing food; it just makes everything taste better when fellow diners are on the same foodie wavelength. Enter Tom Douglas’s pizzeria, Serious Pie, for dinner with foodie friends.

Very reminiscent of Mario Batalli’s Mozza in LA, Serious Pie has a similar vibe in terms of its loud, homely atmosphere. Although Serious Pie does not take reservations, you can put your name on a list and the staff will call you when a table opens up. Our wait time was pretty long – over an hour – so be prepared for a Serious Wait. We decided to eat dessert first at Dahlia Lounge Bakery and thoroughly enjoyed the mini triple coconut cream pies. The bakery was wonderful, but a little small, and sitting outside started getting uncomfortably cold, so we went to the bar at Lola to stay warm.

Eventually, we were summoned over to Serious Pie and were seated. The space inside the restaurant was invitingly warm from all the firey ovens. One thing I could have done without was the extremely cramped seating on the communal bench tables. You are literally within inches from somebody else no matter which direction you turn, unless you happen to sit next to the wall. Another thing I could have done without was the snippy, hipster waitress who seemed like she was in a perpetually foul mood throughout our meal. However, I kind of don’t blame her since she had to wade through the crowd and hot air each time she brought out dishes or drinks; it probably isn’t one of the most pleasant experiences to have to endure for hours on end.

We ordered three pizzas to share between the four of us: penn cove clams, house pancetta and lemon thyme; house salumi, walla walla onions and sardegna; and the meatless arugula special (each pizza ranged in price from $15-16). We also ordered a bottle of the barbera ($38).

Penn cove clams, house pancetta, lemon thyme

House salumi, walla walla onions and sardegna

Arugula special

The pizzas were actually fairly substantial as I would have had trouble finishing one by myself. The crusts took up a disappointingly large percentage of the pizza, but it was a nice bubbly, crisp crust. Unfortunately, the clam pizza was too salty for my liking; the salumi one was better with thin disks of salumi draped over the top. I preferred the special with the arugula since it had a fresh, light taste and was not overly salty. I thought the barbera paired nicely with all three pizzas and made dinner, well, even more enjoyable. Since the pizzas all had so much crust, we found ourselves with excess pieces. Our fellow foodie diner suggested we ask for olive oil and parmesan cheese to use with the extra crust, and it was a great idea!

I would definitely return to Serious Pie again, especially to try the pizza with the cherry bomb peppers and sweet fennel sausage and the one with chantrelles looked interesting as well. Just remember that you shouldn’t expect an in-and-out type of dinner as this place demands that you experience and savor it for both its good points and its quirks.

Serious Pie
316 Virginia Street
Seattle, Washington 98101
(206) 836-7388 (no reservations taken)

Assaggio Ristorante - Downtown Seattle/Belltown

Assaggio has been around for many years, and it's known for its good Italian food and warm and welcoming owner. Many years after my first visit, I had the chance to go again in September. Expectations were high! Assaggio is not too far from the Westin Hotel, nestled in or between more hotels. It is at the edge of Downtown and Belltown where I don't know where one ends and the other begins. Tom Douglas' Lola is right on the corner of the same block and "out there" to the point where I almost mistook Assaggio as an extension of Lola - but I kept my eyes open!

My friends and I went for lunch on a Saturday. Except for a few other small parties, they had one big group in the middle of the "cozy" restaurant. Strategically placed mirrors and the large windows enlarge the room, but if you focus on the placement of the tables...it's a little too close to comfort for me. But that's just me. The painting on the walls seem a little overdone (might I even say kitschy?), but I'm here for the food. We first ordered appetizers: "Vongole" (Clams, garlic, oregano, white wine) and the Calamari fried in lemon and parsley.

We all loved both! The calamari was not heavy on the breading nor the grease. They were also tender and not at all chewy. The mark of fresh calamari! The clams were tasty and had a little spicy kick. The broth itself was buttery, full of flavor and a little on the salty side - nothing that some bread couldn't fix! I like it salty, so I pretty much drank/ate all the broth. At the bottom of the bowl, we found a slice of bread that had soaked up the broth. Soggy and salty. Almost inedible. I learned that my love of salt does have a limit! Would I order these starters again? Yes, yes, yes!

For entrees, I ordered the special for that day which was the beef tenderloin with red wine risotto and mushrooms. My friend had the "Ravioli Cappesante". I can't remember what our third diner had and the picture didn't turn out great, so I will refrain from commenting on his dish. He did seem to enjoy it though!

Beef Tenderloin Risotto

"Ravioli Cappesante" (Cheese filled ravioli, sea scallops, green onion, saffron cream)

The "meat risotto" was just all right. A little bland. Nothing on the plate really stood out. My love of steak disappointed me a little that day. However, my friend's ravioli was just awesome! The scallops were tender and fresh. The ravioli oozed insidey goodness and the sauce was creamy. This is comfort food. I felt warm, happy, relaxed...blissful even! I'm pretty sure that as I took the bite, I looked at the ceiling, sighed (actually, my eyes may have been closed!), and mmmmhh-ed until I finished. Would I order this again? Definitely!! But I will pass on the special.

I noticed on their website that they serve osso bucco for dinner, so I will have to make another trip to Assaggio. But maybe this time, I will not let years pass by before I return.

Assaggio

2010 4th Avenue

Seattle, Washington 98121

(206) 441-1399

Palomino - Downtown Seattle

A good friend of mine invited me to see Wicked with her friends several months ago. Unfortunately, someone else in the group couldn't make it and so he kindly offered his ticket for anyone else to use. Tom was the lucky recipient of the extra ticket and so the review of the pre-show dinner at Palomino naturally had to show up on this blog!

Palomino definitely has some good points: they validate parking all night on Saturdays, the location is pretty accessible and easy to find and the service is pretty attentive. However, since this is a food blog, I don't think its much of surprise that I thought Palomino was pretty much Cheesecake Factory fare, yet slightly more upscale.

I ordered the summer ravioli, which was presented as two ginormous raviolis slapped onto a plate with a sea of various vegetable shavings as garnish. The ravioli stuffing wasn't very flavorful and the pasta itself was kind of dry. For my drink, I had a tiramisu martini, which was probably the highlight of my dinner, although it tasted more like chocolate than coffee-flavored to me. My friend ordered the linguini and clams, which she thought was over-salted and Tom had the lamb shanks which he said was just okay.

Summer ravioli

Linguini and clams

As a place to eat before a show, I'd have to say that Palomino is a great place to come due to its location and parking validation advantages, but not especially for the food. As for the show, Wicked was the most creative musical I have seen so far (although the number of musicals I've seen is admittedly limited). We had a great time at this memorable show, even if the food was not so memorable.

Palomino

1420 Fifth Avenue, Suite 350
Seattle, Washington 98101
(206) 623-1300

Poppy - Capitol Hill

You have stumbled onto the chronicles of Pacific Northwest foodies who share a passion for discovering the ultimate food destinations that Seattle has to offer. Our adventures begin as follows...

Our inaugural foodscapade turned out to be something new and quite different than any other restaurant I had been to in Seattle.

In trying to decide where to go for dinner, Tom suggested Poppy in Capitol Hill because they have an ex-Herb Farm chef. It should be noted that Tom has long pined over finding any opportunity to eat at the famed Herb Farm in Woodinville. Although that adventure was not for today, a restaurant featuring an ex-Herb Farm chef was the next best thing!

So what kind of food would Poppy be classified as - Ethiopian? African? (ha!) No, a quick search revealed it was "modern Northwest" cuisine presented in an Indian-style thali. What is a thali? It's a big plate that contains samples of various food presented on smaller individual plates. Being that I will try anything once, I was excited to check out this new dining experience.

Upon arriving at Poppy, I was afforded an ample amount of time to observe the restaurant's decor since Tom was steadfastly determined that he was going to find free street parking, no matter if he had to go 4 or 5 blocks away from the restaurant to do it (hint: this area can get fairly busy in the evenings, even on weeknights, so parking can be difficult to find). As such, the decor appeared IKEA-esque shrouded in a dim light rather than cushy and luxurious, but it was comfortable-feeling nonetheless.

Once Tom made the trek from his car to the restaurant, we were seated and given our menus. There was a "regular" meat-containing thali and a vegetarian version, both of which had a daunting number of dishes listed in their respective descriptions. It all looked fine to me, so I ordered the vegetarian thali and Tom ordered the meat one. I also ordered the eggplant fries to start, since I had read several people rave about it.

As it turns out, the eggplant fries were the star of the show. They were served crisp and piping hot and drizzled in a buttery, salty, yet sweet sauce which instantly reminded me of kettle corn. I could hardly tell that the fries were even made out of eggplant. It was pretty amazing!


Eggplant Fries

Unfortunately, the thalis did not live up to the same level of deliciousness as the eggplant fries. As daunting as it was to simply read the contents of the meal on the menu, it was even more challenging for my tastebuds to take in all the different flavors that each dish presented. Perhaps the dishes are better eaten in a certain order, but randomly sampling each one seemed to just end up mixing the flavors together in odd ways. I did enjoy the minted melon and tomato salad; the sweetness of the melons and sourness of the tomatoes played off each other in harmony. The cucumber kimchi was a miss as it lacked ingredients in traditional kimchi that I was use to and ended up tasting like pickled cucumber that lacked spice. I really liked the cauliflower gratin with ginger, dill and sesame - the top had a nice crunchiness which gave way to creamy, cheesy innards. And while I was excited to have a fried stuffed squash blossom as one of my dishes, I was disappointed with the strange aftertaste of the cheese filling.

Top: vegetarian thali; Bottom: meat thali.

Overall, both of us neither loved nor hated the food and felt that Poppy was just okay. I think I would give Poppy a second chance, but I'd only order a la carte from the menu instead of the thalis. At $32 for the meat thali and $30 for the vegetarian version, I'd say it's more economical to pick and choose what you think you might like. The nice thing about Poppy is that the menu does change fairly frequently, so its great for those who like to keep trying new things.

We passed on the desserts and opted to walk down the street to Dilettante Mocha Cafe and Chocolate Martini Bar. We shared a pretty good Chocolate Rendezvous cake, nothing revelatory though. Next time I'll have to try one of the chocolate martinis!

Poppy

622 Broadway East (at Roy)

Seattle, Washington 98102

(206) 324-1108

Dilettante Mocha Cafe and Chocolate Martini Bar

538 Broadway Avenue East

Seattle, Washington 98102

(206) 329-6263