Gastrolust

Brave Horse Tavern is a boisterous place. It’s full of Amazon employees trying to interact face-to-face, rather than online, though most conversations are teeming with tech talk. At the shuffleboard area, I’m surprised that the players aren’t sliding smartphones down the tables.
When you walk in, you’ll see steel baskets of house-made [...]

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While the previous Sexy Feast (in which I, somewhat prophetically, talked about covering up the weiner) celebrated the boom of food carts and trucks in Seattle, sometimes you just want to eat that food in a chair at a table.
That’s now possible with the opening of Skillet Street Food’s stationary restaurant in Capitol Hill: Skillet [...]

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When I’m not on assignment and can choose a restaurant of my own, I face the same question as everyone else: Where, oh where, to go out to eat?
Here in Seattle, those who know me know I gravitate toward Asian cuisine, which is also what I’m likely preparing if I’m cooking at [...]

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2010 was a big year for food writing for me.
Book-wise, I was pleased to be a co-editor/author for the Fearless Critic Seattle Restaurant Guide.
Magazine-wise, I’ve brought my worlds of food and sex together in writing the regular “Hot Plate” feature for Edible Seattle. I’ve also contributed to Northwest Palate magazine, and look for an article [...]

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So many in Seattle are atwitter with Canlis’ menu contest. And rightly so. In hiding 50 menus in 50 days (Sundays off, generally), Canlis is providing 50 lucky Seattleites the chance to dine (with a guest) at 1950s prices. It’s all part of Canlis’ 60th birthday celebration.
The contest is brilliant on [...]

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When I heard that Jacob Wiegner, the former sous chef at Olivar, had opened a place called Blackboard Bistro in West Seattle, I had a hunch it would be good. And a desire to quickly head over for lunch.
Yes, the menu is written up on blackboards. On those blackboards, I liked the humor with which [...]

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The team at Toulouse Petit is proud of the restaurant’s 85,000 Italian mosaic tiles and 40,000 glass tiles. I’m told that Chef Eric Donnelly (formerly of Oceanaire Seafood Room) even helped install a few of them.
When I first opened Toulouse’s menu, it seemed like there were 125,000 items from which to choose. I’m pro-choice, but [...]

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Before the year-end announcement of my Top 10 food experiences of the year, I finished a surge of write-ups with a report on places perhaps best known as drinking establishments (of the alcohol variety), but also serving food. So it seems fitting to start the new year with a drinking establishment of the coffee variety.
Fonté [...]

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Following yesterday’s vegan break, we now return to our previously carnivorous ways.
Step #1 of the “Build Your Own Burger” scorecard at The Counter has a vegetarian option, but I was there for the beef. Just a one-third pounder, thanks, though there are 2/3 and full-pound options available for those seeking a beefier blast.
The next four [...]

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As a non-anonymous food writer, I occasionally get hosted by restaurants that are new and seeking publicity, or are old and, well, seeking publicity. I always explain that hosting doesn’t ensure a positive review, and I like to think that my write-ups are as objective as possible. (Challenging given the small community, as I know [...]

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