Gastrolust

Back in the summer, I was lucky to experience two wonderful meals on successive days, both “in the fields” far from Seattle.
The American Lamb Board sponsored a wonderful dinner at Russell’s in Bothell. A barnful of fabulous chefs were on hand to create dishes from various parts of the lamb, including host Russell Lowell, who [...]

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I should have seen it coming.
The folks at Fresh Bistro, the new West Seattle restaurant from Herban Feast, throw fresh into all that they prepare. We took our fresh lemon and vanilla bean-infused Gin & Yang (get it?) drink to our dining room table, where Chef Dalis Chea sent a bunch of plates enhanced by [...]

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Congratulations to Maria Hines of Tilth for winning the James Beard award for Best Chef Northwest, announced just yesterday. You’ll recall that Maria was part of the amazing, collaborative dinner featuring all of the nominees. Her Skagit River Ranch pork cheek with trotter cake, charcroute, and parmesan broth was fabulous, and illustrative of her local, [...]

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Oh, I can tell you about the sandwich I savored at FareStart recently: warm apple-braised pork shoulder topped with beer-battered onion rings on potato bread, with sherry vinaigrette apple slaw and a side of spicy chipotle aioli. It was good, but it’s where the $9.25 cost goes that’s even more impressive.
I knew that FareStart is [...]

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Another restaurant closing to report: After 20 years, Yarrow Bay Grill will be closing shop, as its ownership group has decided not to renew its lease. The restaurant will be serving its last meal on Thursday, April 30, so there’s still a little time to enjoy this delightful spot on Carillon Point, where I’ve enjoyed [...]

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Can you stand just one more post about burgers for now? How about a quick report? Let’s drive down Queen Anne Avenue, past Hilltop Ale House and Peso’s and Dick’s (sites of our past burger reviews), and after a little left and right turn, 1st Avenue eventually takes us to BOKA Kitchen + Bar, where [...]

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We recently had an opportunity to head out to the Hood Canal for an overnight stay at Alderbrook Resort & Spa. It’s a nice escape less than two hours from Seattle, either driving by car, or hopping on the Bremerton Ferry part of the way (which we recommend eastbound for the return view of the [...]

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The fine folks at The Four Swallows invited us over (by over, we mean across Puget Sound) for some supper. Saturday was a superb day for a ferry ride, and after a short stroll through town, we reached the farmhouse that’s been home to the restaurant for 16 years.
Inside, it’s quaint and charming, with the [...]

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Maybe it’s the springtime snow that’s got us savoring the South—or any taste of it we can get. Last time it was Waterfront Seafood Grill. This time, when Sazerac asked if we wanted to sample some “damn good food” from its Southern-inspired menu, we said “damn right we’ll be there.”
Sazerac’s had a bit of a [...]

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One of my goals for January is to organize all of my food photos for last year, cataloging them in some systematic way and blogging about miscellaneous bites that didn’t quite make it to “print” in 2008. In doing this, it’s reinforcing how much the recession is hitting the restaurant industry. Seems like there’s a [...]

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