Nosh Pit

The Blind Cafe Brings Dark Dining to Seattle in June

Trade your sight in for a fork at the door and get ready for an interesting evening.

Posted by: Anne Larkin on May 23, 2012 at 01:00PM 0 Comments

Wonder if dark chocolate will be on the menu…

Photo-happy food bloggers, take heed. The Blind Cafe is coming—you’ll have to use your words, ‘cause you’ll be dining in the dark. The Blind Cafe, a Colorado-based project with a long list of altruistic goals ranging from creating jobs, educating people about blindness, and encouraging personal growth, has been traveling around the U.S. putting on dinners in the dark since its creation in 2009. The organization has been to our neighbor city, Portland, but this is the concept’s first time in Seattle.

Dining-in-the-dark restaurants first surfaced in Europe as a way for the sighted to experience the world of the blind, and to create interesting jobs for food-savvy individuals with visual impairment; in the past couple decades blind cafes have popped up all over the globe, drawing in curious diners with the promise of a new experience of food.

Though there won’t be a speck of light at the meal, there will be music (the founder happens to have a band), a Q and A about blindness, and a unique meal made up of all kind of flavors and textures. Veterans of dark dining promise that it’s a truly intense sensory (and social) experience. As your other senses amp up to pick up the sensory slack, familiar foods can become richer and more interesting. And aside from that, without sight social protocol gets a little fuzzier. Rosh, the founder of the Blind Cafe, tells the story of his first encounter with dark dining in Reykjavik, where he stumbled across a cafe much like the mobile one he runs now. He was handed a card embossed with his coffee order in braille, then plunged into the pitch-black café to fumble around for a seat. When he asked if a table was full, its occupants honestly couldn’t say, and they all had to feel around for a chair for the newcomer, happy to have another confused compatriot in the dark. Our own adventurous diner Allecia Vermillion reports that when she went to a dark dinner in Paris a few years ago, another attendee spontaneously started singing the happy birthday song, and soon enough everyone joined in. Anything can happen when you dine in the dark.

The Blind Cafe will be in Seattle June 8 and 9, at the Fremont Baptist Church at 717 N 36th Street. The tickets are on a sliding scale from $55 to $95, depending on what you can afford, but the organizers note that for the project to continue to grow, they need most people to pay more than the minimum. There are also $250 VIP tickets that include some Blind Cafe gear and access to private events in the future. Tickets are available online or by calling 800-838-3006. Check in for the dinners are at 7:30. Organizers are also looking for volunteers to help facilitate the event, call 720-935-2138.

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Tags: Fremont, Special Dinners, Good Cause

Shuttered Thaiku Restaurant Pops Up at Copper Gate

Ballard’s destination for aquavit cocktails goes Thai for a night in honor of its sibling bar and restaurant.

Posted by: Allecia Vermillion on May 23, 2012 at 10:55AM 0 Comments

Scandinavia makes way for Thailand next Thursday. Photo via Facebook.

Since closing in December, Ballard restaurant Thaiku (along with its apothecary-bar sibling Fu Kun Wu) is still seeking a permanent home. Meanwhile, some of Thaiku’s original staff has put together a pop-up dinner set for next week.

The just-announced meal will be Thursday, May 31, at Copper Gate, a Norse-inspired Ballard bar-staurant also owned by Thaiku proprietor Jon Alberts. His jazz trio, previously Fu Kun Wu’s resident band, relocated to the aquavit-and-pinup-filled Copper Gate and will be playing live from 8 to 11 that night.

Unlike most pop ups, the menu is a la carte, and plates like larb gai (ground chicken in chili and fish sauce, with lime juice) and grilled skewers of pork or prawns, will cost between $7 and $12. And yes, there will be herb-infused cocktails as well. Seating is first come, first served, and dinner runs from 5 until midnight.

Alberts says the search continues for a new location for his Thai restaurant and cocktail bar. Meanwhile, these dinners might pop up again at Copper Gate this summer.

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Tags: Seattle Pop-Ups, Copper Gate, Thaiku, Fu Kun Wu

Neighborhood Food News: Oola Distillery Branches Out, a Macrina Remodel

Plus: A crackdown on Anita’s Crepes, David Lynch’s coffee in Fremont, karaoke at Ba Bar, and more.

Posted by: Brandon L. Bye on May 23, 2012 at 10:20AM 0 Comments

The next time you’re browsing the shelves of a Chicago liquor store keep an eye out for Oola.

BALLARD
On Sunday the public health department cracked down on the Anita’s Crepes stand at the Ballard farmers market. The vendor was flagged for potentially hazardous foods at unsafe temperatures, inadequate hand washing facilities, and issues with vacuum packaging salmon. Anita’s can start spinning crepes once the inspector confirms that all issues have been resolved.

BELLTOWN
Macrina Bakery and Cafe is closed this week (reopening Saturday) for a remodel that will result in expanded seating. In the meantime, the cafe is operating an espresso cart stocked with pastries out front.

CAPITOL HILL
After being in production for less than one year, Oola Distillery is branching out. The micro distillery based at 1314 East Union Street is now available throughout Illinois.

Feel the need to stand up, stretch out, and perform for perfect strangers? If so, make for Ba Bar on Wednesday nights for Kung Fu Karaoke. Slurp on fishbowl cocktails, thumb through thousands of ditties, and command the disco-ball-laser-light stage from 10pm–1:30am.

FREMONT
New coffee stop the Naos Lounge is serving Twin Peaks creator David Lynch’s organic coffee, the only place in town doing so, according to Seattle Weekly.

KIRKLAND
As of June 2, Holly Smith of Cafe Juanita will begin offering a chef’s tasting menu known as Table 2 for 2. Two seatings are available Saturday and Sunday nights.

QUEEN ANNE
LloydMartin has launched a social hour that includes some enticing specials. To wit: Guests can get Spanish Catalonian black truffle shavings on any dish for $15. Chef Sam Crannell expects supplies to last about two weeks.

The Streamline Tavern played host to some bizarre antics Saturday night. An unruly woman disrobed and began sticking pieces of hot pink duck tape to her body before attacking the bartender, a bar-goer, and three police officers. She fled the scene, but was later arrested in the bathroom of a nearby combination KFC and Taco Bell, according to Seattle PI.

ALL OVER
As June 1 nears, liquor privatization drama continues. QFC is wanting to prohibit private liquor stores from operating in the same shopping centers as some of its locations. The Seattle Times has the details.

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Tags: Macrina Bakery, LloydMartin, Oola Distillery, Cafe Juanita, Naos Lounge

Rover’s Chef de Cuisine Rob Sevcik

Thierry Rautureau’s partner in crime is a self-taught food geek.

Posted by: Jessie Wesley on May 22, 2012 at 11:30AM 0 Comments

Rover’s chef de cuisine has a passion for food, creativity and a good serving of guacamole.

When he was a wee lad, Rob Sevcik knew he wanted to be one of three things: a writer, a rock star or a chef. Lack of musical talent nixed his dreams of rock stardom, and after Sevcik realized that a career in writing would render him unable “to pay my rent until I was dead” (ouch), he worked his way into cooking.

At age 18, Sevcik left his small hometown outside Milwaukee for the West Coast. His move to Portland quickly stretched from six months to 10 years spent working with the likes of Ramona White at Nourishment and Lucier chef Pascal Chureau, who helped shape Sevcik into a rarity in today’s fine-dining world: a self-taught chef. Sevcik says he would often work a 12-hour shift then go home and devour cookbooks until reporting for work the next day. Three years ago he made the move to Seattle.

When Sevcik arrived, jobless, he headed directly to the door of the Chef in the Hat, Thierry Rautureau and told him he was even willing to wash dishes to get a foot in his kitchen. Passion, persistence, and timing won Sevcik a position at Rover’s, where he worked his way up to the restaurant’s chef de cuisine about two years ago.

Sevcik says that at Rover’s he feels constantly inspired. At the back of the restaurant, where the chefs enter, “there is a sign in French that says “artist entrance”, and [Rautureau] really means that. All the chefs walk through that door every day, and that’s what we are here, we are artists and we create."

Here, Sevcik answers a few of our questions.

What’s it like to work under the Chef in the Hat?

It’s a complex relationship. Not only do I feel like a partner in his business ventures—I help out with Luc, and we work closely together on the future of the company, we have that aspect to the the relationship—it’s my privilege to be his really close assistant, but I consider him a friend as well. Since I started working at Rover’s we have grown pretty close, and we have a lot of fun in the kitchen together. I most definitely look to him as a teacher, where he is in his career is where I am striving to be.

Do tempers ever flare?

The kitchen life is a very high-stress environment, and takes a certain personality type that is completely insane. We are all completely nuts, there are a lot of times when passions and tempers rise, and we argue about what we do, but 99 percent of the time were just a bunch of cooks having a great time, making great food.

Where do you like to eat in Seattle? And what do you order?

I am a sucker for pho. I love a big bowl of steaming hot beef broth with lime and jalapeños. I enjoy Pho Cyclo on Broadway but I also love discovering new-hole-in-the-wall restaurants that serve similar styles of food. In general, Seattle has really great Asian influence to its cuisine.

What is the most difficult task that you have been faced with as chef de cuisine?

I find that coordinating the back of the house and the front of the house often takes a surprising amount of thought and energy. One thing I tell the students that come through our kitchen is that cooking is the easy part of being a chef. Once you are competent with that, a whole new world of challenges presents itself. Timing everything from the kitchen to make sure our diners are experiencing an amazing, choreographed lunch or dinner requires juggling lots of moving parts. At the end of the day, though, the things that are the most difficult can also be the most rewarding, because when we in the kitchen hear from a customer that not only was the food and wine terrific, but the service and overall experience as well, it makes everything worthwhile.

If you could only eat at one restaurant for the rest of your days which one would it be (excluding Rover’s and Luc)?

I would have to say a little taquería called Santería in Portland in the back of Mary’s strip club. You actually have to go through the strip club to get to the taquería, They have the best lengua chimichangas. If you can stomach the environment, the chimichangas are the best ever. It only seats 15 people, and even shares a bathroom with the strip club.

What cookbook do you go to for inspiration?

At the moment I am working my way through the Modernist Cuisine books (as I assume most chefs in Seattle are doing). It’s fun for me to see not only the new techniques but the technical explanations of things I’ve been doing for years. It’s helped me understand more of the science behind what’s going on in the kitchen.

Tell me about the dish you were the most proud of mastering?

My rabbit blanquette is by far the dish I am most proud of mastering. The story behind it is that a few years ago as a new sous chef (at a restaurant other than Rover’s), I put rabbit blanquette on the menu. The Executive Chef tasted it and wasn’t into it. So I spent a year making and remaking the dish and I finally perfected it. On my last day at that restaurant, I presented it to him. Through huge mouthfuls and a big grin he told me that he loved it and would be happy to serve that dish anytime. A version of this dish will reappear on the Rover’s menu in the spring.

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Tags: Luc, Thierry Rautureau, Rover's, Rob Sevcik

Feast Portland Announces Its (Killer) Lineup

The Rose City’s glamorous new culinary festival packs serious chef heat.

Posted by: Allecia Vermillion on May 22, 2012 at 09:45AM 0 Comments

Come September, our neighbor to the south is getting an envy-inducing food festival—the kind that draws nationally acclaimed chefs on par with glitzy culinary hobnob-a-thons in places like Aspen, Austin, South Beach and Charleston.

Feast Portland is sponsored by Bon Appetít, and happens September 20–23. This morning the organizers unveiled the event’s full lineup.

Food geeks: Prepare to freak out. The four-day throwdown includes New York chefs like April Bloomfield of the Spotted Pig (among other restaurants), Anita Lo (of Annisa, as well as Top Chef Masters), Gabrielle Hamilton of Prune and this lovely memoir, and Matt Lightner, who left Portland’s Castagna last year to move east. He’s returning to do a dinner with Charleston chef Sean Brock, a baby-faced, arm-inked force of culinary awesomeness who fries his chicken in butter and the commingled fats of chicken, bacon, and country ham.

California is sending plenty of talent too, including Chris Cosentino, whose San Francisco restaurant Cosentino was glorying in offal before we all started freaking out about it. Speaking of meat, Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo of Animal and Son of a Gun in Los Angeles will be there. So will Nancy Silverton, of Campanile and Mozza. And obviously a fleet of stellar Portland chefs are turning out, including Gabriel Rucker (Le Pigeon, Little Bird) Andy Ricker (all things Pok Pok), Chris Israel of Gruner, Jenn Louis of Lincoln (look for her on the cover of Food and Wine this summer, along with our own Cormac Mahoney and Blaine Wetzel), and…you know what: the complete roster is here. Most of the big-name visiting chefs are pairing up with Portland chefs to put on one-of-a-kind dinners around town.

The only thing missing from this extravaganza: Seattle. Feast’s organizers say they are hoping to finalize and announce some Seattle representation in the coming weeks.

The schedule of events simply boggles the mind. An all-in ticket that gets you access to every last event runs $650. Friday and Saturday tickets run $350, but there’s an a la carte list of events too. Granted this cavalcade doesn’t come cheap, but I have yet to splurge on an event like this and walk away feeling like it didn’t deliver good value for the money. Eater Portland also has a helpful breakdown of all the collaborations, demos, pavilions, and one hell of a sandwich invitational.

Track Feast’s Facebook page and website in the coming days and weeks for more announcements. Also, can we get one of these in Seattle?

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Tags: Road Trip, Feast Portland

First Look: Collections Cafe

The restaurant at Chihuly Garden and Glass opens today with notable culinary talent in tow.

Posted by: Christopher Werner on May 21, 2012 at 02:00PM 0 Comments

Accordions hang the length of the space. Chihuly’s father and brother both played the instrument, which spurred him to start this particular collection.

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Accordions hang the length of the space. Chihuly’s father and brother both played the instrument, which spurred him to start this particular collection.

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So much color!

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The wall facing Center House features 36 acrylic Chihuly drawings done on plexiglass.

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Chihuly is reportedly a fan of green, hence the chairs.

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Enclosed in every tabletop are various curios. Pictured here are string dispensers.

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One of the more fetching collections are these old-school and rare radios.

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The food is inspired by Chihuly’s many travels around the world, with a Northwest focus. The wine list includes 36 Washington and Oregon varietals.

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Bottle openers greet guests as they walk in. (Totally I Spy, right?) There’s another stockpile in the bathroom.

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Spruce planks line the walls.

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The patio is situated amongst the garden shrubbery. Not too shabby of a view, either.

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Collections Cafe is open to exhibit goers and passersby alike. Hours are Sun–Thu 11–9; Fri & Sat 11–10.

We’ve got a few days until that Pie spinoff opens at the Armory, so in the meantime here’s something to chew on: Collections Cafe begins service today.

Designers have chosen an exceedingly cheerful palette for the lofty space—frankly, a welcome contrast to this city’s many subdued rooms—while the kitchen is backed by some equally colorful talent. Jason Wilson of Crush helped hone the Northwest-leaning menu that Jeff Maxfield and Ivan Szilak are executing. Szilak’s resume includes a stint as executive chef at The Hunt Club, and Maxfield’s sous cheffing at Canlis.

The restaurant is housed within the mammoth Chihuly exhibition at Seattle Center, and is informed by the glass guy’s rigorous collecting hobby (who knew?). Prominent throughout are vintage radios, accordions of yesteryear, bottle openers, and other tchotchkes reminiscent of those I Spy books, which you can peep in the slideshow.

All photos by Seattlemet.com photographer Lucas Anderson.

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Tags: Seattle Restaurant Openings, First Look, Seattle Center House, Collections Cafe

Nosh Pit Weekly Planner: Memorial Day Edition

This week: free burgers, free ice cream, an upcoming Skelly and the Bean event, and a Seattlecentric cookbook signing.

Posted by: Anne Larkin on May 21, 2012 at 11:30AM 0 Comments

Memorial Day and National Burger Day are officially one in the same this year.

WEDNESDAY May 23
Whole Food Veggie Happy Hour Benefit
For one day only: dodge the accidental $20 hot food bar trip; there will be a $6 vegetarian dinner from 5 to 7 at the Westlake Whole Foods. Baked artichokes, asparagus, and corn fritters are on the menu, and all the food sales go to Forterra, a northwest conservation group.

SATURDAY May 26
Mischief Distillery at Tulalip
Tulalip Casino Resort is bringing the Fremont craft distiller out for the summer launch party of the patio at the Mpulse Lounge. Though the letter “i” apparently won’t be in attendance, the founder of Mischief will. The $30 ticket gets you an afternoon of live music, giveaways, liquor-laced snacks, drinks, and…mischief.

Revelry at Col Solare
The first of the summer’s Auction of Washington Wine events takes place at Col Solare winery on Saturday. Aside from the beautiful scenery and 21 winemakers planned to pour at the event there’s an even better reason to make this the highlight of your Memorial weekend getaway: it’ll be raising money for uncompensated care at Seattle Children’s Hospital.

MONDAY May 28 (Memorial Day)
Free Burgers at Li’l Woody’s
The 28th is doing double holiday duty his year: Memorial Day and National Hamburger Day. Actually, there’s some serious debate about the true day o’ the burger, whether it’s May or July 28. The Capitol Hill burger joint is celebrating the May date with free burgers for all from 2 to 5.

Free Scoops for Vets
Old School Frozen Custard is keeping its Memorial celebration, well, old school, and honoring the veterans who the holiday is actually for with free scoops for those who’ve served.

Sidetrack Distillery Feast
The berry liqueur–making crew out at Lazy River Farm is putting on a big Memorial Day party. Food, beer, wine, and sips of Sidetrack are all on the docket. The party starts at 2:30.

Raw, Vegan Potluck
Mayonnaise-y potato salad and a juicy burger not your thing? Those who aren’t taking advantage of Memorial Day as a day to indulge in an entire week’s worth of fat and sugar are meeting up at Discovery Park for a potluck. Drums and durian, that um…pungent fruit, are encouraged.

TUESDAY May 29
African Feast at Skelly and the Bean
From Morocco all the way down to South Africa in four courses for just $40 bucks. Arrive at Skelly and the Bean at 5 for drinks, and dinner begins at 6.

Seattle Cookbooks at Elliott Bay Book Co.
Seattle-o-rama at Elliott Bay. Molly Moon (of… Molly Moon’s), Mark Klebeck (of Top Pot Doughnuts), and Jess Thomson (of Pike Place Market Recipes) will all be at the bookstore signing their books from 5 to 6:30. And there’s promise of samples from all the mouth-watering books…

May Corner Table at Cafe Presse
This month’s Corner Table dinner is a benefit for Green Plate Special, the Central District nonprofit that teaches kids from primarily low-income families how to garden and cook. The Corner table menu will be put together by Laura Dewell, head of Green Plate, and the dinner is $55 with wine pairings. Call Cafe Presse to save your spot at the 6:30 dinner.

BEYOND
July 26 This year marks the third anniversary of the popular event Feast on the Farm. Ethan Stowell cooks, Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready jams, and diners get to ride tractors around the farm before sitting down to a salmon-safe, local-food dinner under the sky. Tickets went on sale May 10, and you’d better act fast to get a spot on that tractor.

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Tags: Hamburgers, Molly Moon's, Cafe Presse, Whole Foods, Ethan Stowell, Elliott Bay Book Co, Microdistilleries, Free Food, Top Pot, Washington Wines, Cookbooks, Benefit Dinners, Wine, Wineries, Skelly and the Bean

Toshi and Ezell: Two Seattle Fast-Food Legends Quietly Resurface Next Door to Each Other in Renton

If those names don’t mean anything to you, you’re eating way too high up the food chain. And look where Ezell just opened his latest chicken shack in Seattle.

Posted by: Kathryn Robinson on May 21, 2012 at 09:50AM 0 Comments

Just look at that glistening skin. Now conjure up the golden-fried Ezell-style skin. Either way, you can’t miss.

Just before Christmas, Toshihiro Kasahara quietly opened an alarmingly bright, fanatically clean teriyaki shop on Third Street in Renton, and called it Toshi’s Teriyaki Grill. “Since 1976 Seattle’s Original Teriyaki” the sign screamed, and Seattleites with long memories couldn’t believe their eyes. Thirty-five years ago at Toshi’s Teriyaki on Roy Street in Lower Queen Anne, Kasahara introduced Seattle for the first time to the soy- and sugar-glazed grilled chicken that would revolutionize Seattle fast-food and spawn two million imitators.

I ate at the original Toshi’s all the time as a kid—my dad was an early fan—and remember well the football of sticky rice; the thin sauce, sticky and sweet and bright with ginger; the flame-grilled chicken, always moist. I remember wondering why there wasn’t one of these on every block. Soon there was, of course—within a few blocks of Toshi’s Teriyaki Grill alone, some five teriyaki joints reportedly do business. Around the region some are even named Toshi’s, thanks to Kasahara’s expansion and franchising. Over the years some of those Toshi’s have been good; some average.

But when he quit the business in 2003—none were Toshi.

Until now. “I wanted to get back in the business for my kids,” explained Kasahara by phone last week. “All three of them work here, and are eager to expand into other markets, like Spokane. They’re concerned that there are lots of places still named ‘Toshi’s’ around town, and some don’t get good reviews, so they wanted to distinguish us. That’s why we’re Toshi’s Teriyaki Grill.”

Last week one of those sons took my order with a big smile, and there it all was: the football-shaped mound of rice; the ginger-kissed sauce; the perfect chicken, fresh off the flame. Less gut-bustingly supersized than most of the newer teriyaki shops serve, at a resultingly lower pricetag of $5.35.

On our way out we were floored to see this sign on the establishment next door: “Heaven Sent Fried Chicken, owned and operated by Ezell Stephens.” That’s Ezell as in Ezell’s Famous Chicken, the fried chicken empire Stephens and his partners began in 1984, in a single chicken shack across from Garfield High School in Seattle’s Central District.

Over the years the partners expanded the chain to several more outlets across greater Seattle, building its loyal following on sweet yeasty rolls, peach cobbler, and the crunchy, fragrant chicken batter Stephens tinkered with using a family recipe and that of a Texas restaurant where he once worked.

In time, differences emerged between the partners—“Their intention was to make money, mine was to change lives,” said the deeply religious Stephens by phone last week—resulting in a legal settlement a year ago this week that gave Stephens’ freedom from his partners’ priorities but separation from the restaurants that bear his name. In the settlement he got two of the original Ezell’s—Everett and Lake City—changing their names to Heaven Sent. Then without fanfare he opened his third Heaven Sent, the one in Renton, last November. Just last Friday came his fourth, on Rainier Avenue near Franklin High School, in a space he shares with another venerable long-timer, Willie’s Taste of Soul Barbecue.

“They got the name, but I got the freedom and I got the recipe,” Stephens declared when asked about the differences between Ezell’s and Heaven Sent. Though press reports say the recipes are the same, Stephens just laughed. “Ask my customers,” he said.

The small space, cozier than the original Ezell’s and offering actual tables, otherwise quacks an awful lot like its forebear: nearly identical menu, similarly thickly battered and not-quite-greaseless chicken in original and spicy flavors, similar “God is Good” tee-shirts on the staff. Was the chicken at Heaven Sent encased in a slightly thicker, slightly cracklier crust? Was the spicy slightly more spicy than at Ezell’s? These are early critical suspicions formed from, admittedly, one data point. Watch this space for more.

In the meantime, head to the 500 block of Renton’s Third Street for a double-dose of nostalgia and a glimpse of two important Seattle culinary players, both of whom check in at their establishments every day—and both of whom appreciate the legacy of the other.

“It’s amazing, these two good guys right next door to one another,” chuckled Stephens. “I never had a neighbor who was nicer than me!”

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Pie Opens This Week at the Armory

It’s the first of many imminent debuts at the renovated Seattle Center food court.

Posted by: Christopher Werner on May 21, 2012 at 08:50AM 0 Comments

Pie at Seattle Center will prepare a dozen kinds of palm-sized pastries. Photo via Facebook.

And the first to the finish line at Seattle Center House is… Pie . 

Jess Whitsitt reports the bakery she and Renee Steen are planting  at the epicly overhauled Armory will get things going this Thursday, May 24. However, eager types can swing by Wednesday between 12:30 and 2:30 to preview the space and sample $2 bites.

The offshoot of the Fremont shop will make on site the duo’s signature hand pies, both sweet and savory. Whitsitt also talks of serving Full Tilt ice cream, soups and salads, Victrola coffee, and local brews. Hours are 11–8 to start. After a few weeks they’ll run 8–8—just as the the rest of those Armory eateries should be up and running.

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Tags: Seattle Restaurant Openings, Pie, Seattle Center House

Restaurant Shifts and Shakeups

This Week: Hot Cakes, a new Green Leaf location, and plans for a third Renee Erickson establishment.

Posted by: Rachel Walls on May 18, 2012 at 11:50AM 0 Comments

Is Din Tai Fung scouting a Seattle location?

OPENINGS

Silver City Brewery Tasting Room
The Bremerton brewery just opened its long-awaited tasting room, which features 17 taps: seven evergreens, a couple seasonals, and a few pilots and small batches. Bottles, growlers, and kegs are all available for purchase, and the more inquisitive beer buffs can take a brewery tour.

Green Leaf
As promised, Vietnamese eatery’s Belltown location debuted Wednesday, and Eater Seattle reports that lion dancers were on hand to rid the space of evil spirits left behind by a series of ill-fated restaurants. Given our love for the original, we hope it’s here to stay.

Blu Grouse
Seattle magazine reports the Georgetown restaurant is now open and will feature flatbread pizzas, a full bar, patio, and fire pit—plus live music once a month.

Benito’s Chicago Eatery
MyBallard reports the Chicagocentric restaurant has opened on 15th Ave NW and serves deep-dish pizza, hot dogs, and sandwiches. There will be plenty of Italian beef, promises chef Benjamin Kulikowski—and, soon, taps.

Luisa Taqueria
The people behind Inay’s have opened a counter-service sister site two doors down. The Filipino establishment seats 11 and dishes up mainstays such as nachos, Mexi-fries, quesadillas, burritos, and tacos.

Hot Cakes Molten Chocolate Cakery
Popular local pastry chef Lucy Damkoehler departed MistralKitchen to join Autumn Martin just in time for the debut of the latter’s Hot Cakes shop. The official opening day is Monday, May 21, but keep an eye out for the gooey treats over the weekend, especially during the Sunday farmer’s market, where they’re sure to go like…well, you know.

COMING SOON

The Whale Wins
Renee Erickson of Boat Street Cafe and Kitchen and The Walrus and the Carpenter continues her oceanic theme with the upcoming The Whale Wins, which will arrive in Fremont in late summer. Like Walrus, it will feature an open kitchen, but unlike Walrus, its focus will lean away from raw seafood and towards veggiecentric offerings from its wood-fired oven.

Philly Boys Cheesesteaks
Food trucker John Schofield is transforming his underused storage room off of A.C. Automotive into what might turn out to be the largest commissary in the city: fellow food truckers, caterers, and bakers can use the 3,500-square-foot area for food prep and storage. Schofield hopes to have the site completed by early June, along with a takeout counter for his cheesesteaks.

Taco Time Traveler
The Mexican fast-food chain first opened in White Center, and now it’s joining the ranks in Seattle’s ever-growing food truck industry. The four-wheeled addition will begin truckin’ through Seattle in mid-June, an apt tribute to Taco Time’s 50th anniversary in the Emerald City.

SHIFT CHANGES

Marjorie
Josh Davenport is now the new chef at the Capitol Hill restaurant—he initially came over with Lauri Carter to provide a helping hand, but word is he’s in for the long haul.

REVAMPS

Bouteloua Bakery
As of next week, Bouteloua Bakery will be known as Wild Prairie Bakery due to its difficulty to pronounce. Not changing: the bakery’s staple vegan and gluten-free treats.

Munchbar
The Bellevue restaurant-slash-club is now known as Munch Sports Grill, and, at night, M-Lounge, which will feature “nonstop beats from famed DJs and appearances from special celebrity guests.”

Manhattan Drugs
Hot on the heels of the former owners’ departures, the Capitol Hill steak destination is now known simply as Manhattan.

EXPANSION MODE

Din Tai Fung
Seattle Times writer Tan Vinh dropped an intriguing rumor yesterday: he claims that not only will the Taiwanese chain remain at its Bellevue location, but there are plans to open another outpost in Seattle. Nothing’s confirmed, but we’ll never say no to more dumplings.

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Tags: Seattle Restaurant Openings, Coming Soon, Shifts and Shakeups

First Look: Hot Cakes Molten Chocolate Cakery

Brace yourself for salted pretzels with chocolate sauce, s’more cookies, salted caramel cinnamon rolls and Laphroaig milkshakes.

Posted by: Allecia Vermillion on May 18, 2012 at 09:15AM 1 Comments

The space at 5427 Ballard Ave NW is now home to two cozy seating areas and a counter surfaced in wood from an old Oregon dairy farm.

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The space at 5427 Ballard Ave NW is now home to two cozy seating areas and a counter surfaced in wood from an old Oregon dairy farm.

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Hot Cakes is the first place in the city to brew Blue Star Coffee Roasters out of Twisp. Martin worked with owner Dan Donohue at Theo Chocolate.

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Martin’s father and brother built the large sliding door that separates the shop and kitchen. Her brother hand-carved the Hot Cakes newsboy logo on the lower corner, and her dad also built a custom smoker for cold smoking chocolate.

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It’s helpful to have woodworkers in the family. Martin’s brother also carved the sign that hangs in front of the shop. Perched inside in the seating area is a smaller, simpler sign he made when she started her business back in 2008.

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Martin says the inspector declared her two-seat cocktail space “the smallest lounge in Seattle.” This is not a place for vodka Red Bulls; Hot Cakes will serve boozy milkshakes, a selection of 25-odd bottles of whiskey and bourbon, and some simple, sweet concoctions.

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A little menu porn.

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The retail section at the front of the store will house take-and-bake cakes, Martin’s caramel sauces, and bags of toffee.

Over on Ballard Ave, the nexus of all that is edible right now, Autumn Martin is readying her Hot Cakes Molten Chocolate Cakery for its opening. And even her construction detritus is adorable. Old-timey wooden clothes pins, a box of vintage photographs, and scads of diminutive glass jars and bottles are scattered around the dessert shop’s brick-and-wood interior.

Farmers market regulars know Martin and her Hot Cakes brand as purveyors of take-and-bake chocolate cakes that come in wee mason jars, and cookies in killer combinations like salted peanut butter and oatmeal, raisin, and bacon. Now the former head chocolatier at Theo (and before that lead pastry cook at Canlis) is about to give her creations a permanent home. On the menu: her signature cakes with custom toppings, s’more cookies, salted caramel cinnamon rolls, and pocket pies with fillings both sweet and savory.

There will also be booze—think milkshakes made with Laphroaig, smoked chocolate, smoked cocoa powder, and chocolate ice cream. Nonbooze versions come in flavors like blackberry lavender, salted caramel with dark chocolate, or malted vanilla sweet cream. Fend off sugar overload with a grilled cheese or broccoli salad from the small savory menu.

Hot Cakes opens officially on Monday, though if you’re wandering Ballard over the weekend—particularly during the Sunday farmers market—don’t be surprised if some sweets are for sale at the shop. Incidentally, Martin is taking a hiatus of six weeks or so from the farmers markets so all her employees can help the new space get off to a smooth start.

The kitchen, which also serves as the production headquarters for all things Hot Cakes, looks like one of those unrealistically quaint kitchens in movies where female chefs wander around with perfectly coiffed hair and wear lipstick all day. But instead of Catherine Zeta-Jones, Martin has Lucy Damkoehler, whose unofficial title is kitchen manager, and her job duties include staying up late at night with her boss, geeking out about dessert possibilities. The two met years ago, when Martin was at Theo and Damkoehler was at Taste. The doughnuts that made her famous in that job won’t appear at Hot Cakes (there’s no fryer here) but Damkoehler will be making her freaking awesome salted pretzels, along with some sweet dipping sauces (salted caramel, chocolate, jam, and peanut butter milk chocolate sauce).

Once the shop finds its legs, Martin plans to resume her chocolate work, teaching classes and holding events square in the middle of that kitchen. Meanwhile, hit up the slideshow above for more details, a glimpse at the space, the charm, and the smallest lounge in Seattle.

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Tags: Seattle Restaurant Openings, First Look, Autumn Martin, Hot Cakes Molten Chocolate Cakery

Joy of Feeding: Vancouver’s Tribute to the World’s Home Cooks

The passport-worthy foodfest is the pet project of Meeru Dhalwala. And she wants to bring it to Seattle next year.

Posted by: Allecia Vermillion on May 17, 2012 at 11:00AM 0 Comments

A participant in last year’s festival serves up Zimbabwean cornmeal mash with greens and beef stew. Photo via UBC Farm Blog.

While she will be plenty busy opening her forthcoming restaurant Shanik in South Lake Union, Meeru Dhalwala also wants to bring her Joy of Feeding festival to Seattle in 2013. The gathering of home cooks of various ethnic backgrounds debuted in Vancouver last year, and returns on June 10. It’s an all-day outdoor foodfest that’s absolutely worth a road trip; Seattleites who do venture north can also consider it an introduction to the woman who is about to make a major mark on Seattle’s restaurant landscape.

Most people know her as the wife of chef Vikram Vij, and the culinary force overseeing the kitchen at renowned Indian restaurant Vij’s and its sibling Rangoli. But Dhalwala says Joy of Feeding is even more personal: “If I have one thing on my tombstone, this would be it.”

She’s quick to acknowledge that her livelihood depends in part on Vij’s culinary star power, but Joy of Feeding is Dhalwala’s tribute to the undercelebrated home cooks, most of them women, who keep their families nourished and connected. She hunted up 16 men and women, hailing from places like Syria, Sweden, and Sierra Leone, and charged each one with making a simple, comforting dish.

A $50 ticket buys you a day spent wandering the UBC farm (blankets welcome), sampling a multicultural array of home-cooked food that feels more personal than your average food festival. Dhalwala also hopes that eating a dish from, say, Ghana might, in its own small way, increase someone’s awareness of that country.

All the information on this year’s Joy of Feeding is right over here. Dhalwala says she has already begun talking to cooks for Seattle—now all she needs is a good space and a great cause.

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Tags: Culinary Events, Outdoor Events, Road Trip, Meeru Dhalwala, Joy of Feeding