Best Restaurants 2006
Best Restaurant Atmosphere
Sambar
425 NW Market St, Ballard| 206-781-4883
A straight shot of urban Paris, hidden in residential Ballard. Bold wall murals and mirrors, along with a dependable legion of Seattle’s jeunesses dorées, lend a mod, arty vibe that contrasts with next door’s ever genteel Le Gourmand, the parent restaurant with which it shares a kitchen. That setting plus cocktails like the Sambar Pear Sour, dispensed by uncommonly able barkeeps, contribute about half of the place’s considerable appeal. The other half derives from Gallic eats and transcendent desserts.
Order up! Sable fish with pumpkin blini, wasabi crème fraîche, cucumber and lemon relish and tobiko caviar
Prime time For a nightcap at the optimistic end of a dreamy date
Pssssst An enchanted–fairytale patio opens the cozy bar to twice its size.
But… The hidden sign means you can forget about finding it from the road. Just locate Le Gourmand; it’s next door. they call crémant, rendered this one a classic from the instant it opened.
Crow
823 Fifth Ave N, Queen Anne| 206-283-8800 www.crowseattle.com
Pretheater sophisticates, arty early adopters, hipsters on leave from Belltown, and the general Seattle foodie rabble have pronounced the perpetually slammed Crow the crossroads for upmarket comfort food and sheer sizzling scene. Makes sense: The food is affordable enough for young artists and consistently exacting enough for their patrons.
Order up! House lasagna with Italian sausage; pan–roasted prosciutto–wrapped chicken
Prime time All dim–lit and warm, it’s a particularly inviting place to come in out of the rain. The later the better.
Pssssst You have the best prayer of a table around 8pm, when curtain time at the theaters down the street has cleared out the first round of revelers.
But… Puts the din in dinner.
Dinette
1514 E Olive Way, Capitol Hill| 206-328-2282 www.dinetteseattle.com
One part mom’s kitchen, one part scenester salon, this Euro–retro–homespun storefront on Olive Way elevates humble bread to the pedestal it warrants—slathering it with toppings, giving it a starring role in salads—along with thoughtfully assembled traditional French and Italian regional soups, snacks, pastas, and lusciously braised meats. Absolutely yummy. Best is how it cozies up a resolutely urban stretch of city.
Order up! Thick slices of rustic toast lushly topped with herb frittata and truffle oil or with fig–anchovy–walnut paste, arugula, and prosciutto di Parma
Prime time After dark, when it goes all twinkly
Pssssst Add Dinette to the burgeoning list of fine dining establishments that have chosen Columbia City Bakery as its bread purveyor. Yeah, it’s that good.
But… Allow 15 to 150 minutes to find a parking space.
