Comfort Food
We sampled macaroni and cheese, roast chicken, creamy puddings, and meatloaf in eateries all over town in order to bring you the best, most comforting dishes around.
Edited by Kathryn RobinsonWith contribution from Laura Cassidy, John Ferensen, Eric Scigliano, and Steve Wiecking
Meatloaf
HIGH: * Icon Grill
Something exploded in downtown’s most baroque comfort-food-o-rama—and if you clean your plate here it just might be you. Cushioned booths and tables on two levels allow for a comfy perch and a color-drenched eyeful—but come for the meatloaf, which eschews herby or bready in favor of good old-fashioned sweet. Wrapped in house-smoked bacon, varnished in a ketchupy molasses glaze, then smothered in blackstrap gravy, and presented with creamy mashers pocked with sweet corn—it’s unspeakably delish. 1933 Fifth Ave, Downtown, 206-441-6330; icongrill.net
LOW: * Blue Onion Bistro (Closed)
Nobody’s even heard of cholesterol in the retro revamped Roosevelt gas station. Here, under the campy gaze of velvet Michael Jackson paintings and Pee Wee Herman masks, diners plunge into home-style dishes so luscious, they’re probably now illegal in certain jurisdictions. Franny’s meatloaf is among the best of them, served in two amply meaty slices with mashed potatoes and a plateful of rich mushroom gravy. What gives the meat its winsome honey tones? “Chef won’t even tell me, and I own the place!” bellows Cora Leitner, the world’s friendliest restaurateur. 5801 Roosevelt Way NE, Roosevelt, 206-729-0579; theblueonionbistro.com
NEO: Porcella Urban Market (Closed)
Francophiles may faint away at the comparison of meatloaf to their beloved potted meat, rillettes. But done right, as it is at the Bellevue gourmet deli Porcella Urban Market, the pork or duck meat is moist and fatty and loosely bound, served with something liquid to stand in for the gravy (Dijon mustard sauce), something starchy in place of the mashed potatoes (baguette), and something tart for contrast (cornichons, pickled onions, winey currants). You can take it away or enjoy it inside the lofty Main Street space, surrounded by Porcella’s imported foodstuffs. 10245 Main St, Bellevue, 425-286-0080; porcellaurbanmarket.com
Grilled Cheese
HIGH: * Crave (Closed)
Somewhere between grandmother’s cheddar-covered warm apple pie and Elvis’s fabled peanut butter and banana sandwich is hipster luncheonette Crave’s own contribution to the handheld lunch: Grilled cheese with apples, bacon, and maple Dijon. Sharp New York cheddar is grilled between sourdough slices holey enough to create a gooey mess, along with thin slices of the season’s freshest apples and thick slices of crunchy bacon. Blissfully balanced and anything but light, it could serve as the mascot for the clattering, garage-doored temple of neo–comfort food. 1621 12th Ave, Capitol Hill, 206-388-0526; cravefood.com
LOW: * Hattie’s Hat
Fifty years of nicotine still yellows the murky light in the Ballard yuppie-dive, where folks once tucked into booths to drink and smoke but now just tuck into booths to drink and eat. The terrific grilled cheese is one reason: Gilded grilled peasant bread, crunchy but soft, heavy with melting cheddar, swiss, and parmesan, and brightened with tomato and caramelized onions. Only a fool would choose a side salad over the addictively salty-sweet yam fries. And you’re no fool. 5231 Ballard Ave NW, Ballard, 206-784-0175; hattieshat.com
NEO: Ooba’s Mexican Grill
Where an East Coast court ruled that a burrito cannot be called a sandwich—and how gratified Massachusetts taxpayers must be with that pronouncement—nobody has ever claimed the same of a quesadilla, which is, as everyone knows, a grilled cheese sandwich with a lusty Oaxacan accent. At Ooba’s, the Eastside’s best fast-food joint and best kept secret, quesadillas come in seven guises and they’re all sensational. Our fave is the crispy fattie stuffed with grilled Yukon Gold potatoes, pico de gallo, smoky chipotle cream, and plenty of melted jack. Best enjoyed with chips and a Margarita at a tin table next to the salsa bar. 15802 NE 83rd St, Redmond, 425-702-1694; 17302 140th Ave NE, Woodinville; 425-481-5252; 555 108th Ave, Bellevue, 425-646-4500; oobas.com
*Restaurant specializes in comfort food.
NEXT: MAC AND CHEESE, CHILI, AND CHICKEN POT PIE
