Blue Moose Cafe — Restaurant in Port Townsend

Nearly every person talks about the long wait and it's absolutely "as advertised". We tried it for the same reasons most others who don't live in Port Townsend - we read the rave reviews.

I have no idea how people can rate this establishment so highly: Long initial wait Middle of a boat yard, not even a strip mall or area of commerce - a literal boat yard. Long wait for food (we never got ours) seems common. WE literally waited 45 minutes after ordering we had to go and were told it would be out in 10 more minutes. So, 30 minutes for a table in a tiny space, 10 minutes to order, then 45 minutes (and an hour if we waited for food). Gordon Ramsay himself better be the chef to wait that long. In the middle of #3, we observed what APPEARED to be (happened several times, so I doubt we are wrong) locals being seated, ordering, and receiving food before us (there were TWO of us, so not a large party). The locals getting take away were a steady stream also and I doubt they called their orders in 90 minutes prior (to a person) so they were ahead of us in queue. Coffee flowed like a spring of water...speaking of water, if you aren't a coffee drinker evidently the water isn't on par with coffee as we had to ask every time to get refilled (all we had for our wait) and yet it took time while we watched coffee containers bandied back and forth continually. Our initial waitress was in because someone called in sick and she needed to leave "later" (turned out to be during our epic ordeal - how long we were there waiting) to go to her "real" waitressing gig. This is of note as when she was prepping to leave, she never told us anything about or food or her status, rather we noticed she had her coat on and wait for it...went and sat down with a group of locals and chatted them up. Meanwhile we sat wondering if we were ever going to see our order. After she left (confirming we weren't drawing false conclusions from the coat and sitting and chatting), we asked another waitress what the status was. She was very nice (reason for two vs one star) and was the source of "another 10 minutes after checking with the kitchen. At that point, we tipped her $10 for his attitude and the water and had to go.

One last note. In case it seems we are coming to the wrong conclusion regarding preferred treatment of locals or perceived locals, we observed a younger "professional" couple (professional assumed because they weren't dressed in polka dot sleepwear bottoms, a fisherman's sweater, crocs, some form of beanie/animal eared hat, with either gray stringy/bobbed hair or hair that had not been washed in the past week) who were having the same experience. They were evidently on vacation (versus locals as we actually are, but not of the hippy village, Port Townsend) and gutted it out.

Bottom line - shame on you for being prejudiced to locals...isn't this the hub of "peace and harmony"...

I went to blue moose today to meet some family that we haven’t seen in a long time. We chose to eat outside. We would give a one star review because of this restaurant’s customer service and confusing menu. I ordered a sizzling loaded veggie hash plus two eggs and toasts. When it got to my table it had bacon inside of it which I noticed right off the bat. I told her I ordered the sizzling veggie hash and the description for the veggie hash does not say there is meat inside of it. The waitress that delivered the food apologized and took my plate and was kind. A few seconds later an older woman was walking towards me and looked mad. She asked who ordered the veggie hash and I said it was me. She said this is what you ordered and this is what’s in it, so what’s the problem? I explained that I am a vegetarian and don’t eat meat and would really just like the sizzling loaded hash without meat.. she said ‘well that has chorizo in it.. ‘and I ask if I can I get it without chorizo or meat? She started shaking her head no and repeating that it has chorizo and wouldn’t do that for me. I said ok just please cancel my dish, I will pass on ordering food right now, (I was flustered at the conflict she was directing towards me). She said ok, good in a short, rude tone and walked away. I realized my mistake in ordering a dish with meat without my knowledge after the fact which is stupid of me but her tone and attitude was uncalled for and the fact that they wouldn’t make it without meat seemed ridiculous. Or, better yet.. she could have easily said “ it seems like you are confused, do want the regular veggie hash with two eggs and toast? and that will be 12.50” Blue Moose, please add a space between changes in your dishes so that meat dishes aren’t as easy to confuse with your VEGGIE hash. Here is another, probably better idea, take it or leave it.. put a little green V next to vegetarian dishes. I looked at the food description for veggie hash and then said yes this is what I want but I am hungry so I want the biggest option, oh yes it sounds good with eggs and toast, let’s do that. I am fully aware that I messed up by not reading every line but something tells me that I am not the only one that has made this mistake.

Didn’t catch this ladies name but she was rude as heck during...

Wow. What a find! So glad we stopped in and added our names to the wait list. Such a small, sweet, and delicious spot. I can honestly say I haven’t had a better breakfast out for some time. First, there’s options for meat eaters, vegetarians, and vegans. We were given buzzers to let us know when the table was ready. It had a wide range, which allowed us to walk around the actual working shipyard and grab a cup of coffee at Sunrise Coffee, which also roasts a special blend for Blue Moose (buy some, you won’t be disappointed). As well, Blue Moose has self serve coffee for those who prefer to wait on site. There is plenty of space for one to sit and relax while anticipating their yummy breakfast. On to the food and drink. I had a Bloody Mary, which was actually the best I’ve ever had. It wasn’t so much the garnishes, it was the perfectly spiced tomato juice. I was floored. Tried to sip and savor but ….. THE FOOD! My partner had the smoked salmon omelette and claimed it was “The best smoked salmon I’ve ever had” and proceeded to inhale his huge omelette, roasted potatoes, and rye toast. I, meanwhile, had the South of the Border scramble, which was Q’rico! Just the right side of crispy… the tortillas were perfection and the eggs and cheese brought it home. But wait… it’s topped with fresh avocado, a hint of sour cream, and some salsa. There’s a wide variety of hot sauces to take advantage of, which I did. Accompanied by roasted potatoes and deliciously crispy sourdough toast. I couldn’t eat again for hours. So full!! On to the staff… genuine kindness. I loved listening to them talk to all the other customers. We were seated at the counter today, so got to hear a lot of chatter. It was genuine. Lastly, I watched every person come in, hear the wait time, nod and grab a buzzer with a smile. They know a good thing when they see one. As do I. Thank you to the lovely staff who served us today. It...