Harvest Beat — Restaurant in Seattle

As a birthday present from my husband we visited Harvest Beat in Seattle. This was a brand new experience for us.

I've been vegan for 3 years, my husband not so much.

The atmosphere was rustic chic, the staff very friendly and helpful. The food was locally sourced and the dishes were well thought out. The flavors married well with each other and we enjoyed our experience overall.

On a more specific note, here are my thoughts on each of the dishes. Keep in mind everyone's pallet and preferences are different.

The first item we were presented with was an Elder flower yuzu elixir. This was a tingly refreshing citrus drink which I enjoyed.

I'm was not a fan of the other drinks served. Although, when the pomegranate peppermint orange blossom drink was paired with the kale salad it cut the peppermint flavor enough to be enjoyable.

I was completely disinterested in the pear star anise all spice sage drink. Took one sip to be sure, but definitely not a fan.

I don't enjoy hot drinks so the hot tea was not my thing. But the flavor wasn't bad once it cooled.

Course number one and two were served together. Potatoe leek soup, which was 'eh. I wouldn't order it again. It wasn't bad, just a bit of a flavor I didn't truly enjoy. The Kale Cesar salad, I enjoyed this a great deal. The apples and radishes were a good compliment and the parsnip chips were a pleasant crunch for texture.

Course number three was a Pumpkin ravioli with Brussels sprouts. Again this was 'eh, it was palatable but not something I would order again. The brussel sprouts weren't bad when paired with the other items and my husband was surprised he actually enjoyed Brussels sprouts.

The main course was black pepper pasta lasagna layered with herbed cashew cheese with roasted maitake mushrooms, spinach and roasted garlic on an apple wood smoked tomatoe sauce, finished with crispy capers and a balsamic reduction. I truly enjoyed the smoked tomatoe sauce. The lasagna itself didn't have much texture to it, I wasn't able to articulate any layer of pasta or mushroom. I was able to fork down through the "layers" as if it were peanut butter. If it wasn't for the roasted capers I would not have had any texture other than mush. The flavors were best at the beginning, by the end I was over it.

The final course would by far be my favorite. The pear upside down cake was definitely worth it. The cake was moist and sweet, not too sweet for me, but I'm sure others might thing it's a bit too sweet. I truly enjoyed the cake and would have purchased an entire cake to take with me if that would have been an option. 😉

Overall the experience was beautiful.

It was definitely WAY out of my budget which, as the penny pincher I am, gave me anxiety, but as Rob pointed out to me, it is an experience we've never had. And probably won't...

I'd been wanting to visit this place for a very long time, but I was extremely disappointed and honestly a little embarrassed after finally coming here for my partner's birthday last week. The best things I had were the first course, the soup and salad, but even those weren't noteworthy compared to what I've had at other local restaurants at a lower price point. Every other course after that, including the dessert, was a mixture of bland everything (even mushrooms - how do you even make mushrooms that bland?) with some very strongly flavored sauces (red pepper, citrus, and passionfruit were the strong flavors that stood out in my meal) that kind of overpowered everything else. I'm honestly at a loss as to how this place has so many stellar reviews. Did we come on an off night? Are vegans that starved for decent restaurants catered to them that they feel obligated to write a good review for this place? Do the people who come here never eat out?

I'll give this place props for the idea of having communal eating times, vegan cuisine, and mostly locally-sourced ingredients, but the food was just not good. Even if it were half the price (which it seems it was a few years ago, looking back at these reviews), I wouldn't come back here, but for almost $300 for two (with wine pairings - which were also not done well and I had to force down two of the wines) before tip, I would have expected the food to be good, not just barely edible.

The service was fine, but definitely nothing personal about it. The servers were efficient with putting out our new drinks or taking away our plates, but it's not like they spoke to us or put in our orders, or even replaced our silverware (all the silverware we would need was in a napkin roll when we sat). The only interactions were being seated or at the end when they took our payment as we were still finishing dessert. At that point, the server asked us what the standout of the meal was, and I didn't know what to say. None of it stood out in a good way. I took the payment ipad and the minimum suggested tip was 20%. This is increasingly common in Seattle and I left a 20% tip, but I think this practice of making 20% the minimum is audacious, especially when the servers are only there to bus tables and run food. It feels like an attempt to shame you into leaving more.

Clearly, what they do here is working for some people, but I wish I'd look closer at the few bad reviews mixed in, because I see now I'm not the only one who has been underwhelmed. Lesson learned about paying close attention to the...

I’m visiting from Minneapolis, and my foodie friend suggested we try Harvest Beat. I’m a vegetarian, and I don’t drink alcohol, so I was excited to try a fully plant-based meal with mocktail pairings. It sounded right up my alley.

The experience was overall solid, though I must say that I felt like I was in the “Farm” episode of Portlandia (if you know you know…) The chef took us on a verbal journey of the menu in such detail that it became a little excessive. They told us how each element was painstakingly prepared and where each ingredient was sourced. I love the pageantry of fine dining, but I found myself to be rolling my eyes by the end.

The ambiance was both elegant and eclectic. I like that you’re able to choose your own table. I didn’t like the semi-chaotic and uncoordinated art adorning the walls. However, I will concede that the choices were bold and unique. The dinner playlist was excellent- lots of manu chao, r&b, and salsa. It really kept the energy buzzing.

The highlights were the 1st and 3rd courses - the onion soup and the porcini mushroom confit. The onion soup was creamy and the flavor was complex. The porcini mushrooms were cooked to perfection, and this is the first time I genuinely enjoyed eating mushrooms on their own. Each bite was heaven. The mushrooms were paired with fun and balanced assortment of flavors and textures. The pesto and eggplant mousse were especially divine.

The low points were the 4th course mocktail pairing and the texture of the 4th course dish - a savory Bloody Mary-type elixir and a squash lasagna respectively. The elixir was too savory for my liking, and the lasagna tasted excellent, but it was just a little too soft. It wouldn’t benefited from a bit of crunch. Also, to be honest, while each mocktail tasted fresh, they didn’t have much depth of flavor, and they left me wanting more.

Overall, the meal was satisfying, and I left the restaurant feeling full (though my stomach was a bit upset). The dining experience cost $164 per person with tip, and I just don’t know if the quality of the food and drinks justified such a steep price. For that price, I want to be absolutely blown away by each and every item I consume.

If nothing else, I really appreciated the originality of the concept, and I can’t say I’ve ever had an experience...