RIDER — Restaurant in Seattle

I had the squid Bolognese. It was deceptively rich even though the sauce seems to be made mostly of vegetables and it's hard to imagine what kind of juice tough octopi would impart (tho I don't doubt that there may be some kind op seafood stock in it)! It has that same umpft, the same deeply satisfying umami of meat Bolognese but it doesn't drown you. I recommend trying it if you don't mind the natural toughness of the octopus in it (tho the cooking helps soften it).

I also had the lemongrass shrub (one of their house made sodas). If you love kombucha (like I do) then you'll love this. Same vinegar taste, but that's all you tasted but it's kinda sweet. It's like drinking balsamic vinegar but smooth and without the acidic burn. Very enjoyable, interesting drink!

Finally, I had the peach pie. First, one of the most absolutely amazing sorbet I ever had. If you ever have the chance, there is this almond sorbet that traditional Italian eat for breakfast and that some gelato places will have. It's amazing because you take a bit your mouth is flooded with fragrant almond flavor. Well made sorbet is a crystalization of the essence of an ingredient and this sorbet (that came on top of the pie) is no different. First bite was a sharp explosion of flavor, so much so it woke me up a little bit. The rest of the pie was mediocre.

The charred parts of the caramelized apricots taste like cheap Domino spicy chicken topping. Kinda gross.

The pie itself is a lot better. It's more of a pot pie in it's constitution. Crunchy, delicious exterior that's has the same kind of flakly soft crunch of a freshly baked croissant and a soft, sour, less delicious interior. It's interesting but not something I'd show picky friends.

Note to restaurant owners: please just have the sorbet. Turn the pot pie into a pastry side dish.

Decor: tile white pillars give the impression of being in the Pike place fish market but brown leather colored tables and chairs make it feel a bit more classy. I agree with the other commenters that it is quite a romantic place, especially if you get a spot by the windows on the street or by the wood fire grill (both at night). One I don't get is the mirror on the pillars throughout the place, like why? It's not big enough to make the e place feel bigger; it's just at that awkward height where you can see yourself in them if your sitting in an unfortunate place. Well anyways, love the music. A mix of music that is a mix of alt pop rock punk.

Some artist I heard and liked: The Killers, Bastille, Fitz and the tantrums, Vance Joy, The Smashing Pumpkins, Muse, Ryan Adams,...

Never have I ever felt so unwanted at a restaurant. My friend and I first came in there to try and sit at the bar. There were no seats at the bar. Cool. No problem. But the way that the hostess talked to us was less than ideal but not a huge deterrent. We still wanted to give this place a shot. We made a reservation for later that night in hopes to eat there as well as drink there. Came in, the hostess wasn’t there. I stood in line, but there were two open seats at the bar so my friend went to grab them while I waited for the hostess to tell her we’d like to sit at the bar vs a table. The bartender was so incredibly rude to my friend. Told her after huffing at her sitting down that the bar wasn’t seat yourself. HOW WERE WE SUPPOSED TO KNOW IF NO ONE TELLS US THAT? He acted like us sitting there was the worst thing in the world. We immediately left. There is a right and a wrong way to say something to someone and they definitely said it the wrong way across the board.

This place was busy and we’ve heard the food was good but the service from our perspective was horrible. Do better. Kindness and understanding goes a long way.

Update: My friend turned around and walked back in there and asked for a manager. She did talk to the bartender first and saw that they were a bit behind (had a lot of unwashed glasses). Fine. You were backed up and frustrated. Happens. But doesn’t mean you can speak the way you did to customers. The manager was great. Was immediately apologetic, talked her and she offered her a round on the house. Kudos to management. We did decline. I was asked if we should stay and said no. I had a bad taste and knew I wouldn’t have enjoyed my time there.

Originally gave them 1 star. Upped it to 2 stars because of the way the manager...

I had a not so amazing experience as written by other people. TLDR, some key words: overpriced food, rude service, thus overpriced serving fee (20%) for a party of 1, slow food serving speed.

Service fee is written so unnoticeably that might involve with spreading misinformation.

In hindsight, the food and service quality does not match with the high rating at all. Triggered by the high ratings on Google and also the hotel staff, I went in for dinner. However, the serving speed was extremely slow. I went in with less than 30% of the seats filled, but it took for than 40 minutes to serve the only two dishes that I ordered. When my sandwich was served, my side salad was not served at all, and it was not until me asking the server why the salad was not served when she finally said, “the salad will be ready in a few”.

The server then kept interrupting me, pushing me to order more stuff even I was alone and already had ordered 2 dishes. The interruption was made multiple times when I was eating or chatting with friends online.

As a side note, in terms of the food, the wild Alaskan salmon was finely cooked but overpriced—it was a really small piece (6 oz or whatsoever) with no sides. The side salad was extremely sweet and salty.

Finally, when paying for the bill, a 20% serving fee was added on top of the poor service for a party of one. Because of the slow food delivery speed, constant interruption, pushing for more orders, and, more importantly, serving a party of 1, I think the serving fee is overpriced, and the server does not deserve any serving fee because of the rude service.

Some comments, restaurants around this area that I have visited have better portions of food and serving quality. I do not recommend visiting this...