August 19, 2005
Happy-Hunting
Belltown teeming with werewolves, preening for the full-moon prowl: dudes in dungarees and unbuttoned shirts, babes in stilettos and platforms. A new staircase from sidewalk to boisterous deck at Tia Lou's. A third cocktailer and extra barback at Cascadia.
On Western, three bartenders emulate the Stooges at Twilight Martini Lounge. Six bucks for by-the-book Absolut martini, five for goat cheese "fondue." [Memo to Twilight's ad agency: it's Belltown, not "Bell Town," bruschetta, not "bruchetta."]
Surprise, the goat cheese is terrific, steaming hot, heaped with roast garlic, bits of artichoke heart and black olive, accompanied by crunchy crostini.
Starting this weekend, Sunday nights at Twilight will be The Urban Lounge, a hip-hop & club classics music venue (with a dress code, no less).
Random thoughts, while watching sunset through west-facing windows: what's Twilight's relationship to Seattle Opera's twilight production of Götterdämmerung? Nah. Shake it off. The moon, boss, the moon ...
Twilight Martini Lounge, 2125 Western Ave., 206-443-1212
August 17, 2005
Summer menu at AIS
Chef-Instructor David Wynne isn't taking the summer off; far from it: his students at Art Institute of Seattle are plating up a refreshing Lomi Lomi Salmon for $6.50: slices of cured salmon and sliced heirloom tomatoes, along with a mound of chopped salmon and chopped tomatoes. It's served with a tasty variation of the traditional Hawaiian flatbread, lavosh: flavored with green tea. The summer lunch menu runs through mid-September; best to call and confirm hours.
Portfolio Restaurant, 2600 Alaskan Way. 206-239-2363
Pellegrini memorial
Angelo Pellegrini, Italian-born author of The Unprejudiced Palate and The Food-Lover's Garden, was devoted to the pleasures of a convivial table; his books--his life, in fact--inspired a generation of foodies in his adopted home of Seattle and throughout the country as well. He died in 1991 at the age of 88 and his books, sadly, are no longer in print.
Pellegrini photo (L) by Bob Peterson
Now, Seattle seafood guru Jon Rowley is heading a campaign to create a memorial: a statue, a bench, an herb garden. Details in the current issue of Northwest Palate. Roger Downey also offers a tribute to Pellegrini in the current issue of Seattle Weekly. Surely this is a project we can all support!
94 Stewart updates
Updating the updates: Friday, August 19th, the august Seattle Times weighs in. Nancy Leson loves 94 Stewart! (Good for Nancy! Take that, P-I!) But isn't the timing just a bit bizarre? Three reviews in ten days? On the field, wouldn't it be called "piling on"?
Thursday's post:
The P-I has finally managed to review 94 Stewart, sending Rebekah Denn. She didn't much like it, though she expresses admiration, as Cornichon did two months ago, for Lindsey Norton's wine expertise.
Context, people! Vivanda, right across the street, has been closed for the past month! Campagne is fancier! Le Pichet is a tad pricier! And please, spare us the "parking can be expensive" routine. This is downtown, we live in a big city. Walk.
On the other hand, Bethany Jean Clement gets it. Her review in The Stranger has the most charming lead: "Walking into 94 Stewart is like finding out your blind date is really, really cute—and has an accent." Love it!