Sexy Italian in Seattle

And I do mean sexy...mood lighting, low music, Victorian building with lots of window seats, and most importantly, amazing food.  If I lived in Seattle, I would be as big as a house from eating at Al Boccalino...

I can't say enough about how fantastic my experience was here. Beautiful, artfully done food made with fresh ingredients and minimal fuss; knowledgeable, friendly, yet unobtrusive service; and a cozy hideaway feel right in the heart of Pioneer Square, which is no easy feat. 


The menu is "al fresco", which means you roll the dice on what's fresh and available that day.  I love the adventure of an ever-changing menu, anyway--the best test of a kitchen is to let them do their thing unimpeded, I think.  But even the more cautious diners in my party were pleasantly surprised that just about everything offered that night (and it wasn't a skimpy menu) sounded amazing.  Our patient server had to come back twice before we were ready to commit to our entrees.  The gnocchi was delicate (?!) and perfectly dressed in a tomato sauce that tasted and looked like freshly pureed tomatoes with herbs and olive oil.  The lemon-dill salmon was mid-rare and beautiful.  The mussels in tomato-saffron broth had us all swooning. And the wild mushroom ravioli tossed with homemade pesto hit the spot.  Oh, and did I mention all pastas and desserts are homemade on-sight? 


I know I keep raving about the restaurants in Seattle, but it's because there are so many great places.  And Al Boccalino might be the best I've tried yet.  

Guide to edible airport food

I do a moderate amount of traveling, and I rarely bother to pack snacks anymore, although it is in my Midwestern blood to carry sandwiches everywhere and generally be a cheapskate.  It's just not worth the frisking at security, and those guards are never attractive.  Never.

Here's what I've found so far that's edible.  Feel free to comment and your faves, too!


Top picks at DIA (Denver International Airport):

Boulder Beer Tap house   Jeppesen Terminal West, Level 5  One of Colorado’s premiere microbrewery (and the first in the state, back in 1979), Boulder Beer serves up some tasty staples like lagers and porters, and a special collection for connoisseurs, like Hazed and Infused (a hoppy, bitter ale).  The food’s good, too.

Lounge 5280 Wine Bar  B Gates  This stylish, contemporary bar seems like it could be in LoDo, and the wine list really is top-notch.  What’s really special, here, though, are the signature cocktails using fresh herbs and fruit juices.  Ask your bartender to recommend appetizers that will compliment your drink--they’re great at pairings here.

Mesa Verde Smoking Lounge A Gates  I hate cigarette smoke, but their Mexican-inspired dishes are terrific.  Ask to sit on the "patio" and you can avoid the lung cancer.  For a hearty brunch before a long day of travel, try the chilaquiles and a cup of coffee for as satisfying of a meal as you might get at your favorite neighborhood joint.




New Belgium Hub  B Gates  Famed Fort Collins brewery New Belgium has finally set up shop at DIA.  Get a sandwich and sample some of the beers that have earned them cult status in the West.

Paradise Bakery and Café  B and C Gates  Of all the coffee shops in DIA, this is my favorite, because the baked treats are sooo good.  The muffins are a real treat.  The breads they use in the sandwiches are homemade, as are their soups; it’s a great little deli experience in the middle of the airport.  Oh, and the coffee is fantastic.

Rock Bottom Brewery  C Gates  Just like the locations around the Denver area, this chain has a good selection of beers from around the world and a great burger to fill you up for the plane ride.

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MSP (Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport):

California Pizza Kitchen  Concourse F  These guys really do bake up a great pizza.  The crust is buttery, crunchy on the outside and fluffy inside, and just the right thickness to hold up to the generously portioned fresh ingredients they use.  Get the chicken and roasted garlic--it’s fresh roasted garlic and high quality white meat with a light white sauce and sweet red onions.

Caribou Coffee  Concourses A, E, F, G, Terminal 2-Humphrey  The local favorite really does serve the best cup of coffee in town (including MSP), and their sandwiches and salads are just fine.

Great River Market and Deli  Concourse G  I’m not usually too keen on the fast-food sandwiches (boring and dry), but this menu really does boast some great ingredients and tasty, fresh-baked bread.  For a comforting breakfast that will last you all day, get the Hashbrown Casserole.

Itasca Grill  Concourse A  Like the popular restaurant in the Minneapolis area, the airport location serves up some artful breakfast/ brunch dishes like cinnamon vanilla French toast, an enormous breakfast burrito, and a bevy of omelets.  For lunch, the turkey apple wood bacon ciabatta is divine, as is the lime-infused grilled chicken and brie sandwich.

Maui Tacos  Concourse C Great fish and fresh salsas top fresh-made corn or flour tortillas for a healthy, flavorful meal I never imagined I could get in an airport.

Northern Lights Grill  Concourse D  This restaurant celebrates local cuisine, from simply cooked wild rice soup to broiled walleye and good old-fashioned Midwestern pot roast.  A great wine list offers something to compliment each dish, and the atmosphere, if you turn yourself the right way, makes you forget about the airport chaos beyond.

Rock Bottom Brewery  Concourse C  As stated above, this chain has a good selection of beers from around the world and a great burger to fill you up for the plane ride.  Good place to bring kids (childless beware: people bring their kids here!).

Skol Café and Bar  Concourse A  This bar is beautiful (That's it to the right)!  Scandinavian design accents the Northern European-inspired snacks and drink available.  Do like the locals do and stick to the vodka--it’s incredibly high quality and a perfectly clean palate cleanser with the smoked salmon toasts.



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Sea-Tac (Seattle-Tacoma International Airport)

Anthony’s  Central Terminal  Like their locations around Washington and Oregon, Anthony’s in Sea-Tac specializes in fresh Puget Sound delicacies like oysters on the half shell. Alaskan King Salmon, and their signature blackberry cobbler made with fresh, local berries.  Local microbrews and wines complete a menu that will give you one last great dining experience before your trip home.

Bigfoot Food and Spirits  North Satellite  This popular Seattle chain is little more than a sports bar: BBQ sandwiches, big burgers, and beers. Along with a few brunch selections and an ample dessert menu.  But it’s all really tasty, reasonably priced (for an airport), and will fill you up for a long time.  Great comfort food.

Ivar’s Seafood Bar  Central Terminal  An iconic name in Seattle, Ivar’s serves up beautiful, perfect fish & chips, as well as just about any other local seafood you can imagine craving.  The northwest chowders are fantastic, and their grilled prawns, halibut, and salmon are as dreamy a meal as you’ll find anywhere in Seattle.  Clams, calamari, and scallops make a tasty snack, too.




Maki of Japan  Central Terminal  Well-made sushi and authentic noodle dishes with pork are your best bet here, and the price is right: 8-piece sushi rolls start at just $4.95.

Mountain Bar Room  Concourse C  The burgers and beer are fine here, but this place is best for breakfast.  Belgian waffles and a “Big Cheese” ham and cheese omelet are more special than they sound.  Anything can be prepared to take on the plane if you request it when you order.

Pallino Pastaria  Central Terminal  The wait can be a bit long for this fast-food stand, but it’s worth it.  Perfectly-cooked pasta is topped with your choice of  freshly made sauces for a meal that would put Olive Garden to shame.  The personal pizzas come in a wide variety of flavor combinations, and many of them can be made into sandwiches, as well.

Seattle Tap Room  Concourse B  This is beautifully prepared gastro-pub fare.  The beer-braised bratwurst plate and meatloaf are both terrific, and the beers on tap represent local breweries from throughout the Northwest (and occasionally the Rockies).

Vino Volo  Central Terminal  This tiny space offers high-end wines poured by the glass and sold as full bottles to take home (they’ll also ship for you).  Not sure what you like?  Get a taste flight and chat up the server--they are well-trained in matching you to your perfect mate.

Coffee:  You’ll have to pick your team here, just like you have to in Seattle-proper.  Seattle’s Best, Starbucks, and Tully’s the three local giants, are all equally represented here.  Good luck.  (I choose Tully’s.)

Blue C Sushi Extra Super Good!!!!!!

Blue C Sushi can be found in mediocre, overpriced shopping areas throughout suburban Seattle, and it's sickeningly lit with copious neon lights.  Open the doors and you are overwhelmed with insipid, thumping ambient trance music and your eyes will eventually be assaulted by Japanese sports shows projected onto the largest wall in the room (because a widescreen t.v. just isn't enough).  But here's why you should go: it's totally fun!  Oh, and the food is amazing!

So, Blue C is modeled after the first Japanese restaurants to work on conveyor belts in the 1950s--food comes gliding around on a long train, plated on color-coded plates.  The color of the plate tells you how much you will pay if you take it.  So, watch carefully and grad whatever you want--the host adds up the costs at the end.  Picking your food becomes a whimsical group activity, and the slower pace of eating keeps you from getting overstuffed.  Prices are also quite reasonable, particularly for Seattle.

The food itself is beautiful: lovely sushi rolls and sushi nigiri with the freshest of fish, comforting noodle dishes and innovative salads, and tasty little naughty things like mini doughnuts and cheesecake.  I loved the seared ahi tuna--it might be the best I have ever had.  And it cost me $4.25.  I had one of the most satisfying, delectable Japanese meals of my life for $22.95, and I got a good giggle out of the cheesy aesthetic.

So, Blue C Sushi, when are you branching out?  Or do I have to keep flying back to Seattle to eat well?

Eating in Sunny Seattle

There are so many great places to eat in Seattle that in a decade I would still be discovering new things, so just to keep it simple, I’m going to give you dinner and dessert. Well, life is short, and you should eat dessert first. Please, oh please, take care of this crucial human need at Wink Cupcakes at 1817 Queen Anne Avenue North. Their tiny shop offers a couple of tables for dining in, or you can wander the streets and enjoy all the neighborhood shops on sunny days. And the perky, incredibly happy-to-be-alive staff (I don’t blame them) can answer all of your questions about the dietary contents of their lovely little sugar bombs (yes, there are vegan options; yes, they choose fresh whenever possible and use no preservative or trans fats). They even have a cupcake Happy Hour Wednesdays from 3pm to 5pm; if that isn’t serious, I don’t what is.

There are three different sizes of cupcakes at Wink; the medium size, which is what’s out and on display, is a good, modest size of cake, though of course it is piled high with almost the same amount of frosting. My favorites were the moist Red Velvet with a tangy, surprising light cream cheese frosting; the ever-so-healthy carrot cake (with visible shredded carrot inside) with the very same cream cheese frosting; and the even moister, dense peanut butter with an incredibly light, fluffy whipped peanut butter frosting (you can also request other frosting flavors on these). They have ice creams, as well, if for some reason you find yourself entering a cupcake shop and craving ice cream instead. I don’t judge.

I know that Italian food may not strike you as terribly original for dinner; most of the time you could make the stuff at home for pennies and it would turn out just as well. But still, what is sexier than a dimly lit, poshly decorated Italian place for a late dinner? Actually, I went to Pomodoro with about ten other people, and the ambiance worked just as well for us. I do hope our loud cackling didn’t ruin anyone’s proposal…

Pomodoro, at 2366 Eastlake Avenue, actually offers Italian and Spanish fare, and the combination of the two yields some subtly creative dishes. The Barcelonan chef got his start in the Spanish Army thirty years ago and has cooked for the likes of the King of Spain and various European politicians. We ordered a nice bottle of Temperanillo that was smooth and smoky (wine can be ordered by the glass, half bottle, or full bottle).

From the tapas side of the menu, we ordered Champiñones al Jerez, whole mushroom caps grilled with olive oil, sea salt, and dry sherry. I could have used more salt, but they were otherwise a perfect complement to the wine. The dishes, well-proportioned and all beautifully prepared, included smoked baby clams with linguine and an olive oil-white wine sauce, fresh crab meat in a dill-cream sauce over spaghetti, roast chicken with dollops of potato gratin and an asparagus spear embedded in a zucchini boat (definitely the most artistically constructed dish of the evening), and a surprisingly light carbonara with crispy pancetta. With fresh local ingredients form the ocean, perfectly cooked pasta, and sauces which were tastefully made and applied, I could happily recommend any one of these dishes. The restaurant is also accommodating when it comes to adjusting recipes to make them vegetarian.

Spending Time in Sunny Seattle…

It really was mostly sunny when I visited Seattle the first weekend of April. I crashed at a friend’s house in the posh (and bustling!) Capitol Hill neighborhood, complete with a Trader Joes’ Market within walking distance and a bevy of chic boutiques, gift shops, and coffee houses everywhere I looked. When walking down the right street and in the right direction, I even caught the occasional glimpse of both the mountains and the Space Needle. This area probably won’t be on your list of places to visit when you go, but it’s just a train ride and short bus ride away if you want to slum it yuppie-style like a (salaried, mid-30s) native. Then again, there are probably many cool neighborhoods here.

There are lovely fish markets galore. If you are like me, landlocked for the majority of the year and thrown into a frenzy at the thought of eating fresh seafood, you might be tempted to get wrapped up in finding “just the right” place. Don’t – you are paying for that ambience. Go to the neighborhood, working-class places that put all of their energy into simply prepared fresh clams, oysters, and the like. It’s all delicious, the price is right, and you’re eating with the locals instead of the other tourists studiously following their guidebooks’ suggestions. City Fish Co. in the Pike Place Market is a good one to try. And with a large and diverse Asian population in the Pacific Northwest, you also can’t go wrong with fresh, local Vietnamese, Japanese, or Thai food. Go for the street vendors and food carts in the markets—they know what they’re doing.

Speaking of the Pike Place Market, if you shop anyplace, go here. I am not a big shopper, because unless I am purchasing food, I am incredibly cheap, but even I can recommend this place. Located at 1531 Western Avenue and thereabouts, this complex has a mind-boggling selection of shops, restaurants, and –yes—fresh food stands. With a lovely riparian view and an active community culture thrown in, you can stuff your face, buy your unique gifts for the nieces and nephews back home, and get in some great people (and nature) watching.

Coffee is everywhere you go in Seattle. I like coffee and consider myself moderately picky about it quality, but to me, Peet’s (actually a California chain), Starbucks, Seattle's Best, Tully’s…they all taste relatively similar. Everyone picks their own “home team” and is convinced it’s the best, but it’s all good in Seattle. So let’s skip beating the dead horse and talk instead about…tea! There are some great tea shops throughout Seattle. A charming stroll in downtown Seattle will lead you to Perennial Tea Room(1910 Post Aly), filled with a wall full of different canisters of classics and special blends. Tea service includes a tray with a small pot of tea, a beautifully decorated cup, a spoon and a bottle of honey, a small pitcher of cream, and a timer to get the steep just right. The double bergamot Earl Grey was amazing, as was their special-blend herbal tisane called coconut grove, a blend of hibiscus, dehydrated coconut, and chamomile.

And back in the Capitol Hill neighborhood is Remedy Teas, a hip, urban basement shop at 345 15th Ave. E. They have a smaller selection of loose teas to drink hot or cold, but they really excel in the smoothies and tea lattes. I had a rooibos latte that was dessert-worthy, and my friends opted to start their mornings with smoothies chocked full of fresh fruits, green tea, and wheat grass. These drinks will pack at least as much of a wallop as a cuppa around the corner at ‘bucks.