dandelion

You're talking about Extreme Pizza, on the north end of Broadway? I've had it a couple of times, and I like it. A completely different style altogether than, say Pagliacci, but still good. They're quite loaded up with ingredients, in interesting combinations -- yes, it's <em>very</em> Californian. I had a MR. PESTATO HEAD (Homemade pesto sauce, new potatoes, red onions, feta, fresh basil, oregano and mozzarella) which was quite yummy.

I had dinner there about 2 weeks ago... it was pretty good, although it didn't take my head off. I tried the Asparagus Risotto Stuffed Artichoke, which was plated really nicely, and tasted just fine. It could have used a little more of something, maybe just salt, to be awesome. My friend had the Roasted Half Chicken, and said it was great. Nothing out of the ordinary, but very good. We started with the Bistro Salad, which was so pretty on the plate that I had to take a photo: <img src="http://www.216colors.com/images/food/IMG_0856.jpg" alt="salad photo" width="320" height="240" border="4"> I must admit that I can't help being nostalgic for the Still Life Cafe when I'm in there, though....

Thanks for posting your review, megwoo. It sounds to me like they're trying to be a bit British, what with calling the arugula "rocket" and carrying Hendrick's gin. So I wonder why they call it a gastro tavern, rather than a gastropub as those types of establishments are properly called over there? I supposed I'll have to travel to Belltown and check it out myself!

The best, cheap hotel in downtown Seattle is the Moore Hotel at 2nd Ave and Virginia. It's near everything, the rooms are big, clean and serviceable, and there's even a view of Puget Sound from the upper floors. The staff is great and very knowledgeable about Seattle, with insider tips that you won't get at big chain hotels. Plus, you'll find a towel folded into a swan in the bathroom! Here's their website: http://www.moorehotel.com/

Perhaps other critics do feel the same way as she does. It's entirely inappropriate, however, for her to write this and for the editors to allow it to be published. Her job is to critique food and restaurants, not her readers. In my work, I get asked dumb questions all of the time by people who don't understand what it is that I do. Sometimes I feel like I need to put these idiots in their place and tell them what's what. But I don't because it's not my job, and it would be entirely unprofessional to do so! By the way, her parting words "It's been my pleasure to serve you" are a complete load of crap. She must be one of those people who think that they can say whatever they want, as long as they say "I'm sorry."

Not closed or out of business, but... The Alibi Room in the market is no longer serving lunch. I'm really going to miss this, since it was a great place to slip away from the office for an extra long break. Their lunches were mostly sandwiches served with a big green salad and chips for around $7 -- a great price for the quality and the amount of food. Along with a glass of wine or a Hoegaarden, it was just about perfect. Sadly, the manager said they just weren't making enough money to justify opening before 4pm... I wish they would have considered raising the prices instead -- that $7 lunch would have been a good value even at $10.

Actually, we didn't check... it was more of a wish than a plan.

I, too, just enjoyed my first dinner at Via Tribunali on Wednesday night. For two, we were told by the host that there was a 20 minute wait, although we were graciously offered a glass of wine to make the time pass a little less painfully. After about 25 minutes, we were told there were two seats at the bar, if we were interested. I love sitting at the bar in restaurants -- it's definitely the best place to sit observe how a place really operates. I must admit that my Italian is not perfect, even my "restaurant Italian," but one thing immediately stood out to me -- a couple of dishes with buffalo mozzarella! I’m MAD for buffalo mozzarella! It’s an entirely different cheese, and, opposed to cow’s milk mozzarella, it actually has flavor. So we simply had to order the caprese, the Via Trib pizza, and a green salad in between. A glass of Sangiovese went well with all of it. We completely lucked out on the caprese -- the bartender told us that they were making it with heirloom tomatoes that night, for no extra charge. It arrived in a lovely multi-colored stack, with red, yellow and purplish tomatoes layered between the mozzarella. What kind of olive oil do they use? It’s delicious! More basil would have been nice (it just had one lovely leaf resting on top). The pizza was also amazing.... The smoky flavor that gets in there from the wood oven, well, I’ve never had anything like it. We also employed "the fold" to our pizza, which worked just fine. And more buffalo mozzarella! (As an aside, I thought the knives they provide were perfectly acceptable for cutting the pizza.) With all that, we were far too full for desert, although I could have eaten more pizza. My dining companion and I considered going back for lunch the following day; instead I think we’ll just be back in for dinner very soon.

Wing Dome: <a href="http://seattle.citysearch.com/profile/10774479/seattle_wa/wing_dome.html">7818 Greenwood Ave N Seattle, WA</a> <a href="http://seattle.citysearch.com/profile/35787989/kirkland_wa/wing_dome.html">232 Central Way Kirkland, WA</a> <a href="http://seattle.citysearch.com/profile/41149866/seattle_wa/wingdome.html">1416 E Olive Way Seattle, WA </a>

I went over to the Dahlia Bakery for lunch and had a veggie sandwich (arugula, tomato, walla walla sweet onions, avocado and cilantro mayo) on the summer corn bread -- delicious!

I did some research this morning, and found out that it's actually not illegal to sell raw milk (perhaps this is a new development). In <a href="http://www.portlandtribune.com/archview.cgi?id=30666" target="_blank">an article in the Portland Tribune</a>, I found out that "Washington State already allows stores to sell raw milk in some of its counties" -- although I haven't found out specifically which counties these are. On the Real Milk website, I found a listing of <a href="http://realmilk.com/where5.html" target="_blank">several places in Washington</a> that sell raw milk. Most of these seem to be goat milk. As far as the Seattle city limits, King County doesn't seem to be one that bans the sale of raw milk. (See: <a href="http://www.metrokc.gov/health/about/history/milk.htm" target="_blank">History of Public Health's Dairy Inspection program</a>). But where to get it?!!? I found the website of <a href="http://graceharborfarms.com/raw_milk.htm" target="_blank">Grace Harbor Farms</a>, which is in Custer, WA. According to the site, raw milk from their farms is available at Whole Foods in Bellevue, which is pretty close, and Les Fromages de Anne Marie in the Seattle area Farmer's Markets. Has anyone seen that stand around?

The <a href="http://www.thechapelbar.com/" target="_blank">Chapel Bar</a> on Capitol Hill has done some pretty amazing things with this theme, but that doesn't mean it couldn't be done again in a different part of town. Perhaps in a less solemn way, which could work really well in Columbia City.

There's an article in the NY Times today about visiting Seattle. Three new restaurants were chosen as standouts to check out while here -- Volterra is one of them (along with Crush and Tamarind Tree). Nice one! <a href="http://travel2.nytimes.com/2005/07/17/travel/17going.html" target="_blank">Article: Going to Seattle</a>

One more note about 22 Doors... The name comes from the fact that they bought a bunch of old doors when the Camlin Hotel closed. The doors were refinished and used to build the bar, with the doorknobs still attached. It's very cool.

Actually, they were a little higher than I expected -- I think the steak was $25. I didn't see any entrees come out of the kitchen, so maybe the prices are good for what they're offering. I also noticed that their menu is probably going to be very seasonal with fresh ingredients. The menu is just printed on regular paper with a date on the bottom, as if they make up a new one as availability of ingredients change.

22 Doors has opened up in the long-vacant Jack's Bistro space on 15th Ave E on Capitol Hill. I stopped in for a drink on Wednesday to check it out... their outdoor dining area is really nice. It's a big, walled patio with a strange canopy above. Inside, they've got a big vintage-looking bar and these great teal blue vinyl seats. The decor isn't fancy, but it's funky and ecclectic, and seems to work. As for the food... I wasn't quite ready for dinner, so I just tried a couple of appetizers. Roasted olives ($5) were served warm mixed with whole garlic cloves and drizzled with some olive oil and balsalmic. I wasn't crazy about them. I also tried the gazpacho with cilantro creme fraiche ($5) which I liked. It has a cucumber base, lots of herbs (mint, cilantro, parsley), and a few diced tomatoes. There's a subtle tangy flavor in there, which the waitress said came from a tiny bit curry powder. The rest of the menu wasn't too crazy (standard American, somewhat comfort), so I'll be back to check it out.

Yeah, they've been papered over for quite some time. I peeked in through the papered windows about 2 weeks ago... I think it's going to be a long time before they open. The walls were stripped down to the studs, the floor was just cement with a big hole in it, and there was a lot of construction debris all over the place.... Also on 15th... Kozak's is now open in the space that was Macguire's... the decor looks pretty similar, except they've added a new, big TV. I'll probably stop in sometime this week to check it out (and report back).

The Rainbow Cafe (formerly Zooties) on 15th Ave E is closed... Now open in that space is a new branch of the Hillside Quickies sandwich shop. I'm excited! It's vegan, but don't be scared... these guys make great food. Oldish Seattle Weekly review of the U-District location: <a href="http://www.seattleweekly.com/features/0344/031029_food_hillside.php" target="_blank">Whole Food/Soul Food</a>.

It's just "Direct Buy" -- http://www.directbuy.com/ I keep seeing those commercials, too... they are so vague. Does anyone know how much it is to join?

Yet another new restaurant is trying out the old Avenue One space -- I believe the name is the Starlight Lounge. The windows are still papered up, but we'll see....

Sorry, Laurie. I skimmed that part of review and went straight to the part about the frites as an appetizer. I haven't tried the fish and chips, but Mr. Bill said earlier that he was unhappy with his order. Strange, it does seem that the Weekly reviewer totally lucked out on the food.... Perhaps they knew he was a reviewer, or maybe (hopefully!) they've learned and improved from reading our comments? I don't mean to be negative, or continually harp on this. I LIKE the Brouwer's and I keep going back. I'd just like to be able to count on some good fried food to go along with my Hoegaarden.

The language they use in the <a href="http://www.seattleweekly.com/features/0524/050615_food_brouwerscafe.php" target="_blank">Weekly review</a> isn't particularly glowing, at least not in regards to the frites. It just states the facts, really (3 sizes, 4 sauces). I had some frites at Maximilien last night... and they were good. It can't be hard!

The Brouwer's Cafe was reviewed in The Stranger this week... it seems like we've got a city-wide consensus on both the high quality of the beer list, and the low(ish) quality of the food. <a href="http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=21819" target="_blank">What Ales Fremont?</a> Perhaps they'll take note and make some improvements to said food now that there's a review in print?

malarkey -- i've been dying to know the same thing. that space has been vacant for as long as i've lived on queen anne. there was an "application for liquor license" up before they started major construction, which (hopefully!) is a good sign. or it could just be another convenience store selling forties....

On Tuesday, I got home from work and discovered that the edges of all of the leaves on my lemon verbena had turned black! I have it planted just as you do, in a terra cotta pot on my patio. It did rain really hard a few times that day, so I was wondering -- are the leaves of this plant too delicate to get pounded by a good Seattle downpour? Or perhaps it was something else...?