Seattle Restaurant Week is like my fashion week. But unfortunately I usually only have time and money to go to one or two places each year. I have a method for my madness. If I'm going to splurge on an 'upscale' restaurant there is certain criteria that must be met! First, location and atmosphere. Now I don't live in the actual city of Seattle, I'm about 15 minutes away but I still have to drive into that hot mess of traffic. And like any other Seattleite I have my neighborhood preferences. I try to avoid South Lake Union at all cost, and Belltown is only necessary if you're going to a Tom Douglas restaurant. I also think the atmosphere you're dining in can have a way bigger impact than you think on your dinner. Second, is price. Now for SRW you get three courses for $32 for dinner and $18 for lunch. So I like to look at the normal menu prices and compare what will be the most bang for my buck. And last of course is the menu, no doubt the most important part. I love that most restaurants post their pre fixe menus online before so I can compare and make sure that I'm going to get a nice protein dish. I really think as a carnivore it's a waste of a nice night out if I can't order a good steak of piece of fish. Personally I hate shrimp, clams and oysters so anywhere that focuses on that it out of the question. Last year I went to Tom Douglas' Lola and had one of the best meals of my entire life. I would honestly go back now and have dinner and pay full price, but that's the whole point of restaurant week isn't it? I also had lunch at Amaro Bistro in Bothell.
This year things were a little different. When looking at the list of restaurants I almost screamed when I saw The Dining Room at Salish Lodge. If you didn't know I am a Twin Peaks fanatic; my best friend and I have matching tattoos even. Twin Peaks was filmed in the Snoqualmie/ North Bend areas and the Salish Lodge is a very important exterior. Not only that but the view you have for inside is to die for. It hit all the other points as well, my steak was normally priced like $42. Naturally my best friend and I had to go.
To start we were served Olive, Rosemary and Ciabatta breads. Alongside with fresh butter with sea salt and honey. I had no idea until I came that Salish has it's own honey bees! They use the honey in many dishes as well as in their own cider! Next time I have got to try the cider, but I went with a Whidbey Island Sav Blanc. Next I had the cream of asparagus bisque topped with creme fresh and macrona almonds. The almonds were a treat adding a bit of crunch and texture to the soup. It was very tasty, But after a couple of bite I was kind of over it because of how strong the flavor was. Ripping up the bread and dipping it in the soup was definitely the best way to go.
For my main course I had the skirt steak cooked a perfect medium rare. Skirt steak can be very chewy but this was cooked perfectly, it melted in my mouth. It was topped with a chimmicuri sauce that could have had more cilantro but it was still amazing. It was served with Peruvian purple potatoes and grilled radicchio. The radicchio was too bitter for my taste. Last, the dessert to die for. It was funny because upon looking at the menu I told Colin there is no way I would pay $14 for a dessert here it's probably tiny. Man, I was so wrong. It was the most filling decadent dessert I've had in a long time, I ate the entire thing and I know I would come back and pay $14 for it again. It was a flour-less chocolate cake in between layers of coffee semi-freddo, topped with berries and cream. I don't even like berries but I ate them all.
In summary I had an amazing experience at The Dining Room. We were lucky enough to be seated at one of the four window seats, but a really incredible waiter. The service and atmosphere were on point the entire time. I also noticed they are the only restaurant in the Seattle area that serves traditional beef wellington, one of my favorite meals. It's $125 but it serves two people; I'm thinking for my birthday... Anywho it wasn't as good as my dinner at Lola last year but it was so worth it. The falls are amazing to look at and walk around after your meal to help you digest all that rich food. If you want to splurge on an amazing experience I really recommend it. Not to mention the hotel itself is beautiful and has an award winning spa. If you've never experienced Seattle Restaurant Week give it a try!
BOLD & BRASH