Chef Damo says: 3.5 saute pans out of 5
It was a rainy evening in Seattle, go figure right? We were thinking of walking down to the restaurant and checking out the neighborhood on the way, but the weather had other plans. So we parked close and scurried inside. We were greeted by the warmth of the open kitchen right in the middle of the dining room. It was just after 6 pm on a Sunday, and the dining room was pretty empty. We were seated promptly and the B ordered some wine. They had a great wine selection and everything on the menu looked awesome. I will say, if you came in unfamiliar with a wide variety of food, you may have been confused by the menu because it doesn't explain much about the dishes. Not a problem for The B and me, we are avid eaters.
I felt like choosing several items from the pasta selections instead of committing to one entree. The B, satisfied with her wine choice, told me to order for us both. We were not offered any bread even though I saw bread on a cutting board near the kitchen. I started us out with the fried oysters, followed by 4 items from the pasta selections. Gnocchi with an octopus and prosciutto bolognese, a butternut squash risotto with prawns and clams, Spaghetti neri with squid and mussels, and the smoked trout ravioli. We also ended with shortcake topped with a lemon ice cream and blueberries.
I enjoyed the oysters and was pleased that the bed of cabbage they came on was not just plate filler, but a seasoned slaw. Both the oysters and the slaw were fantastic. Big oysters, light on the breading, and cooked just perfect. The slaw went well with the oysters. The only issue was 5 oysters and 2 people. Luckily we share, so we split one down the middle because neither one of us was going to give up the last oyster. I should have employed my speed eating technique, but I was feeling generous.
The Gnocchi came and was delicious. My generosity in the sharing game ended after the oysters and I certainly ate my fair share of this dish. The bolognese had a nice heat to it and the gnocchi were delicate and tasty. I knew the portion was going to be more tapas size, but i was pleasantly surprised to see a good amount of everything in this dish.
The risotto came and it was nice. Seasoned well but a bit over cooked. It had too much liquid added, leaving it a bit runny. The squash went great with the dish and the clams were some of the best we'd had on this trip. I wish the menu hadn't said prawns because the shrimp were small. Overall this was a good dish. I've just had some really good risotto in my life but this wasn't in my top ten.
The spaghetti came and once again, a good amount of food for the price. This dish was great. The pasta was either made in house, or came from a nearby pasta shop. The spaghetti tasted awesome, the sauce was fantastic, and there was a great amount of squid and muscles. If I pitted the dishes against each other, I think the spaghetti would just sneak by the gnocchi for my favorite. Some how the B got this plate closer to her side of the table and I found it difficult to get my fork in, so I am assuming she liked this as well.
The last dish was the smoked trout ravioli. When I ordered, this was the dish I was most excited about, and possibly why I was a little disappointed overall. I knew going in that the sauce was browned butter but I really wanted to try the smoked trout. The lack of any sauce beside the brown butter made the ravioli dry. I did like the trout but this was the smallest dish of the night. If I had not ordered the raviolis, I think I would have rated this place higher.
Dessert came and I know I said the spaghetti was the best thing we had, but that was before dessert. The shortcake was just the right density and I could have eaten a pint of the ice cream, even after all the food we had just put away. It was a feeding frenzy on this one. A true no holds barred smack down, to see who was going to get the last bite. The B ordered a nice Riesling which went unbelievably great with this dessert. I alternated sips from her glass while trying not to miss out on my share of the amazing dessert in the middle of the table.
I liked this place overall, and would bring friends here if I was ever back in the area.
The Bitch Says: 1 Middle Finger
On our way home from Napa Valley to Alaska, we had a 12 hour layover in Seattle. So what are you going to do? Eat and shop. And eat we did. Ironically on our entire vacation, this was the best dining experience. While shopping at the Bellvue mall I did a little recon on my Opentable iPhone app and came across a restaurant that had good ratings and a menu covered in fresh seafood, a must in Seattle for me.
Dashing in from the rain we were immediately warmed not just by the heat, but the ambiance. Anchovies and Olives is a quaint and unassuming restaurant with what I would call a rustic and minimalist decor. The kitchen is in the middle of the dining room; a first for me, and I love it. Usually people pay ungodly amounts of money to sit at the "chef's table" and here we were, getting it for free!
As I cozied up into my first delicious glass of wine, I let Chef Damo order for us. After 10 years he may not know my birthday, but he does know what I like to eat. The wine menu was composed of Italian wines I had never heard of or tried. A nice reprieve from a week in California wine country.
The first course of fried oysters on slaw was a great start. The oysters were large, seasoned well and had a nice briny flavor and creamy texture. The slaw had a vinaigrette style dressing (my preference over mayo-based dressing).
For the second course I had the Risotto withGulf Prawns, Clams, butternut squash and roasted red pepper. Butternut squash is always a great compliment to risotto. The risotto was a bit loose for my taste. I didn't get much of the roasted red pepper flavor and a bit of shredded hard cheese would have gone a long way. That being said, I am nitpicking here. The seafood was all delicious and the flavor of the risotto was nice. Like Chef Damo, I have had a lot of amazing risotto in my life and this just didn't make the top 10 but it also didn't make the bottom 10. On the other hand, Chef Damo's Gnocci was delicious. I had some concerns about the mint in the bolognese, but after eating this, I'm throwing some mint in my next pot of marinara.
The next course was the one I was most excited about, the Spaghetti Neri. I had seen some bitch at another table get a steaming bowl of squid ink black pasta and was crossing my nipples that Chef Damo had been smart enough to order it for me...and he was. For me, this was the highlight of the meal. I am a 100% admitted and committed pasta addict. Unlike an "authentic" Italian restaurant we had been to in San Francisco (a blog for another day), this pasta was freshly made. The clams in this dish were the sweetest I have ever had and the mussels were so tender it made me think I've never had a properly cooked mussel before this day. I didn't taste any of the fresno chile that was supposed to be in the dish but all is forgiven. I was ready to peel my clothes off and go for a swim in the light broth that my sweet shellfish and squid pasta were bathing in. I may have also eaten this at about twice my normal speed because a) I did not want to share and b) Chef Damo struck out in this course. His smoked fish ravioli missed the mark. I'm not a fan of ravioli stuffing that is void of any creamy element in the filling. This is where the restaurant earned the 1 middle finger. The ravioli was dry and the smoked fish flavor was overwhelming. A creamy sauce as opposed to the brown butter would have made this dish more palatable. It wasn't inedible, but I certainly didn't want to make out with it, or Chef Damo after he ingested it.
And this brings us to dessert. Delicious, creamy, sweet, tangy dessert. A scoop of lemon ice cream on top of a tender biscuit topped with fresh blueberries and nectarines. Oddly, this was not our first dessert choice. I was about to order the chocolate cake, but the bar was out of Port so we went another direction. Between sips of Riesling and bites of this dessert, Chef Damo and I were jockeying for larger sips and bigger bites. This dessert, and meal, was a great end to the best meal of our trip.
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