Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Maite Zaitut, Txori ! Downtown Seattle, Washington

Fabulous news, friends... the best cafe you ever enjoyed in Spain just got better and moved to our hometown.  Today I enjoyed an outstanding lunch at Txori, (pronounced "Chor-ee") in Belltownn.  This is the long-awaited downtown Basque-style tapas bar, created by the fabulous Harvest Vine husband-and-wife team, Carolin y Joseba Jimenez de Jimenez, and their long-time HV chef, Joey Serquinia (previously of Marco's Supper Club).  Let me count the ways I love this restaurant...

Each tapa was a complete delight.  My companion and I put ourselves in the able hands of Joey to craft our menu.  What followed was a parade of outstanding pintxos: Spanish cured chorizo sausage dusted with chocolate, tortilla espanola, piquillo peppers with morcilla (ok so it's blood sausage but don't freak out), 'gilda' which were the most beautifully composed skewers of cured anchovies, olives, pipparas and piquillos and MUST be enjoyed all in ONE BITE I learned, albondigas, and clams in a beany broth that we slurpped up with the wonderful baguette.  Carolin is the master (mistress?) baker so desserts were not to be missed... Coffee flan, and torte de chocolate y queso with caramel sauce, washed down with a perfect cafe cortado.  But it wasn't just the food!

If you take my advice, you will go to Txori and stand at the counter, as you would in Spain, and enjoy your meal standing up, and you will wad up your little paper napkins and throw them on the floor, just as you would in Spain, without the slightest hesitation.  (Carolin encourages you to do so.)  Dining at Txori in this manner also ensures you get the prime real estate for watching the chefs on the other side of the counter, as they craft each pintxos right in front of you with a healthy combination of intensity and affection.  

Open until 1 am 7-days/week.  See you there!  (ps And the t-shirt is sooo cool...)

http://www.txoribar.com/

2207 2nd Avenue
Seattle, Washington
206.204.9771

Posted by Kris at 21:31:41 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Sunday, November 25, 2007

Beato - West Seattle, Washington

Often I am asked for restaurant recommendations; this is in part because my friends and colleagues know I love nothing more than discovering a fabulous new restaurant and sharing such a find with those that will appreciate the same.   My career involves quite a bit of travel as well, so I am forever jotting down the names of restaurants in a Moleskin address book that I carry with me at all times, squirrling away restaurant ideas for that next visit to...  With this blog, I hope to share some of my favorite places with likeminded gastrophiles!  Buen provecho ~

Last night, I finally made it to Beato in West Seattle.  This neighborhood has become more and more interesting in the last couple of years; ladies, if you haven't discovered Clementine for shoes or Sweetie and Carmilias for fabulous threads, you're missing out!  Bakery Nouveau was the one shining star on the culinary map of West Seattle, cranking out perhaps the best bread, pasteries, and sandwiches in Puget Sound (with great espresso to boot) that made me re-think my long-standing aversion to this barrio.  But I digress.. what I'm really trying to blog about is where I ate last night: Brandon Gillespie's Beato.

I can't believe it!  A beautiful, tasteful decor that rivals anything downtown (think clean and minimalist like Union, with twinkling votives everywhere).  With only 50 or so seats, it's cozy.  Service was excellent, and the food even better.  I liked the option to enjoy a wine flight; we jumped on the four Barberas from Alba and Asti of the Piedmont region.  (Tre Vigne was my favorite)  Wonderful bread and fruity olive oil for dipping kept me and my four-year-old at bay until the first course arrived.  The mussels appetizer was delicious; my husband reported that the house-made fettucini with oxtail ragu was equally pleasing.  I liked seeing local Estrella's cheese on the antipasta list.  My main course knocked my socks off: house-made gnocchi, little pillows of potato heaven, with a wonderful, fennelly, sweet but hot sausage.  My plate was literally wiped clean with the last of the bread before our table was cleared. 

Dessert wines abound; I'm easy to please with Moscato de Asti.  I'm less easy to please with dessert, but the chocolate bundino was off-the-hook.  I won't describe it here, it doesn't matter; just eat the thing and you'll thank me later.  The trio of gelato was tasty, too, the caramel one standing out as the most heavenly.

http://www.beatoseattle.com/
Posted by Kris at 10:01:27 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |