The Pink Door Terrace

The Pink Door

1919 Post Alley (Between Stewart and Virginia Streets)

206 443-3241 http://www.thepinkdoor.net/

Pink Door on Urbanspoon

 The rule is: Spend no more than $25, taste as many different dishes as possible, off of other people's plates. September. Perhaps the last warm summer day (over 70 degrees Fahrenheit - this is Seattle). I arrived to meet my friend who had just returned from a five-week research trip in Liberia. She had already ordered a drink: Pimms and Sprite. 

"What is Pimms," I asked? 

"Well, I discovered it through a neo-colonialist ex-pat party network” in Monrovia, Liberia, a young set that has been installed to rebuild, redesign and reconstruct the Liberian government after years of devastating civil war,  Apparently the drink was originally served as a digestive in the United Kingdom – a gin-based, herb-infused, fruity refresher. 

So while she sipped her Pimm’s, I sipped my own summer drink, a Grape Knee-High (vodka, triple sec, Chambord, and lemon juice).

 The Pink Door terrace was abuzz with the after-work, after-shopping-at-the-Pike-Place-Market-crowd.  We got the last no-reservation-required table outside – a vibrant, densely packed patio with views of Seattle’s Puget Sound and the sunset. With around 40 tables outside, it was a perfect place to see and taste everyone’s food. We ordered the Cheese Board Deluxe – a beautifully arranged cheese selection on a wooden board. We picked at the little wedges of artisanal Italian cheeses, dipped and played with the fig and chianti compote, and played with the crispy house-made crackers. 

The cheeses were pungent, flavorful, and varied - one blue, one harder, one mid-aged and mild.  Our waiter was a terribly serious, bespectacled guy and we asked for his recommendations. He offered: the risotto, the Special of the Day (whole fish, Mediterranean style, with head on, accompanied by a nice fresh pesto sauce), and the sautéed calamari. I had a rough road map now, and knew what I was looking for (fish, risotto, fish, risotto). And as the drink started to kick in, I needed some substantial food to soak it up. 

 So…I got up and meandered about, eyeing everyone’s table. I looked at their food. I looked in their eyes. I found a talkative couple finishing off the remains of the whole fish Special of the Day. 

“How was that?” I asked. This led to a long conversation with the couple about whole fish, seafood, the Mediterranean region, Seattle, the Pink Door. I was hunched over their table, standing. I told them I hadn’t been here, to this restaurant, in years. 

“Where have you been then?” they asked. 

“Morocco, I guess,” I said. 

“Ooooh….” and we launched into a long discussion of North Africa. He had driven across the border to Algeria, back in the 60’s…. 

“Is that the pesto that came with the fish??” I asked. 

“Yes,” she said. 

“Can I taste it?” It was electric green, syrupy pesto sauce in a little cup. 

“Sure...here, dip the bread in it.” 

“Mmmm…lovely, thanks!" I tried it again, with more bread.  

The woman raved, over and over again about the calamari...it wasn’t deep fried...I just had to order it.  I believed her. Back at my table, my friend had finished her second Pims. And coincidentally, the couple next to us had just ordered the calamari. 

“Is that the calamari?” I asked the couple. 

“Yes, do you have a fork?” 

“Yes, here.” He speared me a nice bit of sautéed calamari in spinach, tomato, garlic and wine sauce. Wow. 

The couple with the calamari then asked me if I wanted to marry their son. What? They explained he was well established, single and living in San Francisco. They had just come from visiting him, and they were frustrated that he wasn't settling down. I wondered what they had in mind. Why me? I eat other people's food! They gave me his contact info. 

We called it a night at the Pink Door and made our way to the next stop on our circuit. Great Grape Knee-High, nice pesto sauce and cheese selections on a beautiful and lively terrace with friendly folks. I may even meet my new husband. And I only spent $25.

Ocean City Restau

Ocean City Restaurant
http://www.oceancityrestaurant.net/

609 S Weller St

Seattle, WA 98104

(206) 623-2333

I scored some chicken feet at dim sum this Saturday at Ocean City in Seattle's International district! It's fun to chew on the bones. I was on the prowl for duck tongue, but two gentlemen at a corner table had a bowl of chicken feet that caught my eye.

I had left my own table and friends to wander around, looking at everyone else's food. These two 30-something guys seemed especially passionate about chewing on their chicken feet, as they established a white cartilage and joint pile in a white bowl. Both looked Southeast Asian (although I didn't ask) and had leather jackets and longish un-washed hair. When I asked, the more assertive of the two said the other was a regular, and ate chicken feet here all the time, although both of them were giving me the "why the f&$k are you asking us these questions" look. They were embarrassed, but I persevered. I wanted to try the chicken feet. I never had. "Could I try one of those"? Ha ha. Nervous laughter from the two of them. They handed me the whole bowl, thanked them profusely. I offered to give them my sticky rice in trade. They refused. I offered again. They refused again, so I took the feet back to my table. Delicious sauce. It is a homo sapien instinct to gnaw on bones. In Morocco they have a special verb for just this: "mishish"= to suck and chew off every last piece of flesh on a bone, like a cat. It is satisfying and primal, and I enjoyed it, along with I'd say 80% of the other clientele (although the thick and goose bumply skin was the hardest to get over). Everyone was eating chicken feet!

After discussing duck tongue for a quarter of an hour with the waiter, and after refusing to order the whole bowl of approximately 20 little 1 1/2 inch tongues, he finally brought me one little tongue in a big old white bowl. It looked ridiculous, lonely and sad in the big bowl, but I was thrilled. The flavor was just like Peking Duck - sweet, succulent, but little Peking Duck tongue is grisly, chewy, cartilage-y. Deelish!

Chinese Food Dare: Elaine gets Sassy

Click on the Youtube link to see Elaine doing what we do, sort of....

Note: We are not affiliated in any way with the Israel Medical Emergency Service, which is advertised at the beginning of this clip. Please be patient...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gepNBBfurS0

Serafina Osteria & Enoteca

Serafina Osteria & Enoteca
2043 Eastlake Ave East
Seattle, WA 98102
206.323.0807
http://www.serafinaseattle.com/



Sassy R had to try the calamari at Serafina after hearing how good they were from the guy at the Waterfront. It was around 9 p.m. after a long day's work. Sassy R met her "friend" in the lovely arbored back patio lit with white lights. It's a hidden garden paradise right off of busy Eastlake.

We ordered calamari, of course, with two campari and soda drinks on ice, and the oh-so-satisfying "plin" - one of my true loves. I fantasize about the plin at Serafina just a little too much. See, Sassy T and I had them last week, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about them since. They are delicate little handmade stuffed pasta pockets (angolotti), filled with braised pork shoulder, savoy cabbage and Reggiano. They are approximately the size of a small walnut. Smooth, rich, robust pasta with some umph, some texture, some chew - like your Italian or Eastern European grandma would make. These lovely little darlings are arranged in a shallow bowl in elegent butter chive sauce and can be ordered as an appetizer (small bowl, but plenty) or entree (big ol' bowl). The butter sauce is abundance and lovely for bread dipping. But the plin...oh the little plin. It is hard to eat these things slowly. They are so damned satisfying.

But this post was about the calamari. The calamari? Also good. Unlike calamari almost everywhere else in this town and on most appetizer menus in the US, these are sauteed, not deep fried. Garlic. Bread crumbs. Lemon. Salt. Parsley. A little red chili flakes. None of that overly chewy previously frozen texture. No fishy stench. Pretty great. Best in town? Not hard to accomplish, so yes, perche non?

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The Waterfront Seafood Grill

Waterfront Seafood Grill
206.956.9171
2801 Alaskan Way, Pier 70
Seattle, WA 98121
http://www.waterfrontpier70.com/waterfrontpier70/


Yeah, so it started out with a strong desire for Kumomoto oysters on the half shell. Seattle has been sunnier than usual the last few days, and these two sassy ladies knew that the view, service, drinks and the oysters at the Waterfront are pretty hard to beat. Super fresh oysters...super sweet views from the patio of Puget Sound. You pay a hefty price for that view and have to sit amongst the conventionally beautiful and botoxed (women and men), a sea of $350 sunglasses and brand new never-been-worn-before business casual attire, and some older folks on vacation from the midwest and Florida, but it's probably worth it once or maybe twice a year (the number of days outdoor seating in Seattle is even an option!).

The oysters were beautiful. Sweet, fresh, slippery, fresh and ocean-y. I like to squeeze just a little lemon juice on mine, then slide it into my mouth straight from the shell. Sassy T does the same. Puget Sounds smells salty sometimes in the summer sun, which was a nice complement to the oysters. Glass of dry white. View of the Olympics, the water. Doesn't get better.

It started with oysters but moved quickly into ruby beet and arugula salad, tuna tempura, ceasar salad, and chevre potatoes gratin. Of course, when the four guys discussing friendlyfavor.com, some kind of new website, ordered calamari, we eyed their plate. Looked good. Sassy R asked for a bite. One of the boys, ahem, men, immediately issued the disclaimer that it was not as good as Serafina's calamari. I hadn't realized that Serafina was famous for its calamari. He said this was too greasy. It was. Deepfried, batter dipped. Not great. Some guy ordered a plate of calamari behind us later and the whole patio stank of rotten fish for several minutes until the steam stopped floating off the little tentacles. Well, the calamari was fairly standard and not at all worth its price. Oh well.

The highlight of the evening (second to the oysters) was the strawberry rhubarb tart. Rustic crust folded artfully around the perimeter, covering the filling...with a small gentle soft opening in the middle sprinkled with streusel in the center. It wasn't too sweet, and was oven-warmed just enough... and it was served with delicate homemade vanilla ice cream. Perfect. Our calamari neighbors eyed it and commented. One guy stood up and came over to our table. He wanted some. We gave him a clean spoon. He took a bit. Then he ate more. We chatted. We chatted about their start up, how to find investors, where he grew up (Seattle). He was handsome and in his early 40's. He was charming. He was polite. He had another bite. We paid our bill and before our luscious green-eyed server could take away the wedge of tart we hadn't finished, we passed the picked-apart leftovers over to our friends' table. They even accepted our bowl of melted ice cream and thanked us. They ate it! Testiment to how fabulous this dessert really is.