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****NOTE: This review was done prior to the Covid-19 outbreak. Of course, things are much different at the moment, but we hope things will get back to normal soon and hope you will continue to support these local businesses****
Street Bean Coffee Roasters – Belltown
According to their website, Street Bean Coffee Roasters has partnerships with many of the local coffee spots. Among them, La Marzocco Café & Showroom, Caffé Vita, Herkimer Coffee, Counter Culture Coffee, Storyville Coffee Co, Anchorhead Coffee Co and Seattle Coffee Works. The partnership includes hosting coffee or job education field trips to supplement apprentice training , working alongside Street Bean to provide job readiness skills for apprentices, working with Street Bean to find job opportunities for graduating apprentices, commiting to hiring a certain number of apprentices on a yearly basis and donating educational materials and or resources to help run our apprentice program. It’s great of these local companies to support the community like this.
While I admire the principle behind the cafe, Street Bean Coffee Roasters is in a location out of the way and unfortunately the ambiance and quality is not quite the draw to make the trip out there on a regular basis.
****NOTE: This review was done prior to the Covid-19 outbreak. Of course, things are much different at the moment, but we hope things will get back to normal soon and hope you will continue to support these local businesses****
Zoka Coffee Roasters – University District
Description on Zoka Coffee Roasters’ website: Located just around the corner from the popular University Village, this Zoka is a staple to students. Bringing together baked-on-site pastries, outstanding espresso, and more seating than you know what to do with, Zoka Two can’t be beat. Beautiful windows run the length of the shop and fill it with natural light. Hardwood floors echo the click of someone’s favorite boots. Outlets power the progress of humming laptops. This shop offers a warm environment and a great place to stretch out and relax.
Neighborhood: University District
Address: 2901 NE Blakeley St, Seattle, WA 98105
What we ate/drank: Gibraltar and Chocolate Croissant, Macchiato, Raspberry Ginger Cruffin.
Comments: Very similar to the Zoka Coffee Roasters in Tangletown, this branch located near University Village, is one of the bigger coffee shops in Seattle. The space kind of curves along Blakely Ave. It could offer even more seating, but a portion of the space seems to be cordoned off. Also similar to the Tangletown location, the aesthetics are again warm wood beams, floors, chairs and tables.
There’s no parking lot, so you have to find street parking in the area, which can be difficult. Their wifi is free for 6 hours, but we’ve noticed it can be rather slow. So a warning if you plan to work or study there.
There’s a variety of baked goods, which are house made.
It’s a solid alternative for your coffee, but nothing that really stands out. It’s conveniently located if you are on your way to University Village for some shopping. Otherwise, it’s not someplace we’d go out of our way to visit.
Ratings(1-5)
Favorite Thing: It’s big enough so that you won’t have any issue finding a seat even with the amount of Udub students there.
Atmosphere: 4.00
Service: 4.00
Food Options: 3.75
Overall: 4.3.85
Eavedropping Convo: Looked like two nurses coming off their shift and having a cup of coffee.
Nurse 1: Looked like you had a difficult time this evening.
Nurse 2: He came in with so much PCP in his system.
Nurse 1: PCP? I thought that was out of style?
Nurse 2: That’s what I thought . I was thinking, “What year is this?”
Related:
****NOTE: This review was done prior to the Covid-19 outbreak. Of course, things are much different at the moment, but we hope things will get back to normal soon and hope you will continue to support these local businesses****
Herkimer Coffee – Phinney Ridge
Description on Herkimer Coffee website : At Herkimer Coffee our purpose is to create a coffee experience of the highest possible quality. Whether it’s your double espresso, latte to go, or the bag of beans you brew at home, we want your experience to be the best it can be.
Neighborhood: Greenwood
What we ate/drank: Macchiato
Comments:We previously reviewed the Herkimer location in Ravenna. If you want to learn about the origin of Herkimer’s name, their relationship with their pastry supplier, Café Besalu, and the reason for their odd pricing, you can read about it here.
Herkimer Coffee is a well regarded roaster in Seattle as evidenced by their coffee being served at Brother Joe, Analog Coffee, Porchlight Coffee & Records, and Revolutions Coffee to name a few.
The Herkimer – Phinney Ridge location is their flagship and where their roasting takes place. They have a nice seating section that allows you to look directly into the roastery. The only two other roasters I can think of that do their roasting on premises and allows you to watch are Lighthouse Roasters in Fremont and Elm Coffee Roasters in Pioneer Square. I think Victrola Coffee Roasters in Capitol Hill has one too. But at the Herkimer – Phinney Ridge location you’re encouraged to watch the roasting process with seating set up facing the roaster. The other locations have the roasting process going on, but mainly going on in the background.
This space has an “L” shaped configuration with the balance of the space being used for the roastery. Apart from the sitting area where you can watch the roasting process, there’s a few chairs on the outside store front, lots of window seating, a large community table a separate smaller tables throughout.
One of the quirky items they have is a pencil sharpener on the wall for those doing their crosswords or sodoku. One thing to note, during the roasting process it can get quite loud if you intend to have a conversation or bring in a sleeping infant.
Ratings(1-5)
Favorite Thing: There’s a pencil sharper on the wall! So bring your pencils when doing your NY Times crossword puzzles. Also the seating looking in on the roastery.
Atmosphere: 4
Service: 5
Food Options: 3.75
Overall: 4.25
Eavedropping Convo: Two guys having coffee on a counter near the window
Guy 1(G1) – Awe, hell no!
Guy 2(G2) – Stands up really quick from spilled coffee. What happened?!
G1 – I wasn’t paying attention and spilled my drink. Damn, all over my phone too. Can you grab some napkins?
G2 – Rushes to get napkins and brings back.
G1 – Well might be time for a new phone. Attempts to power up his phone. Oh good, it’s still working. Phew. Honestly, there’s a part of me that wishes it was busted, so I could get a new phone.
Related:
****NOTE: This review was done prior to the Covid-19 outbreak. Of course, things are much different at the moment, but we hope things will get back to normal soon and hope you will continue to support these local businesses****
Vif Wine | Coffee
Description on Vif Wine|Coffee’s website: Vif Wine|Coffee offers a new approach to how wine and coffee are presented and sold in Seattle. Our focus — offering products that are alive, real and natural — sets us apart from all other wine merchants and cafes.
Neighborhood: Fremont
Address: 4401 Fremont Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103
Music Playing: Islands On The Coast by Band of Horses
What we ate/drank: Cortado, Apple Croissant
Comments: Many years ago I used to live in this neighborhood. If I remember correctly, this used to be a teriyaki joint and then became a burger joint. The folks at Vif have definitely done a good job of turning the space from a nondescript grab and go teriyaki/burger spot to an inviting space where you can enjoy a coffee or a wine since they opened in 2013. The plain exterior of the building left by the previous businesses belie the relaxing interior.
There is a wall of windows on three sides of the building, which makes it bright and includes a U-shaped bench with plenty of electrical outlets. Beware: No laptops allowed on the weekends during brunch hours – 8am-3pm. Vif also has a good sized patio area and one of the rarest of conveniences, an adjoining free parking lot. A good amount of the space displays their natural wine selection.
Vif offers a nice place to have a coffee/dessert after eating a heavy meal at Uneeda Burger, Paseo or Fremont Bowl, which are right down the street. They’ve also got some competition with Lighthouse Coffee Roasters and Caffe Vita nearby. What Vif has going for it though, is the in house made pastries as well as a few lighter dishes, such as salads, breakfast sandwiches and avocado tartine.
According to this Stranger article ( https://www.thestranger.com/food-and-drink/feature/2015/10/28/23071788/some-of-the-tastiest-food-can-be-found-at-a-wine-shop-in-fremont) :
The inspiration for Vif came while the two were traveling in France. Feldman(owner) says Vif is modeled after a type of business that’s common there but rare in the United States. “It’s called cave à manger—basically a wine shop where you can get a bite to eat.
Mead and Feldman avoided calling their business a cave à manger because, says Feldman, “no one knows what that means and it sounds a little elitist when you use words that no one understands.”
This concept might be common in France, but it’s definitely rare in Seattle. And the wine that Vif specializes in is natural wine, which is made with as little human intervention as possible. No color additives, added yeasts or chemicals.
There appears to be a second location in the works in Beacon Hill.
Ratings(1-5)
Favorite Thing: The unexpected transformation from teriyaki/burger joint to a relaxing café.
Atmosphere: 4.50
Service: 4.25
Food Options: 4.50
Overall: 4.40
Eavedropping Convo:
Related:
- Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Seattle Coffee Shops
- Best Seattle Coffee Shops For Each Stage of Dating
- Our New Seattle Coffee Shop Discoveries in 2019
- Part 5 – Best Seattle Coffee Shops for Food Options, Friendliest Service
****NOTE: This review was done prior to the Covid-19 outbreak. Of course, things are much different at the moment, but we hope things will get back to normal soon and hope you will continue to support these local businesses****
Outlaw Tamales
Recommended by: Nobody. A testament to how much of a “secret” this place is. I stumbled upon it visiting Tempesta Coffee (RIP)
Description on the Outlaw Tamale’s website: Steve is an artisan, small batch tamale designer making new and original (as well as traditional) tamales in Seattle. Always handmade. Always small batch. Always made with love and care with the consumer in mind.
Neighborhood/Type: Belltown
Address: 2025 4th Ave, Seattle, WA 98121 in a Jiffy Lube parking lot.
What we ate/drank: Sausage, Egg & Cheese- $8, Shredded Beef & Cheese(diced green chiles, onion & pepper jack cheese – $9, Salsa Verde Chicken -$8
Comments: Outlaw Tamale is a couple, a cart and a covering in the Jiffy Lube parking lot in downtown Seattle(Belltown to be exact).
There were 10 choices – 2 breakfast, 7 regulars(classics) and 1 special. The special today was Salsa Roja Chicken w/free roasted tomato, but we opted for a breakfast(Sausage, Egg & Cheese- $8) and two classics(Shredded Beef & Cheese w/diced green chiles, onion & pepper jack cheese – $9 , Salsa Verde Chicken -$8).
On this particular day the tamales had pretty traditional fillings, but my understanding is they do experiment with non-traditional fillings like spicy barbecue beef with bacon, Philly cheesesteak and meatball parmesan.
We got the breakfast tamale heated up to eat and took the Shredded Beef and Salsa Verde Chicken refrigerated to eat later. They offered to open up the tamale for us if we were going to eat it on the spot, but we decided to take it back to the office to eat.
While waiting for them to prepare the tamales, I spoke to the owner. I thought this might be a side hustle business, because they are only open on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8am – 2pm. He advised this was indeed his full time job and that they are only open on these days because he can only make so many tamales in a day.
First things first, the price is higher than normal, but the size of the Outlaw Tamales are probably twice the size of normal tamales. It’s more of a burrito size than a tamale size. Tax is included in the listed price.
Normally, tamales are 80% masa and 20% or less filling. The Outlaw Tamales do have a thick masa, but the filling is just as plentiful. The ratio is perfect in our opinion. The masa is firm, but moist.
Many times a tamale filing can get dry and clumped together, but the Outlaw Tamale filling is nice and gooey, almost like when you cut open a chicken pot pie. They offer small containers for either a green medium verde salsa or a Poblano hot salsa. Both homemade and both delicious.
The fact that these are made in small batches assures quality control for each tamale. This is really a “mom and pop” operation, so in order to survive they really rely on word of mouth for increased business, which means their product better be tasty enough for people to rave about it to co-workers, family and friends. The common sight of “sold out” on their chalkboard proves word is traveling. We love supporting these small businesses.
Ratings:
Atmosphere: N/A. It’s a cart located in a parking lot.
Service: 5.00
Food/Drinks: 4.50
Bang for the Buck: 4.50
Overall: 4.65
Locals Only Factor: “Locals Only” grading-We’ll assign a grading as to how “local” a place is.
-
- Well known or Touristy. Most locals don’t go there unless they have business dinners or visitors in town.
- Most locals know about it
- Locals “in the know” know about it
- Only those who live close by know about it.
- You’re in on the secret. Don’t tell anybody!
Servers recommendations to visit in the future:
Related Articles:
The Relationship Between Coffee and Cycling – Seattle
For some reason there is some type of correlation/relationship between coffee and cycling as evidenced by the multiple cycle shops that serve coffee or bicycle themed coffee shops around Seattle, such as Peloton Cafe, Metier Seattle Cafe, Ventoux Roasters, Rapha Seattle, Good Weather Bicycle & Cafe, Pim Coffee. Even Caffe Umbria in Ballard has a cycling jersey hanging. And any longtime Seattleite knows that if you ever walk by Monorail Espresso in downtown, you’ll see a bunch of bike messengers hanging out there.
Bicycling Magazine named Seattle the Best Bike City in the US. And we all know Seattle is known for it’s coffee scene, so in a way it makes sense that we have so many cycling themed coffee shops.
Source: Yelp
It got us curious about the relationship between coffee and cycling, so we’d thought we’d research it. What peaked our curiosity was that you don’t hear about marathon runners, basketball players, football players, tennis players or any other athletes who seem to need a punch of energy and a high level of endurance, drinking coffee. Let’s delve in, shall we?
It appears that cyclists have turned to coffee to help with performance for quite some time. In fact ,the WADA(World Anti-Doping Agency) monitored and set a limit of caffeine below 12 microgrammes per millitre of urine, which is 8 shots of espresso. This limit was done away with in 2004.
Source: Yelp
Here are some articles we found that explain the love affair between cyclists and coffee and some of the reasons behind it:
Why Do Cyclists Drink So Much Coffee?
It affects how you pace yourself-Scientific consensus has swung towards a theory describing how caffeine effects pace regulation during exercise. The science of the brain and exercise performance is still in its early years, so we should still take this with a grain of salt, but it suggests caffeine can lower an athlete’s perception of effort, allowing them to maintain a higher level of output. This means that under the effects of caffeine we allow ourselves to go harder than we otherwise would.
Source: Yelp
Coffee And Competitive Cycling: A Cohesive Bond
Cyclists, both amateurs and professionals, see coffee as part of their routine. The caffeine elevates the heart rate, expedites blood to muscles, and makes sustained effort less fatiguing. In addition to the physical effects, the mid-ride/post-ride/every-opportunity-possible cafe stop is a ritual among cyclists, who use it as a social destination.
For Daniel Holloway, the two-time defending USA Amateur Criterium Champion, whose year is spent on the road, coffee culture is a nice constant. “When we race as a team, we’re always going to coffee shops wherever we’re at, it’s a ritual. It brings some kind of normalcy to the program that you miss when you’re traveling all over the country. You know the coffee shop is going to be more or less the same wherever you go—the coffee is going to be a little different, the style of the shop is going to be a little different, but that whole atmosphere is very similar. Coast to coast, you know you can sit at a coffee shop and shoot the shit with your friends.”
Source: Yelp
Cycling And Coffee: A Stimulating Study
Coffee and cycling have gone hand in hand together for decades with Italian espresso machine manufacturer Faema sponsoring a pro cycling team all the way back in the 1960s. Caffeine is one of the best performing enhancing drugs for cyclists and studies have shown that low doses of caffeine (~200mg) can positively affect endurance, alertness, and overall cognitive performance during activity.
Drinking coffee after a ride has also been found to improve recovery and glycogen levels also.
Drinking coffee also adds a social experience that brings the entire cycling community together. While the SHIMANO BIKE NYC was open, we had cyclists from all over the city come in to enjoy a nice cup of coffee but also to share in the experience with one another and learn about each cyclist’s story.
Source: Yelp
6 Truths about Coffee and Caffeine-HOW CAFFEINE CAN IMPROVE YOUR RIDE
Caffeine crowds out a calming brain chemical called adenosine,” he says. You become more alert, you react faster, and you don’t feel like you’re working as hard, all of which add up to training or competing at a higher intensity for a longer period of time and being more agile in a pack.
It Will Not Dehydrate You=”In reasonable doses, caffeine alone won’t lead to more bathroom breaks during a ride or a greater risk of dehydration,” says Mindy Millard-Stafford, PhD, former president of the American College of Sports Medicine. The upshot, she says, is that regardless of whether you supplement with caffeine, you don’t need additional fluid to avoid performance-sapping dehydration during a ride. The long-held belief that caffeine can muck with your body’s ability to regulate heat during exercise in hot weather has also been muted by science.
Diy Post-Ride Perk-Australian researchers found that when cyclists refueled with carbohydrates and caffeine after a ride, they accumulated 66 percent more muscle glycogen (the main fuel for working muscles) than when they ate only carbs. This DIY bar provides an ideal combination of the two.
We found that the close relationship between coffee and cycling really does make sense. I was always under the impression that coffee due to it’s caffeine, dehydrated you. I also didn’t realize how prevalent coffee culture was in the cycling world. Doing this research and understanding how bicycle-friendly Seattle is, explains the number of cycling + coffee places there are around Seattle.
Related:
Paju – Queen Anne
Recommended by: We were raving about Revel and their brand new location to some friends. They had just tried a new Korean inspired restaurant in Queen Anne that they claim had some similarities to Revel called, Paju.
Description on the Paju’s Google page: Snug, simple restaurant offering contemporary, inventive takes on traditional Korean cuisine.
Neighborhood/Type: Queen Anne
Address:11 Mercer St, Seattle, WA 98109
What we ate/drank: Paju Fried Rice – Kimchi, bacon, squid ink, smoked quail egg. Yellowtail(Mul Hwe) – Fennel-Cucumber Gazpacho, Gochujang Granita. Mushroom – parmesan cheese, white kimchi, truffle aioli. Rib-eye Steak Bulgogi w/truffle flavor-crispy quinoa scallion, enoki mushroom. Blue Moon Beer.
Comments: Three of our favorite Seattle restaurants fall into the Korean fusion genre – Chan, Joule and Revel. Even Watson’s Counter, one of our favorite breakfast places, can sorta be put in this category. So when we found out another such restaurant had opened to rave reviews and long waits, we had to see for ourselves.
Paju opened in August of 2019 in lower Queen Anne near the Seattle Center and quickly garnered a following that has kept the small industrial space packed. Paju doesn’t take reservations, so when we went on a Friday evening after getting the kids situated with the babysitter, the wait was already an hour long.
We put our cell phone# on the waitlist and headed next door to good ole T.S. McHughs for drinks. We mentioned to our bartender that we were just having drinks while we waited for our seats at Paju. He said he’d hadn’t had a chance to eat at Paju but he was happy to hear that it was doing well. He lamented the demise of the previous business in the location, a nondescript sushi joint.
About an hour later, we received a call from Paju asking us if we could arrive within 5 minutes. We settled our tab at T.S. McHughs and walked over. You could still feel the remnants of that nondescript sushi joint, a very simple rectangular layout with what appears to be a former take-out counter in the back. It’s a bit dim with Edison lights and votive candles providing the lighting. The vibe is industrial and in the way of decor, it’s pretty sparse. No need to fancy up the place. Let the food do the talking. In total Paju probably seats around 40 people max.
The two co-owners have quite the pedigree, having met while working at an New York City, 2 Michelin Star, Korean restaurant. There are a total of only 11 dishes that are served at Paju, but there is a wide variety and should be something for everybody in your party. The dishes are meant to be shared and eaten family styles, so we ordered 4 dishes:
All the dishes have a few things in common. These are traditional Korean dishes with a twist. Like quinoa and truffle with bulgogi, gochujang granita and smoked quail and squid ink with kimchi and rice. Also, none of the dishes are heavy on sauces that overpower. The combination of all the flavors in each dish is very subtle, but works extremely well together.
Our first dish and the one we were most underwhelmed by was the Mul Hwe(Yellowtail). It was sort of like a ceviche. The dish was fine as a starter and the gochujang granita was innovative, but the portion was small for the price or maybe the presentation of the yellowtail spread on the outside of a large bowl just made it seem small.
Beoseot(Mushroom) is a mountain range of seasonal mushrooms with white kimchi and parmesan cheese acting as the snowy peaks. The truffle aioli adds some richness that complements the parmesan. We really enjoyed this one.
The rib-eye steak bulgogi with crispy quinoa, scallion and enoki mushrooms was a beautifully presented dish. We decided to get the optional truffle flavor. We were skeptical of the pairing of truffle and bulgogi, but it really works. Who would have guessed? We also enjoyed unusual addition of enoki mushrooms and quinoa to the dish. We really appreciated the creativity of this one.
Saving the best for last. The Paju Fried Rice contains bacon, kimchi, rice immersed in squid ink with rice with a smoked quail egg yolk in the middle. So many different textures -gooey egg yolk, crunchy kimchi, sticky rice. So many different flavors – smokey, sweet, savory, but none overpowering the others. Such a distinctive dish both visually and taste-wise. You won’t find anything like this in Seattle. This is the dish we’ll get over and over on return visits. I’d love it if they could add more quail eggs. The egg is only able to be mixed with a small percentage of the rice. Definitely, an early contender for top 2020 Dishes of the Year.
The service was attentive and friendly and when my wife mentioned we were there for my birthday, they comped my beer!
Not every dish was a home run, but we really appreciate the updated interpretation on these Korean dishes. When chefs are pushing the envelope creatively and continually experimenting there are bound to be misses, but when a dish hits, the payoff is big. They’ll be dishes so unique that patrons will want to come back over and over to see what new inventive dishes have been created.
Paju is the perfect spot for a dinner prior to going to the Seattle Rep or any other event at the Seattle Center. It will most likely be a Seattle hot spot for sometime if we had to guess.
Ratings:
Atmosphere: 4.25
Service: 5.00
Food/Drinks: 4.60
Bang for the Buck: 4.50
Overall: 4.60
Locals Only Factor: “Locals Only” grading-We’ll assign a grading as to how “local” a place is.
-
- Well known or Touristy. Most locals don’t go there unless they have business dinners or visitors in town.
- Most locals know about it
- Locals “in the know” know about it
- Only those who live close by know about it.
- You’re in on the secret. Don’t tell anybody!
Servers recommendations to visit in the future:
Related Articles:
Revel – Back in Fremont!
Recommended by: Nobody. Our favorite Seattle restaurant, Revel, moved to South Lake Union temporally while it’s new digs were being built in their original neighborhood, Fremont. We reviewed their temporary location in this post, but now that Revel is in their brand new location, we were giddy to check it out.
Description on the Revel’s website: Originally opened in 2010, Revel is a lively, casual space filled with bright art and music offering a new approach to everyday Korean comfort food. The large butcher block counter in the open kitchen has always been the heart of Revel inviting guests to be part of the family.
Neighborhood/Type: Fremont
Address: 401 N 36th St, Seattle, WA 98103
What we ate/drank: Albacore tuna, fennel kimchi, escarole $18, Pacific cod, spicy tsuyu, hot ginger oil $17, Pork dumpling, mapo, pickled leek $14, Green noodle, chanterelle, spicy miso $16
Comments: It’s hard to believe that Revel’s been open for 10 years now. When it first opened a few doors down from it’s new current location, we remembered what a different experience it was to sit at the large counter with it’s open kitchen. It was both exciting to see the kitchen in action, but interesting to see how the dishes were made and put together. It was almost like a symphony.
When they moved to South Lake Union we were saddened knowing logistically that lunch was most likely the only meal we’d be able to eat at Revel. We’d occasionally meet up for lunch and were happy to see that they kept the counter with the open kitchen concept at the temporary SLU location, but there were far less seats. Instead of the long counter, it was more of a square and only two sides could be used for seating.
We visited the new Revel location on a Saturday evening. They don’t take reservations for parties under six, so we provided our cell# and headed next door to Aslan Brewing for a beer. When our seats became available, we were happy to see the long large counter with the open kitchen had returned and we were being seated there.
We are huge fans of Relay Restaurant Group, which is the creation of wife/husband chef team of Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi. The group includes Revel and Joule. Sadly, their third restaurant Trove closed down last year. And as you can see here, they are either a nominee or semifinalist for Best Chef in NW by the James Bead Foundation nearly every damn year.
And if you needed any further evidence of our love for Joule and Revel. One of their dishes was in our top 15 Of 2018 and three of their dishes made it into our top 10 of 2019 with one of their dishes being our #1 dish of the year!
Well, we are happy to report the quality of Revel’s dishes have not skipped a beat.
We tend to always order the same things when we come to Revel, but we changed it up this time. And Revel is always changing up dishes on their menu, so no matter how many times you come, there is bound to be a dish you’ve not tried before.
The pacific cod was a generous portion that sat on a layer of tsuyu, which is typically a mixture of mirin, soy sauce and fish stock(bonito based). The other three dishes we ordered were savory, while the cod dish was on the sweet side, which was a nice change up and good complement. There must be a good batch of Enokitake mushrooms in Seattle. This is the second restaurant we’ve seen this week that prominently features the mushroom in a dish.
Similar to what we said in our Trove(R.I.P.) review, the noticeable thing about Revel’s dumplings is that there is no wasted space between the wrapper and the filling of the dumplings. Normally with dumplings, there is the filling and then a bunch of space between the wrapper when the filling inside shrinks when it’s steamed. Not only are the dumplings on the bigger side, so you really get your moneys worth, but they are so tasty we don’t even use any of their dipping sauces.
The green noodle with chanterelle and spicy miso was actually a suggestion from our server at Aslan Brewing. She had eaten at Revel the week before and raved about the dish. She did not steer us wrong. Just the right amount of spice, ample bits of chantrelle, subtle flavors.
We had to order at least one of our favorite repeat dishes. You can read about the dish on our Best Dishes of 2019. This was our #1 dish of the year in 2019!
There were a couple of dishes that we will definitely order the next time we visit Revel. One was the Brick Chicken and the other was the trout with achiote fish sauce & leek oil.
Now on to the new space. It’s definitely more spacious than the previous Fremont location. There were times in the previous location, where you felt you were right on top of each other due to the tables being rather close together. No such problems here. Where before the bar area was in a totally separate room, the bar area now is right off to the side.
Where before there was a narrow patio in the back, the new patio is out front although not being used now due to the weather. The lighting is a lot brighter than before, which doesn’t bother us. Perhaps it’s the higher ceilings that make it feel less intimate than the prior location. Also, not a big deal to us, but just noting the difference in feel to us.
Overall we’re happier for the bigger space, which means less wait times and for the larger counter section with the open kitchen. I’m also grateful that Aslan Brewing is right next door so if the bar area is packed, we can have a beer as we wait for our table.
Service as always was attentive, dish suggestions provided and taste profiles explained.
We’re so happy that Revel is back in Fremont. The dishes are as good as they’ve ever been. The larger space, means less wait time. Selfishly, the location is way better for us than it was when it was in SLU.
Ratings:
Atmosphere: 4.75
Service: 5.00
Food/Drinks: 5.00
Bang for the Buck: 4.50
Overall: 4.75
Locals Only Factor: “Locals Only” grading-We’ll assign a grading as to how “local” a place is.
-
- Well known or Touristy. Most locals don’t go there unless they have business dinners or visitors in town.
- Most locals know about it
- Locals “in the know” know about it
- Only those who live close by know about it.
- You’re in on the secret. Don’t tell anybody!
Servers recommendations to visit in the future: We were raving about Revel and how the quality hasn’t changed to some friends. They had just tried a new Korean inspired restaurant in Queen Anne that they claim had some similarities to Revel called, Paju.
Related Articles:
goPoke
Recommended by: We discovered that the owner of Dochi is the brother of the owner of goPoke down a few blocks. We really enjoy the poke there, so it’s time for a revisit and review.
Description on the goPoke’s website: Authentic Hawaiian Poke and Desserts.
Neighborhood/Type: ID (International District)
Address:625 S King St, Seattle, WA 98104
What we ate/drank: 12th Man Bowl – Salmon, spicy aioli ahi, spicy aioli salmon, fried garlic, edamame, ocean saled, ginger, krab salad, cucumber. Aloha Bowl – Sweet sirracheeahi, shoyu shaka ahi, mango salmon. Classic Salmon, spicy ahi bowl
Comments: goPoke opened in late 2016 right in the middle of the Seattle poke craze where poke places were popping up like mushrooms. We briefly mentioned the saturation of poke places in our Stop N Shop Poke post. Many poke places have since closed up shop. We also predicted that the only poke places that would survive will be the ones who emphasize quality and customer service and goPoke has both.
Poke in Hawaiian means “to cut/to slice” and is a Hawaiian dish of raw fish cut into cubes and typically marinated in soy sauce, green onion and sesame oil. At goPoke they have pre-designed bowls or you can create your own bowl. Like most poke places they have a Subway/Chipoltle model of picking your ingredients until your bowl is completed with your choices of rice, poke and toppings.
They make a concerted effort to keep line moving fast, but will allow you to sample the poke if you can’t make up your mind. That’s a nice touch.
Depending on how many choices of poke you choose for your bowl – 1, 2 or 3 are priced at $11, $13, $15 respectively. You might be thinking this is a little on the high side for poke. We agree, but the generous portions, various poke choices and quality fish definitely make the few extra bucks justified in our mind.
There’s also something comforting knowing that the owners originated from Hawaii and that they pretty much survived as a family selling poke there. So they must know what they’re doing. I encourage you to read this Seattle Met article that provides some background into the family history of the owners. Their father was a Ahi tuna fisherman and the children sold fish door to door. Their mother created and refined a poke recipe and they sold it at flea markets and small local shops.
A lot of poke places seem like they were opened as an afterthought. Like “Poke seems easy enough. I’ll open a poke place!” goPoke seems like a real sustainable business. It feels like real thought was put into goPoke. The ingredients are quality(that’s obvious), it’s always clean, there’s a Hawaiian theme(shaved ice w/li hing mui powder, Dole whip, keiki menu, Hawaiian Sun, span musubi), their assembly line process is efficient, the space is big, updated and airy for being in the ID(International District).
A true indication of a good business is the mood of the employees. They seem to be hard working, but genuinely happy to be working there and friendly.
We’re pretty certain that you won’t see anymore poke places reviewed here. Unless some new outlier brings something totally fresh to the poke Seattle landscape, goPoke, Stop N Shop Poke and Seattle Fish Guys are our defacto poke places in Seattle.
Ratings:
Atmosphere: 4.50
Service: 5.00
Food/Drinks: 4.75
Bang for the Buck: 4.50
Overall: 4.65
Locals Only Factor: “Locals Only” grading-We’ll assign a grading as to how “local” a place is.
-
- Well known or Touristy. Most locals don’t go there unless they have business dinners or visitors in town.
- Most locals know about it
- Locals “in the know” know about it
- Only those who live close by know about it.
- You’re in on the secret. Don’t tell anybody!
Servers recommendations to visit in the future:
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Dochi
Recommended by: After our Donut Factory review posted, a reader tipped us off to another doughnut(actually a mochi doughnut) place that opened in the International District called, Dochi.
Description on the Dochi’s website: Mochi donuts are a pleasant cross between the sweet and chewy Japanese rice dessert and the classic American fried donut. As you bite into the dochi, you will feel a slight crunch on the outside with a soft, and chewy center. They’re glazed with our many exotic flavors and delicious toppings you won’t find anywhere.
Neighborhood/Type: ID (International District)
Address: 600 5th Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104
What we ate/drank: Cookies & Cream w/ Cookie Butter, Ube Glazed, Matche Oreo, Strawberry Shortcake
Comments: Very similar to when hot spots like Cinnaholic and Snowy Village first came to Seattle, there were massive lines, long waits and a billion Instagram posts when Dochi opened. Dochi opened in August of last year and now that 6 months have passed, we figured that it was safe to go now without the waits. Our hunch paid off. When we went this past Friday afternoon, there were only a few people ahead of us. A far cry from a line out the door and down the block as you can see in the attached video below.
Dochi is not from LA, not from SF, not from NY, nor Hawaii, but a transplant from the hotbed of Japanese food, Orlando FL. Orlando?!?! Yes, you read that right. This combination of Japanese mochi and the American doughnut originated in Orlando.
Dochi is actually located in the food court of Uwajimaya. It’s actually in the location of a former takoyaki stand, so that tells you how small it is. For those of you not from Seattle, Uwajimaya is the defacto Asian market in Seattle that’s been in business for close to 100 years. It’s a small little stand and only open Thurs – Sun. Their hours on Sat and Sun are 12pm – 6pm and Thurs and Friday are 11am-2pm, so you have a limited time frame to come here.
The small booth has three workers – order taker, packer and cashier, so the line moves pretty fast.
On the day we went they had four choices available- Cookies & Cream w/ Cookie Butter, Ube Glazed, Matche Oreo, Strawberry Shortcake. Our understanding is that the flavors are always changing. Each dochi is $3 and $16 per half dozen. We got 2 of each flavor, so they charged us for a half dozen and two additional dochi.
The dochi come in a Tiffany blue colored box, which upon opening you see, “You Deserve This”. Genius marketing implying that this is a special treat. This is not a flimsy box either. It’s pretty sturdy, which also adds to the feeling of the dochi being something special.
The main differences between the dochi and your regular doughnut is the texture and it’s unique shape. Dochi is not like a cake or raised doughnut. It’s crispy on the outside and very chewy like mochi. Although it’s chewier than a cake doughnut, we’ve never had mochi doughnuts and were expecting it to be really chewy and gooey like regular mochi.
We really love the shape of the dochi. It’s like 8 doughnut balls that are connected together. You can either eat it as a regular doughnut or tear it apart and divide the 8 little doughnut balls to share. This design is great for our daughters. We can tell them that they can have three balls which is basically 3/8 of a dochi and they can easily measure it out for themselves.
It’s a little food stand, so the dochi are not made on site. If you have the opportunity, microwave them and it’ll make your eating experience much better. If they open a real brick and mortar location with a kitchen, these would be great fresh out of the oven.
We had about 10 taste testers who ate portions of the 8 doughnuts we got. Here are their cumulative rankings:
- Matcha Oreo
- Cookies & Cream w/ Cookie Butter
- Ube Glazed
- Strawberry Shortcake
As mentioned, we love that you can easily portion out the doughnut due to its shape and the taste of the doughnuts are fine. Is it better than Top Pot, Mighty-O, Tempesta, General Porpoise Doughnuts, Half N Half Doughnut Co or The Donut Factory? Nah. Would we wait in line for 15 or more minutes? Nah. Would we make a special trip to the ID(International District) and deal with traffic or parking for it? Nah. But Dochi will definitely be a regular stop whenever visiting Uwajimaya for groceries and I think it’s uniqueness does make a good pick up for out of town guests.
Ratings:
Atmosphere: N/A – It’s just a stand.
Service: 4.50
Food/Drinks: 4.50
Bang for the Buck: 4.00
Overall: 4.35
Locals Only Factor: “Locals Only” grading-We’ll assign a grading as to how “local” a place is.
-
- Well known or Touristy. Most locals don’t go there unless they have business dinners or visitors in town.
- Most locals know about it
- Locals “in the know” know about it
- Only those who live close by know about it.
- You’re in on the secret. Don’t tell anybody!
Servers recommendations to visit in the future: We discovered that the owner of Dochi is the brother of the owner of goPoke down a few blocks. We really enjoy the poke there, so it’s time for a revisit and review.
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