Porkchop & Co.
Recommended by: The person making coffee drinks and cashier at The Fat Hen suggested another popular brunch place nearby in Ballard, Porkchop & Co. We’d been to Porkchop & Co. before, but it was a good reminder to revisit.
Description on the Porkchop & Co.’s website: Porkchop & Co. is a New American restaurant located in the heart of Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood. We make casual and creative food from scratch using seasonal, locally sourced ingredients. We smoke, cure, pickle and preserve everything in house – utilizing the full, rich and varied American arsenal – from longer-standing traditional fare to contemporary techniques.
Neighborhood/Type: Ballard
Address: 6201 15th Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107
What we ate/drank: Croque Madame, Steak & Kimchi Hash, Coffee
Much like many of the coffee shops and restaurants around Ballard on Sundays your experience will be very different if you happen to come on this day due to the Ballard Farmers Market. Porkchop & Co. is likely to be packed with a lengthy wait on Sundays, so our advise is to visit during the weekdays if possible. And luckily Porkchop & Co. does serve breakfast during the week unlike many Seattle restaurants that only serve breakfast on the weekends.
Porkchop & Co. is a bit on the casual side which is perfect for breakfast/lunch. There’s no table service. You just order at the counter, find a seat and they’ll bring out your food to you. There’s a bottle of water and glasses at each table, so you don’t have to ask or wait for that. Even the drip coffee is self serve. Although there isn’t your traditional table service, somebody came around to check in on us regularly to see how things tasted and if we needed anything else.
The space is bright and their front windows can be opened when the weather is nice, which is a nice touch for semi-al fresco eating. The main focal point is Porkchop & Co’s extensive library of cookbooks displayed on their walled book shelf.
Looking at their menu you’ll see a wide variety of foods from French inspired(Croque Madame, Foie Gras Stuffed French Toast), Medeiterranean(Shaksouka), Asia(Steak & Kimchi Hash) and some American(Scrambles). They not only serve breakfast dishes, but also sandwiches if you want an early lunch instead. They close everyday at 3:00pm, so no dinner. They also serve cocktails, wine and beer along with your normal non-alcoholic drinks such as coffee, sodas and juices.
One thing to take note of is that they smoke, cure, pickle and preserve everything in house, so you won’t get these flavors anywhere else. On this particular visit we have the Croque Madame – Brioche toast topped with Tails & Trotters ham, roasted kale, gruyere, house cheese sauce, & a sunny Stokesberry egg. Along with a chicken fried steak, my favorite breakfast dish is the Croque Madame. Porkchop & Co.’s variation has a cheese sauce that you don’t normally see on a Croque Madame. It’s doesn’t overpower like you’d suspect and compliments well with the other ingredients.
The other dish was the Steak & Kimchi Hash -House kimchi, potatoes, cauliflower, Painted Hills beef chunks, and a sunny Stokesberry Farm egg. The kimchi by itself was a little over powering, but eaten with the steak, potato or cauliflower, it provides a good balance of flavor.
On previous visits we’ve had the Pork Belly Hash, the Porchetta Benedict and Frank’s Scramble(eggs, asparagus, cheese kale, mama lil’s peppers and a bagel) and all are delicious.
Porkchop & Co. is a great place where you can bring out-of-towners and know they’ve never had any of these dishes before since the dishes are inventive and everything is made in house from locally sourced ingredients.
Ratings:
Atmosphere: 5.00
Service: 4.75
Food/Drinks: 4.75
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: Not a server, but a customer eating next to us made small talk and mentioned The Hi Life down the street is another great option for brunches and is bigger so there’s less of a wait. We’ll check it out.
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Watson’s Counter
Recommended by: Nobody. We saw it on the way to Biscuit and Bean a few blocks down the street and decided to try it.
Description on the Watson’s Counter website: We’re native Seattleites who want to provide a space for people to come together and build relationships over some damn good coffee and food. We have a full espresso bar as well as a kitchen focused on classic brunch foods and afternoon bites. We’ve drawn upon our Korean heritage and taste for nostalgic flavors to add a bit of our personality to the offerings.
Neighborhood/Type: Ballard
Address: 6201 15th Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107
What we ate/drank: Loco Moco, Chicken & Waffles, 1 + 1 = espresso and 4 oz latte, Anchorhead drip coffee. Update 7/19 below- KBBQ PORK PLATE-Roasted pork belly, rice, assorted kimchis, perilla leaves, tofu, lettuce wraps, Korean peppers, and sauce
A few weeks ago we noticed Watson’s Counter on our way to Biscuit and Bean down the street, so we decided to check it out. We found out they’ve only been open for a little over a month. When first walking in you really wouldn’t know they served food since the first thing you see as you enter is the espresso machine and the coffee/drink board hanging overhead.
Upon entering it reminded us of a mini Mr West Café & Bar -white marble table and counter tops, lots of plants, fancy pendulum lighting , dark wood bench and cabinets, lots of natural lighting, airy. There’s limited seating, a couple of 2 seat tables, a couple of 4 seat tables and a community table for 8. They also have a small counter that’s probably more conducive for standing than sitting. Even with its limited seating, it’s really family friendly. I counted 3 high chairs stacked and they have a changing table in the rest room.
We happen to be there for breakfast and it’s served all day. Watson’s Counter opens at 6:30am and closes at 4:00pm(7:00pm on Fri) on the weeknights, but opens from 8:00am to 7:00pm on Sat and Sun. To start, I ordered the 1 + 1, which is a solo espresso and a 4oz latter. My wife got a drip. Anchorhead is the coffee roaster they use. Can’t go wrong there.
They don’t have a lot of dish choices, but we prefer that a restaurant have fewer plates that they do well, than a restaurant that has a lot of options, but of mediocre quality. Although the menu is small, it’s still varied-Soba Noodles(Japan), Loco Moco(Hawaii), Poutine(Oh, Canada!), Chicken Wings(Korean). The menu definitely has a Korean slant to it.
I got the waffles and chicken. On the menu it’s listed with a honey butter, but the owner advised it comes with an in-house made gochujang option and recommended it, so that’s what I went with. The waffles came with two huge chicken wings and was prepared to perfection-crispy outside, juicy inside. It came with an organic maple syrup, but I thought the waffles tasted best eating it plain in combination with the savory gochujang flavored wings.
CHICKEN & WAFFLES
two of our honey-butter wings on top of our house rosemary Belgian waffle. Served with organic maple syrup and Louisiana hot sauce. gochujang. Score: (4.0/5.0)
My wife got the Loco Moco. I know it’s early in the year, but this dish is a contender to be on our Top Dishes of 2019. We’ve had our fair share of Loco Mocos in Hawaii and around town at Kona Kitchen, Maono, Cheeky Café. This is the best we’ve had. The patty is made with a blend of chuck, short-rib, and pork belly and you have the rice and egg, but the showstopper is the house-made gravy. It’s a thick peppery flavorful smack in the mouth. Mixed with the egg yolk, generous sized patty and topped with sesame seeds and green onions = Broke Da Mouth! As mentioned the dish selection is on the small side, but there are definitely a lot of other interesting dishes we’ll need to try in the future. The K-Poutine, soba noodles and a cereal French toast creation covered in Fruity Pebbles that the gentleman next to us ordered, all look really delicious.
Tips are included so the prices are rightfully a little higher and payment is made at your table-Canadian style. I think I saw a notice/application for a liquor license in their window, so alcohol is likely on the way. We asked about the logo since it’s hard to figure out what type of animal it is. The owner said that it’s his dog wearing a tiger outfit, whose name is Watson, the namesake of the restaurant. We also found out that the owner is the former Director of Education at Caffe Ladro. Quite the pedigree.
For only being open for a short time, it felt like they’d been open for years-attentive service, good suggestions, organized, efficient, spotless.
Prediction Time: Right now this small Watson’s Counter is new and at the moment largely unknown, but trust us this place will soon go the way of other popular Seattle small spots like Fat Hen, Wandering Goose(RIP 2020), Il Corvo(RIP 2020) and have crowds waiting and lines forming when word gets out, so get your ass over there soon!
Update 7/19: Went back for breakfast and got the Loco Moco again and it was as good as we remembered. We also tried a new dish, the KBBQ. You can eat it as just as you see below or you can use the provided lettuce leaves to create a lettuce wrap. As you can see below, there area a ton of ingredients that you can mix and match and come up with your own favorite. One ingredient I’d never seen before was kim chi apples.
Ratings:
Atmosphere: 5.00
Service: 5.00
Food/Drinks: 4.75
Bang for the Buck: 4.50
Overall: 4.80
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 Locals recommendations to visit in the future: Back in the spring, a friend of ours mentioned a new Mexican restaurant that opened on 15th Ave NW that served breakfast everyday. He couldn’t recall the name of the place, but on the way to one of our Watson’s Counter visits, we saw Sazon Kitchen and tried it.
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The Fat Hen – Not Little Red Hen!
Recommended by: The cashier at Wandering Goose(RIP 2020)recommended Fat Hen as a suggestion. We’d heard of Fat Hen , but we’d never been there.
Description on the The Fat Hen’s website: The Fat Hen is a neighborhood café serving breakfast & lunch along with handcrafted coffee drinks, house-made pastries, tea, fresh squeezed juices, local & import beer and wine, mimosas, and more. The Fat Hen seats up to 25 guests, and reservations are not accepted. Please note that the menus below are sample menus only; please inquire about our seasonal specials and current menu highlights!
Neighborhood/Type: Phinney Ridge
Address: 1418 NW 70th St, Seattle, WA 98117
What we ate/drank: Alla Boscaiola 12.50 two eggs in house-made tomato sauce with sausage, mushroom & mozzarella. Chicken Sandwich 16.5. Buttermilk fried chicken breast, calabrian chili aioli, cabbage slaw, house-made spicy pickle. Served with small side salad. Cortado
Comments: Before we get into our review of The Fat Hen, we have a funny story to tell. About 5 years ago, friends of ours recommended The Fat Hen to my wife as a place we should visit due to their great brunches.
When my wife relayed the message to me, all I heard was “hen” and I assumed they were talking about Little Red Hen, which I’d never been to, but knew about as the de facto country line dancing establishment in Seattle. My wife was new to Seattle at the time, so she assumed I knew what I was talking about when I said, “Little Red Hen? Really?
I never knew they served breakfasts. And never heard anybody say they were great.” So of course we had to check out Little Red Hen for brunch. Those of you who don’t know Little Red Hen, it’s a lovable divey bar with the service to match. Here’s a picture of Little Red Hen:
So we go there on a Saturday morning at about 9:00. The place opens at 8:00. There is not a soul in the place. I said to my wife, “If this is such a great brunch place, why is nobody here”?
There was one lady there who was our host, server and bartender. She gave us menus and we ordered. If I remember correctly, it was your normal breakfast stuff-eggs, bacon, hash browns, white toast, etc.
We order and she says, “You guys will have to wait a bit. Our cook just called and he’s hung over and I just woke him up. He lives real close though, so he’ll be here shortly”.
We’re already there drinking Bloody Marys, so we just wait. He did come shortly and our breakfast was fine, nothing special. We ask the server for our check and she busts out a pen, grabs a cardboard coaster from a table and writes the price of our meal on the back of the coaster and hands it to us! That was our bill. We looked at each other and laughed.
A few weeks later we saw our friends and told them about our experience at Little Red Hen and asked them why they liked it so much? They looked at us like we were insane, “The Fat Hen, not Little Red Hen!”
On to The Fat Hen: Like Mike’s Noodle House, Il Corvo(RIP 2020), Wandering Goose(RIP 2020), The Fat Hen is small on space and big on popularity, so you’ll most likely be waiting for a table. But of these small places, Fat Hen is by far the tiniest. If you come with more than 2 people, good luck to you. If you come with more than 4, I’ll give you credit for being gutsy.
The space seats only 25 people and even with just 25 seats, the space is so small it feels cramped. There were actually a few daring folks who came in with kids in bassinets and even that was a challenge to find any space to lay the bassinet down. The place is well lit and bright, though. If you are waiting for a table, they will take a drink order from you while you wait. I ordered a Cortado.
They have some small side dishes and salads, but there main dishes ate their Chicken Sandwich, Benedicts and Egg Bakes.
The latter two dishes have variations where you can change the ingredients. For example for the Benedicts you can have Dungeness crab, salmon, prosciutto, pancetta or Florentine. They don’t have a huge menu, but I think it allows them to really perfect the dishes they do have.
I ordered the Chicken Sandwich and my wife ordered what appears to be their most popular dish, Alla Boscaiola, which comes in a skillet and includes two eggs, sausage, mushroom and mozzarella in a their house-made tomato sauce.
As you can see from the picture of the chicken sandwich below, the chicken breast was bursting out of the bun. The chicken was tender and lightly seasoned and matched well with the tartness of the aioli and pickle and came with a side salad . I enjoyed the sandwich and would recommend it albeit at quite a hefty price tag of $16.50.
The Alla Boscaiola is definitely an instagrammable looking dish and not one I’ve seen anywhere else in Seattle. It’s simple ingredients make it one of those dishes that seems so simple to make at home, but difficult to replicate due to the superior ingredients used here and the expertise needed to cook it. The bread that comes with it is the perfect tool to dip and sop up all that sauce.
Summary: The space is really beautiful, but hard to enjoy when the seating is so close together and the rest of the available space is being taken by those waiting for a table. The food is also beautifully presented and tasty, but the prices a bit steep. The service was great. With such limited space, they do a good job of managing the number of parties waiting.
Of course they want to turn tables as quickly as possible, but we never felt hurried. We did feel guilty though about those waiting so we tried to balance enjoying our brunch, but being conscientious of those waiting. The Fat Hen would be a perfect place to visit on a weekday morning while catching up with an out of town guest one on one.
Ratings:
Atmosphere: 4.50
Service: 5.00
Food/Drinks: 4.50
Bang for the Buck: 4.00
Overall: 4.50
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: The person making coffee drinks and acting as cashier suggested as another popular brunch place nearby in Ballard- Porkchop & Co.
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Woodland Coffee
Description on Woodland Coffee’s website : Good Coffee Good People
Neighborhood:Frelard (Fremont/Ballard)
Address: 1417 NW 54th St #101, Seattle, WA 98107
Music Playing: Nothing Breaks Like a Heart by Mark Ronson ft. Miley Cyrus
What we ate/drank: Cortado
Comments: Stumbled upon this place when going to the El Camion Taco Truck(which is not there anymore!) on 54th. Woodland Coffee is in a newer building(Studio Works) which houses a lot of small businesses.
Here’s the history of how Woodland Coffee came to be from their website:
Woodland Coffee began in 2016 out of our family’s love for coffee and a nonchalant place to get it. It all started with our mom and dad’s love for coffee in Seattle in the 80’s, 90’s. The coffee scene was small but growing, and we went to the places that got it right, like Allegro. Our weekend ritual was to grab the dogs, drive to the U-district for coffee and head to Woodland Park. The dogs would run, we would get muddy but at least we were caffeinated. Twenty or so years later, while we don’t spend every weekend together, the tradition of grabbing coffee and getting outside persists. Finally in 2016 our dad built StudioWorks in Ballard with a small allotted space for his dream coffee shop. The youngest (of us) runs the store and the rest of the family pitches in. At Woodland we want everyone to be able to have the feeling of the good old 90’s coffee shop, where we want no snobbery just good coffee.
I like it. It’s a mish mosh of styles and seating areas. You have the modern 4 leather chairs in the corner, the long high counter for single seating looking out on the patio. You have a oval community table that has 8 chairs in the middle and few bar type high tables for four and then the bench seating near the store front. As mentioned there’s also a patio area, which is rather large.
There are plants throughout which makes the space feel fresh and there’s a lot of decorative woodwork on the wall. It’s a dog friendly place, so that’s a plus. They use Olympic Coffee Roasters for their beans. There is a small case of pastries and a few sandwiches.
I have a few qualms, but this is more personal preference, so others may love it. 1) The music is really loud. 2) The lighting is a bit on the bright side. It’s probably due to the fact that it’s north facing storefront, so not much natural light gets in. My preference is warm lighting when going to a cafe. The lighting here reminds me of being in school. 3) The other thing might be small issue, but may be important to others. The website menu is off by about 30% to what is being charged in the actual store. For example, a Cortado is listed as $2.50 on the website, but is actually $3.25. It’s only .75 cents, right? So why quibble? But……
This is an area(Frelard between Fremont and Ballard) rife with breweries(Reubens, Lucky Envelope, Stoup, NW Peaks, Lagunitas, Peddler, Popluxe) but it is a wasteland for coffee. I think it’s because it’s more of an industrial area moreso than a neighborhood. But if you want a good coffee and a cafe to relax in after visiting all the breweries, Woodland Coffee definitely fits the bill.
Ratings(1-5)
Favorite Thing: Really the only option in the area as far as we’re concerned and it’s a good option.
Atmosphere: 4.25
Service: 4.25
Food Options: 4.00
Overall: 4.25
Eavesdropping Convo: Couldn’t eavesdrop due to the music volume.
Related:
Arashi Ramen
Recommended by: Nobody. Arashi Ramen was a participant in our Battle of Seattle Ramen post.
Description on Arashi Ramen’s website: The essence of ramen is in the soup, out signature Tonkatsu(pork bone) soup is handcrafted by master chef Daisuke Ueda with premium ingredients simmered over 16 hours.
Neighborhood: Ballard
Address: 5401 20th Ave NW, Seattle WA 98107
What we ate/drank: Black Garlic Ramen(Salt based, pork belly chashu, seasoned egg, bean sprouts, green onion, fried onion, black garlic oil), Arashi Ramen(Salt based, 3 pork belly chashu, seaweed, seasoned egg, beansprouts, green onion, Honey Garlic Kaarage(Japanese fried chicken with our special honey garlic sauce), Spicy Miso Tonkotsu Ramen, Asahi Dry Beer
Comments: Arashi Ramen first started out in Tukwila and opened a branch in Ballard in March of 2016. Since then, we’ve come to Arashi Ramen whenever we have a ramen hankering and in the Ballard area. Just a warning, if it’s crowded, it’ll be difficult to get a table for a party of more than 4. There are only 6 stools along the front window counter. There’s also 6 solo wooden stools along a narrow counter. There’s also a long wooden bench with individual tables that can be pushed together for parties of more than 2, but you’ll have to wait for two of these tables to open up simultaneously. Most of the tables are accompanied by traditional small wooden stools that some might find uncomfortable, but were fine for us.
Arashi Ramen specializes in Tokotsu style ramen, which is known for boiling and simmering pork marrow or pork bones for long amounts of time anywhere from 12-16 hours. This typically leads to a cloudy flavorful broth. Arashi Ramen has the three basic broths of Shio, Shoyu and Miso, but also have variations such as Tantan, Arashi Ramen(appears to be Shio Ramen with more pork belly chashu) and Black Garlic Ramen.
We started with the honey garlic kaarage, which can be hit or miss if not cooked correctly, but it was nice and crispy on the outside and moist on the inside as it should be. The Arashi Ramen was a bit on the salty side, but the black garlic ramen was the star here. I was expecting the garlic to be overpowering, but the garlic oil is very subtle and tasty. And I don’t recall seeing this in any other ramen place, but the spoons provided are the abnormally long and the exact angle that allows you to scoop up every drop of soup.
Overall, we like Arashi Ramen. We like the ambiance although the space is on the small side. It’s easy to find parking. The service is quick and most importantly the ramen is very good. We’d rate Arashi Ramen in our top 5 ramen places in Seattle after Hokkaido Ramen Santouka, Ramen Danbo and Kizuki Ramen.
Ratings(Scale 1-5)
Atmosphere: 4.25
Service: 4.75
Food/Drinks: 4.5
Bang for the Buck: 4.5
Overall: 4.5
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!
Eavesdropping Convos:
Server recommendations to visit in the future:
Related:
- What Visitors Think of Seattle – Japan(36 F)
- Hokkaido Ramen Santouka – Best Ramen in Seattle
- Battle of the Seattle Ramen Restaurants
- Fremont Bowl
Bauhaus Coffee – Ballard
Description on the Bauhaus Coffee website: Bauhaus coffees are all a Delicate Full City Roast, where the beans roast past the first crack, but stop just prior of reaching the second crack at 440-445 degrees Fahrenheit. We believe in getting the most coffee flavor out of the coffee bean.
Bauhaus coffee is strong, flavorful, bold, rich, and smooth. Our motto is that “Bauhaus coffee tastes like coffee.” Bauhaus Coffee will never be sour, bitter, or bland. Bauhaus Coffee will always taste flavorful and rich and will not lose its flavor in milk.
Our Bauhaus blends were created to have a deep and rich flavor that is smooth to the pallet. No matter how you take your coffee: latte, mocha, espresso, Americano, or drip coffee, a cup of Bauhaus Strong Coffee will always be satisfying and flavorful while packing a caffeinated punch.
Neighborhood: Ballard
Address: 2001 NW Market Street, Seattle, WA 98107
Music playing: Love on the Line by Her’s
What we ate/drank: Macchiato, Peanut Butter Mocha
Comments: Here’s the history of Bauhaus Coffee:
10/13-After 20 years at the corner of Melrose and Pine across the street from Pine Box and Melrose Market, Bauhaus is forced to leave due to their building being bought and new construction about to be built. The intent was to move back to the location once the new construction was complete. That never happened and now Rapha Seattle, the cycling clothing/café is located at Bauhaus’ old spot.
10/13- Bauhaus Ballard opens it’s doors
2/14 -Bauhaus moves to their new “temporary” Capitol Hill location down two blocks from the original location on Pine Street.
7/14- Bauhaus Greenlake opens, but closing hours are soon changed from midnight to 11:00pm to 9:00pm. Not a good sign. Hot food is served when the café first open, but that stops. Also, not a good sign.
12/15- The Greenlake, Capitol Hill and Ballard locations all close very suddenly to the shock of all locals.
- The Capitol Hill location is now Sugar Hill, the bar and Guitar’s Khao Mun Gai, the restaurant.
- The Greenlake location is now the office of Home Care Assistance.
- The Ballard location is now………
……..Bauhaus Strong Coffee Ballard. In 4/16, this location was bought by new ownership and changed their name slightly adding in the “Strong Coffee”. Otherwise the aesthetics of the location are exactly the same as before.
This is the coffee shop we’ve nicknamed the “library coffee shop”. You’ll notice it’s a rather large coffee shop with big seating areas on either side of the POS counter. The left side has about 15 stools that run along a high counter with banker lights looking out on 20th Ave. It also has individual tables towards the back and bookcases of encyclopedias and art books.
On the right side is a bigger seating area with individual tables and seats that are next to the store front window looking out on NW Market Street. As you head towards the back there are wooden booths that seat about 3 parties of two and also elevated section with more shelves of encyclopedias and individual tables and seats. This section is partitioned by a book shelf and a j shaped counter that can be used on both sides. There’s also a few outdoor seats.
Bauhaus has a studious library feel with the shelves of books. You start to feel guilty about talking too loud and part of me was waiting for a librarian to come over and “shoosh” us. There are also little touches of vintage items of yesteryear such as slide projectors, globes, typewriters and old TVs. Also there’s a orange imac which is considered vintage in technology years.
There’s also a massive photo of Walter Gropus, father of the Bauhaus movement. It’s on the corner of NW Market Street and 20th Ave so there’s lots of light with floor to ceiling windows.
We came in the afternoon, so there was only a limited number of pastries. There was just one dish of a various cookies, a muffin and a cinnamon roll. Although when we got there the food options were limited, they are connected to the Hog Island Hoagie towards the back of the left, so you can grab a sandwich if you’d like. Besides coffee they have tea, canned/bottled of yerba matte, sodas and kombicha. Their calling card is strong coffee. I don’t know if it’s stronger than the coffee at other places, but it’s definitely flavorful.
Open til 9:00!
Ratings(Scale 1-5)
Favorite Thing: The library feel and the various vintage items.
Atmosphere: 4.75
Service: 4.50
Food Options: 4.25
Overall: 4.50
Eavesdropping Convo: I’m pretty sure these were two sisters.
Sister 1(S1) – Lowers voice. I was talking to mom the other night and I was telling her about trying to get boba tea in the International District.
Sister 2(S2) – Yeah?
S1 – Continues in lowered voice – The boba tea is so good but nobody speak English, so I have a hard time ordering.
S2 – Laughs. You’re talking about on Jackson St, right?
S1- Yeah, luckily one block down there’s a more “familiar” place, but their boba isn’t as good.
Related:
Senor Moose
Recommended by: Reader who recommended after reading our Varsity Inn post about secret Mexican breakfasts.
Description on the Senor Moose website: Our love for Mexican food began nearly 30 years ago. As we traveled deeper into Mexico, we quickly discovered it’s heart. The food.At Señor Moose, we celebrate comida tipica, the cooking found in central plateau Mexico’s fondas and backroom kitchens. From moment one I have written down recipes, watched and made notes as I have talked to women in fondas (small homey restaurants) road side places, houses and markets, most often in the states of Michoacan, Jalisco and Nayarit as well as in Mexico City. We have been fortunate to have had wonderful creative women helping me in the house who cooked with what there was that day, what was interesting at the market, food they prepared for their families from memory, recipes from mothers, grandmothers and aunts—and a few of my favorite men as well. We took notes as they cooked, or as we cooked together. The food at Señor Moose is a result of those jottings. Not to mention a stunning effort from our amazing staff. We try to stay true to real FONDA food, food that tastes as much like it does in Mexico as possible.
Neighborhood/Type: Ballard
Address: 5242 NW Leary Way, Seattle, WA 98107
What we ate/drank: MACHACA CON PAPAS – Hash made with shredded beef, potatoes, and onion cooked together and topped with two eggs. Served with tortillas and refried beans and tortillas. CARNE DE PUERCO EN CHILE VERDE – Tender pork simmered in tomatillo sauce, served with refried beans and tortillas. Horchata Latte, Hot Chocolate
Comments: Not taking into account taco trucks, because you know we love us some taco trucks, but in our opinion there are really three tiers of Mexican restaurants in Seattle.
- The fancy modernish ones like Barrio, Mezcaleria Oaxaca,
Chavez(RIP), Fogon Cocina Mexicana, Poquitos - The mid-tier ones like D’La Santa, La Carta de Oaxaca, El Quetzal, Casco Antiguo, El Borracho,
418 Public House(RIP) - The hole-in-the-wall cheaper ones like La Conasupo, Mendoza’s Mercado, Taco Chukis, Gorditos
We believe Senor Moose is in the mid-tier and is the best Mexican restaurant in this category.
I’ve been to a Senor Frog’s, Senor Iguanas, Senor Bear. So whenever I hear the word “senor”+ an animal name, I don’t really have high expectations. The restaurants are typically American versions of Mexican food that specialize in happy hours and flowing tequila, but lacking in food quality. We have an exception here in Seattle. Don’t let the name fool you. To say that Senor Moose has some of the best Mexican breakfasts in Seattle is not an accurate statement. To say Senor Moose has some of thee best breakfasts in Seattle is a more appropriate statement.
Our understanding is that the owner lived in Mexico for 20 years and upon her return to the US opened Senor Moose having accumulated recipes over those years and now the restaurant is run by her daughter. Senor Moose was opened in 2004. For some reason in my head, it seems to have been around longer, but one thing is for certain, as long as I can remember there has always been wait times to get a table due to its popularity. If it’s a weekend and brunch time, forget it. Dinner time, forget it. Our time to go if we can is normally weekday mornings, which is rare. We typically go to Senor Moose either before or after doctor appointments to Swedish Hospital down the street. After our latest visit to Senor Moose, we were reminded of how good the food is and how infrequently we come here. For us Senor Moose is the perfect candidate for a delivery service via Caviar, Bite Squad or Uber Eats. We can still enjoy the food, but won’t have to deal with waiting especially with an infant and a toddler. Although we rarely use these services, I think we’ll need to for Senor Moose. We’ve only been here for dinner once, but have been to many breakfasts.
Senor Moose’s location is in an old house over 120 years old. They open every day at 8:00am, where most places only serve breakfast on the weekends. The space is filled with Mexican folk art, gorgeous photos for sale and colorful décor from the pink and red walls with blue trim to the green bar wall to the bright blue floral pattern on the dining counter. Senor Moose is divided into 3 sections. The first section is counter seating, diner style, when you first walk in the door. The second area is the main dining area to the right with individual tables that probably seats 25 people. The last section is the bar in the back.
Senor Moose is known for their chips, but be careful that you don’t ruin your appetite before your main dishes come out. We started off the day with a hot chocolate and a horchata latte. I don’t normally drink sweet coffee drinks, but it’s not often you see horchata lattes in Seattle and I figured if they do food so well, the latte will most likely be good too. It is a bit on the sweet side for me, but my wife who doesn’t normally drink much coffee, loved it. On this particular occasion we had the Machaca Con Papas and the Carne De Puerco En Chile Verde. The Machaca Con Papas is shredded beef, potatos and onions cooked together. You also get two eggs. I think most people get it scrambled, but I like to get my eggs over easy so I can mix the yoke with the rest of the dish. Sooo good. As much as I loved the Machaca Con Papas, the Carne De Puerco En Chile Verde is my new current favorite. Look at the picture below. They are not chintzy with the pork. Also, sometimes I find tomatillo sauce to be a bit sour for my liking, but Senor Moose’s is tasty with a hint of sourness, but not too much.
Machaca Con Papas-Hash made with shredded beef, potatoes, and onion cooked together
and topped with two over easy eggs
The portions are massive. I happened to finish mine, but didn’t need a lunch and actually had a late dinner that day, because I was so full. My wife ate about 1/3 of her portion and boxed up the rest. Our server was nice enough to give her extra tortillas to take out and transferred her hot chocolate to a to-go cup before we left. Both dishes were superb, but Senor Moose has a selection of so many dishes it’s difficult to have a “favorite” and order the same thing over and over again like I do for so many other restaurants. I tend to order something different every time I come to Senor Moose.
Because the portions are massive and you can basically split one dish into two or even three meals, the bang for the buck is definitely there. I’d probably wouldn’t take a visitor who wants to go to the most trendy hip place to Senor Moose. I would take somebody who has a great appreciation for tasty authentic Mexican food first and foremost, who doesn’t care seeing and being seen at new hip place. For example, my parents who have lived almost their entire lives in Los Angeles and love Mexican food would love Senor Moose.
Ratings:
Atmosphere: 4.75
Service: 5
Food/Drinks: 5
Bang for the Buck: 4.75
Overall: 4.85
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!
Eavesdropping Convos: None
Servers recommendations to visit in the future: None when we visited Senor Moose, but as mentioned above we thought Senor Moose was the best Mexican restaurant in Seattle for the mid-tier price level and probably the best overall Mexican restaurant in Seattle. A reader suggested that we try D’La Santa Mexican Cuisine & Grill and promised we would be impressed.
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- Varsity Inn – The Diner With The Secret Mexican Menu
- Battle of The North Seattle Taco Trucks
- D’La Santa
- Our Top 15 Best Seattle Dishes of 2018 (Part 1)
The Great Debate- Paseo vs Un Bien
This is the first of our Seattle Food Wars series. It’s safe to say, the most popular sandwich in Seattle is Paseo’s Caribbean Pork Roast Sandwich. With apologies to Salumi, Tats, Delicatus, Rain Shadow Meats, Mammoth, I think most locals would say Paseo is the king. But which “Paseo” sandwich? First a little history lesson about Paseo.
The Scandalous History of Paseo
Who would have ever thought that a sandwich place would have such a scandalous soap opera-like story? Here’s a short version of the history of Paseo
- Paseo opened in the late 1990s and quickly garnered attention for their Caribbean Pork Sandwich. There were lines out the door and if you arrived too late in the day, they would often run out of bread to make the sandwiches. Once the bread ran out, you were screwed. No sandwich. The place was so successful that they could afford to close down for a month every year, so the owner could take a vacation. The other thing you always had to remember, is that they were closed on Sundays and it was cash only.
- In 2014, Yelp came out with their top 100 places to eat in America. Paseo was ranked #2!!
- Over the years I took out-of-towners to Paseo and told them that I would put Paseo sandwiches up against any sandwiches in the world for best sandwich and more times than not, they agreed. If it wasn’t the best sandwich they ever had, it was in the top 2 or 3.
- In November of 2014, Paseo suddenly closed without explanation! My heart sank. I remember being at work and news spread through the office and we all wondered, how it was possible? With lines out the door every day, how could they have been in financial trouble? I won’t go into the sordid details of the closing, but you can read about it here:
http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/day-after-closing-paseo-files-for-bankruptcy/
- I’m not exaggerating when I say this was front page news in the Seattle Times for at least the next 3 or 4 days after the announced closing and sleuthing by reporters as to why Paseo closed. That’s how popular this place was.
- This is where it gets good. About a month and a half later an investor bought the Paseo name, building and equipment for $91k in a court house auction. He hired the old Paseo workers, who helped him recreate the recipe and worked with the exact same bread and meat suppliers from the original Paseo. He didn’t change anything on the menu and then opened back up in January of 2015. There was much rejoicing!
http://blogs.seattletimes.com/allyoucaneat/2014/12/12/paseo-to-reopen-new-owner-plans-no-changes/
http://seattle.eater.com/2015/1/8/7518153/paseo-is-open-again
- So what does the family of the original owners of Paseo do? In July of 2016, the sons of the original owner of Paseo decided to open their own place with the original recipe and called it Un Bien.
http://www.seattletimes.com/life/food-drink/paseo-and-un-bien-a-tale-of-two-sandwiches/
Now there’s always been a debate amongst my local friends, which Caribbean Pork Sandwich is better. Paseo with its recreated sandwich or Un Bien with the “original recipe” sandwich. Without tasting the sandwiches side by side at the same time it’s impossible to determine. Well we’re putting this damn debate to rest.
Both places are small and I don’t think either place would want the rival’s food in their establishment, so a neutral field is picked. The venue-Reuben’s Brewery. I met up with friends and we had a taste test to figure out once and for all who had the better sandwich.
The tally:
| Scale of 1-5 | Paseo | Un Bien |
| Bread | 4 | 5 |
| Onion/Cilantro | 5 | 4 |
| Pork | 3.5 | 5 |
| Sauce | 4 | 5 |
| Size | 5 | 5 |
| Overall | 21.5 | 24 |
The Winner!! Un Bien
Update 9/22/19: Un Bien just made Seattle Met’s 100 Best Restaurant
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