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Capitol Hill's Best Food is All Over the Place
By Zachary D. Lyons
Nov 21, 2001 -- Capitol Hill is like a big family--a big, weird, unruly, colorful, eccentric, and on and on, family. It is alive 24-7, and whatever you want, or want to do--and I do mean whatever--you will find it here. The Hill is home to seniors, Punks, Queers, Goths, bikers, long-hairs, activists, artists, and even a few cops, and with such a big, crazy amalgamation of folks in such a densely populated area, it never ceases to amaze me how the place manages to maintain its neighborhood feel.One of my favorite attributes of the Hill is that I can go there by myself most any time, wander into a local eatery, and feel quite comfortable eating alone, though more than likely I will run into someone I know or strike up a conversation with someone new. Above all else, Capitol Hill is an accepting, come-as-you-are neighborhood.
Glo's
If you are looking for the perfect poached egg, head to Glo's. Martha Stewart should hire these guys to demonstrate how they do it sometime on her show! And thank the Cosmic Muffin that they do it so well, as those eggs are the foundation for what very well could be Seattle's best Benedicts (I recommend the smoked salmon version). The hash browns are great, and the fresh squeezed orange juice is as good as any you'd find in Florida.
1621 East Olive Way; 324-2577; open daily 7 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Charlie's Night Manager Darren Rose attends to customers Carina Sauerzopf and Case Fritz. |
This charming little place contains only a handful of tables, and service that rivals your mom (I hope, for your sake). When I wandered in on my own, the guy before me was chatting with the owner when they discovered that he grew up in the same neighborhood as another one of her customers. Not so surprising, you say, but the neighborhood was in Singapore. The guy before him went out of his way to eat there on his way home to Queen Anne from Tacoma, and the guy after me came by to eat on his way home to Ballard from Tacoma. Now that is commitment! And if all of this isn't evidence that this place exists in a special place in the Universe, it turns out I have been communicating with this guy from Ballard by email for the last year, yet we had never met. The Hill's best magic at work, indeed!
The menu here is Asian, with a definite Vietnamese influence. Vegetarians will find many appealing options. A variety of noodle dishes come in soup or not, and mixed with your choice of protein and/or vegetables. Teriyaki and stir-frys are also available, and nothing on the menu tops $7. Better yet, she uses no MSG, preservatives or additives in her cooking. Everything is fresh and tasty.
1519 Broadway; 323-8116; Monday - Friday 10 a.m. - 8:30 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Teriyaki Madness
Wherever lots of people work, teriyaki shops are sure to follow. At the lunch hour you will find those working people seeking out inexpensive, predictable, and filling meals at those nearby teriyaki shops. But how often do you walk into one of those shops and find people truly enjoying themselves--indeed, practically celebrating their teriyaki experience? Maybe that is why one such shop across from Group Health's Central Campus is called Teriyaki Madness, a small, family-owned teriyaki joint where you will be greeted with a smile, provided quick and kind service, a very affordable price, and you will really enjoy your meal. Go there. Go there now!
127 15th Ave. E; 328-0144; Monday - Friday 11 a.m. - 9 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Teapot Vegetarian restaurant. |
Next door to Teriyaki Madness is one of Seattle's great vegetarian restaurants. Teapot Vegetarian House has been serving up perhaps Seattle's only Kosher vegan cuisine for the last three years, but this 14-year-old restaurant didn't start out vegetarian. Eight years ago the family owners decided to experiment with a two-menu system: one with meat and one vegetarian. But strict vegans and Kosher diners require that their food not be cooked with the same equipment used to cook meat. And the vegetarian fare was selling better anyway. So three years ago the family converted the entire menu to be Kosher vegan.
To be Kosher, Teapot's kitchen must be supervised and inspected daily by a rabbi. One might wonder why they go to all that effort. Well, aside from all the hardcore vegans living in the neighborhood, one of Seattle's largest synagogues is just down the street. Besides, the family takes pride in their adherence to such strict standards for their food.
The menu is Singapore Chinese cuisine. We tried the newly added Rose Chicken, which is not chicken at all, but texturized vegetable protein formed into little drumettes, fried, and served with a terrific sauce. Unless you simply can't handle anything remotely resembling meat, you will love these. The Floating Clouds Wonton Soup features wontons filled with vegetables and soy with a perfect wonton texture. It warmed us wonderfully on a cold, wet night. Bounty of the Sea gets its name from the Nori seaweed in it. A Nori wrapped roll of tofu skin is fried and then topped with a delicious black bean sauce. Other menu favorites include their Hot & Sour Soup and the Mongolian Vegetarian.
The Thai Iced Tea was great, sans condensed milk. They use soy-based Mocha Mix instead. Save room at meals' end for a big bowl of Teapot's signature Singapore tapioca dish, Gula Malacca. With its dollops of house-made coconut sorbet and non-dairy whipped topping, you will never know, or even care for that matter, that it is Kosher vegan, unless, of course, you are, too, in which case it will delight you even more.
125 15th Ave. E; 324-2262; for delivery 5 - 10 p.m., call 325-1010; open daily 11:30 a.m. - 10:30 p.m.
Charlie's on Broadway
Cheers would aspire to be Charlie's. Here's a place which, for the last 25 years, has been nothing short of the foundation of Capitol Hill's Broadway district. I started going to Charlie's in the 1980s because they had the only Buffalo Wings worthy of this Upstate New York boy. Charlie's is a place that feels like the family rooms of our childhood in many ways. You go there, hang out in big comfy booths, gaze up and around at all the classic American kitsch hanging from the walls and ceilings, and you suddenly find yourself extracted from time for the evening. Fun, relaxed service by a crew who, having been there for years themselves, will make you feel utterly and completely at home.
The dinner menu offers up classic American fare, sprinkled throughout with creative variations on old standards, all of which deliver consistently enjoyable dining. In addition to the many appetizers, soups, salads, sandwiches and burgers--all of which are good--Charlie's has a complete dinner entree selection and a specials sheet which changes weekly. The Prime Rib is always a good bet. I eat it from the center out, so I can enjoy the tender, well-seasoned outer ring last with what's left of my horseradish sauce. Recently, we tried the Chicken Neptune, a periodic weekly special, which comes topped with Charlie's Hollandaise sauce and bay shrimp. It, like the Prime Rib, is a classic example of comfort food a la Charlie's. For dessert, for the love of Mike, order the house-made Mud Pie. Then have yourself wheeled home.
217 Broadway E; 323-2535; Sunday - Thursday 9 a.m. - 2 a.m., Friday - Saturday 9 a.m. - 2:30 a.m.
B & O's Max Wehnert behind their extraordinary dessert case. |
Another Capitol Hill institution, B & O Espresso is so much more than just a coffeehouse. They serve beer and wine, lunch, a dinner tapas menu, weekend brunch, and incredible pastries and desserts. This place bustles from dawn to midnight, providing refuge inside the embrace of its cozy, warmly lit rooms. Not cozy in the "small" sense, but in the "tables being very close together in order to fit everyone in" sense. Cozy in the European sense.
Owners Jane and Majed Lukatah have carefully built B & O up into a destination spot. They insist on only serving the best, with love. Recently, a buddy and I got to hang out a bit with Majed in between his attendance to other customers. He is a charming fellow--a Palestinian originally from Jerusalem. B & O is like his living room, and we are all his honored guests. He moves from table to table, teasing and flirting with customers, directing them to the best dish for them (as he already knows they're all good). Jane, his wife, is the wizard behind the incredible pastry and dessert menu. The tapas and lunch are Majed's inspirations. Oh, to be one of their nephews around the holidays!
We wandered to B & O for dessert, but Majed inspired us to at least have one tapas plate. We tried the special: Grilled Venison Steak. Oh, baby! Incredible. On to the sweets, we ordered the special again--Sugar Pumpkin-Carmelized Apple Baby Boreks--and, for comparison sake, the Tiramisu. Boreks are classic Middle Eastern pastries which are quite wonderful, especially in this case. The Tiramisu was made in a large round cake fashion, and I was suspicious. I told Majed I was a Tiramisu snob. He said he wasn't worried. He was right. The stuff floated on our tongues, absolutely delighting our palates.
Not finished with us, Majed walks out with a piece of pecan pie. This had to be the least "in your face" pecan pie I've encountered in some time. Too often such pie is just way too sweet. This stuff was just right. "You see that carrot cake?" Majed asked me. "For years people asked for carrot cake, but I wouldn't serve it. Not until we found the recipe for that frosting." That sums up the inspiration behind B & O in a nutshell.
204 Belmont Ave E, at Olive Way; 322-5027; Monday - Thursday 7 a.m. - midnight, Friday 7 a.m. - 1 a.m., Saturday 8 a.m. - 1 a.m., Sunday 8 a.m. - midnight.
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