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Good Food
Spuds and Spam in Green Lake and Georgetown
By Zachary D. Lyons
Jul 04, 2002 -- I could have been thanking the gods for the rare air-conditioned comfort of Green Lake's Spud Fish & Chips. Just days ago, I wondered if our normal lack of heat accounts for how rare Hawaiian food is in Seattle, as I ate Poi in Georgetown's Kauai Family Restaurant. But it's time for the July 4th break, and thus time for Seattle's natural air conditioning to kick in. We'll have lots of time to whine about the heat the rest of the summer.
Spud Fish 'n' Chips at Green Lake. Zachary D. Lyons photo. |
Spud Fish & Chips has been around a very long time. Best as I can tell, it is the oldest Fish & Chips joint in Seattle. Jack Alger opened the first Spud on Alki in 1935, and later opened Spud on Green Lake in 1940. Compare that to Ivar's opening in 1938, Totem House opening in 1948, and Zesto's in 1952. When Alger opened the Green Lake branch, his brother, Frank, stayed behind to run Alki. Alger franchised an additional Spud in Bellevue, but that arrangement didn't last, and that location eventually became the first Skippers.
Jack Alger was a pioneer of Seattle Fish & Chips. When Jack died a couple of years ago, his estate sold his restaurants to various people. Alki went to Ivar's. Juanita took the Puyallup concession. But Green Lake stayed in the family. Pam Cordova, who had worked there for 22 years, and had managed it for 15 years, bought the Green Lake Spud in July, 2001, and now she runs it with her brother, Tim, who has worked there for 25 years.
As far as I am concerned, the Green Lake Spud is Fish & Chips. It has always, and it continues to, set the standard. They hand batter Alaskan cod in their trademark breadcrumb batter, deep fry it, and serve it up with hand-cut, skin-on russet potatoes that even Dick's would envy. For those who prefer Halibut & Chips, Spud does a great job with them, too. But I am a cod kinda guy. The menu also offers clams, oysters, popcorn shrimp, and Tim's favorite, prawns. On a hot day, try a cold milk shake. They make their coleslaw, tartar and seasoned vinegars fresh themselves.
And if the fish and chips doesn't win you over (which I could not imagine), Pam, Tim, and their wonderful, friendly staff will. Eating at Spud is just plain fun, as well as good. Sit at one of the new tables, inside or out, and watch all the fitness freaks, dog walkers, and locals pass by. Oh, and they just installed their own cash machine! Ain't America great?
Spud Fish & Chips, 6860 E Green Lake Way N, 524-0565, Open daily, 10:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m., NO CHECKS. $
Paula Ota (left) and Mary Correa (right) with Autie Addie at Kauai Family Restaurant. Zachary D. Lyons photo. |
There are about as many Hawaiian restaurants in Seattle as there are Afghan, Cambodian, or Hakka restaurants. Fortunately for us, these rare examples of far away cuisines are also very good. Take Kauai Family Restaurant in Georgetown, for instance. Like the others, it is the result of a family's longing for the tastes of home after having fallen in love with Seattle. So they brought the taste of home here themselves.
Kauai owner Peter Buza first came to Seattle in 1975, like so many other Hawaiians, to go to the University of Washington. He followed his sister here from Kauai. She had come in 1963 to go to school. After a turn in the military, Buza -- or "Uncle", as Hawaiians affectionately call their familiar elders -- returned to Kauai, where he worked in a Chinese restaurant. He hunted on the island, and he learned to make traditional Kauai foods. He eventually came back to Seattle, and opened his Georgetown eatery in 1993, amidst the factories and warehouses next to Boeing Field. Now he boasts the only authentic Hawaiian food in town.
Yes, Spam is on the menu. Thank you U.S. military for bringing the meat without a shelf life to the island culture. I recommend that you try the Spam Musabi, best described as Spam sushi - grilled Spam on steamed sticky rice, then wrapped in Nori seaweed. Admit it. You like Spam. And Uncle has plenty of Spam cookbooks for you to explore. But enough about Spam...
Lomi Salmon is a lovely, salty salad of salmon and tomato which works great on its own, as a condiment to Kalua Pork or Lau Lau, or mixed with Poi. Poi, by the way, is a sauce made from crushed, fermented taro root. It can get pretty sour, and it will surprise the novice, but experiment with it. It was created to accompany salt fish. Kalua Pork is a wonderfully salty roasted pork dish, and Lau Lau is beef wrapped in spinach and then banana leaves and steam roasted. Both are traditional Hawaiian dishes worth the drive to try. Pork Adobo is cubes of pork marinated in a vinegar sauce, then roasted. Another tasty island dish.
Other island worlds have contributed to Hawaiian cuisine, like the Philippines, Japan and Taiwan, and can be seen on Uncle's menu in Katsu, Spam Musabi, Adobo, and noodle dishes. Even the maritime powerhouse Portuguese left their mark on Hawaiian cuisine, leaving behind Linguisa, and wonderful, spicy sausage. Meals are served with choice of rice and salad. We really liked the fried rice, which was more sweet than oily, and included Spam. The Macaroni Salad was nice and creamy.
If you haven't saved room for dessert, take home a slice of colorful, fruity cake, or a piece of Butter Mochi, a gooey, sweet rice concoction borrowed from Japan. Breakfast is served all day. How 'bout two eggs and Spam to start your morning? You know you want it. I'll be back soon to do more "research"... for you.
Kauai Family Restaurant, 6324 6th Ave S, 762-3469, Open Tuesday & Wednesday, 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Thursday & Friday, 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturday, 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m., NO CHECKS. $
Zachary D. Lyons, who grew out his hair in his teens to look like Roger Daltrey, mourns the passing of one of his heroes, rock legend and 30 year bassist for The Who, John Entwistle.
Reader Comments
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| Kehau | Oct 07, 2002 | Seattle, Wa | Environmental Planner |
| So, like, I went to Kaua'i Familiy Restaurant today (10/7), dying for some local grinds, and what do I see but a sign posted "CLOSED" and a boarded-up busted window. Wha' happen? Da Seattle mokes when wreck da place? Seriously, do let readers know when we might expect this -great- place to re-open!! Mahalo. | |||
| Brian Cullin | Oct 28, 2002 | Washington DC | U.S. Naval Officer |
| My family is having a surprise birthday for my dad who is 85 years old -- in Seattle over the Thanksgiving weekend. My dad was one of the first potato peelers at Spuds on Alki -- lived on Alki Beach with my grandparents -- grew up in West Seattle -- (he later did a number of things -- including being a Naval aviator for 20 years and a Battle of Midway survivor) -- I would love to get into contact with the management at Spuds on Alki to try to get him some recognition for my dad when we are up there -- a memorial potato peeler or something. Do you have some contact info I could use to make that happen? Appreciate any rudder you could give me on this. Thanks, BC | |||
| Scott | Apr 21, 2004 | Seattle, wa | Engineer |
| Must have been a temporary closure. I went there for lunch today. The food was quite tasty, though the service was SLOW. $14 for two of us. Very limited parking. | |||
| Robert Cole | Jul 16, 2004 | Bellevue, WA | Retired |
| Spuds at Greenlake Use to be 'good'. It has a new owner I beleive[recently]. The taste is good, but again they began to put way to much batter on the fish. The fish is thin, but with all the batter it looks like you are receiving large pieces. At the Kirkland Spuds the pieces of fish are very small. Looks like as the cost rose the fish became smaller. Use to eat there at least 3 times a month with a friend. Serving size is 1/3 compared with the other two Spuds. The Alki Spuds is presently the best Spuds around. One receives large pieces with not a lot of batter. I first ate at the Greenlake Spuds sometime back in the 1940s. | |||
| Scott S. | Sep 16, 2004 | Clackamas, OR. | Truck mechanic |
| My buddy Greg took me to the Alki beach location for the first time back in 2002. I have to admit, it's the best fish n chip's I have ever tasted! | |||
| Rold Tvrdy | Jul 24, 2005 | Wilsall, Montana | Rancher |
| I was raised in Juanita and remember going to Spuds Fish & Chips in the 50s and 60s. I was in high school in the early 60s and we would make late evening "Spuds" runs to Green Lake. I've lived away from Seattle for many years, but every time I return I have to have my "Spuds". My wife and I judge all fish and chips on the Spuds scale. Spuds being a 10. Nothing else comes close. Juanita's spuds isn't very good, I'd give it a 5 on the spuds scale. I just visited Green Lake Spuds on 7-21-05 and it's still a 10. Give my a double order with extra fish. I just wish I could get the receipt for the batter so I would'nt have to wait so long between Spuds' meals. | |||
| fred barentz | Jul 31, 2005 | seattle,wa | sales |
| As a long time seattle resident i still enjoy spuds at greenlake.The real potatos do it for me.Ivars frozen fries just dont cut it. | |||
| hi | Feb 02, 2006 | california | somewhere |
| who u nothatz hawaiian | |||
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