Food & Drink

Here Are the Top 5 Things I Ate This Week

A week of eating summed up in 5 snapshots

By Seattle Mag August 29, 2014

smore-sardine-hash

It was a long and enjoyable week of eating. Not only did I have some out of town guests to entertain, but as summer winds down, there’s been an increased hankering for comfort food. Here are some of the highlights of my last 7 days of feeding: 

Smoked S’mores ice cream at Cupcake Royale (Capitol Hill)
This is a seasonal flavor, only on the menu through August, which means you have a few more days to order it. Toasted marshmallow ice cream base is seasoned with Lapsang souchong (black tea) and smoked alder wood sea salt to give it that campfire flavor. To give it that traditional s’mores flavor, the ice cream is ribboned with milk chocolate ganache and graham cracker crumbs and then served in a graham cracker waffle cone (optional). 

Anchovy and avocado toast at Bar Ferd’nand
This is possibly my new favorite snack on Capitol Hill. Homemade sourdough bread is toasted, slathered with avocado, topped with anchovy, sprinkled with dill fronds and chili flakes and served with a wedge of lime to squeeze over the entire thing. An order comes with two slices ($11). I would double up on that in a heartbeat.

Veggie hash with a side of farro salad at The Wandering Goose
An early Saturday morning brunch here was a little wobbly thanks in part to the ordering system (order first, take a seat second) and those who don’t abide by it. “This seat is saved” are not words you ever want to hear when you are starving and there is absolutely no open seating to be found, even though you arrived and ordered first. It could ruin a lesser meal, but the big chunks of root veggies and potatoes graced by two perfectly poached eggs and a kicky spice in this seasonal hash ($11) made everything okay. I supplemented with an order of farro salad ($9) studded with watermelon radish and mixed the two together in the little cast iron dish the hash is served in. It made for a nice crunchy and bright healthy brunch; healthy, until I washed it down with a cinnamon roll and biscuit with jam.

Escargot de Bourgogne at Place Pigalle
Just like the bacon-shrouded mussels at this Pike Place Market French restaurant, this is one of those dishes that will likely never leave the menu of this iconic respite that is virtually empty when the sun is out. Tourists, it seems, haven’t figured this place out. It’s the perfect spot when you want to escape the crowds and camp out at the bar. The snails are drenched in tarragon butter, garlic, shallots, Pernod and served with a crusty baguette ($13). It’s a grand complement to both summer and the brisk beginnings of autumn. You’ll want to wash it down with a glass of rosé. 

Corn ice cream over cornmeal cake and popcorn toffee at Hitchcock
Even the dessert naysayers at the table couldn’t get enough of this dessert ($8) that tastes exactly like fresh corn. The caramel corn-like toffee could be a dessert on its own. Worth the ferry ride to Bainbridge alone. Okay, maybe not. But it’s really good!

Wild Card: Loaded potato skins at Wedgewood Broiler
I wasn’t expecting to eat when I met a friend for drinks in the lounge at this throwback neighborhood restaurant in Wedgwood. But when he ordered the potato skins ($6.50) that came with a side of sour cream nearly as large as the pint of beer I was drinking from (not really), things took a serious turn. The cooked to perfection potato wedges (way more than skins) were loaded with all the trimmings—bacon, cheese, green onions—and left me satiated for hours. I’d come here just to eat those things again.

 

Follow Us