|
I have said it before )http://www.judysbook.com/cities/seattle/Personal-Care/26668113/p1/Stacya_Silverman_and_Associates.htm), and I'll say it again: Stacya Silverman!
I have said it before )http://www.judysbook.com/cities/seattle/Personal-Care/26668113/p1/Stacya_Silverman_and_Associates.htm), and I'll say it again: Stacya Silverman!
Hide
|
|
I really have to go with The Palace Kitchen. This is the Douglas restaurant that best integrates the atmosphere, menu, wine list, bar program, cuisine and service to deliver a truly honest...
I really have to go with The Palace Kitchen. This is the Douglas restaurant that best integrates the atmosphere, menu, wine list, bar program, cuisine and service to deliver a truly honest experience.
I return over and over again for the lusty nature of the cuisine...robust flavors and aromas...generous glass pours...well made cocktails and the best execution of the Tom Douglas brand of service.
Have some plin for me!
Hide
|
|
Volterra
Category:
Restaurants
5411 Ballard Ave NW
Seattle, Washington 98107
(425) 336-1679
Volterra is a hot spot in Ballard and I have been looking forward to dining there for about a year. Recently my husband and I joined one of my clients for dinner there.
ANTICIPATION:
The...
Volterra is a hot spot in Ballard and I have been looking forward to dining there for about a year. Recently my husband and I joined one of my clients for dinner there.
ANTICIPATION:
The reservation was made about two weeks ago. I had a good long time to look forward to what promised to be a dining experience marked by a "fine-tuned quality." Further, there was another connection I felt with Volterra--fennel salt. The chef is big on a fennel salt, similar and in fact packaged by the same producer that makes a truffeld salt I love.
TREPIDATION
I invited my client to my home for a bit of a prefunction with the idea that we could walk to Volterra for dinner. We arrived right on time and were greeted in the over-crowded foyer. The hostess had our table waiting and we were escorted to our table promptly...good thing as it was raining outside and there was no place to stand inside.
INSPECTION
Although there is seating in the bar we were directed to the main dining room, a medium-sized room with dark brick-red walls, white tile floor and tables both against a banquet and free-standing. Guests and staff must be adroit to navigate the room. Our table was against a banquet and having allowed my client to sit facing the room my ability to see Volterra in action was confined to the table.
Soon our server, in a smart-casual black-on-black uniform, approached our table and asked if she could get us "anything from the bar." This is one of those moments that separate the "boys form the men" so to speak. A confident server might have made a suggestion, enticing me to order a cocktail or glass of wine I had not considered: "Can I get you a Campari and Soda or a glass of Pinot Grigio?" Uninspired we agreed to order wine once we had decided on entrées. She indicated she would send "Don" over to our table.
Next it was time to verbalize the specials. This can not be fun for the servers and I know that because it was not fun for me and my dinner companions. In addition to the diverse and interesting menu, the list of specials was long...and the descriptions of the specials were long...and complicated and in spite of my trained attention span for this sort of thing I got lost pretty fast. I was not alone. All of us at the table agreed..too much!
Don is the wine captain. He was not dressed in staff uniform (or finer...and this is about inspiring confidence in his guidance, not judging his personal syle. When I turn my wine selction over to another I want to feel like I am in the hands of one who knows as well or better than I do...) so when he approached the table I was not sure who he was and felt "diner whiplash." Initially, I literally thought he might be a guest. The room is pretty noisy and I think he introduced himself, but I cannot be sure. With entrées decided it was clear we wanted red wine. My client-and-host settled on a domestic Cab (not on the wine list). Note: the reservation was made under my client's name and he checked us in with the hostess. At least four of the service gaffs to follow could have been avoided if the hostess told our server which person at the table was the Host and what to do about that.
Soon Don returned with two bottles of white wine and poured a glass each for me and my host, verbalizing the producer's name as he poured from over my shoulder. Not long after that appetizers arrived at the table.
SATISFACTION
My ahi carpaccio (served with a keepsake bottle of olive oil) and our host's salad arrived, but my husband's lentil salad dragged 15 seconds behind (I think one runner brought the first two plates and was followed by another runner with the third). Despite the staggered starts, all the appetizers were delicious.
Meanwhile Don returned with and opened our bottle of red. He offered the taste to the host and then poured wine in my glass. Then, he offered wine to my husband who declined, but did not offer any to our fourth.
As we finished our appetizers clear plates were cleared without much notice that the host had not finished his salad. Admittedly this is a tricky service point, but it is an important one. Had I caught it in time I would have held onto my plate until my client-host was finished so that he was not left eating alone.
Next up were entrées. A runner (or back waiter) arrived with three plates but had no idea who got what. We unscrambled him and I look for my husband's wild boar. It was, again, not among these first plates. Because the dining room was busier at this point the lag time between the first and second plate drop was longer than the first course lag and more awkward. Thirty seconds might not seem like a long time, but it is when you are watching your food get cold as you wait to start eating as a group.
Entrees were delicious and diverse. I enjoyed the venison ragu. Husband loved the wild boar. Client cleaned the plate of a steak entrée (I forget the details but it was not the special Kobe beef) and his partner enjoyed the roasted or grilled chicken. By this time our red wine glasses needed to be refilled and with no one coming to our service I took the bottle and poured.
Mid-way through meal, perhaps prompted by the fact that I was refilling our glasses, the conversation turned to restaurant service and why Seattle struggles with it...this is not a good sign (to me this means the magic spell of dining has been broken by service that has drawn attention to itself by being either neglectful or heavy-handed). As our plates were cleared, again leaving the host eating by himself (surprised again by this I resolved to catch it if we ordered desserts), my clients partner made this observation: "Often I go out to dinner and have a dissatisfying experience, but I cannot quite put my finger on what happened." I tried to outline why this happens to diners over the next several minutes, offering a sad but compelling checklist of events that contribute to that vague dissatisfaction.
We sipped our wine (Don eventually returned to pour more wine, but by then the bottle was empty) until our glasses were empty (oddly the white wine glasses were never taken from the table, even though we had clearly moved on). We each ordered dessert.
Why I was surprised I have no idea, but yet again, my husbands plate dragged out of the kitchen. ARGH! I felt bad for him. The desserts were delicious, although my panna cotta melted into a puddle and lost its shape pretty fast (was the room too warm...did it fail to set up properly). As I scanned the table, noticing that three of us had either finished or pushed our dessert plates away, I was ready. Two bus-boy and a server tried to take my plate and each discovered it to be heavier than they expected as I discretely weighted it down with my fingers. Eventually I just said, "I will wait to have my plate cleared until after my host has finished his dessert." That was all it took. All four plates were cleared together.
EVALUATION
The bill was brought to the table (by now I suspect our server knew we had not had a 4-star experience and was feeling a little sheepish) and placed about as far from the host as possible, forcing him to reach across candles and glasses and whatever was left to collect and review it. I did not pay the bill so I cannot be sure if in the final evaluation it was "worth it." That said, the conversation about service struggles in Seattle continued as we walked home so I have to assume my host was not knocked out.
In brief: I measured my expierence against the trusted Philosophy of Three which posits the following:
One service error (failing to offer all the guests wine or, in this case, and check back with the table to refill glasses) is noticeable.
Two service gaffs (dragging my husband's appetizer, entree or, in this case, and dessert behind the rest of the plates) are forgiveable.
Three, (clearing plates before the host is finished eating) you lost me and it's going to take a intervention of some sort to get me back.
The room is cool, the menu is diverse, the prices are reasonable, the wine list is thoughtful, the food is well-prepared (and if you love fennel salt, are you in luck!)...
But there are service issues....
This is not a huge deal and certainly no reason for anyone to go on the defensive. I took the time to write and post this review to help other diners manage their expectations of their experience while Volterra works out the kinks.
Hide
|
|
I have to credit my husband with this brainy idea, but he suggested I call Tom Douglas's newish place, Lola. Turns out Lola buys her tangy yogurt from Yanni's in Greenwood.
The other place that...
I have to credit my husband with this brainy idea, but he suggested I call Tom Douglas's newish place, Lola. Turns out Lola buys her tangy yogurt from Yanni's in Greenwood.
The other place that came to mind after I asked my question was The Creamery in The Market.
Hide
|
|
In the hierarchy of Clothes That are Hard to Shop For, dresses (special occasion ) fall somewhere between bras and jeans.
First there is the lack of inventory--there is not the abundance of...
In the hierarchy of Clothes That are Hard to Shop For, dresses (special occasion ) fall somewhere between bras and jeans.
First there is the lack of inventory--there is not the abundance of dresses there is of, say, gortex outerwear. Second, the scant inventory is often hard to find. Finally, there are those personal figure "peculiarities" that justify the double martinis and chain smoking that follow a trip to the dressing room.
That said, I am pleased to share the following two tidbits of information. While there are many retailers who sell lovely frocks (Marios, Anthropologie, Butch Blum, Le Amis, Olivine, etc...) if you want some serious service and a wide variety Nordstrom in Bellevue Square is a great place to go. First, of all the local Nordstrom stores, including downtown where special dresses are tucked away behind another department in some weird closet-like alcove, the Bellevue location has the most robust special occasion department.
I admit, for years I had this impression that the Special Occasion department was ground-zero for frothy mother-of-the-bride ensembles. Maybe I was not looking, and maybe things have changed but there is much more in this department than mint green taffeta two piece suits with sequins shoals and rhinestone broaches.
The other thing the Bellevue Special Occasion department has is Lauryn Lopez, assistant manager. Lauryn found me stalking a BCBG handkerchief dress and very gently insisted I try it on, along with SEVERAL others. When I needed different sizes she had them brought in from other stores and held them until I could get there to try them all (5 or so) on.
When i arrived for my appointment Lauryn, ever cheerful and clam, was close but did ot hover. Before long I ran into a roadblock: while I loved these ethereal spring dresses, they did not "work" for me unless I was willing to go to considerable lengths to modify them. I explained to her what I hoped to find in a dress--easy, uncomplicated, feminine, summery (if at all possible) and something that captured my '70's Malibu-beach-girl heritage without making me look like a woman in clothes that were too young for her in some misguided attempt to recapture her youth. Without any hesitation or impatience SHE DID IT!
Lauryn Lopez
425-455-8000 x-1230
Hide
|
|
I have been impressed twice with Windermere real estate associates. Rene Stern (http://www.renestern.com/) at the Queen Anne office is clearly the most creative, savvy and truly passionate...almost...
I have been impressed twice with Windermere real estate associates. Rene Stern (http://www.renestern.com/) at the Queen Anne office is clearly the most creative, savvy and truly passionate...almost holistic personal real estate associate I have ever known. Jim Bernard (http://jimbernard.mywindermere.com/) hits all those marks, helping his clients navigate the waters of commercial real estate.
I am in the initial fact-finding phase, but from what I have gathered Jim has a multi-faceted background including experience in escrow and investment real estate. He brings it all to bear. I find Jim to be resourceful and willing to generously roll up his sleeves. I think he is a genuine guy in a shark-filled tank.
The road ahead is long. I'll keep you posted.
Hide
|
|
I woke up Sunday morning wondering: Where does a girl go when she needs popcorn bags on short notice?
The answer came quickly: Champion Party Supply.
This party emporium, located at the base...
I woke up Sunday morning wondering: Where does a girl go when she needs popcorn bags on short notice?
The answer came quickly: Champion Party Supply.
This party emporium, located at the base of Queen Anne Hill, has it all! Not only do they stock every item you might ever need to throw a party of any conceivable theme ranging from a St. Patrick's Day Bash to a Playboy Pajama Party, they rent elaborate costumes (something to keep in mind for Halloween). I like checking in with Champions in my party ideation phase. Walking up and down the colorful aisles you will be inspired with lots of ideas. This is a must for any "hostess with the most-est."
Hide
|
|
It had been quite some time since I had dined at Wild Ginger, but as my friend and I tried to decide where to have lunch the Chicken Chieu salad called out to me.
We arrived at 11:30am, just as...
It had been quite some time since I had dined at Wild Ginger, but as my friend and I tried to decide where to have lunch the Chicken Chieu salad called out to me.
We arrived at 11:30am, just as they were getting lunch service rolling. We approached the hostess station and asked for a table for two. The young hostess lead us into the windowed bar, which was completely empty, and to a table that was pushed up against a wall. This was the only mis-step (Why would you seat anyone up against a wall when the entire dining room and every window table is available). We asked for a different table and were seated next to a south facing window.
Our waiter approached us soon after and asked if he could get us a glass of wine or anything else to drink. We settled on a pot of Jasmine tea, which he said was a superior choice to the Ginger Mint tea (loose leaf vs bagged tea). We were happy to have that guidance and waited for our tea.
When he returned with our tea he took our order. Although I have many delicious favorites on the Ginger menu--Seven Element Soup, Tuna Ananda, Fragrant Duck--I ordered the Chicken Chieu salad--a crunchy cabbage-based salad that is at once spicy, salty, sweet and sour. It has the elusive umami. My pal ordered the Papaya salad.
Clearly the kitchen was on its game. Timing was perfect. We were not rushed, nor did we ever feel forgotten. When the salads came we noted how they looked alike, but after a tasting trade we discovered how different they were.
After cleaning our plates, our waiter tempted us with coconut gelato. OH MY GAWD! This frozen confection seriously rivals Tom Douglas' Triple Coconut Cream Pie. Served with Mango sorbet, the meal left us with the feeling of having been somewhere sunny and warm and deeply relaxing.
This dining experience kept the Wild Ginger promise.
Here is a http://www.wildginger.net/ to their Web site...under construction.
Hide
|
|
I cannot believe I did not review The Franklin before today!
I have stayed in a handful of hotels in Manhattan including the Waldorf Astoria and the Plaza Athene and I have say I did not enjoy...
I cannot believe I did not review The Franklin before today!
I have stayed in a handful of hotels in Manhattan including the Waldorf Astoria and the Plaza Athene and I have say I did not enjoy any as much as The Franklin. Part of that was the company--my sweet husband was with me. But the larger part was the quaintness of the hotel and the gracious style of the staff who let me preview a room before booking and was always available to answer questions about he city and neighborhood.
The hotel is located on the upper-east side of Manhattan, far from the activity of midtown. It is near a 6 station (Lexington Avenue Local subway line) and near the Park. For me, with a best pal at 85th and Madison, this is perfect!
The room we stayed in was small, which was fine with us. Small did not mean skimpy. There was a generous vanity in the sleeping room and the bathroom, while not plush, was large enough to turn around in (more than I can say for my bathroom at the W-A). The bed was super comfy and had a sexy gauze canopy drape that dropped behind the headboard for some drama.
I did not eat the continental breakfast, but I had the coffee and it was serviceable.
At the moment I am looking for a hotel in LA and have happily followed the breadcrumbs from The Franklin to The Hotel Oceana in Santa Monica (same hotel group, here's a http://www.hoteloceana.com/). I'll keep you posted.
Hide
|
|
I am pleased to report that I took the recommendation of one of my fellow Judy's Book members (http://members.judysbook.com/posts/content/review.aspx?ci=4468) and called Wizard Electric for some...
I am pleased to report that I took the recommendation of one of my fellow Judy's Book members (http://members.judysbook.com/posts/content/review.aspx?ci=4468) and called Wizard Electric for some work I needed done on my Ballard 4-plex.
I placed a call to the office and got a return by the end of that business day. Vern though he could get "one of his guys" out to look at my "situation" the very next day and he did.
John (I think) came out, diagnosed the "situation" and solved my problem in less time than it takes to watch a bad movie (on my new TV ). The price for labor was right the fix did not involve any demolition. WHEW!
Wizard Electrical is among my list of preferred contractors.
Thank you!
Hide
|