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A seattle restaurant list needs your vote

I will have six meals in Seattle...I have a list of places I'd like to try...I'll be traveling alone and mostly eating at the bar (where applicable)...can you help me narrow this list or add something I can't miss. Cafe Campagne Marco's Supper Club Avenue One Fandango Brooklyn The Met Dahlia Lounge and the Pink Door Chez Shea (for a drink) 5 Spot Rovers Wild Ginger I have ruled out places far from downtown (no car)

Rovers is in Madison Park and is EXTREMELY expensive. If you are planning on eating there, you had best make your reservations now. Cafe Campagne is nice - not eating at the bar type place though. Wild Ginger is good - again, you should make your reservations now. Be prepared to wait for a bit even when you do have reservations (you may want to ask for a window table) You might want to try Place Pigalle which is in the market as well. Some other "less expensive, but treat singles well" places: Palomino, Il Fornaio (yes, they're chain restaurants), Four Seasons is nice in the lounge area - good hamburger and martini!), Fuller's is good too. Enjoy your visit!

Another vote from me for Place Pigalle and Campagne esp as a solo traveler. Both are small w/outstanding food. Seattle is a fabulous eating town. Your short list is certainly well-researched. There is a culinary magazine for Seattle. Does anyone here know the name?

Someone has been doing their homework! Good for you, these are all great choices! If it was me this is how I would go to get different atmospheres and types of cuisine: Dahlia Lounge- NW w/ many influences- great bar where you can eat full dinner in a booth or at the bar. Don't leave without the cocoanut cream pie! Wild Ginger- Amazing pan asian food in a very modern setting. 2 Level bar offers great people watching. 5 Spot- Home cooking at it's best! Funky & fun, don't get dressed up, just come and enjoy- this is also a good breakfast place although you will wait awhile. Booths in the bar also. Marco's Supper Club- Full meal at the bar, great friendly staff. Get either the steak or the jerk chicken! Yum!! Avenue One- Fantastic French food! Great wine list! You can eat at the bar but it is a little small and people smoke. Better to get a table, ask to at least peak into the "back dining room" where there is a wonderful fireplace and view of the sound. They also have brunch if I'm not mistaken. Brooklyn- SEAFOOD! If you like Oysters this is the place!! Also the halibut, salmon and chowder are wonderful! Great bar atmosphere to eat in, big and roomy! Also a great happy hour w/ oyster on the half shell specials. Met- STEAK! Another excellent bar to dine it. Also a good happy hour spot. Start with a great martini, order a big fat steak and a great glass of red wine, have something chocolate for dessert! Yum!! I think all the restaurants on your list are good picks if you had a lot of time here. Since you have limited meals the only ones I would for sure skip are Pink Door and Fandago (except drinks are good in both!) I will also go with both Idsant and Kalena in saying that I am also a fan of Pl. Pigall in the market. If you go there you must order the mussels! WOW! They are the best (and I am generally not even a fan of mussels!) Enjoy!

Chez Shea for a drink? Don't be silly! This is one of the best (and romantic) restaurants in the city. Get a reservation in ASAP. Dahlia Lounge is excellent, though Palace Kitchen isnot. Campagne is wonderful. Wild Ginger has suffered since it's moved - my friends are not impressed. The Met is fine if you like steaks and cigars - otherwise not much. McCormick and Schmick is good for seafood. Dick

How about Andaluca, Flying Fish, Waterfront, and Cascadia? how are these?

If you have the time to figure out the bus system just a little, a broad world of alternative places in the neighborhoods will emerge. What about ethnic places? Cheap but good? For example: Agua Verde, a waterfront Mexican bistro and kayak rental place near the University of Washington; Siam on Broadway for the best Phad Thai in the city (IMO), with a fun counter; Chinooks - big, noisy, fun place overlooking the fishing fleet at Fisherman's terminal; Cafe Flora for high-end vegetarian cuisine, in the Madison Valley; Nell's on Green Lake - innovative, top-flight food with a view of the lake; Daniel's Broiler at Leschi - oh, the steaks, and a great room with waterfront view... All these are one 10 - 15 min. bus ride from downtown, and worth exploring. Re Cascadia and Waterfront: bring money.

In regards to your newest choices I would stay with the first ones. Although I do like to stop into Waterfront for a cocktail. Obviously everyone has their own opinions which makes getting information off this board so great but I really have to disagree with Dick. The Palace Kitchen (which I don't think was on Monica's list) is a great restaurant also owned by Tom Douglas. The 2 restaurants have totally different themes, menus and presentations (Dahlia being the other) but bad?? Hardly! I just had dinner at Wild Ginger in Dec. on a Sat. night with 3 other "foodies". It was my birthday (they didn't know this) and we all had very high expectations. All 3 of us were OVERLY impressed with the food, the service and the atmosphere! The wine list was fantastic and the staff new everything about it. My boyfriend is deathly allergic to peanuts and the staff also new each ingrediant to every little sauce, etc.- this should but doesn't happen often. It was so good that one of my friends who was with us picked to go there for her birthday dinner 2 weeks later. Downhill? Not when I was there! By the way, I do also love McCormicks and just had a fantastic lobster dinner there last night! Although the service definately was lacking at the Westlake Harborside establishment.

Wendy is right (per usual) re: Wild Ginger, but I disagree with the other folks about McCormick and Schmick's. I think there are MUCH better seafood restaurants in Seattle. For some reason the times I've eaten there the seafood tasted "frozen first." For seafood I enjoy the following: Anthony's (there's one on the water downtown) Ray's Boathouse (Shilshoe Bay) Sostanza's (limited but all of the food is very fresh) You've gotten great suggestions here! As a matter of fact, even though I've lived here for 14 years I've learned about some new places.

I agree with ldsant, Rover's is wildly expensive. Dinner for 4 with 3 bottles of wine with tax and tip was just over $1000 when we had dinner there about 3 months ago. Wild Ginger - fantastic, but I'd also recommend reservations. Avenue One - outstanding food, I'm surprised it's not more popular. Brooklyn - it's one ofthe power lunch/dinner spots in town. You can't go wrong on the steak or seafood there. Fandango - Great atmosphere, food can be a hit or a miss, service could definitely use some improvements. I've been to the downstairs, more casual side of Cafe Campagne, it was quite good. You'll definitely need reservations.

Really great & well thought out suggestions for you here. My choices would echo some of John's: Agua Verde, Cafe Flora, Nell's. It would give you an opportunity to visit some of Seattle's fun neighborhoods, and accessible by bus. If you've had a few too many drinks or stayed late, you could always cab it back to your hotel. Enjoy!

One place not mentioned and is very over looked it The Poor Itilian Cafe on Virginia and 2nd. This place is superb!!! Whenever we are in the city, we make a point of dining here. It is a small restaurant with a very cozy atmosphere and incredible food. Trust me on this one, and you won't need a reservation.

Andaluca is a lovely, very warm place with excellent food. About the only negative is how far you have to walk to the rest rooms! Other than that, it's great. Flying Fish is one of the better fish places in the city, but it's a bit noisy and crowded. Cascadia is quite expensive (though good), and if you want to spend that amount of money, there are others that are a better value. Dick

The Dahlia Lounge is not to be missed, and I would also include another of his restaurants which is Etta's Seafood close to Pike Place Market. The Met is a great steakhouse, Cafe Campagne is good French food, and the Pink Door would be good if the weather is nice and you could sit out on the deck over looking the Sound. Have fun!