karen "fresh breath is a priority in my life"

For 4th of July, this was the perfect place to check out the Kirkland parade. Parking in downtown Kirkland is usually terrible, but since we were walking because of the parade, this was an excellent vantage point right by the stage.

Outdoor seating is a little cramped, since you’re pretty much occupying half the sidewalk and the dogs getting walked always get distracted with you and your food but it’s a good place to people-watch and soak up the Kirkland ambiance. Inside was a little stuffy since it was a hot day — some sort of ventilation system would have helped.

Service is prompt and friendly, if a little uncoordinated (we got two sets of menus, water and silverware; one set obviously had to be sent back) and distracted by the parade. We were not told about the MS Prime rules until we paid our bill.

The food however, was AWESOME. We had mimosas, which were mostly champagne with just enough orange juice. The ratio is just the way we like our mimosas. I had the Aussie Heart Starter which was a huge meal of sesame toast, baked beans, sausage, bacon, mushrooms and poached or scrambled eggs. You have the option of getting that with tomatoes but I chose to go without. The boyfriend got a salmon eggs benedict and loved it… when I looked back at him, it was all gone.

I’d definitely go back here for brunch (and free Internet!) even without the Prime Card!

I came here after my haircut, looking like little orphan Annie, and fell in serious lust with this place. It’s a little slice of France tucked away in Post Alley near Pike Place Market. Seating is limited though, so unless you don’t mind eating at the bar, come here after lunch (but before 2) or early.

Typhoon knows their curries — I’ve tried some of their other dishes and gave them kind of “meh” ratings but their curries are heads and shoulders above any other Thai places I’ve been to. The boyfriend’s personal favourite in terms of curry is Cafe Ori’s but I think the Typhoon spinach curry has quickly overtaken that.

If anything, the only con for Typhoon is that they’re a little veggie-heavy… you’ll really have to dig to find your meat (“where’s my meat??” heheh). Another shortcoming is that they don’t deal with large groups for dinner very well. Unless you like sitting in high stools, you’re out of luck.

I like their well stocked bar and varied beverage choices — a separate menu for tea! Their ambiance and decor is classy but not schmaltzy or cliched. And the open kitchen gives you lots of conversation starters. Service is prompt and friendly but the tables are weirdly spaced. Patio seating on a nice day is a plus, if you don’t mind looking out over the parking lot.

The Slip is always jam packed in the summer: it’s in a fantastic location right by the Kirkland waterfront, coffee is served in mugs with personality and the ambience is very Kirkland casual.

The burgers have got to be some of the Eastside’s best for a very reasonable price. For less than $10, I got a gigantic Neno’s chicken burger and a side or tortilla chips — but the burger was more than enough for lunch.

I went here with a large group to celebrate a friend’s birthday — unfortunately, we weren’t informed beforehand by the reservations office or the concierge desk that their layout isn’t large-group friendly so we had to squish 10 people into a 6 person booth + a 2 person table. The manager and one of the servers (John) came by to apologize profusely and to “take care of us” after the seating inconvenience. We started off our dinner with complimentary appetizers and drinks and drink refills came coming afterwards, all from the manager.

The excellent service and food continued throughout the evening with John (and probably the manager) reserving some of the dishes running in short supply for our table. The portions were generous and extremely tasty, and we stayed till 11. I highly recommend the seafood dishes — the ahi tuna that I ordered was particularly good. To end the evening, John served up my friend’s birthday cake with a lot of aplomb (and singing!). I would definitely go back – in a smaller group, or a more intimate situation.

Major props to Union Square Grill’s manager and waitstaff for making the most of an inconvenient situation!

I love the ambiance at McCormick and Schmick’s… dark wood. velvety curtains, soft lighting and loads of paintings of fish and local historical photos make it an ideal place to go for date night. I went to the Lincoln Square restaurant for Sunday brunch and for dinner and both times, left very satisfied.

The service is hit-or-miss. While we had an excellent server at our table (he even came back to say hello when we went back there for dinner a week later), the hostesses at the front desk were rather unfriendly and lacked the attentiveness I was expecting.

The food beats all though: with a daily menu that changes for every meal based on what the catch of the day is, you’re sure that none of the ingredients in your meal are stale. Drinks, likewise, are excellent. They mix a mean cosmo here. On both visits, I enjoyed at least two courses and I’m sure I’ll be visiting more often and will check out their happy hour at least once.

Some friends discovered the new Marinepolis Sushi Land location in Bella Bottega mall in Redmond, so we decided to give it a whirl.

The restaurant was a vast improvement over the Bellevue location — more parking, nicer looking decor, not as crowded. The ingredients were fresh and the sushi was still moist (not dried up and leathery looking as they tend to get in conveyor-belt sushi joints). Green tea was free. The selection (as seen in the menu) is pretty varied and only a few items are “Westernized” sushi – with cream cheese, beef, etc. For the same low prices, you also get ice-cream and hot dishes, so I ordered some red-bean ice-cream for dessert.

Since we got there later in the evening, the selection was limited and you had to hail the servers to ask for any special orders. Most of the tables only seat 6 people, so it’s not so conducive to larger groups.

I’ll definitely be visiting this place again – I left with a very full tummy and a happy wallet.

I love love LOVE Porcella. I’ve been there a few times and even if it’s a quick meal before driving back to Vancouver, it still has such a romantic French bistro feel to it that I at least order wine (not when I’m driving) or dessert. Their salmon with endive, their blue cheese steak and their tiramisu are to die for.

My follow-up review for this restaurant. Read my previous review for this restaurant here

The Nutella/banana crepe was quite possibly the best part of the meal! I can’t believe I didn’t review it.

Cafe D’arclee is my favourite creperie in Seattle. My boyfriend introduced this place to me last summer and we’ve been semi-regularly go here for weekend brunch.

I personally love their savoury crepes, but who can resist a good Nutella and banana crepe for dessert? We start off with some of their house coffee or a Limonata, then some savoury crepes and then share a Nutella/banana crepe for dessert. Although this place honours the Prime card, we choose to forgo the discount. They’re that good.

Another plus is the decor. Very modern and with a flair for design, you can see the quirky yet tasteful eye from the shelf decorations to the lighting treatments to the vases and cream containers on the table. Service is very good too – no interruptions and the dessert menu and food comes out at just the right time. After your meal, you can explore the Seattle Centre just across the street.

The first time I went to Hon’s was with my roommate in Germany and we got the salted fish and chicken fried rice, the gyoza and some chicken (which I’ve forgotten but it was flavourful).

The last time I went was with family and we chose a family meal — we had gyoza, wonton soup (has shrimp so I didn’t get to eat any), salt and pepper pork (lots of bones), mixed vegetables potato nest (bland), fried mushrooms (good but you reach the fried mushroom threshold pretty quickly) and salty fish and chicken fried rice. We got stuffed pretty quickly so we took the stuff home… unfortunately, it’s best served fresh from the kitchen. On reheating, it got soggy and bland… not so good.

Be prepared to line up outside and share your table with strangers at Hon’s if you come at peak dining hour. If you get in later though, there isn’t much of a wait but some of the hotter items may have sold out. The staff are helpful and assist in choosing dishes, but some of them assume that if you’re Asian, you must be Chinese, so that might need some clearing up.