Etta's

Etta's, near Pike Place Market in Seattle
Another Tom Douglas restaurant, focused on seafood.

The one thing Etta's has that none of the other Tom Douglas restaurants do is a nice view of the waterfront and the foot traffic near the market. Most of the tables in the narrow dining area are close enough to the window to take advantage of the view. The view inside isn't bad either. Like the Dahlia Lounge, Etta's is decorated primarily with colorful blown glass; an assortment of ducks adorn the wall, and small hanging lights illuminate the tables when the sun sets.

The other constant across the Tom Douglas restaurants is outstanding service, and Etta's is no exception. Our attentive waiter had the kitchen split our plates for us, and no course arrived before we were done with the previous one. The plates were all very pretty, too, colorful and garnished with colored oils.

The menu is fairly simple, focused on seafood and divided into categories: Raw / Fried / Steamed / Soups & Salads / Main Courses.

The appetizers really shone. The clam chowder - becoming a staple of our meals - included a distinctive thick smoked bacon. It was mild but pretty good in general. Our favorite were the mini Dungeness crab cakes. Tom Douglas has published a book on crab cakes, and these were mostly crab, with seasoned breading that complemented the crab taste rather than overwhelming it. They were served with a green relish, with a vegetable consistency but a fruity taste.

We always check the bread, too, and they served us delicious olive bread. The light, crispy crust gave a satisfactory crunch to the bread, and there were plenty of ripe olives.

The spinach salad was interesting. We really liked the mustardy dressing, and the salad came with onions, curried cashews (unique and yummy), pears, grapes, radicchio. Overall there was more "stuff" than spinach, but still everything went together well. The different components provided a lot of different textures, with sweet fruit and sharp onions harmonizing under the dressing.

For the main course, the Troll Salmon with Etta's Rub With Love, asparagus, shitake relish, cornbread pudding. Good salmon, mild flavor. Mark was disappointed that the flavor wasn't stronger. A good rub should be a boost to the fish's natural flavor, but this one was just kind of there, not outstanding or distinctive. It was asparagus season, however, and it showed. Tom Douglas restaurants create their menus based on what's in season, and the asparagus here had a great crunch to it, just beautifully done. Shitakes added a nice flavor accent with good earthy mushroom flavor. Tim liked the cornbread pudding, which reminded us of quiche: the egg flavor was noticeable even over cornbread. Mark felt it was a little bland.

Etta's ended up being a good dinner in a great location. For a Tom Douglas restaurant, it fell a little shy of the others, but that's like being the worst Pixar movie. If you're down by Pike Place Market, and want a good sit-down dinner, you couldn't do much better.

McCormick and Kuleto's, San Francisco

McCormick and Kuleto's
Fine seafood at Ghirardelli Square on the shore of the Bay

In Los Angeles, I had the best clam chowder I'd ever had at a McCormick and Schmick restaurant. When I moved up to the Bay, I saw McCormick and Kuleto's at Ghirardelli Square, and my arrow-quick mind grasped immediately, a year or so later, that they were related. Yes, now when you go to the website, you'll see them listed together; they are part of the same restaurant chain. Besides, a year ago, Mark stopped in for clam chowder and raved about it. So we had to go back.

I don't get clam chowder often, but this one was worth it. Creamy but not too thick, full of clams and potatoes. I'm not sure it was quite as good as I remember it, and honestly, the clam chowder we made for the Super Bowl was pretty darn good too, but it's still a chowdah worth going out of your way for.

The main course was no less impressive: large sea scallops topped with greens, over a crab and potato cake. Scallops are easy to ruin, but these were nicely seared, not overwhelmed by the rest of the flavors, and in just the right portion (split) that they left us with room to walk over to Ghirardelli's and get a sundae.

It's not a cheap place, but for the quality of the food and the view, you can't beat it. Service was a bit slow, but overall we had a great dinner experience. It was worth walking from Union Square. And the cable car stops just a block away, so we were able to ride that all the way back.

It's in a beautiful location in Ghirardelli Square, overlooking the San Francisco Bay and Alcatraz.

Kincaid's (Burlingame)

Kincaid's Fish, Chop, and Steakhouse in Burlingame
Great food, view, and service--worthy of the name of its southern counterpart

When I lived in Torrance, one of my favorite restaurants was Kincaid's on the Redondo Beach pier. We went there mostly for brunch, often enough at one point that we became semi-regulars. After I moved north, we went back for a delicious birthday dinner one year (the year Xoflow was formed), and have tried to go there whenever we're in the area.

Last year, someone told us there was one in Burlingame. We'd been avoiding going, first because we weren't convinced they were related, and second because we were worried it wouldn't live up to the lofty standards of the first. Finally, we put it on our list to try, and when American Express sent along a gift card for $20 off dinner there (out of nowhere), we decided that fate was speaking to us.

It's hard to get to. You need to get off 101 at Anza or Broadway and wind your way back to Airport Way, then snake along the bay shore for a mile before finding it tucked away behind the Sheraton. The location isn't quite as spectacular as the Redondo Beach pier (though, to be fair, little is), but it's lovely in its own right. The elegant dining room has a huge windowed wall looking out onto the water, where you can see San Francsico and Oakland (weather permitting), the Bay Bridge and planes on approach to SFO. It also has the same polished wood and sparkling chandeliers that the SoCal location has, and the same friendly service.

Our waiter was enthusiastic and amiable, very entertaining and attentive. He started us off with some warm garlic bread from the oven while we made up our minds on drinks and appetizers. Although we'd been trying artichoke dips across the country, we opted for the brie crusted with macadamia nuts. Between the three of us, we ordered two specials: the Petrale Sole Dore with roasted red pepper mashed potatoes, and the Swordfish steak with porcini mushrooms and acorn squash puree. We also each got one salad: a Caesar (with anchovies), a wedge, and a maple vinaigrette.

The maple vinaigrette at the SoCal Kincaid's is one of the things I remember best about the meal there, and the one here did not fall short. The salads were all fresh and light, with a good balance of ingredients and tasty dressings. The brie appetizer was terrific, too, warm but not too messy. The macadamia nuts provided a nice texture and subtle flavor to go with the cheese.

The main courses received high marks as well. The light, fluffy sole was perfect; the mashed potatoes with roasted red peppers blended the tastes of both very nicely, and the grilled asparagus that came with them were tender and crunchy. The mushrooms seemed an unusual pairing with the swordfish, but were perfectly cooked, their meaty texture and moderately strong flavor going well with the strong, firm steak.

We would love to have tried a dessert, but we were simply out of room by the time the menus arrived. Definitely need to go back again when it's light out, so we can appreciate the view. If you can find your way there, it's more than worth the trip.

Gandy Dancer Saloon, Pittsburgh

Gandy Dancer Saloon
American bistro fare in Pittsburgh's Station Square

Attached to the more elegant Grand Concourse restaurant in Station Square is the Gandy Dancer Saloon (named for its sister restaurant in Ann Arbor, also located in an old railway depot). We had come to Station Square in search of a late lunch or early dinner, and in the sea of chain restaurants (Houlihan's, Buca di Beppo, Hard Rock, Hooters) there was this nice-looking place with an outdoor patio where we could enjoy the warm afternoon.

The setting was perfect for people-watching, and the ambiance inside the saloon seemed good, too, very "western bar." Our waiter was very friendly, attentive, and helpful, though he seemed a bit confused when we asked for the tuna sandwich to be delivered without bacon (we changed our mind and said he could go ahead and bring it, and ended up getting a sandwich with no bacon, cheese, or sauce). There were two menus, the dinner menu from the Grand Concourse and the "pub" menu from the Gandy Dancer itself. We opted for appetizers and sandwiches, trying the raw plate, the brie and chutney, the tuna sandwich (as mentioned), and the salmon burger. The appetizers were great, but we found the sandwiches somewhat disappointing. The tuna was supposed to be chili-dusted, but was actually somewhat bland, and the salmon burger (made of ground salmon, not a fillet) was a little salty. In both cases, though, the bread was good and fresh, as was the house bread (warm twisted bread sticks--we refilled twice) and the fries.

Our friends who got entrees seemed pretty happy with their meals, though we didn't try them. On the whole, this was a good choice for a place to sit and watch people go by on a sunny afternoon, and certainly the majority of the food was quite good (we loved the brie and chutney). Their menu changes from day to day, but we'd recommend ordering from the Grand Concourse menu as the food seems to be a bit better from there.