Restaurants


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Endless Road Trip Seattle: Now That’s a Spicy Cocktail

I’m kind of fickle when it comes to spicy stuff. Sometimes I love it (5-star Thai curries, chipotle peppers, Cholula on my scrambled eggs) and sometimes it’s just too much for me (stirfry drenched in red chili paste, jalapeños on my nachos, super hot BBQ sauce). Where do I draw the line and why? Who knows? I like what I like, and that’s that.

Here’s something spicy that I really like: the spicy tequila cocktails at Poquito’s. I’ve written about this hip and delicious restaurant/bar before, back when I lived in Seattle, and they keep finding ways to make me happy. One particular thing I keep coming back to is the La Fiona: their boozy, fruity, and yep — very spicy — cocktail concoction made of passionfruit purée, habañero-infused tequila, and agave nectar, complete with a chipotle-sugar rim.

While it’s offered as a cocktail, I usually order the La Fiona as a shot (left). And then I don’t even shoot it, but gingerly sip. Why? Well, as the menu warns us, this drink is “Extra spicy! Order at your own risk!” and they aren’t kidding. Sometimes I like to do a little one-two punch and get my La Fiona shot alongside another milder drink such as their delicious Fresa margarita made with strawberry-infused tequila (right).

I’ll be the first to admit that Seattle isn’t exactly known for its Mexican scene, but I promise a visit to the Poquitos bar can change that. Mouth-burningly spicy, tropical and tangy thanks to the passionfruit, and a bit smoky and sweet thanks to its rim, the La Fiona is a complex party of flavors in your mouth (and liver). Pair it with some of Poquitos’ incredibly fresh, made-to-order guacamole and crispy tortilla chips, or perhaps their luxurious ceviche, and enjoy.

Poquitos / 1000 E. Pike St, Seattle, WA 98122 / 11:30a-2:30a

Also on The Endless Road Trip: Seattle
1. The Most Powerful, Brouwerful Hour
2. Clucking Great Fried Chicken
3. Porky Passion at Paseo
4. Hipster Hangover Brunch

in Drinks / Food Travel / Restaurants 0 comments
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Coal-Fired Pizza and Homemade Bombs

Hey ES-ers! I’m sure you have noticed (um…hopefully some of you have noticed) that your esteemed editor hasn’t been posting here much the past two weeks. I’ve been busy launching Narratively, a new digital publication devoted to original, in-depth non-fiction stories about New York City (and soon—other places, too!)

I’ll be back to ranting about bacon soon, I promise. For now: please check out today’s food-centric Narratively story, which stems from one writer’s obsession with a local pizzeria in Red Hook, Brooklyn, and follows the owner’s insane story, from West Virginia to Rikers.

Read: Who is Roger Fischer? From Berkeley Springs to Brooklyn, a tale of homemade bombs and coal-fired pizza.

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Endless Road Trip Seattle: Hipster Hangover Brunch

I bet by this point in my Seattle journey you’re like “she must be done talking about grease-laden brunch foods.” But, my friends, you are sadly mistaken.

Smith is an ultra-hipster tavern featuring rustic, seasonal pub fare and a relatively small yet lovingly curated, unique beer list. A cavernous bar featuring taxidermy and slightly creepy portraits of old men with beards, it may seem like a strange choice for the first meal of the day, but I had been dreaming about their gastropub grub every morning of my trip. Trust me, feeling like you’re chillin’ on the set of a Portlandia sketch is worth it for this brunch.

My old apartment in Capitol Hill was a short three-block walk from Smith, so my body had been used to their piping hot mugs of Stumptown coffee, their creamy, salty sweet potato fries dipped in rich aioli, and their beefy breakfast entrees on a very regular basis.

The number one stunner, though, is Smith’s breakfast sandwich. This is no run-of-the-mill McMuffin knock-off. It might just be the heartiest and best hangover meal in Seattle: fatty, thick shreds of brisket topped with a runny fried egg, fried green tomatoes, hot mustard, and melted gruyêre cheese, all piled onto a warm, buttery potato bun. Rob ordered it and to this very day he won’t stop waxing poetic about how delicious it was; this is a Texan appraising brisket, so no small praise.

Smith / 332 15th Ave E, Seattle, WA 98102 / 4pm-2am Mon-Fri / 10am-2am Sat-Sun

Also on The Endless Road Trip: Seattle
1. The Most Powerful, Brouwerful Hour
2. Clucking Great Fried Chicken
3. Porky Passion at Paseo

 

in Breakfast / Food Travel / Restaurants 0 comments
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Endless Road Trip Seattle: Porky Passion at Paseo

The best sandwich in Seattle is not exactly the most photogenic one, but trust me, with flavors and textures his heavenly, it doesn’t matter one bit. Welcome to one of my most favorite things I’ve ever put into my mouth: the Caribbean Roast sandwich at Paseo, a little cash-only sandwich shack on the beach.

Originally located on the side of a busy road in Seattle’s Fremont neighborhood, Paseo has been such a longstanding favorite with locals that they were able to open a second location outside Golden Gardens, a beautiful seaside park in Ballard. You walk up to a window in the little building, place your sandwich order (feel free to add on rice and beans or their amazing corn on the cob), pay with about $8 cash, then chill on a wooden bench enjoying the lovely sea air while waiting for your paper-wrapped, sloppy, meaty masterpiece to arrive.

The star of the Caribbean Roast is its pork shoulder, which is soaked in Paseo’s special tangy marinade and slow-roasted until it is melt-in-your mouth tender. Huge hunks of said pork are nestled in freshly-baked local Macrina Bakery bread slathered with garlicky aioli, alongside crisp lettuce, cilantro, pickled jalapeños, and – my personal favorite – thick rings of sweet, roasted onions.

Seattle is passionate about Paseo—so passionate that the shop often runs out of bread halfway through the day! I told my Texan boyfriend, who was visiting with me, that any time you mention to a Seattleite that you had Paseo for lunch, they jealously exclaim “Aannuuugghhh! Paseo!”.He laughed, thinking I was joking. By the end of that night, everyone we mentioned our Paseo trip to indeed muttered envious, guttural noises. I guess people just can’t help their reaction once they’ve experienced the Caribbean Roast, the true coup de grâce of the sandwich world.

Paseo Ballard / 6226 Seaview Ave. NW / 11am-9pm Tues-Sat
Paseo Fremont / 4225 Fremont Ave. N / 11am-9pm Tues-Fri / 11am-8pm Sat 

Also on The Endless Road Trip: Seattle
1. The Most Powerful, Brouwerful Hour
2. Clucking Great Fried Chicken

in Food Travel / Pig / Restaurants / Sandwich 3 comments
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Endless Road Trip Seattle: Clucking Great Fried Chicken

Most people think of salmon as Seattle’s prime protein, and while it’s true that seafood is a Northwest mainstay, this city can cook up some fried meat just as well as any southern hotspot. Thanks to Oprah, Seattle has been lauded for Ezell’s chicken, but I have a different go-to for fried bird: Skillet Diner in Capitol Hill. Famous for their cult hit bacon jam, Skillet started out as a small food trailer that became so popular they were able to afford a brick-and-mortar place in Capitol Hill; prime real estate.

Skillet’s burger and grilled cheese are amazing, but to me, nothing beats their fowl. I’m most fond of the fried chicken sandwich on fresh potato bread with pickled and charred jalapeño aioli and kale. It’s served with another Skillet signature, their ridiculous poutine, a giant pile of fries smothered in a gratuitous amount of herbed cheddar sauce:

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in Breakfast / Eggs / Food Travel / Fowl / Restaurants / Sandwich 0 comments
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Endless Road Trip: Have a Little Heart

So I’ve talked a lot about how good Portland is at street food and sandwiches, but here’s another thing that makes this city amazing. On a recent Wednesday evening, I walked into Portland’s best-reviewed, most-hyped restaurant—Le Pigeon—sans reservations, looking like my normal grubby, travelling-for-weeks, t-shirt and jeans self…and asked if I could get a meal. Not only did they seat me immediately at the small bar space overlooking the open kitchen, but they didn’t seem to be the slightest bit put out by it. This may be the New Yorker in me—just assuming that I’m going to be treated snobbishly everywhere—but it’s so great when you go to a restaurant that could get away with being jerks, but aren’t.

OK, on to the food. I started with the smoked rabbit pie and hot mustard ice cream because…well, because I have a crazy addiction, and that dish sounded downright batty. But Le Pigeon had my number on this one. I asked for crazy, and I got even crazier. When the server returned with my dish, she set the rabbit pie and savory ice cream down in front of me, and casually mentioned that the artfully presented sauce-like substance spread across the side of the plate was in fact a remoulade of rabbit heart. Well done. Love how she just threw that in at the end there…oh yeah, and there’s some rabbit heart on your plate.

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in Food Travel / Red Meat / Restaurants 1 comments
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Endless Road Trip: Pastrami in Portland?

We know that Portland does pork well…and ice cream, and of course weird food and breakfast. One thing I was not expecting to find in this foodie wonderland was a decent pastrami sandwich. Even more so than bagels or pizza-by-the-slice, pastrami is a food that rightfully belongs to the east coast, and to New York in particular. Just like West Coasters complain up and down that you can’t find good Mexican east of the Mississippi, there is now way I was gonna find a pastrami sandwich in Portland that beats those from somewhere like Lansky’s, right?

Except I did, and it is the best pastrami sandwich I’ve ever had.

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in Cheese / Food Travel / Red Meat / Restaurants / Sandwich 0 comments
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