{Announcement} Thursday Night Bites is Moving

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http://thursdaynightbites.wordpress.com/

Special Occasion Meals and Video Games {Metropolitan Grill}

A couple months after I moved to Seattle, I decided to take B out for a nice dinner. I still worked retail then and had a midweek day off. Those were different days. We hardly ever had a day off together and both worked weird hours. We lacked predictability in life. On this particular day, I spent some time looking for a good restaurant online and stumbled upon the Metropolitan Grill. That night, we had our first truly great dinner in Seattle.

A Night at the Market {Matt's in the Market and The Alibi Room}

In early December, we had an unusually large Thursday dinner with a group of old, current and new friends when two, B² and P, traveled to Seattle for work. B² has made 3 such trips so far, the most recent of which was this week. He already had plans for Thursday dinner, so we did a little shuffling and moved our weekly plans to Wednesday. We sort of have a routine. At least one night of B²'s trip, we have dinner followed by drinks someplace different.

Unwinding Close to Home {Sport Restaurant & Bar}

Friday was a busy, busy day! My job is relatively sedentary, so it's rare for me to have a day when I'm literally moving from beginning to end. It's a nice change from my usual sitting at a desk or in a conference room, but it also reminds me just how far my physical endurance has fallen from my retail days of 10+ hours a day on my feet without blinking. Between my pathetic stamina and a fairly high stress level, I was downright exhausted by the end of the day. B had a bit of a rough day too thanks to some unexpected computer drama. Instead of turning into total vegetables on the sofa, we decided to walk a couple of blocks to Sport Restaurant & Bar just to hang out and unwind.

Moules Frites at the Center of the Universe {Brouwer's Cafe}

Wednesday night we detoured through Capitol Hill on our way home and found ourselves sitting at the bar at Marjorie having an absolutely lovely dinner. Amazing cuttlefish for me, pork belly and blood sausage (please no one tell him what's actually in blood sausage) for B and one monumental occasion. I. Ate. Bread. Pudding. If you've followed along for any length of time, you may already know about my texture issue with wet bread. Before Wednesday night, it was probably fifteen years since my last bread pudding. I was wooed by the promise of bourbon caramel, fresh cream and toffee and it was bread pudding for us! I wish I could say I had a life changing experience, totally erasing all memory of my texture phobia, but it would be a lie. While I was mildly bothered by the texture, the beautiful combinations of flavors throughout the dessert more than compensated for the texture.

Anyway, this post isn't really about Marjorie. It's about a Thursday Night dinner quite different from Marjorie and from many other food adventures in fact. Thursday night we visited Brouwer's Cafe in Fremont (self-proclaimed Center of the Known Universe). This was our fourth or fifth visit to Brouwer's. We've always had a good time.  With their 64 beers on tap and 300 bottles, it isn't difficult to find something one might enjoy. It's just nearly impossible to choose just one.

You Can't Be Sad Eating Ice Cream {Molly Moon's Homeade Ice Cream}

I've been on a quest for ice cream for weeks... literally weeks. Specifically, I've been on a quest for Molly Moon's Homeade Ice Cream. It just hasn't worked out, though. B is sick of hearing me talk about wanting ice cream. He hasn't said it. I just know. Even I was a little sick of hearing me talk about ice cream, but once I'm fixated on my favorite food group (yes, it is a food group), there's no turning it off until the craving is satiated.

Underdogs and Underwhelmed {Fado Irish Pub}

A friend's misfortune was our gain. We were lucky enough to attend tonight's Seahawks game since a friend with season tickets couldn't get a sitter. To be honest, we're a bit of fairweather fans. We haven't really been in Seattle long enough to be really loyal, but we're always happy to see the Seahawks do well and anyone who's ever attended a football game at Qwest can tell you, the energy in that stadium is nothing less than electric.

Seattle hasn't recently been known for super successful sports teams, but a loyalty exists amongst the fan base nonetheless. Since neither B nor I grew up in an area with professional sports teams, we don't really have strong ties. We make for easy adoptees by Seattle pro teams.

One of the best parts of games in Seattle is the food. Yes, seriously. My favorite stadium food is garlic fries. Mariners or Seahawks, I can't do without my fries! Game calories don't count (obviously), so B had an Italian sausage and I had a Kidd Valley cheeseburger along with a bag of Kettlecorn at the game.

Salty Seattle {Re:Public}

Since completing NaBloPoMo, I've enjoyed the luxury of spending days on a particular post. And of course, as my beloved Ernest Hemingway said, "The first draft of anything is shit." Oh so true. In general, though, while I sometimes spend days upon days editing and fine tuning until I grow tired of the words, I don't often struggle putting that first draft on screen.

My struggle writing this post doesn't reflect in any way on Re:Public. We certainly had a lovely time. It is more likely reflective of this week long endeavor at reacclamating to real life, to work, to a set schedule. I am quite grateful for the four day work week and, in many ways, I can hardly believe it's already over, but what a week it's been.

Second Saturday {Seatown Seabar & Rotisserie and Tini Bigs}

B and I are both creatures of habit. Living in New Mexico, I definitely had my habits, but they weren’t driven by anything specific… except occasionally by trying to establish some normalcy within a totally erratic work schedule. Since we’ve been in Seattle, though, a lot of our habits are driven by seasonal and weather patterns. I suppose it’s all about taking advantage of what’s available. Summer is bike rides, spontaneous happy hours and lots of time on restaurant patios and in the Pike Place Market. Winter is cozy neighborhood bars, restaurants with comfort food and icy cold walks. We eat more brunch in winter when we’re more grateful for the daylight. We’ve had such beautiful weather (albeit freezing) these past few days. There’s a lot of daylight to be grateful for.

Bad Habits and Lovely Experiences {Marjorie}

I have a terrible habit. I eaves drop. I don't do it on purpose and I try hard to tune out other people's conversations in public, but I just can't. I spent too many years in retail learning the art (read: curse) of carrying on one conversation while observing and listening to those around me. It drives B crazy. He never eaves drops.

We decided to have our New Years Eve dinner at Marjorie. Now that Book Bindery is open, we have to split our repeat restaurant time between these two favorites. The two are so vastly different, but we love them both and always leave both places in a better mood than when we arrived. Even though both seat about the same number of patrons, the Book Bindery space is larger and each table feels more private. It's relatively easy to exist in your own space without intrusion from fellow diners. It's quiet, dark, comfortable and a bit reserved. The space and food alike are beautiful and calming. Marjorie is community. Regardless of whether you know the people sitting next to you when you arrive, you're bound to learn something about them just based on proximity. The colors are bright, there is a cheerful level of noise all around. The space, the people and the food radiate warmth.

Happy Christmas - Potatoes, Pudding and Cabin Fever {Urbane}

B and I have both been sick for over a week now. Today is probably the first day we've both felt mostly human. I have a knack for getting sick over the holidays, but usually it has something to do with air travel. This time, there was no real reason. We were both just plain struck down by some nasty germ. Aside from a couple short trips, we've hardly left the house since last Friday night.

A few weeks ago, after our Thursday night dinner at Urbane, I noticed they would be open on Christmas day, so we decided to make a reservation. When B and I stay in Seattle for the holidays (which hasn't been all that often), it always feels a little silly to cook an elaborate meal for just the two of us. It feels a little silly not to do something special, though. Our first Christmas together, I made a simple chicken dinner and we watched all (the extended versions) of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. We started the movies on Christmas Eve. It was a looooooong two days. The three Christmases after that one, we traveled. While we've eaten out three Thanksgivings, Saturday night marked my first ever Christmas dinner out... unless you count our Christmas in Maui which I don't because, well, because it's Maui.

A Refuge From the Rain {Tilikum Place Cafe}

As has been known to happen, B and I went out to dinner on Monday night. This Monday dinner out was a bit unlike the others in that it was actually in place of our Thursday night dinner this week. Life is a little hectic this week between our individual work Christmas parties, jam packed work schedules and trying to get all our holiday chores done, so Monday was the night.

About three months ago, on our last visit to Zeek's Pizza, I noticed a restaurant I'd never seen before across the street. Right next door to The Five Point Cafe is a little restaurant called The Tilikum Place Cafe. Since it's less than a five minute walk from home for us, I made a mental note to look it up when we got home. The reviews were decent. It sounded like a place we would enjoy, so I added it to our list. I wasn't super excited about visiting, though, so I kept pushing it further and further down the list. As I may have mentioned two or ten times before, it's been pouring rain here for days now. That combined with the fact that we needed to be home in time for our grocery delivery made it the perfect day to finally give Tilikum Place a shot.

Sunbreaks

Today hasn't been a great day. Work is especially busy right now, as it is this time every year. To add to the expected chaos, we're going through lots of change (good change, but change all the same) in the office as well. Add that on top of trying to keep up with personal holiday commitments and you get a few not-so-great days. It's also been raining (well, flooding, really) hard in the Puget Sound area over the last few days, so the weather hasn't contributed much to the spirit lifting efforts. This all sounds fine and despressing, but that's not the point. The point is, when life is a bit frustrating and the rain is really coming down, the bright spots (both literal and figurative) are all the more impactful.

Breaking All the Rules... {Book Bindery}

It's my party and I'll... break the rules if I want to. They are, afterall, my rules. I promised myself I wouldn't blog about the same place over and again. I already broke this self-imposed rule once when it came to the Book Bindery. I've committed the same transgression in the name of Marjorie. Tonight, having just arrived home from my birthday dinner, I can't help myself from breaking it again.

My justification (bear with me... the justifying is for my sake) is that we had a different experience at Book Bindery tonight than we've had on other visits. We always knew the the Tasting Room at the Almquist Family Vinters was there, we just never really had time or a ton of interest in visiting.

Movin' on up... {Barking Frog}

The very best Thurdsay dinners are those with some unique quality setting them apart from all the rest. Last night, two special aspects made the night memorable and even more enjoyable than usual.

First, we visited a restaurant on the Eastside. We're city people. We're Seattle people. We are decidedly not Eastsiders. While B and I cross the bridge together on a daily basis for work, we also drive back across to our own side as quickly as possible at the end of each day. When I first moved to the area, I was a little confused and amused at the passion people show, not only for their neighborhood, but for which side of the water they live on. I'm not as passionate about my neighborhood as many. I'd just as soon live in Queen Anne or Capitol Hill as Belltown. The more urban areas of the Westside, while each unique in their own way, are all pretty equivalent in my mind. Over the past four years, though, I've adopted a bit of that west-side-of-the-bridge loyalty.

Thursday Night Dinner... Table for 9! {Urbane}

Last night's Thursday night dinner was the largest yet. With a table for nine at Urbane, we increased our largest Thursday dinner by about five. After a brief, but mildly panicked expression of concern from our friend, M, I've decided not to call anyone by their full name and continue in the vein of B. In case you've ever wondered, B is called B by his choice. What's funny about it is that I now find myself referring to him that way in conversations with people who actually know him.

Milestones

Today is the last day of NaBloPoMo. I am truly relieved. By some miracle, I managed to post all 30 days in November. While I considered (on multiple occasions) not following through on my commitment to myself to complete the whole month, I'm glad I did. As a matter of wrapping up the whole ordeal, here are a few thoughts on what I learned, what I enjoyed and what wasn't the best.

Easing into Monday... {Barrio}

So, we've already used up our one dinner out cushion for the week. We have our Thursday dinner planned with friends this week, so between the two, we should be staying home otherwise. We'll see how that goes. We stopped on Capitol Hill on our way home and walked the familiar corridor of restaurants trying to decide what to eat. We had Tavern Law, The Local Vine, La Spiga and Barrio to choose from. I hate to say this about TLV because it was a place we held so close to our hearts in Belltown, but it's just not the same. I'm pretty sure we don't know anyone left working there. It's still very nice and the food is good. It just doesn't have that familiar Cheers feeling to it anymore. We settled on Barrio. Barrio is a member of the Heavy Restaurant group which also includes Purple (another of our Seattle favorites... Lobster baked Mac and Cheese, anyone?) in various locations around the Seattle area. I hesitate to call Barrio Mexican, though it's more Mexican than any other type of food. It's more modern than just regular Mexican food, though.

Family Secrets

My mom makes great soups. Potato soup, beef stew, clam chowder, chicken and rice soup.... lots of great soups. Of all of them, though, the only one I've learned to make is her chicken and rice. It's cold outside and we've eaten too much lately, so this sounded like the perfect meal for dinner. I won't share the actual recipe since it's not mine to share. I'm not sure if that's in line with or a deviation from food blog etiquette, but nonetheless...

Reset {Barracuda Taqueria}

We have a nearly empty refrigerator. That's a rarity for us, but between all the travel and the snow keeping Amazon Fresh away, it's just cleared out. So tomorrow we'll actually visit the grocery store and restock. Truly, it's good timing. In addition to picking up a few items to make some holiday favorites, B and I just plain need to reset.

Overindulgence has been a bit of an issue lately and we really need to reign it in. The best way I know of to do this is to create a menu that we can stick to predictably. This helps us to limit our meals out to once (and sometimes twice) a week. Tomorrow perhaps I'll share some of what we put on our menu. Tonight, though, as we shared our last Barracuda Street Nachos for awhile, I'm a little more focused on what we won't be eating much of any time soon.