Hungrygrrl

There’s something about Sitka & Spruce’s dining room, the sun shining through the shades, the cookbooks on the shelves — I always feel at home. It’s on both of our favorite restaurant lists, but we haven’t been there for three years. It’s the downside of always trying somewhere new.

We stopped in on a whim the other day on the way to our birthing class, fully expecting the place to be packed, and found a table open.

It was a Tuesday and the weather was beautiful, but we were amazed to not have a wait. The last time we were there we must have waited an hour, drinking a few glasses of wine, eating our appetizer standing up.

“Food worth standing up for,” as the sign said.

Little has changed in three years. They painted the walls a bright green that plays off the wood and there are a few more empty bottles of Madeira on top of the cabinet, but otherwise it felt the same.

Simple. Rustic.

Dried poppy pods decorated the thick wooden tables and a chalkboard menu listed the daily specials, from braised lamb to pickled fiddleheads. Half the chalkboard was covered with wine selections including my favorite—Jurancon sec.

We had but half an hour so we quickly determined a few dishes they could whip up, then sat back to relax.

The salmon tartare was presented more as a salad than the traditional thin sheets, little bites of king salmon dotting a cluster of watercress. With just a bit of crunch and pepperiness offsetting the buttery salmon, it was an auspicious start. Pickled fiddleheads had great crunch.

Scallops came next, deftly seared so that the center remained moist and plump and dressed with only brown butter and sherry, topped over fresh peas. So simple, yet so perfect. We fought for the last scallop.

Our last course was an arugula and jamon salad with a side of pesto and buffalo mozzarella covered toasts. The salad had drowned in dressing and it looked sad, its leaves darkening from the oil, but the house made jamon was salty and rich.

Pesto toasts were fresh and bright with a beautiful creamy flavor of mozzarella, though the texture of the cheese was on the grainy side.

Half an hour after we arrived, we were full and happy, off to our class. Cobe whispered in the waiter’s ear as we walked out the door, “Best fast food I’ve ever had.”

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Sitka & Spruce

2238 Eastlake Ave E
Seattle, WA 98102
www.sitkaandspruce.com

(206) 324-0662