Archive for the ‘Restaurant Reviews’ Category
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Mar
17
Posted by Kathleen Cragun
We celebrated our anniversary dinner at Sip, Saturday the 15th. I’m not going to tell you which one! We were starved and were thankful to be seated quickly. It was busy, but we arrived about 6:00pm, rather early so it wasn’t too bad.
We started with the Small Plates and ordered Crab Cakes, a combination of dungeness crab, rock shrimp, kataifi, white corn served with roasted poblano jelly & cilantro lime aioli. Very tasty. We also couldn’t resist the soup of the day, a carrot soup with ginger and creme fraiche.
For our main course Larry chose Ancho Tenderloin - described as painted hills ranch all natural angus, ancho pepper, corn polenta, tempranillo currant veal jus & black currant gastrique. It was supurb, cooked just right and worth the price. I ordered the Halibut which was served atop a salad of arugula and fennel. It too, was cooked just right and delicious however the fennel was a bit too strong for the delicate taste of the halibit.
For dessert we had Cream & Sugar (Creme Brulee) and Carrot Cake served with brown sugar pineapple, spiced walnuts and cinnamon anglaise.
We will have to let others tell you about the wine, our interest was on food. It was really nice to have a classy, gourmet restaurant so close here in Issaquah. The interiors are inviting and well appointed.
Sip is located in Issaquah Highlands at 1084 NE Park Drive, Issaquah,WA 90229, Telephone 425-369-1181. Reservations are not taken unless you have more than nine people. They can also accomodate private events. For more information contact Stacey Snowden at ssnowden@warestargroup.com. The Website is www.siprestaurant.com
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Feb
21
Posted by Kathleen Cragun
YYYYUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!
This is not your Mom’s Pies. This is Pies as in PIZZA! This is not your ordinary, boring pizza ( If pizza can be boring). These are World Class Pizza’s. We had been waiting for this restaurant to open, checking each day as we knew it was close. Last night was the first night open to the public, and we went early with some friends. This was really strategic (accidently) because we got to sample a number of pizzas since we ordered different ones.
We were guided in our choices by Kyra Witt, a very knowledgeable about food waitperson, (we suspect she’s a chef in disguise) Larry was in an adventurous mood (with a little prodding from me) and ordered the Marrakesh Express, which is embellished with Moroccan spiced lamb sausage, cumin-scented tomato sauce, roasted eggplant, garbanzo beans, currants and green olives. Drizzled with a sprightly Harissa-Yogurt sauce. He was glad he ordered it, and is ready to go back for more and for the Italiano Supremo, a supreme meat lovers pie.
Our friend Frank, ordered the Caribbean Jerk, described on the menu as…Ya, mahn..you’re no jerk for loving this islander gem. Roast chicken arranged on a smear of tangy-sweet jerk tomato sauce and accompanied by oven-roasted pineapple and onion slivers, green bell pepper and tomato. Served with Mango Chutney for spreading and dipping. I loved it.
The Italian Queen is similar to a classic Margherita but different, fresh tomato, mozzarella, basil, dollops of basil pesto. Sprinkled with Parmesan. This was my favorite (so far).
Other pizza offering are numerous and include Chicken Curry, Formaggi Bianco, El Greco, Falafel, Oaxacan Mole, etc, etc, ideas from all over the world.
The Pizza Piccola is for the less adventurous and kids, Red Roma sauce and cheese. There were lots of kids that seemed to be enjoying the food.
They have two house soups every day plus a variety of good salad choices and Made-To-Order Flatbread.
Last but not least, was the dessert menu. We were all so stuffed we shared one, the Lemon Riviera, it was superb both in its presentation and its taste. A very unusual dessert. And they do have chocolate!
Owner Matt Snook has garnered the necessary assistance, expertise and spent nearly a year developing the excellent menu and the concept of his World Pies. It promises to be a great success.
World Pies is located in Issaquah Highlands at 2525 NE Park Dr #A, the south Starpoint Building. 425-392-6099. Hours are 5:00pm to 10:00pm. The adjoining 9 Bar Espresso is open 7:00am to 10:00pm.
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Feb
06
Posted by Kathleen Cragun
The Hilton Garden Inn is fairly new in Issaquah. They have a restaurant called The Great American Grill. We had a friend visiting from out of town and we wanted to find a place where we could talk AND listen, but we wanted good food too. Our friend was staying at the Hilton so it was kind of a no brainer and very convenient.
We had not been to the Hilton Garden Inn since it opened. The atmosphere is very nice, homey feeling (they have fresh cookies at the front desk)!
Very clever rug designs adorn the entry and lounging area.
In the restaurant there were many good choices to choose from. Mediterranean Talapia baked in olive oil & garlic with olives, capers, oregano and half cherry tomatoes was Larry’s choice. I chose a Talapia special that was served with a lemon sauce. Our friend had Baked Salmon on a red cedar plank with Ginger - Maple glaze. All had the choice of risotto cake, garlic mashed potatoes or baked potatoes. The risotto cakes were grilled just until browned and were delicious, as were the potatoes. We seemed to all be in a fish mood, but there are also many meaty meals. The presentation of the food was beautifully and artistically done.
If you wanted to go more casual there were pizzas, pastas and some interesting salad choices, such as the Tumbleweed Salad - romaine, avocado, bacon, blue cheese, egg and tomato with Shallot Chili dressing.
Of course we had to try the Molten Chocolate Cake for dessert and the Apple Pie.
They have a breakfast buffet that starts a 6:00 am. The service was fine, we were happy about our choice and will go back again.
The hotel has all the amenities you want, fitness center, pool, meeting rooms, wireless and the rooms have a refrigerator and a microwave. I always appreciate that.
The Hilton Garden Inn is located at 1800 NW Gilman Blvd, Issaquah, WA 98027. The telephone number is 425-837-3600.
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Dec
12
Posted by Larry Cragun
Yes, hiding on the back streets where no one will find it is this restaurant. Having my trusty camera with me I asked, who would put a restaurant here? Tell me, have you eaten here? What did you have? How is it?
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Oct
23
Posted by Larry Cragun
The trend still continues: the leading search term for those that find IssaquahUndressed.com are restaurant searches. Oh goody, the popularity of the subject is going to make us hit the eating out circuit again. Until then, and for those with a big appetite I add a fourth favorite place to eat. I also will tell you my favorite menu items on the four.
1– Pogacha: Eat there for lunch and have Fish and Chips.
2– Coho: Crab Cakes and Seafood Bisque
3– Nicolino: Not on the menu so you have to ask: Veal Marsala
Now to my favorite number four: Pallino Pastaria and order their Mammas Meat Sauce with Rigatoni. ($8.95) Their Palino bottled drinks, hummm good. Take someone with you and have them order The Sun Dried Tomato Pesto with Penne. Make a deal up front to go halvsies with them.
My how I am dying to eat out.
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Oct
17
Posted by Larry Cragun
My Statistics Tool says you are more in the mood to eat out than buy a home. At least those are the stats for yesterday.
OK, so you have been searching the site for food reports. We have done a few, albeit not many recently. We want to make that a winter thing.
For those of you still considering: here are my favorite three. That is for today. Who knows about tomorrow. These are in random order. Check out what Kathleen wrote by clicking the name of the restaurant.
1– Pogacha
2– Nicolino
3– CoHo
There are a whole lot more: click here
PS: If we don’t like it we just don’t report, so if you own a restaurant, you better get us in there. Lar
Tags: coho, nicolino, pogacha
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Aug
28
Posted by Kathleen Cragun
If you have a yen for Bar-B-Q try Stan’s Bar-B-Q at 58 Front Street in Issaquah, WA 98027. I had never been in there, but Larry and I decided to give it a try. It has the atmosphere of a saloon as you walk in, with the bar on the left and tables on the right. They do have darn good bar-b-q! Baked beans are yummy. Also they have WiFi, live music, and NFL football!
We had The Cowboy and The Chief, one beef and one pork. We both liked the beef one better. The cheesecake is touted as the best you have ever tasted. We were too full!
There is a take out counter in the back and lots of parking. Their website tells about Stan’s better than we do. www.stansbarbq.com.
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Apr
20
Posted by Larry Cragun
The Boarding House in Issaquah is well known for being the best soup, sandwich and salad place in town. All homemade! Cookies are usually coming hot out of the oven. The restaurant is housed in one of the quaint historic homes that now makeup Gilman Village. Come for lunch and stay to browse and shop. Support Gilman Village. It is a town treasure!
Hungry customers waiting to order at the Boarding House
Do not leave The Boarding House without trying some of the desserts, how about Banana Carmel Cake or Mexican Chocolate Cake? They are famous for their Apple Crisp made with Granny Smith apples. These are all delicious. Jene Kramer, who is co-owner and dessert chef is always creating something new. I have heard about the Pumpkin Bread Pudding but have never got there during the season. Next year. For their website click www.freewebs.com/boarding_house
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Apr
13
Posted by Larry Cragun
I had not been to Nicolino Ristorante Italiano in quite a while. It is always a treat to go there. We went for lunch and took L J and Ashley with us. The restaurant is owned by Jessica Robertiello and her husband Derek Gaston Schaubroeck. And yes, it is on Gilman Blvd too (isn’t almost everything in Issaquah?) When it is warmer they have a charming outdoor area for dining. Evenings and sunny days it can get quite busy.
They start out with very fresh bread and olive oil with spices, even a bit a of bite to it. Delicious! I ate so much of it I was almost too full for lunch. But not quite. I ordered the Chicken Marsala which has been my favorite there. This time it was served with ravioli instead of linguine. I liked it better with the linguine. Other dishes we had were Penne con Salcicia, penne with a spicy marinara sauce and Italian sausage; Lasagna al Forno; and Fettuccine della Casa, fettuccine in a light cream sauce with tomatoes, proscuitto, peas, mushrooms and onions. Since we were writing this review we, of course, had rights of tasting them all. We all raved about the Fettuccine della Casa. The evening menu is more extensive and of course more expensive, but the fettuccine we mention here is on both the lunch and dinner menu.
There is a rather steep charge for splitting a plate, $2.00. Also they request no changes or substitutions. I don’t remember it being like that.
The Menu information is on their website: www.nicolino.net
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Apr
02
Posted by Larry Cragun
www.sushiman-issaquah.com 425-391-4295
Sushiman’s host is Robert Suetsugu, and a very involved one a that. It is not unusual to see him there. “Bobby”, as the menu refers to him, was Seattle born but ventured to Japan and became a sumo wrestler. After ten years he took up a new interest and served as an apprentice with a Sushi chef in Tokyo. Issaquah residents are now benefiting from the expertise he aquired.
We invited friends to go with us because we are not very educated in sushi and one of these friends lived in Japan for a long time. We thought we needed some help in ordering. We have not acquired the taste for raw fish, but there seems to be an explosion of people who have. Fortunately they have things on the menu we understood and were cooked. We ordered Beef Teriyaki (new york cut steak) and Tonkatsu. Our friends ordered the appetizers for us, Salmon Skewers (in teriyaki sauce) which I didn’t expect to like but was my favorite dish of the evening. The Gyoza were very good. Our friends ordered the Sashimi Plate, Chef’s Choice of Fresh Raw and Cooked Fish and Rice. They said it was tender and fresh.
For desert we had Coconut Ice Cream, Mango Ice Cream and Mochi. The Coconut Ice Cream was delicious, the Mango was underflavored. If you are a fan of Mochi, they have chocolate, vanilla, green tea, kona coffee, mango, red bean, and strawberry. We had the Mango Mochi. Yum!
The prices are higher than we expected, and it is hard to know that ahead of time because the website has the menu, but no prices. It would be nice to have them on it. I would ask to have my beef teriyaki more rare next time.
Sushiman host ” Bobby” is very congenial and mixes with the patrons. He has lost a lot of weight and no longer looks like a sumo wrestler. He credits Kangen Health Water for changing his life, and in fact has a demonstration every saturday at 11:00AM at Sushiman Restaurant about this water. www.KangenWater.us.
The restaurant interior is unusual, Japanese and looks great. The Sushi Bar is very prominent as you walk in the door and is very long and spacious.
If your party has more than 4 people, reservations are recommended. Located behind John L. Scott Realty
