Here is a positive report on a couple establishments in Seattle. "Perche No", on Queen Anne, produced a truly flawless Italian dinner for us. Of note -- the pesto rigatoni, among the best and most basil-y pesto i've seen of late...and an entree, sauteed prawns prepared with a copious amount of saffron, was quite remarkable. A salad of greens w/ gorgonzola was also good. Service reasonable, atmosphere informal and comfortable. "Burt's Cafe" out in Ballard -- the attractor here is gumbo. I have a shrimp/sausage gumbo, and Kathy had a mixed seafood gumbo (scallops, shrimps, mussles etc.). The gumbo was as good as any i've had... heavily seasoned, with an extra couple tablespoons of file heaped on top, just for good measure... and a very nice touch was that the accompanying red beans and rice were prepared totally unsalted, which brought the overall platter into balance, sodium-wise... Popular, but we avoided the wait by eating at the bar. I can also report (with mixed feelings) that on avergae, one seems to be able to obtain a better cup of espresso, more readily than one can here in the bay area. (Based on a limited sample.) Steve
Seattle, WA