CITY FOCUS
Dahlia Lounge was Douglas’ first restaurant in 1989. Then there’s Ethan
Well before the phrase “farm-to- table” or “local food” existed, Seattle chefs were working with farms and fisheries in the area
Stowell’s empire of 18 restaurants under the Ethan Stowell Restaurants (ESR) umbrella, consisting of the popular How to Cook a Wolf restaurant, now with two locations (Madison Park and Queen Anne), along with Ballard/Frelard Pizza Co., Bosco Wonder Building, Cortina and Cortina Café, Goldfinch Tavern, mkt., Red Cow, Rione XIII, San Juan Seltzery, Staple & Fancy, Tavolata (four sites), The Victor Tavern, and the ESR pop-ups at rotating locations. In 2010, chef and
restaurateur Renee Erickson exploded onto the scene with Walrus & The Carpenter, a tiny oyster bar in the Ballard neighborhood, marking what would be the expansion of chef-driven restaurants into the outlying areas of Seattle. Today, Erickson’s
of his signature fedora. Rautureau first gained accolades for Rover’s restaurant, which opened in 1987, earning the title of Best Chef: Pacific Northwest in 1998 from the James Beard Foundation. Rover’s closed in 2013; Rautureau’s most recent restaurants Loulay Kitchen and Bar and Luc Bistro, closed permanently in August 2021. “When I was cheffing in the 1990s you had the French fine-dining chefs like Thierry Rautureau, but then came a second generation of chefs like Ethan Stowell and Tom Douglas,” says Danielle Custer, an award-
winning, “second generation” chef whose fame was first established at Laurels at the Sheraton Park Central in Seattle and later at her own restaurant, 727 Pine. Today, Custer runs her own consulting firm and helps companies with product and menu development. “Tom Douglas was like
the godfather of food in Seattle and continues to do well,” Custer says, noting the highlights of his empire: Lola, Dahlia Bakery, Seatown Rub Shack & Fishfry at Pike Place Market, Serious Pie, and his latest venture, the Hot Stove Society Cooking School. The late
company, Sea Creatures, encompasses The Whale Wins, Barnacle, Bistro Shirlee (est. 2019), Bateau (a whole animal restaurant), Westward on the waterfront, Willmott’s Ghost and Deep Dive, both located in The Spheres on Sixth and Lenora, and several General Porpoise Doughnuts and Coffee locations.
Farm to table Well before the phrase “farm-to-table” or “local food” existed, Seattle chefs were working with farms and fisheries in the area. The city always had what the rest of the country would later learn to call a Portland-esque vibe
– perhaps best represented by the funny scene from the Portlandia series in which comedian Fred Armisen asks about the daily diet and exercise regimen of Colin, the chicken he’s considering ordering from the menu. Knowing where your food comes from has always been a hallmark of being a Seattleite – that’s reflected by Pike Place Market, with its fishmongers offering just-caught fish, local and organic produce, and rows of artisan purveyors. Custer points out the popularity of other markets around town, notably the Ballard Farmers Market and University Farmers Market. “The Skagit Valley north of
Seattle is a huge agricultural area where a lot of our food comes from,” says Custer. There are also many artisan cheese producers in the region (Samish Bay Cheese), as well as winemakers, breweries and even cideries (Finnriver Farm & Cidery).
As the birthplace of
Starbucks, there are plenty of artisan coffee roasters in the area. Even bread has become a locally grown treasure, with bakers using locally grown, heritage varieties of wheat that are milled in small batches and then mixed with natural starters for true sourdough. Many credit the Washington State University Bread Lab in the Skagit Valley as a spur for the growth of heritage flours and grains.
Seattle seafood
The “sea-to-table” scene in Seattle has also evolved over the years. What started as a
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THE AMERICAS
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