We Couldn’t Possibly Go

Polly Pitt, Mini-Me and I, we like to eat out, every once in a while.  We like to have The Nugget’s Mother with us, but sadly, The Nugget’s Mother wasn’t keeping anything down, so she certainly didn’t want to put any more in, at this point.  Polly Pitt & Mini-Me had been getting excited about this chow-down for a while, as this get-together over food was long overdue.  Our plans had been hampered by snowmageddon & then not having every in the same place at the same time for weeks on end.  When the Big Day arrived, I suspect there was a spot of Coterie Room menu surfing going on, as every time I wound up in their office there were ooohs and ahhhs & mentions of Mac ‘n’ Cheese (with duck!) and other delicacies.

We sped over the 520 bridge, hugely disappointed that the cars in the regular lanes were actually moving faster than the carpool lane.  There’s no “520 Rush” since those folks in Olympia imposed The Bridge Toll; but gosh it must be heaven for the handful of bridge crossers that choose to pay up & zoom over.  Getting across the 520 is just a breeze now.  We found parking right outside the door of The Coterie Room, which is always a lovely surprise in downtown Seattle at 6 pm.  So, when all was said and done, we were early.  The Coterie Room didn’t seem to mind at all.  It’s certainly a stylish, classy, somewhat 40’s-feel place to hang.

Look!  There’s Polly Pitt eagerly awaiting some delicious morsels to arrive in front of her.

We loved the way the menu is put together, although it makes it mighty hard to choose what to have.  It is designed more with sharing in mind, but any combination of shared, or not, works.  That all opens up a pretty vast choice of dishes.  We finally, after much merry deliberation decided to share appetizers. 

Ham Cracklin’s – served warm with black truffle fondue ($6) 

Heirloom Baby Carrots – cooked in coriander butter, served with taggiasca olive vinaigrette and fresh parsley ($9)

And of course, we couldn’t possibly go without the Sweet Onion Mac ‘n’ Cheese – with duck ham baked in a cast iron pot with crispy shallots on top ($11)

Then there were a trio of entrees.  Of course we all tried each others.  We’re like that.

Seared Sea Scallops – seared in brown butter with caramelized cauliflower, cauliflower puree, pickled sultanas and fried capers ($26)

Smoked King Crab – served with hashbrown potatoes, gremoulata and bacon hollandaise ($29) 

Grilled Ribeye Steak – served with potato puree, horseradish pudding and Walla Walla sweet onion rings ($35)

It was all going *so* well.  Everything was delicious, my scallops particularly so.  And that King Crab?  Oh my.  Mac ‘n’ Cheese (with duck!)?  Oh, baby.  Even the carrots?  Yes, please!

And then…spurred on by the gustatory awesomeness thus far, we dived head first into what I shall call Dessert Disappointment.  And it wasn’t just me lest you think I may have been having an overly picky moment.  No.  These desserts were beautiful, for sure.  But taste-wise?  No Siree, Bob.  We were all agreed.  I don’t want to dwell on this because I really don’t enjoy writing bad reviews.  I was desperately hopeful that these desserts were going to be as good as they looked.  Sadly, the best thing out of all of them was the hazelnut crumble that came with the Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse Cake.  That was awesome.  Suffice to say the next time I dine at The Coterie Room I’ll be chowing down on their scandalously good savory stuff and going elsewhere for dessert.  However, my friend over at Thursday Night Bites will heartily disagree with my dessert assessment.  Might be best to just go and make your own mind up.

It was certainly worth the trip into town, and all in all we had a most lovely evening.  There’s a lot more to explore on that menu in the future.