Modern Italian buried in an apartment district in Capitol Hill, Cornelly is easily one of my favorite spots in all of Seattle. With a changing menu, Cornelly is never short on inspiration. Their classic Hornet Honey pizza masterfully blends sweet, savory, fresh, and spicy flavors while balancing a crisp and airy texture with a lovely yeasty taste. Basil, house-made pepperoni, and honey roasted pineapple (yes, pineapple) was a combination I otherwise would have despised had it not been so well crafted. This pizza passed the fold test with flying colors and maintained its structure the entire meal. Their focaccia was crisp, airy, and full of flavor, with just enough olive to elevate the fermented taste without distracting from it. The pea pesto pasta was earthy and rich, with nutty roasted hazelnut to add to the texture.  

Waits often reach over an hour, a wait I will always be more than willing to bear. I cannot recommend Cornelly enough. This very well might be one of my favorite restaurants of all time. 

Rating: 5/5 👍

I found another Seattle favorite! This one is a must-try.

Itsumono blends Asian flavors with local Hawaii and Seattle culture in extremely inspired ways: ways in which I don't think I've ever seen.

Now we had A LOT of food here. First was the yuzu kauliflower karaage and Seattle Dog musubi. The cauliflower was so flavorful and umami, but more can be said about the musubi. It used red Hawaiian hot dogs which was such a nostalgic flavor. The homage to Hawaii and Seattle culture is perfect, evidently made with love for both places. My favorite of the appetizers was the aubergine dengaku was tender and rich, coated in furikake and wasabi peas with a misoyaki caramel sauce, which was so unique and a beautiful blend of textures and flavors. 

For the mains, we split the crab gumbo udon and tikka tonkatsu don. Both were spectacular, but the tikka don was my favorite! Each ingredient was perfectly balanced, the acidic and rich tikka masala paired with the crispy crunchy tonkatsu, the bright pickled onions and 

Rating: 5/5 👍

Visiting home during the breaks, I often search for restaurants of cuisines I'd previously explored in Seattle, to see how the food might compare. Spice Up is easily one of my favorite spots on Oahu. On one of my recent visits, I tried their samosa chaat for the first time and was absolutely in love. As I may have said before, I believe the greatest dish to be one that seemlessly blends all textures and flavors without being overwhelming. The samosa chaat was sweet, salty, citrusy, spicy, herby, creamy, crunchy, chewy, crispy, and probably breaking into my top 5 favorite dishes of all time. There are not enough words within my vocabulary to describe how delicious this dish was. Despite the incredible appetizer, the entrees were nothing to scoff at. Along with lamb rogan josh, tikka masala, and palak paneer, this was easily one of the best dinners I've had in a good while. Occasionally, the lamb can be a bit tough, but the flavorful curry easily masks that minor shortcoming. 

If you're in the South King st. area on Oahu, Spice Up is easily one of the best spots there is. 

Rating: 4.8/5 👍

I remember that Thomas (our vice-prez) recommended this spot for me for my 21st birthday, and I must say it did not disappoint. A modern take on Italian classics, How to Cook a Wolf truly embodies the slogan they rep. I started with their Marrow Bone dish and was immediately drooling. Paired with their homemade sourdough and shallot jam, a normally overwhelming fatty flavor such as marrow was complemented perfectly. The parpadelle was so flavorful and beautifully balanced. I didn't notice that it was actually spicy until I have halfway through my dish, and yet it was such a pleasant surprise. My only gripe would be that the sauce was minoryly under-salted. I believe that any dish with tomato needs to be salted quite a lot, to draw out the natural flavor. All of their noodles are handmade, and their care and love is evident. Paired with amazing service, its hard to beat. 

Rating: 4.5/5 👍

Just a hop, skip, and a jump away from campus, Sushi Kappo Tamura serves high-end sushi with quality sourced ingredients. When a dish's integrity lies in its simplicity, no corners can be cut. Their fresh and simple nigiri paired with their inspired specialty rolls serve as a perfect example of Japanese cuisine. One particular roll stood out: the Black Dragon Roll. Shrimp tempura, grilled cod, avocado, tobiko (flying fish roe), and a yuzu sauce may be a mouthful to say, but is far better as an actual mouth-full. For those of you who have been dying to try it, Sushi Kappo Tamura serves otoro, Japanese fatty tuna. Often called the wagyu of fish, the otoro nigiri is a must have. My only reservations with the restaurant is the price. Had I not received a gift card, I most likely would have been unable to eat there. Be ready to pay an incorporated 20% service fee... Save it for a special event, and it will not disappoint. 

Rating: 4.5/5

Named after the chef's beautiful golden retriever, Homer is a family style, changing menu with fresh Mediterranean/Middle East cuisine. Each dish is brought to life with a vibrant combination of herbs that is perfectly selected. I am a sucker for lamb, so when I was served a lamb ragu on tahini with mint (the only and best herb for lamb), I knew we were in for a lovely meal. It was tender and rich, and contrasted with the creamy yogurt and bright mint. It was balanced and insightful, but never overpowering. Potentially one of the best lamb dishes I have had in recent years. Next, their roasted chicken with chili fruit-paste. Not as strong as their lamb ragu, but not anything to scoff at. This also might be as I love lamb that much, making it a incredibly hard-to-follow dish. A half chicken is always subject to varying degrees of doneness, moisture, and flavor, and it was managed adequately. Breast and thigh have different doneness temperatures, with thighs requiring a bit more time. So, at attempting to get to the proper cook time for the thighs, you risk drying out the breast. The breast was not overdone, nor the thighs underdone. That being said, the dish potentially lacked a saltier element that would have drawn the sweet and spicy components together. Again, nothing to scoff at, especially after the lamb. Homer balances rich, powerful flavors with inspired contrasting elements that accentuate them. Be prepared for some crazy wait times, as they don't take reservations, but something I'd say well worth the wait!

Rating: 4.4/5

Admittedly, this has been my only real experience with Himalayan cuisine. Should this Annapurna Cafe be a legitimate representation, then I must say I enjoy it. Their lamb kofta (again, sucker for lamb) was lighter than expected, and balanced sweet and savory quite well. However, lamb can be finicky when balancing doneness and texture, evident by a toothsome lamb. That being said, their developed flavors and rich spices definitely aid the dish. Despite the rather nice food, I ended up paying an arm and a leg for it, which will always factor into my ratings. We are college students after all!

Rating: 3.9/5

A Laotian gem, Taurus Ox serves powerful flavors with inspired dishes seasoned with bright and strong spices. Lao food is comparable to Thai, but in no means the same. For Thai food lovers, I would highly recommend trying out Lao food. It is more citrus-based and lighter, with those bright-spices being the most immediate flavor note. The thom kem and yellow gaeng were both excellent, and definitely worth trying. At times, they were a bit one-noted, in that I might have hoped for a more complex flavor breakdown. 

However, I would be remise to not mention a staple of Lao cuisine: sticky rice. Their mango sticky rice is easily one of the best things I've had for dessert. They use puffy rice as a topping to add some much needed texture and toasty notes that balance a sometimes overwhelmingly sweet flavor. 

Rating: 4/5

One thing Seattle seems to get right is Italian food. Their inspiration in their antipastis were so refreshing and bright! Firstly, their burrata blends creamy, rich, decadent cheese with fresh plums and crisp cucumbers in such a unique way. What a pleasant surprise. Following was their focaccia, which for those expecting the standard fluffy, airy bread, may be disappointed. Instead, Cotto serves a flat, crisp, just shy of charred starch that was quite shocking. Despite that shock, the dish slowly grew on me. Next, their main: pasta al vodka. The vodka sauce was very developed, just was lacking salt. I love my tomatoes heavily seasoned, so it did feel somewhat lackluster. You may have noticed that is my most common gripe with tomato dishes. That being said, its spice and flavor were remarkable. The pizza was similar in concept to one of my favorite pizzas of all time from Cornelly, ie. its usage of salty spicy meat, hot honey, and fresh herbage. But, it melded together in a far different way, with its spice and texture being the main notes of the bite. In no means a bad place, just not as cohesive as a restaurant such as Cornelly.

Rating: 3.9/5

I'm clearly a fan of Indian cuisine! Of course, I use that term broadly; Indian cuisine varies from region to region. Thus far, I haven't had one I disliked! Saffron Grill had a gigantic menu on par with Cheesecake Factory (almost). I wasn't prepared for the sheer volume. They had Mediterranean cuisine options that I haven't tried, but I assume it was excellent. As I've said in previous posts, samosa chaat might very well be one of my favorite foods of all time. Saffron Grill's did not dissapoint by any means. We also ordered their rogan josh, one of my favorite curry dishes! Their's was not like the ones I've had before, as it was far lighter and smoother. I believe they had more tomato than the other's I've had, adding more acidity and brightness. The star of the show was easily their tandoori chicken tikka. This was the best I've ever had. It was incredibly well seasoned, and actually tasted like it was cooked in a tandoori oven! Surprisingly, their weakest dish was their naan. It was a bit bland and a bit too spongey. 

Overall nothing to scoff at, but not as strong as some of the other entries on this blog. 

Rating: 3.9/5 

DO NOT GO HERE. I have been lucky enough to have a family friend back home who is a smoke-master from Texas, and a great one at that. I've been able to have some absolutely amazing BBQ, and let me tell you: this was not one of those times. I have never been so disappointed by a dish in my life. Reviews of this place absolutely make it out to seem as some BBQ gem in Seattle. It was awful. 

First of all, they charge INSANE prices for very subpar food. Brisket was $39 (I ordered 2 portions to share with my girlfriend, pictured is $78 worth of their brisket), a single sausage $9, and their mac and cheese was $11. To charge that amount is an actual crime. I figured when I was first buying it that their food would justify the price, but it was the exact opposite.

The brisket was tough as nails. They try to mask it by slicing the flat thin so that you think its tender. The bark was non-existent; it was so under-seasoned. The smoke ring was tiny too, I don't think they smoked it longer than a couple hours. A common test used to check brisket's texture/tenderness is if the slice flops over a finger but holds, and can be pulled apart gently. With their brisket, I had to aggressively pull and tug at it until it ripped, even with its thin slicing. It was incredibly tough. The knives they provide aren't enough to cut them. Either it was cooked too quickly or didn't rest nearly long enough. 

I had higher hopes for the sausage, only to be again disappointed. Their fat ratio was too low and the meat was not well processed, leaving a dense, cartilage-filled, too chewy sausage with a casing that was too thick. Parts of the sausage were actually inedible. 

Many BBQ places shine in their side dishes. This again was not one of them. Their mac and cheese had overcooked noodles to the point where it had the texture of mashed potatoes. The cheese sauce was extremely grainy and was under-salted. The béchamel they used had broken and was not emulsified, leaving a chalky and balmy mouth-feel. 

The pickled vegetables were not great either, you could tell that the cucumbers were hot brined (the quicker and faster method) and subsequently had less pickled flavor. 

I recognize that I might be a BBQ snob, in that I have been lucky enough to have had proper BBQ in the past, but despite my lowered expectations, I was disappointed and upset over how expensive things were. I'll continue my search for BBQ here in Seattle.

Rating: 1/5 

Kamo (鴨 or duck) , and negi (ネギ or onion) together make quite the flavor combination! Duck was the focal point of majority of the dishes, and for the most part did not disappoint. We started with some fried kabocha tenpura, with a teriyaki demi glace sauce, definitely a great opener. My girlfriend got the kamo nanban (duck noodle soup) and from my little taste, it was quite lovely. Duck is fatty and can be quite gamey, but the brightness of the broth kept it balanced. They also did not overcook the duck, something extremely important to the dish. My order was the kamo seiro (duck dipping noodles). Unfortunately, the dish pretty much tasted exactly the same as my girlfriend's, just with more overcooked duck. Our dessert on the other hand was fantastic. The kurogoma daifuku (black sesame mochi) ice cream was incredible. They use duck fat again for the ice cream, and it made an incredibly rich and creamy but a hint savory. I loved it. I will say, at the end of the meal, I was a bit over duck fat, as each and every dish utilized it in some way. Not a place I could frequent, but definitely a place I would go every now and then.

Rating: 3.7/5 

Its taken a while for me to be able to find Mexican food that I've really enjoyed here. I can't say that I know exactly what authentic Mexican truly tastes like; I think I've really only had it once. That being said, I definitely enjoyed this place! One of my favorite cuts of beef is beef tongue, so their lengua gorditas were perfect for me. You can definitely tell that their tortillas are handmade. The tongue was extremely tender, and you could tell it had been cooked for a decent bit. Beef tongue is quite fatty, so it was grounded nicely by the bright herbs and onions. The avocado felt a bit too much in terms of fat, so I couldn't eat the full piece on each gordita. My girlfriend got their burrito, and goodness it was one of the largest things I've ever seen. Their horchata was also spectacular, as I don't think I've had that much spice and flavor in a drink before. Again, I can't say exactly if it is authentic or not, but if it is, it tastes pretty dang good. 

Rating: 3.9/5 

I first heard of this restaurant from a friend, as it had been featured in the Michelin Guide. Surprised something of that caliber had made it to Seattle, I was excited to go. Kajiken is known for their aburasoba, a sort of dry ramen. My immediate thought was that the springy and umami aspect of the noodles themself was quite nice. Alkaline noodles should be bouncy and flavorful on their own. But the ensemble dish was also quite good. I had the nikumori, which had ground pork and pork belly with a chili oil. I'm honestly not sure why its called that, as niku in Japanese tends to mean beef, but nonetheless I enjoyed it. It was a bit too fatty towards the end of the dish, the combination of the raw egg yolk making a seudo-sauce and the pork belly became a bit overwhelming. I tried a bite of the original aburasoba, and found that despite a great flavor profile, it felt under-salted, but that is just my preference. We got the oroshi ponzu karaage last, and it was great, but I couldn't taste the ponzu at all. The oroshi is chopped daikon, and that too didn't have much flavor. It just tasted like a good karaage. I love the ideas that Kajiken was aimming for, and in no means did they create something bad. It just felt as if it missed the original goals for some of their recipes. 

Rating: 3.5/5 

Alright I'll say it. I'm getting a bit tired of Italian food here in Seattle. Yes, the food is good, but I'm really hoping we can find some other great cuisines. Of course, I know this is of my own doing, but it seems like there is an artisan Italian restaurant at every corner. We found this place while being told that the wait for Homer was 2 hours long, so if you're ever shunned due to wait times but can't bear another second without food, walk down the block and find a seat here. We started with their burrata, which apparently changes every now and again on their menu. Ours was served over a roasted eggplant that was quite nice, so no complaints here. Next was their grilled octopus, and I'll admit this was probably the star of the show. I was thrown by how tender it was, and its smokey grilled flavor was so intense. The fava beans were a strange pairing, but the octopus was so great that I bit my tongue. Their arugula salad is similar to the burrata in that the menu keeps the same spirit but changes its presentation. Ours was served with crispy prosciutto, radish, and sweet snap peas. This was again quite nice. I often find that arugula is too bitter to be used as the main roughage in a salad, but the sweet peas and balsamic dressing allowed for everything to be cohesive. Lastly, their funghi pizza. This was easily the most disappointing part of the meal. Firstly, for a pizza called the "funghi", you would assume for there to be multiple kinds of mushrooms, or at least that it would be the main component of the flavor profile. Unfortunately, neither was true for this pizza. There was sausage for some reason, which dominated what few slices of crimini that were there. Furthermore, the random pieces of cherry tomatoes completely prevented any chance of those mushrooms even playing second fiddle to the sausage. While overall nowhere near a bad pizza, when you order a pizza called the "funghi", surely you're expecting a mushroom pizza, not a sausage pizza with a couple mushrooms. One final qualm was over the crust. The line between charred, bubbly crust and burnt crisp is a fine one, one that they definitely crossed. The burnt flavor was quite strong and definitely drew away from the pizza, but the dough's texture was definitely good. Besides the pizza, the dishes were all quite good. Don't let my lower score disuade you. 

Rating: 3.6/5 

If there were a restaurant to summarize the word "inoffensive" I think this might be it. At no point did I taste something and think to write something upsetting, but in no means did I think to write home about it. I had the divorciadas enchiladas and was rather happy about them. Just a nice meal. The flavor profile was good, and their smoked chicken was pleasant. One small issue was my mom's braised carnitas: the pork was dry. There are many more upsetting issues to have other than slightly dry meat, and I won't go so far as to say that this one dish is representative of the restaurant. The flavors were definitely there, however. It was well-seasoned, as was everything else, it just happened that the pork was dry. Braised meat can be difficult for restaurants, so I cut them some slack. Its hard to make on-demand, since braising can take a very long time. So often, braised meat will either be rushed and not slow cook long enough, or will sit in the braise longer than it should. Overall, not upset. If you're in the area, and especially if you'd like a drink, stop by and see what you think.

Rating: 3.5/5 

My mom was visiting from Hawaii and wanted to see Snoqualmie Falls, and we happened to go during lunch. Thomas, our vice prez, had recommended the place, and it was surprisingly good. We started with some solid biscuits and were treated to a show through their honey pouring. The waiter had said they had a century long tradition of in-house beehives where they made their own honey, which tasted quite nice. I had their duck confit chilaquiles with an over easy egg. A pleasant blend of savory and fatty, the duck was well cooked and well seasoned. It was balanced nicely with the acidic bite of the chilaquiles and herbs, but no one part was overpowering. I had a bit of my mom's Salish fish & chips and was very impressed by their batter. Wet batters can be finicky, in that they don't always hold their texture. The fish was perfectly cooked and flaky, but a little under-seasoned for me. Nothing to scoff at here; if you visit the falls and need a bite to eat, certainly a place where you won't be disappointed. 

Rating: 3.9/5