Epicurean SEATTLE

Seafood at its finest is what Ponti’s Seafood Grill is known for. An established Seattle favorite with a well-deserved reputation, Ponti’s is located at the edge overlooking the Ballard Canal - a peachy colored stucco building with lush surroundings and definitely a strong Mediterranean hint. Enter through the wrought iron gate into a small courtyard complete with a fountain and colorful plantings. The main dining room is surrounded by beautiful artworks- in the middle, always a huge fresh arrangement of exotic flowers. Ponti’s is a romantic spot to dine in watching boats calmly drifting along the Ship canal.

Food at Ponti’s is a definite Pan-Asian/Pacific Rim cuisine, prepared with a spectacular combination of Northwest Bounty and European method. My favorite and everyone else’s, the Thai penne curry is a knockout with scallops and crab in a spicy blend of tomato-ginger chutney and coconut milk $19. The ahi tuna is seared perfectly pink in the middle and accompanied by soy sake and wasabi aoli $23. When offered as the evening's special, try the black cod with red curry sauce, or the halibut glazed with orange miso. Superb !!! For carnivores, cheer! Ponti’s has a succulent roasted rack of lamb served with sweet potato gratin, pearl onions and kale with juniper anise demi-glaze $25. And the melt in your mouth "Chairman's Reserve" beef tenderloin accompanied with garlic potato puree, butter braised leeks and shallot demi, medium rare is served perfectly pink in the middle $29.

For wine lovers, the restaurant has a world roaming list and a very knowledgeable wine steward to eagerly help you with your selection. On weekdays, 4pm-6:30pm and 9pm-close, and on weekends from 5pm to 6:30pm, grilled calamari, ahi nori rolls, mouth-watering Cajun barbecued prawns, and other appetizers are half price, and drinks are $2.50. Ponti’s has an extensive seafood menu with price that will not break your bank account.

Fine dining, fresh ingredients, creative presentation, great service, and a water view. Ponti’s offers one of the finest waterside dining experiences in the city. It is a perfect spot for a peaceful, refined meal. Whether eating alfresco on the balcony or inside in a quiet corner, diners enjoy both intimacy and unique views of the canal and the Fremont drawbridge. Reservation is a must. A short cab ride from downtown Seattle’s fine hotels.

Palisades is a premier dining experience located waterfront at the foot of Magnolia Hill and a stone throw away from where my husband and I and our young son live. The food here is delicious and the ambience although somewhat dressy is very child friendly. Views from the dining room are stunning; million dollar yachts dotting the marina. Outdoor seating here is worth its price in gold on sunny summer evenings. It has become our favorite place to dine with out-of-town friends.

Going up the sweeping steps of Magnolia’s Palisade restaurant you know you are in for a special evening. Upon entering into this Seattle landmark for fine dining, your notions are confirmed. Enjoy a warm welcome from the staff, and faint piano music in harmony with the splash of waterfalls cascading into saltwater ponds teaming with aquatic life. There are fabulous Dale Chihuly art glass hanging from the ceiling and a soaring waterfront view of the cityscape, packaged together makes Palisades a memorable restaurant before your first bite. Chef Mike Bryan presents a menu infused with a definite Polynesian flair and island-style cooking. The Chef searched for ingredients that are special; sea salt from Hawaii blended with spices to accompany steaks and grilled seafood selections.

The extensive menu at Palisades is both unique and original, their food cooked in guava wood rotisserie smoked and apple wood grilled. The Palisade Dungeness crab cakes served with Okinawa sweet potatoes mashed with coconut is memorable $25. The Macadamia nut chicken $17.95 brings back memories of tropical vacations. Cooked in a special smoker using guava woodchips bringing a fruity heavier smoke flavor, the Palisade smoked duck breast $22.95 and the American Kobe style steak $25.95 keeps your palate wanting for more. For small eaters, order from the "pupu" menu(appetizer), Kobe style beef finds its way into bite size burgers $11.95. For cocktail, try the Polynesianed guava-rita and for a festive island cocktail don't miss the Magnolia Mai-tai.

Palisade’s Sunday Brunch is a feast and a Seattle classic. Diners can select from a wide variety of benedicts, along with other entrée dishes and smoked seafood. There is a serve-yourself griddlecake and tropical fruit bar and all-you-care-to-eat macadamia nut and banana sourdough pancakes along with fruits and pastries.

If you have kids they will delight in feeding the fishes in the fish pond. Fish food is available at the reception. There is a kids’ menu for 12 and under. Pull up for valet parking if you're driving. Visit this website for a $20 coupon.

Sanmi Sushi is my personal favorite lunch place with a view. Chef Misao Sanmi started working in restaurants in his native Island of Kyushu, Japan at age 15. After owning restaurants in Japan as well as working in various prime sushi establishments around town, Misao and his wife, Yukiko, who serves as the hostess and doubles as his English translator for patrons at the restaurant, opened Sanmi in 1995. Qualified for a coveted license to prepare Fugu, the blowfish, a delicacy in Japan that contains a deadly toxin (forbidden to serve in US) he is a longtime sushi master who slices and makes ready fish worthy of praise. He shares his masterful craft with us here in the shadow of the cebrated Palisade in Magnolia. The food here at Sanmi is considered to be the finest and freshest Japanese food in Seattle, Sushi here is not "just caught from the sea that same day fresh" but exceptionally delicious.

From the extensive menu, I usually start with a small bowl of miso soup ($1.50) or perhaps their sunomono ($6.50), a simple salad made of fresh cucumber and seaweed with a mild sweet wine vinegar sauce. From here, eat to your delight. My favorite, the spider roll (breaded and deep fried soft shell crab) comes still warm and crunchy. The marina roll (shrimp tempura), Sanmi roll (eel, shrimp, egg, tobiko, and cucumber), the Futomaki Roll (egg, shiitake mushroom, kampyo, cucumber, and tobiko) are all great. Also in the menu are appetizers, gyoza, deep-fried chicken; nigirizushi (the torpedo-shaped bundles of seafood and rice tied with seaweed) and makizushi (the long, seaweed-wrapped rolls cut in stubby cylinders) with raw tuna, yellowtail, broiled eel, and many other selections of fresh seafood; combination platters of sushi and sashimi; entrees of chicken teriyaki, broiled salmon, sukiyaki and broiled black cod kasuzuke. All superbly prepared.

Chef Sanmi works within a no nonsense meticulously clean space, if you choose to see firsthand his mastery, enjoy from the restaurant's long spacious sushi bar. However, the bar is set back at the side of the restaurant where the view is limited to Chef Sanmi and his assistant chefs at work. The minimalist space of the main dining room divided by paper-panel partitions trimmed in pale wood takes fuller advantage of the restaurant's waterside vista of Elliott Bay and the downtown skyline through the masts of sailboats and expensive yachts docked at the marina.

If you enjoy superb sushi at the highest quality, combined with atmosphere, location, delicious food, and price that does not rob a bank, Sanmi Sushi is well worth the short jaunt from downtown Seattle to Magnolia (Smith Cove) Marina. Lunch Tues-Fri 11:30 am-1:45 pm; dinner Tues-Thurs 5:30-9:30 pm, Fri-Sat 5:30-10 pm, Sun 5-9 pm; closed Mondays

Located at Chandler's Cove, on the south shore of Lake Union Cucina! Cucina! has one of Seattle’s most picturesque settings. It looks out to beautiful Lake Union and Gasworks Park an ideal place to enjoy the lake's active scene; float plane taking off and landing on the lake, luxury boats floating in and out of the cove, the annual Seattle Boat Show and the Annual boating season parade plus the spectacular annual 4th of July AT&T sponsored fireworks. With three dining areas on different levels, every table has a view of Lake Union but during beautiful summer days, grab a table on the deck overlooking the Lake because it is a great place to be.

On any given day, the atmosphere at Cucina! Cucina! is relaxed and upbeat. The sounds, the colors, the smells and the friendly faces set the mood for what is to come. The interior is open and airy, painted with bright bold colors of orange green and gold. There is a wondrous aroma of garlic, oregano, and basil that assaults the senses. There is the bustle of activity in the open view kitchen. At the main dining area, bicycles hang from the ceiling, tables are lined with white butcher paper, a dish of bright Crayolas at the ready just incase the inner artist in you decides to come out. It has lively party mood and because kids are given special attention here it attracts many families. The place can be loud, the noise level can get high, but that's part of the pleasure of a good Italian meal. If you want a quiet intimate dinner, this is not the place where you want to be.

Cucina! Cucina! is a part of a local restaurant chain that serves stone-oven pizzas and reliable pasta. The restaurants’ stone-oven is its heart, with intense radiant heat that works very well together with their own special recipe dough, sauces and toppings to create pizzas with light, smoky tasting crust and perfectly melted cheeses. This is our favored weekend lunch place. Try my hands down favorite, "Thai pizza", with spicy marinated shrimp and grilled chicken, garlic-chili tomato sauce, green onions, shiitake mushrooms, and smoked mozzarella on thin crust – mouth-watering delicious. Or start with "Cambozola"- Crusty Parmesan flat bread, roasted garlic and cambozola cheese. Or "Foccacia"– an oven-baked flat bread with garlic, rosemary and imported calamata olives. How about "Pescatore"– prawns, scallops, shellfish, calamari and fresh fish fillets, in a white wine tomato sauce tossed with linguini. They have meats; New York steak, grilled with Gorgonzola cheese, demi-glace, rosemary and served with potato or pasta. Or if there is something that you want and may not see on the menu, a dietary request or simply a craving – ask and Ye shall be accommodated. Be sure to leave room for their "Pick me up" Tiramisu– ladyfingers layered with chocolate and mascarpone cheese soaked in espresso and rum syrup, "yuuummm".

Children friendly with a no-smoking policy. Free parking for customers.

In Seattle, Fremont is the self-proclaimed center of the universe. A funky, artistically bohemian district north of downtown, it’s an energetic counter culture, where hippies have kept in stride with yuppies. It vacillates somewhere in time between the ‘50s, ‘60s, and the 23rd century. Here, there is a bustling restaurant scene with fine ethnic and seafood restaurants, Indian, vegetarian, Japanese, many cafes, European-style pubs and bistros, and several Thai restaurants (the newest one, in the heart of Fremont, is Tawon Thai).

The most fancy Thai restaurant in the district, Tawon Thai, serves authentic Thai cuisine. The interior is evocative of typhoon with exotic furniture made of dark teak and conspicuous native art from Thailand adorning the subdued purple walls. The ceilings are high with indigenous material typhoon-style electric fans creating a comfortably sophisticated and yet family friendly atmosphere.

At Tawon Thai, the smells assault the senses: basil, coconut milk, palm sugar, ginger, garlic, curry, tamarind, and lime. The food here tastes fresh, incredibly delicious, and exotic. The dishes come in a five-star scale, one being the least spicy and five being the hottest. If you like your food less fiery, let your server know beforehand; remember that they mean it when they say very hot, although here #2 is somewhat tame. For soup, try the rich and creamy Tom Ka Gai, which is traditional hot and sour coconut soup with chicken, lemongrass, and coconut milk. The customary stirfried noodle dish pad Thai with egg, bean sprouts, green onion, and choice of tofu, chicken, pork, beef, or seafood is excellent. The Neau Yang Esan -- New York steak marinated in Thai soy sauce served with spicy roasted rice-lime sauce and sticky rice -- is savory and the meat is tender. And the perennial favorite, Panang Beef -- in flaming red curry with coconut milk, basil, and bell pepper -- does not disappoint. For dessert, try the sweet sticky rice in sweet coconut milk served with fresh mango fruit – it’s exotically delicious. If mango is not in season, ask for jackfruit, which is uncommonly tasty. If you're a vegan, tasty vegetarian dishes are available here as well and the same spice scale applies.

Tawon Thai serves authentic Thai cuisine with just the right balance of flavors and always fresh and flavorful ingredients. The service is classic Thai hospitality: gracious, amiable, and cheery. Ask to be seated by the wall of small-paned windows and watch the curious world outside go by. Let Fremont entertain you.

Hours: Sunday-Thursday 11am-10pm, Friday-Saturday 11am-10:30pm.

Tapas are hors d'oeuvres-like tidbits washed down with drinks, a part of a social bar hopping ritual invented in Andalusia where the owner of a wine bar would place tidbits of food on a dish to cover a glass of wine. There, tapas are an integral part of the food culture. Tapas are not new to the Seattle food scene, but if tapa is what you crave for while out town, Tango has the most tapa-centric menu.

Tango overlooks downtown Seattle from its Pike and Boren location just up the street from the Washington State Convention Center. It is a sharp-looking place with flamenco dancers on the walls, floor to ceiling windows, impressionistic art covering pale plaster walls, combined with yet paler wood pillars suggestive of sunny Spain. The place overflows with stylish and casually hip, loud and lively atmosphere with a Latin beat congesting the space. In the main dining room, dim lights and tables covered with butcher paper over pale linens impart an unassuming sophistication complemented with urban servers who are offering affected insouciance rather than exaggerated enthusiasm.

While Tango has tapas, its menu looks well beyond Spain for inspiration. Priced between $6.50 and $16.50, the plates here are bigger than tapas and sublimely delicious. The "Ensalada con Pato" -- a warm salad of duck confit tossed with spinach, fried onions, and walnuts in a pomegranate-thyme vinagreta; spinach salad has never been this good. "Cordero con Frutas" -- quince and coriander-encrusted lamb loin served with orange glazed grilled yams and mint chimichurri is delicious and suggestive of Latin American cuisine. There is the Moroccan-spiced chicken in phyllo with preserved lemon and oil-cured olives and the "Tagine con Carnes" is a Moroccan spiced beef and venison stew served with preserved lemon couscous and grilled socca -- both cross over to Morocco. The Gambas Picantes, sautéed tiger prawns with passion fruit and star anise broth and a cucumber melon salad, is decidedly Asian. All are fabulous!!! For dessert, try the flan -- silky Spanish maple syrup custard with honey whipped créma fresca and Spanish almonds; you will think they flew it directly from Andalusia. Or how about "El Diablo," a dense slab of truffle-textured chocolate marquis resting on a cloud of house-made marshmallow cream? Tango also offers a huge selection of Spanish, Portuguese, and Chilean wines and ports, and over 60 top shelf tequilas on the bar list.

Tango serves superb pan-Latin cuisine and sophisticated tapas to an even more sophisticated and stylish crowd. Although the restaurant is slightly on the tight side, tables are very close together (ask for the oversized booths lining the western wall) it is worth the visit. Nominated for best late night dining in 2002. Even with reservation, the wait can sometimes be more than 15 minutes. Therefore, reservation is a must. Open Daily 5pm-2am.

What is "dim sum"? Dim sum is a Cantonese word meaning "from the heart". It is also a style of dining which touches the taste buds in a very satisfying way. It originally started in Chinese teahouses where many spend lazy afternoons sipping tea and feasting on varieties of small servings of delicious dumplings and steamed dishes. In dim sum restaurants, there are no ordering; instead you choose from a wide assortment of dishes from carts rolling by; with the lighter, steamed dishes like pork spareribs coming first, followed by exotic items such as chicken's feet, then deep-fried dishes like shrimp cakes and mini spring rolls, and finally dessert such as custards. It is a great way to sample a large variety of tastes and flavors. The atmosphere is usually noisy with large groups of people gorging on delicious food and talking loudly.

Dim sum restaurants in the Seattle International District abound. House of Hong has been around a long time and has remained to be one of my favorites. It is located in a big yellow building with an open large main dining area, interior is a definite Chinese influence; many large round tables with cherry wood chairs to accommodate big parties and several booth style seating. With the recent remodel it has become bigger, more cheery and bright; tourists and locals alike flock to this place. Here, all the standard fare that makes up dim sum is tasty and very delicious. Little dumplings -- the ever popular Shu Mai and Har Gow with plenty of pork, vegetables, and shrimp in the fillings -- not too greasy, not too starchy and has just the right balance of spices, steamed pot stickers, spareribs in garlic sauce, stuffed wontons, stuffed eggplants are done to perfection. But do not limit yourself to the familiar there's lots of variety to the dim sum offerings, wait for the carts and look out for the shelled whole fried shrimp, crunchy on the outside and moist and meaty on the inside. So, pace yourself and keep an eye out for whatever looks particularly enticing. $2.205 per order. Somehow, a typical Sunday brunch had never looked so appetizing.

If you're looking for a quiet and romantic meal with a date, dim sum restaurant is not a good choice but if you are feeling adventurous and like to sample one of the best dim sum in Seattle, head to the International District for the House of Hong Restaurant. The restaurant is family and group friendly but personal checks are not accepted. Dim sum are served daily between 10:00am and 4:30pm. Besides dim sum, House of Hong is also a great place for Chinese, Szechwan, and Hunan dishes. Although, the restaurant is packed on weekends, the wait is no more than 10 minutes. Typical of the international district, parking can be problematic, come early to avoid the lunch rush hour and parking line. House of Hong has free parking on two lots on both sides of Eighth Avenue South.