What Lady Jaye plans to bring to the West Seattle Junction

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

“Exciting flavors and an elevated cocktail experience” are the ingredients for what the proprietors of restaurant/bar Lady Jaye plan to bring to the current Pecado Bueno space in the West Seattle Junction this summer.

The space has been for sale for a while; commenter Thee first spotted the liquor-license application. Then tipster Jeremy encountered part of the team at a catered event and provided information that put us on the trail. We connected with Evan Carter, one of the partners, and got answers to our questions.

So what are those “exciting flavors”? “Our food will be styled as Americana, heavily influenced in Southern roots with our own NW flair and ingredients featuring smoked meats. Our food menu will be curated by chefs Tyler Palagi and Charlie Garrison (formerly of Radiator Whiskey) who specialize in fresh ingredients, farm to table, unique cuts and smoked meats.”

As for the “elevated cocktail experience,” this explanation: “While we plan on being family-friendly, our concept will rely heavily on the bar program. Sara Rosales (also formerly of Radiator Whiskey) will be at the helm utilizing her knowledge and passion for American spirits and hiring a talented bar staff to help execute the program. She will collaborate heavily with chefs Tyler and Charlie to create a cocktail menu that pairs perfectly with the food and concept.”

The food and drinks, Carter adds, “will be seasonally influenced, even creating Farmers’ Market specials using ingredients procured from the local vendors on Sundays.”

We also asked about the decor/motif; the space at 4523 California SW has gone through several iterations in the past decade, first part of CAPERS, then for two years a Wing Dome before Pecado Bueno opened in 2013.

Carter says, “The interior will be cozy and rustic, with warm colors and dark wood garnishing the walls and furniture. The patio will be partially enclosed with comfortable seating around the warming fire pit so it can be utilized year round. The other half will be open for seating seasonally.” The dining room will seat 50, bar area 20, patio 50.

Lady Jaye will be open for dinner weekdays (3 pm-midnight), “all day for brunch service followed by dinner service on Saturdays and Sundays with a unique breakfast-cocktail menu incorporating a ‘Bloody Mary Project’ as well as low ABV cocktails and smoked pineapple Mimosas” (10:30 am-midnight Saturdays-Sundays).

And we had to ask about the namesake. Carter says only, “You will soon be introduced to the mystery of Lady Jaye.”

How soon? Aiming for mid-summer, but as with every project these days, a lot of factors including permit time will factor into that. But whatever the wait, Carter promises it’ll be worthwhile: “Our mission is to combine outstanding food/drinks with an energetic and fun atmosphere. Who says you can’t get great food and cocktails AND have a good time?”

P.S. For Pecado Bueno fans, we’re checking on their timeline for closing here. (PB has three other locations.)

40 Replies to "What Lady Jaye plans to bring to the West Seattle Junction"

  • Wsresident June 11, 2019 (12:06 pm)

    So excited to see the WS restaurant scene catch up with the rest of the city, so many good places coming our way. Anything radiator whisky influenced gains my vote! 

  • mbonnes June 11, 2019 (12:29 pm)

    Yes!!!

  • Bob June 11, 2019 (12:34 pm)

    I wish them all the best luck but I will miss Pecado Bueno. They always were very friendly and had great food. Bummer 

    • Jon Wright June 11, 2019 (1:26 pm)

      Agreed, Pecado Bueno was a go-to place for our family, also.

      • Baffled June 11, 2019 (4:11 pm)

        I second that emotion.  A big thanks to the folks at PB for many delicious meals over the years…

  • Meg June 11, 2019 (1:05 pm)

    About time. Yay! :)

  • Swede. June 11, 2019 (1:19 pm)

    Sounds interesting indeed! Maybe a bit ‘cookie cutter’ with hipster standards with ‘craft’/experimental cocktails and fresh/organic food but definitely an improvement from current place, which really only have the nice deck going for them. (Which, decks that is, is curiously rare in WS compared to the rest of the area…)

  • Keith June 11, 2019 (1:23 pm)

    Bunmmer I like taking my kids to taco Tuesday 

  • HTB June 11, 2019 (1:23 pm)

    Great to see spaces getting filled up — I saw a work crew inside the former Vine and Spoon space today. It’s probably a broken record this point, but someone needs to find out what’s going on with the Hydrant – if the Next to Nature owners can’t figure out how to launch they need to sell to someone who can. That’s prime Junction space!

    • Jen June 11, 2019 (2:07 pm)

      I agree! I wish they’d sell, very ready to have an operating business in that space!

  • JPC June 11, 2019 (2:11 pm)

    YES!!! Between this and Il Nido, we are finally seeing some of the benefit of WS’s  rapid growth.  Could not be more excited we are getting an established chef and manager who have experience at one of the best restaurant/bar scenes in the city. Already have proven they know what they are doing and can use the successful existing concept at Radiator Whiskey to help influence and guide them with this project. Love everything about this concept! More importantly, it’s not another pizza spot! 

  • Laura June 11, 2019 (3:34 pm)

    OK, but can restaurants and bars please stop using the word “elevated”??? Overused, plus it has the connotation of “good food, but gussied up and overpriced.”Oh well, at least it’s better than “farm to table” or “farm to fork.”

    • newnative June 12, 2019 (9:16 am)

      Add “concept” to that list. ;) 

      • Jen June 12, 2019 (5:43 pm)

        Also, ‘bar program’ – so…. the bar..?

  • mark47n June 11, 2019 (3:50 pm)

    Lady Jay(e) is a character from the old GI Joe cartoon in the 1980’s. I vote that the name is connected to this strong female character that was ahead of her time.

    • TTT June 11, 2019 (5:31 pm)

      Yes! She was! And her name is spelled the same way!

  • PB Regular June 11, 2019 (5:09 pm)

    So great of WSB to post this before talking to all involved parties. I feel bad for the current employees that may not have known about this until closer to the time of switching of ownership. Feels like WSB may have overstepped bounds on this one in the excitement. Mid summer opening though sounds ambitious considering street fair and have they even had all the inspections and permitting done yet? Curious to see what they bring to WS just feel the announcement was too soon. 

    • WSB June 11, 2019 (6:14 pm)

      This was no veil-lifting. As linked in the story, the liquor license filing – which requires a public hard-copy posting – went public three weeks ago. The restaurant has been publicly listed for sale for longer than that. The new owners were handing out cards at a catering gig w week and a half ago pointing to social-media pages that clearly display the address. I would certainly hope the current owner had long since given their employees the courtesy of notification that change is in the wind, if they hadn’t happened onto it themselves. – TR

    • Swede. June 11, 2019 (9:40 pm)

      Ooh God forbid employees find out things well ahead of time! They should just be let go the same day right?No it wasn’t the case that WSB ‘spilled the beans’ but if it had been, good for the people working there to get time to look for a new job. 

      • Greenie June 13, 2019 (12:00 pm)

        I work at PB. We had no idea until WSB broke this.

    • Wes C. Addle June 12, 2019 (9:56 am)

      Also, this was announced on eater.com as well.  WSB isn’t the only source that had this information.

      • WSB June 12, 2019 (10:16 am)

        Well, not really. That appears to be a riff off our story, no one actually quoted, and published a few hours after we broke the news (our story is linked inline but WSB is not attributed by name except in the link list at the end), a tactic in which that corporate-owned publication specializes (the story also relies heavily on the LJ Instagram feed). – TR

  • Hobbs June 11, 2019 (8:34 pm)

    I’ll be sure to celebrate the grand opening of this pretentious establishment by having a nice meal at Maharaja, Lee’s Asian or Taqueria Guaymas.  

  • Airwolf June 12, 2019 (7:30 am)

    I was hoping for a Pizza restaurant

    • Swede. June 12, 2019 (1:32 pm)

      Lol!Artisanal pizza with craft kale and organic, freerange and hand fed Canadian bacon imported from a special ranch in Brazil. 

    • HelperMonkey June 12, 2019 (4:39 pm)

      you do know there is a pizza place like *right* next door, right? Supreme? 

      • Jen June 12, 2019 (5:46 pm)

        Yes, I’m very sure they do know that.

  • So? June 12, 2019 (9:06 am)

    No one cares.

  • pm June 12, 2019 (1:57 pm)

    My dog and I will certainly miss PB…

  • Elena Naskova June 12, 2019 (8:05 pm)

    I wish them the best.  It’s a cruel world out there.  Lot of great place went away.  

  • Sam June 13, 2019 (8:20 am)

    Just what WS needs, another pretentious d-bag, hipster hangout. I love Pecado and the people that work there. Sad to see them go, and I agree, think WSB should have waited to announce this.  I won’t be going to the new place as I’m sure many will agree. Last thing we need is another Talaricos or Alchemy mucking up our home. Hopefully the new place goes under quick.

    • Kyle June 13, 2019 (1:09 pm)

      “I won’t be going to the new place”.  Wow…what a close minded mentality.  I bet you’re a ton of fun to hang out with. 

    • Wsres June 13, 2019 (1:45 pm)

      Sam, fortunately for you I would venture to say these guys are more  than happy for you not to go in… check out enumclaw ; minimal mucking out there!  Nothing more “hipster “ or “d-bag” than going on these things and attacking people.  

    • Keith June 15, 2019 (6:22 am)

      What’s wrong with Talarico’s?

  • Wes C. Addle June 13, 2019 (10:57 am)

    Every time I went by Pecado Bueno, it was dead.  It was a good place for a cheap drink though on the deck.  The Food, however, was a bit bland for my taste.

    • roman June 19, 2019 (10:39 pm)

      Agreed. But weirdly sad to see it go.

  • Sarah June 13, 2019 (11:27 pm)

    Hate to jump on the “eff these guys” bandwagon, but I have to agree. By what I’ve read I’m not excited to see what they bring to west Seattle. We have/had enough places like this. Pecado was mediocre at best, but the staff made it worth it. Def not excited about what they are promising to bring to the area. We already have enough of that. And I bet it’s only going to add to the bs California ave is dealing with now. Great. Bring on the drunken a holes and vandalism in the area. My family will miss Pecado. 

  • Jen June 16, 2019 (5:13 pm)

    I’m neither a hipster, a d-bag, a drunken a hole, nor a vandal, but I am looking forward to welcoming Lady Jaye to the Junction neighborhood, and giving them a try once they open. Bring it!

  • justme June 25, 2019 (10:03 pm)

    I’m hoping they’re at least friendly here. The place next door to the north is horribly unfriendly.

Sorry, comment time is over.