West Seattle, Washington
15 Saturday
Thanks to Jan Pendergrass for the photo of the Pepperdock Restaurant‘s big, bright new color-shifting sign: “The kids were outside coaching whoever was trying out the light colors and giving their opinions, quite cute.”
The next school dine-out fundraiser sent in for the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar is this Sunday. If you mention Lincoln Park Co-op Preschool when ordering takeout that day (October 10th) from MOD Pizza at Westwood Village, they’ll get a share of the proceeds from your order. The restaurant is open 10:30 mm-10 pm, on the south side of the shopping center (2800 SW Barton).
That’s some of the damage left behind by a burglar who broke into Arthur’s in The Admiral District early today, Arthur’s proprietor Rebecca Rice tells WSB, “Lots of damage to equipment and small electronics and liquor stolen. We are safe, which is the most important thing.” Here’s a security-camera image:
The SPD incident number is 21-259252. Arthur’s remains open.
(WSB photo)
Chao is making sandwiches today for the third-to-last day before Sub Shop #9 in Morgan Junction closes permanently. The little sandwich shop has been at 6058 California SW for more than two decades, according to the announcement posted on its door, which says:
… Due to the pandemic and other financial hardships, we have decided to close our shop. Thank you for your loyal patronage for over 22 years; we wish you all the best for a happy and prosperous future.
From our family to yours, we hope you all stay safe and healthy during the pandemic; together we will get through this.
Sincerely, Chao, Jessie, Eric, and Sean
The shop is open until 5 pm (regular hours are 11-5). Thursday will be the last day. (Thanks to Marco for the tip about the impending closure.)
The property is owned by the family that owns O’Neill Plumbing (WSB sponsor) next door. Tim O’Neill tells WSB they haven’t decided yet what’s next for the site, which, he adds, has had past incarnations as a cleaners and real-estate office.
When we previewed the Taste of West Seattle last week – a weeklong dine-out benefit for the West Seattle Food Bank‘s work to end hunger and prevent homelessness – 20 food/drink businesses were in, Now, with The Taste starting tomorrow, the list is up to 27!
Bakery Nouveau
Best of Hands Barrelhouse
Box Bar
Coastline Burgers
Copper Coin
Flying Apron
Grillbird
Harry’s Beach House
Hotwire Coffeehouse
Itto’s Tapas
Lady Jaye
Locust Cider
Mission Cantina
No Name Diner Alki
Nos Nos Coffee House
Ounces Taproom & Beer Garden
Pecos Pit Bar-B-Que
Phoenecia
Pot Pie Factory, Inc.
Soprano’s Antico Pizza and Pasta
Talarico’s Pizzeria
The Bridge
The Good Society Brewery & Public House
The Westy
West 5
West Seattle Cellars
West Seattle Grounds
During Taste of West Seattle week – Monday, September 20th through Sunday, September 26th – participating establishments will either “donate a percent of sales from a special ‘Taste Menu’ created by the restaurant, or a percentage of sales.” Also, remember that there’s potentially more in it for you than the knowledge you’re getting good food/beverages and doing a good deed – note that this is an update since our last preview:
All participating restaurants will be listed on a restaurant “passport.” The more stamps/ signatures someone gets on their card by ordering from participating restaurants, the more times they are entered into the drawing. Each stamp = 1 drawing entry. We will select 5 winners for a $100 gift card to a West Seattle Restaurant or Whole Foods. Customers will need to mail/drop off their passport to the WSFB by October 3rd to be entered into the drawing.
Pick up your “Taste Passport” at a participating restaurants, at the West Seattle Food Bank, or email your address to breanna.bushaw@westseattlefoodbank.org to have one mailed to you.
Again, this all starts tomorrow. (WSB is a Taste of West Seattle community co-sponsor.)
A month and a half ago, we reported that New Luck Toy co-proprietor Mark Fuller had confirmed to WSB that the establishment WOULD reopen. And tonight – it just has. Here’s the announcement:
Surprise! We’re open at 5 pm tonight and serving food till 10. Bar’s open till midnight. Due to nationwide staffing shortages we’re not offering takeout or to-go at this time in order to help protect our staff from takeout burnout. (It’s a thing) So in-person dining only. New hours are 5-10 for food, bar till midnight. Wednesday-Saturday.
New Luck Toy is at 5905 California SW. It’s been closed for 10 months.
We’re now less than a week away from the Taste of West Seattle, which again this year is happening as a weeklong dine-out benefit for the West Seattle Food Bank‘s work in fighting hunger and preventing homelessness. Here’s the list, so far, of local food/drink businesses planning to be part of it:
Bakery Nouveau
Best of Hands Barrelhouse
Box Bar
Coastline Burgers
Copper Coin
Harry’s Beach House
Itto’s Tapas
Lady Jaye
Locust Cider
No Name Diner Alki
Nos Nos Coffee House
Pecos Pit Bar-B-Que
Pot Pie Factory, Inc.
Talarico’s Pizzeria
The Bridge
The Good Society Brewery & Public House
The Westy
West 5
West Seattle Cellars
West Seattle Grounds
During the Taste of West Seattle week – Monday, September 20th through Sunday, September 26th – participating establishments will either “donate a percent of sales from a special ‘Taste Menu’ created by the restaurant, or a percentage of sales.” More venue-by-venue info as we get closer! Also, the WSFB notes:
● Stamp card: All participating restaurants will be listed on a restaurant “passport”. The more stamps/ signatures someone gets on their card by ordering from participating restaurants, the more times they are entered into the drawing. Each stamp = 1 drawing entry.
We will select 3 winners for a $100 gift card to a West Seattle Restaurant.
Customers will need to mail/drop off their passport to the WSFB by October 1st to be entered into the drawing.
Pick up your “Taste Passport” at a participating restaurant, at the West Seattle Food Bank, or email your address to breanna.bushaw@westseattlefoodbank.org to have one mailed to you.
Again, this all starts next Monday. (WSB is a Taste of West Seattle community co-sponsor.)
Three notes from the West Seattle restaurant world:
MAHARAJA CUISINE OF INDIA: This Junction restaurant (4542 California SW) has just reopened for indoor dining. Its hours are 11 am-midnight Sundays-Wednesdays, 11 am-2 am Thursdays-Saturdays; the kitchen closes at 11 pm.
MIOPOSTO: The North Admiral restaurant with outdoor and indoor dining (2139 California SW) will offer brunch/lunch 7 days a week starting tomorrow. They’ll open at 11:30 am weekdays, 10 am weekends.
MARINATION MA KAI: Fall hours started today at the Seacrest eatery with outdoor and indoor seating (1660 Harbor SW) – 11 am-8 pm Mondays-Thursdays, 9 am-8 pm Fridays, 9 am-9 pm Saturdays and Sundays.
Got a biznote? westseattleblog@gmail.com is the best way to get us info – thanks!
Again this year, the Taste of West Seattle – benefiting the West Seattle Food Bank‘s work fighting hunger and preventing homelessness – will last an entire week. Here’s the announcement:
Take a Taste Tour of West Seattle’s Restaurants, Cafés, Breweries, and Wineries! September 20-26
The Taste has always been about bringing neighbors together over delicious food, promoting our local restaurants, and ultimately supporting and strengthening our community. While the event format has to change again this year, these values remain. Now, more than ever, we see the importance of coming together to support our local restaurants and helping our community. In order to ensure the health and safety of our neighbors, we are adapting the Taste of West Seattle from a 500-person event gathering, to a “restaurant week”-style event for the second year. We hope to return to our in-person event format in 2022.
From Monday, September 20th to Sunday, September 26th, neighbors can dine in or get take-out and enjoy delicious meals and drinks from participating West Seattle restaurants, all while knowing their money is supporting both restaurants and the West Seattle Food Bank’s mission to end hunger and homelessness. When you support local restaurants, they will donate a percentage of proceeds to West Seattle Food Bank.
All participating restaurants will be listed on a restaurant “passport”. The more stamps participants receive on their West Seattle restaurant tour; the more times they are entered into the drawing. Each stamp = 1 drawing entry. We will select 3 winners for a $100 gift card to a West Seattle Restaurant and 2 winners for a $100 Whole Foods Gift Card.
The event website will be updated soon with a list of participating restaurants – for now, save the dates! (Community co-sponsors for The Taste include WSB.)
While at the Low Rider Block Party last Saturday, we noticed that sign inside Tacos y Mariscos El Tiburón on the corner of 17th and Roxbury. They were too busy for us to stop in and follow up then; we subsequently found their online announcement:
Queridos amigos lamentamos informarles que este mes de Agosto será el último mes que estaremos sirviendo nuestra comida mexicana. Tacos y mariscos el tiburón cerrará el 31 de Agosto. Queremos darles las gracias a todos nuestros clientes que nos apoyaron y estuvieron en las buenas y en las malas. Gracias
…………………………………………………………………Dear friends, I’m sad to inform you that this month of August will be our last month serving you our traditional Mexican food. Tacos y Mariscos will be closing August 31st. We will like to thank you all for your support and for always being loyal customers in the good and bad times. Thank you for everything.
We went over this morning for a photo. They told us the decision to close is simply a matter of slow business. The location was previously another location of Tacos Guaymas.
As they say, what was old is new again. Above is a photo we took this morning of the nautically themed Benbow Room, in the back of the west side of the building at 4210 SW Admiral Way, once upon a time the legendary Admiral Benbow Inn, more recently the Heartland Café, then the Admiral Benbow again, followed by Vidiot (which closed in late 2019). Now, it appears the Benbow name will be back. We went to the building to research a new plan for the ex-Parliament Tavern next door (more on that to come) and discovered something else – we found West Seattle restaurant/bar entrepreneur Mark Fuller, who told us he’s taking over the Benbow space and bringing it back under that name. It needs lots of work, he told us, so this will likely take months – not just the work, but getting the permits. Fuller’s other enterprises include Ma’ono, Supreme, and (reopening soon) New Luck Toy.
Two things happening right now in the West Seattle Junction:
FREE PIZZA: There’s a line outside Pagliacci (4449 California SW) because they’re giving away free slices, chain-wide, until 3 pm, as a reopening celebration. Limit two slices per person. Full details are on the Pagliacci website.
Kitty-corner from there, outside the Senior Center of West Seattle, another reopening celebration:
‘FUN & FESTIVE FRIDAYS’: The Senior Center wants everyone to know it’s open, so today they’re kicking off “Fun & Festive Fridays,” with refreshments & cookies outside until 1 pm, and live music by The Ukes, 2-4 pm. The center’s message: “We’re excited to welcome back the community!”
ADDED: Joining the celebration, Dan Jackson, photographed by Jerry Simmons:
Got a reopening celebration/special/event? Let us know – westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
(Originally published Sunday, continuing to add updates/changes through Monday)
If the heat – the Sea-Tac gauge has hit triple digits! – has you thinking about getting dinner from/at a restaurant, be aware that some local food/beverage businesses are closing early and/or changing their hours to keep their workers safe. After a tip from Paula (thank you!), we started looking around, and here’s what we’ve found so far:
Bakery Nouveau – closing 1 pm Sunday
Bebop Waffle Shop – (updated) closed Sunday and Monday
Birdhouse – closing at noon Sunday, closed Monday
Bizzarro Italian Café (White Center) – closed until Tuesday
Cactus – closed Monday
Chupacabra – closed Monday
Circa, closed tonight and all day/night Monday
Coastline Burgers – closed Sunday and Monday
Copper Coin – closed Sunday and Monday
Cupcake Royale – closing at 2 pm Monday
Easy Street Café – restaurant closed Monday, record store trying to stay open
Elliott Bay Brewing – closed at 5 pm Monday
Grillbird Teriyaki – open noon-5 Sunday, closed Monday
Gyro Heroes – closed until Tuesday
Highland Park Corner Store – closed Monday
Hotwire Coffee – closing at 1 pm Sunday and Monday
Itto’s Tapas – closed Monday
JaK’s Grill – closed Sunday and Monday
Jet City Beignet (WSB sponsor) – no Sunday popup
Kamei – closed Sunday and Monday
Locol – closed through Monday (per texter)
Lodge Sports Grille – closed Monday
Lula Coffee – closing noon Monday
Luna Park Café – closed Monday
Marination Ma Kai – closed Monday
Mashiko – only offering cold menu items (including sushi) Sunday night and Monday
Mission Cantina (WSB sponsor) – open 10 am-3 pm Sunday, closed Monday
Moonshot Coffee (White Center) – closed 5 pm Monday
Nos Nos Coffee House – closed until Tuesday
Ounces – closed Monday
Pagliacci – closed early Sunday night, closed Monday
Patrick’s Café and Bakery (White Center) – closed Monday
Prost – closed Sunday and Monday
Realfine Coffee – closing at 1 pm Monday
Skylark – open Sunday 3-8 pm but serving cold sandwiches and salads
The Spot – closed early Sunday, will be closed Monday
Supreme – closed Monday
Swinery – closing at 2 pm Sunday
Talarico’s – closed Monday
Than Brothers Pho – closed Monday
West of Chicago Pizza (WSB sponsor) – closed tonight and Sunday
The Westy – closing 4 pm Sunday, closed Monday
Zippy’s Giant Burgers – will be closed Monday
We are checking other places online and by phone as fast as we can and will keep adding – if you know of others with closures/changes because of the heat wave, please let us know via comments, email (westseattleblog@gmail.com), or text (206-293-6302) – thank you!
P.S. We’re adding known A/C-equipped restaurants/bars to our master cool-off list – see it here – suggestions for those are welcome too!
8:37 PM: The west lot at Salty’s on Alki (1936 Harbor SW; WSB sponsor) was transformed into a temporary food-truck corral this afternoon for a reality show. As previewed here last night, Seattle favorite Where Ya At Matt went up against Los Angeles-based Billionaire Burger Boyz, who were on camera when we stopped by;
The crew told us this is for a new show currently titled “Burger Brawl,” and it’ll be part of Discovery Plus. Signage attributed the production to Lander Entertainment, LLC. The winner was whoever sold the most – haven’t heard yet how that shook out.
According to Laurel at Ounces (3809 Delridge Way SW), these two trucks will be there for a rematch tomorrow, noon-7 pm.
ADDED EARLY FRIDAY: Just got word from Ounces that the show is going somewhere else (not in WS) today instead. (Though we should note that Ounces spotlights many of the area’s best food trucks regularly anyway – see their calendar here.)
Two food notes:
PEEL & PRESS: Proprietor Dan Austin says his Morgan Junction restaurant has just reopened for indoor dining:
Well, it has been a challenging 15 months. We have stayed carryout only to give West Seattle an option for all of those who wanted to avoid the crowds. Because of all of your support, we were able to survive this pandemic and take our time in reopening the dining room. We have been 100% vaccinated for a while now and are ready to see your faces (still masked for a few more days) again!
Starting Wednesday and going until the Governor announces the full reopening, we will be offering limited table seating. We will not have a ton of capacity but we need to get the staff back in the swing of plating food and serving tables. We ask that you pack your grace and understanding for the next week or two (not just here but at all restaurants) as we get our in=person and soon, full-capacity muscle memory established again. We are so excited to welcome you back!
Peel & Press is at 6503 California SW; hours are 4-9 pm this week, then after that, expanding to 4-10 pm Sundays-Thursdays and 4- 11 pm Fridays-Saturdays.
FOOD-TRUCK FIGHT: We’re told the well-known Seattle truck Where Ya At Matt will be in the Salty’s on Alki (1936 Harbor SW; WSB sponsor) vicinity 3-6:30 pm tomorrow (Thursday, June 24) “for a food truck competition” along with touring Los Angeles-based truck Billionaire Burger Boyz. WYAM says other details are under wraps “but it’s going to be a lot of fun, and would love to see Seattle come represent!”
ADDED THURSDAY: The food-truck fight continues Friday, and it’s for reality TV, we’re told in this note from Ounces (3809 Delridge Way SW) proprietor Laurel Trujillo:
there is a food truck battle reality show shooting in West Seattle at Ounces tomorrow Friday, 6/25 from 12-7pm. We will be open at 12 pm as will the food trucks (they will be selling food, we will be serving drinks like normal). Cameras will be rolling!
Basically the premise of the show is that local truck Where Ya At Matt? will be battling against a burger truck from LA. Whoever sells more food wins! So we’d love to invite the West Seattle community out to buy grub, drink beer and support Where Ya At Matt? so they can win!
(WSB photo)
Two people from Snohomish County who “love to cook” have just opened Thai Togo, offering takeout and delivery from one of West Seattle’s bustling commissary kitchens, in The Triangle. They go by the nicknames Tata and Link, and they describe their short menu as “comfort food.” While you may zero in on the Pad Thai as your style of Thai comfort food, they’re also cooking up Khao Soi, a Northern Thai noodle dish, plus wraps and fish cakes. This is their first restaurant venture, but they’ve both worked in the industry for years. “Time to do something for ourselves, before we’re too old,” explains Tata. So why West Seattle? “It’s a nice community,” Link offers. Their hours/days may change when they see what the market wants, but for now, it’s Wednesdays-Sundays, 4 pm-9 pm, You can order online for takeout via their website, or order for delivery via Door Dash or GrubHub.
Five months after we broke the news that permit filings showed Ezell’s Famous Chicken planned to take over the AT&T space in Morgan Junction, that store has closed for a northward move. Driving through Morgan Junction this evening, we spotted “This location permanently closed” notices on the doors at 4205 SW Morgan, across the parking lot from West Seattle Thriftway (WSB sponsor). The notice says the AT&T store is expected to reopen in Jefferson Square around August 1st. As for Ezell’s, the regional fried-chicken chain has yet to formally announce the West Seattle plan, but the construction permit – which, like other documents in the file, names Ezell’s as the new tenant – was granted four weeks ago.
If you’ve been to Alki in recent weeks, you’ve probably noticed the remodeling at 2532 Alki SW, which has had multiple incarnations (including a bike shop and a PPE seller) since longtime tenant Coastal Surf Boutique moved out. The space is opening Sunday (June 20th) as Natalie’s on Alki, an expansion of Natalie’s Sugar Cane and Desserts in Tukwila. Same menu, the Natalie’s team tells us (see it here) – sugar-cane-juice beverages, milk tea, smoothies, desserts, and Vietnamese street food. Hours will start at 10 am to 10 pm, seven days a week.
Some neighborhoods are getting city permits to close sections of business-district streets for summertime “café streets.” Not the West Seattle Junction, though. Not for lack of trying, says Lora Radford, executive director of the West Seattle Junction Association (who provided the photo above of a north Seattle street as inspiration). The idea has come up in discussions here on WSB and elsewhere, and WSJA was looking to close a small section of SW Alaska – the half-block east of California, to the service alley. Radford says, “The closure request was June 15 – October 15 with the plan to activate the space with picnic tables and umbrellas for outdoor seating. The SDOT planners and permit review team took a long and thoughtful approach to the plan, with the Junction fully appreciative of their ability to think outside of the box. In the end though, the impact across multiple departments was too disruptive.” A major obstacle in this case was Metro; the city told WSJA that among other things, “Closing this stretch would result in significant service delays and degrade reliability” – that half-block stretch of Alaska is used by routes that total 373 weekday trips. The decision only affects the proposal to actually close that part of SW Alaska; curbside/sidewalk extensions of food/beverage establishments elsewhere in The Junction will continue, and WSJA says a few more Junction establishments are considering those.
Four notes from West Seattle Junction food/beverage establishments:
MA’ONO: Thanks to Eric for the tip. Ma’ono in West Seattle is temporarily closed, reopening June 23rd.
CUPCAKE ROYALE: The Junction shop is closed for renovations, reopening Thursday.
AZUMA SUSHI: Reminder that – as reported here – they’re taking a break, reopening Monday, June 21st.
LADY JAYE: This Tuesday (June 15th), 4-8 pm, Lady Jaye (4523 California SW) plans a Pre-Father’s Day Wagyu Meat Market, including both Wagyu cuts for you to take home and cook and Wagyu cheeseburgers they’re grilling up for takeout. More info in our calendar listing.
Got a biznote – especially as the June 30th reopening date approaches? Email info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
Azuma Sushi in The Junction wants you to know it has a temporary closure coming up:
We will be closed for a week to allow our staff to spend time with their families during school graduations, starting Sunday, June 13th and going through Sunday, June 20th. We will reopen again for lunch on Monday, June 21st.
Until then, Azuma (4533 California SW) is open regular hours today and tomorrow – still takeout only.
Tomorrow, MOD Pizza is planning a brief giveaway to celebrate a milestone. The Seattle-founded chain now has 500 locations (two of which are in West Seattle – at The Whittaker, 4755 Fauntleroy Way SW, and Westwood Village, 2600 SW Barton). So for 500 seconds at 5 pm Tuesday – that’s 8 1/3 minutes – the first 50 people in line at each location chain-wide will each get “a redeemable coupon for one free MOD-size pizza or MOD-size salad in-store only between 5/18-5/20/21.”
While in The Junction this morning to cover the vaccination pop-up, we saw this in the window at Be’s Restaurant (4509 California SW):
As the note on the right says, they’re overhauling the menu as well as the space at this Junction fixture. But there’s more to the sign on the left – not only is The Alley open in the space behind Be’s, it’s also hosting live music again. We’ve received an announcement from Jeff Ferguson on behalf of the Triangular Jazztet:
Live music returns to the Junction this Sunday at The Alley, where barmaster Cory is sure to delight and surprise with his custom designed cocktails (or just an old fashioned Old Fashioned). There will be two shows at 8 and 9 pm with no cover. Seating is limited and masks required while moving about the premises.
Meantime, we’ll be checking with the ownership about the timeline for reopening Be’s.
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