429 15th Ave E
Coastal Kitchen is a Capitol Hill institution, mainly because of its location. Down on Broadway, there are tons of competing restaurants, but up on 15th, you've only got a few choices if you need some brunch. This is why it wasn't until after about six years of living here that I finally went in; every Sunday morning, there was a huge crowd waiting out front.
I love their bathroom. Orange is my favorite color for bathrooms and they've got a lovely shade of it on the walls.
I also always appreciate when there's a little bit of art to liven the room up.
And these hand dryers are amazing. Have you used one? They blast the water right off. The air isn't warm, so you don't come away with that satisfied feeling you're looking for, but your hands are actually dry enough that you won't wipe them on your pants. Unfortunately, it's placed so close to the sink that there's not enough room for the next guy to wash his hands while you're drying yours.
I think that this bathroom has got to be one of the hardest ones in Seattle to maintain. Not because of any challenging surfaces or plumbing issues, but because they always record a language lesson to play as a companion to their ever-changing country-specific menu. Right now, they're doing Cuba.
This leads me to the main issue with the restaurant. Their menu changes constantly, always focusing on a new cuisine, and I don't think they ever have enough time with any of the menu items to get used to making them well. Which isn't to say that they're bad, they're just not great. I was thankful that I had an early bird special there a couple of days ago, because I felt the prices matched the quality only after the discount.
Do stop in sometime and see for yourself, though. Consider ordering off the regular menu instead of the regional one.
If you don't think the rotating items are made well, stick to their static menu (all the stuff on the left). All of those dishes are superb.
ReplyDeleteCoastal has been rotating the same menus for about ten years now. I was a cook there about eight years ago, and the same cuban menu they have up now is from that time. It's not a matter of the recipes, but the fact that you may have an immature palette, or there were new cooks.
ReplyDelete@sonder
ReplyDeleteI don't think it takes a very mature palette to notice if ropa vieja tastes almost exactly like it came from a yellow Chi-Chi's tub, and there's certainly no reason to spice complete poisson so much that it's all heat and no flavor, but if you love the place, enjoy!
This bathroom is very tidy.
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