West Seattle, Washington
13 Friday
(WSB photo, last week)
Eight months after West Seattle-residing Chef Mike Easton announced he would open Il Nido in the historic Alki Homestead/Fir Lodge, he revealed today that it’s opening tomorrow (by reservation). He is renowned for Il Corvo downtown; in the announcement last September, he described the plan for Il Nido as “absolutely Italian, driven by market produce.” As we reported days after that announcement, when the Homestead’s refurbished neon sign was returned and reinstalled, Il Nido will be the main tenant, but Dennis Schilling, who bought the Homestead (damaged in a 2009 fire) in 2015, is still the building’s owner.
After a tip (thank you!), we just stopped by to confirm that Agave Cocina has quietly opened its new West Seattle Junction location, exactly five months after our first report that they were taking over the ex-Fresh Bistro space at 4727 42nd SW. They tell us hours will be 11 am-10 pm for starters. Agave is a local mini-chain with other locations in Issaquah and lower Queen Anne.
When Chef Case Justham announced the closure of Brass Knuckle Bistro (9602 16th SW) – as reported on our partner site White Center Now – he added, “We’ve got a great buyer taking over, an iconic local spot that will be a perfect fit for the neighborhood, that I’m sure everyone will be extremely excited about.”
Post-closure, a handwritten note on the door named that “iconic local spot” as Biscuit Bitch, a sassy spot for breakfast/brunch, with three downtown locations – Pike Place, Pioneer Square, and Belltown. We’ve finally confirmed the White Center expansion plan, after reaching BB by phone today. No estimate yet for when they’ll open, we were told, but they’ve taken over the space. Never been to Biscuit Bitch? Here’s the menu.
They promised their Alki closure at the end of 2018 wasn’t the end of their acclaimed restaurant … and indeed, it wasn’t. The Khazaal family has announced they’ll reopen Phoenecia in The Junction this summer. The new space, 4717 42nd SW, was previously home to Alchemy (evicted last December). The Junction is a past home as well as future home for Phoenecia; as noted when the family patriarch Hussein Khazaal died a decade ago, it is where he founded the restaurant in the 1970s.
You might have noticed the big GRAND OPENING banner in The Admiral District – for the reopening of Irashai (2352 California SW). We finally got a chance to talk briefly with its proprietors today – the restaurant has the same name as the one that closed in January, but new owners. Their menu includes sushi, sashimi, teriyaki, bulgogi, and bi bim bowls. They’re open 3:30-9:30 pm Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, noon-9:30 pm on Saturdays and Sundays, closed Tuesdays.
(Photo from kingcounty.gov)
A belated Earth Day note from King County today: Its annual Green Globe Awards were presented on Monday, and the winners included Young’s Restaurant in South Delridge, “the first restaurant to participate in the RainWise program, which offers rebates to property owners who install green stormwater infrastructure.” The county announcement continues:
Supported by ECOSS and its language and multicultural environmental outreach expertise, Young’s installed three stormwater cisterns that will keep more than 11,000 gallons of runoff out of the combined sewer system each year. The King County – Seattle Public Utilities RainWise partnership recently established a “big roof” initiative expanding its work beyond residential structures to capture and divert stormwater from larger buildings.
You can see the Young’s cisterns here. Meantime, King County’s full list of winners – also including South Park’s Paulina Lopez, of the Duwamish River Cleanup Coalition – is here.
On our way back from Beach Drive pavement photography, we noticed the ex-Tully’s at 2676 Alki SW now has the signage for its new identity as Harry’s Beach House. As revealed in early February, this will be a new outpost for Julian Hagood, who runs the acclaimed Harry’s Fine Foods on Capitol Hill. We have an inquiry out regarding the estimated time frame for opening on Alki.
Thanks to @Fanta_Box for the tip via Twitter that the sign went up today for another new West Seattle Junction business. The former WS Cyclery space at 4508 California SW – vacant for 16 months – will become Naked Crepe. It’s a new venture for Jacques Nawar, proprietor of Pizzeria Credo a few doors down, according to online records. He’s not in tonight for comment but the staff there tells us Naked Crepe will be open in about a month. (The space is part of a building scheduled for redevelopment but that’s a slow-moving process.) West Seattle’s previous creperie was also in The Junction, Firefly, open for about two years where Itto’s Tapas is now.
Sidewalk cafés – usually added outdoor seating for existing food/drink businesses – are increasingly popular in our area due in no small part to our spectacular scenery. But many viewless venues have added them too. It hasn’t historically been easy for a business to get permission to add one, but the city wants to change that. SDOT (sidewalks are public right-of-way, so it’s in that department’s jurisdiction) is taking comments on proposed rule changes right now. Here’s the announcement:
We’ve spent the last year reviewing our existing requirements to develop a legislative proposal to improve the program. Here are some of the key aspects that we’ve identified.
· Allow cafés in more locations around Seattle.
· Formalize pilot programs to allow fence-free cafes and cafes in the curb space of the street (these are known as streateries).
· Update design standards to make it easier to walk on sidewalks.
We developed a fact sheet on the proposal for more details. The full documents of the ordinance and draft Director’s Rule are also available to review on our webpage.
The public is invited to provide comments on the Determination of Non-Significance. Comments are accepted in any of the following ways:
·Email: Alyse.Nelson@seattle.gov
·Phone: 206-684-5268
·Mail:
Seattle Department of Transportation
Street Use – Public Space Management
P.O. Box 34996
Seattle, WA 98124-4996Comments must be provided no later than 5 PM on Monday, April 22, 2019. Appeals must be submitted no later than 5 PM on Monday, April 29, 2019. Details about the appeals process can be found in the Determination of Non-Significance posted on our webpage.
SDOT says nearly 400 businesses around the city have sidewalk-café permits right now. Since the proposed changes include an ordinance, City Council approval will eventually be required.
Three quick food biznotes:
ALKI CHICKEN AND WAFFLES: A liquor-license application appeared online this week for a new restaurant at 2738 Alki SW, formerly B’s Po Boy, after Fatburger, Bada Bistro, Beachside Café. The proprietor of record for Alki Chicken and Waffles is Tom Lin, former owner of the Alki Homestead 1 door down, which was of course famous for its fried chicken until the restaurant was abruptly closed by a fire in 2009.
IL NIDO: Speaking of the Homestead, the historic landmark building that Lin sold four years ago, the Italian restaurant that’s moving in is now looking at a “May-ish” opening, according to its Instagram page (where you can see interior sneak peeks). We first reported on Chef Mike Easton‘s plan for Il Nido back in September.
THRIFTWAY BARBECUE TIME: Tomorrow’s the first benefit barbecue of the season at West Seattle Thriftway (4201 SW Morgan; WSB sponsor), where they’ll fire up the grill around 11 am, proceeds benefiting the West Seattle Food Bank. 11:33 AM UPDATE: Just went to Thriftway to check and today’s barbecue is canceled – stormy. They’ll give it another go in two weeks (April 27th).
A new pizza option in West Seattle starting today: Deep dish. West of Chicago Pizza Company is opening in Delridge and joining the WSB sponsor team to get the word out:
West of Chicago Pizza Company is pick-up only for now, and you can place your order online or by phone. “While West Seattle has plenty of pizza places, there are 0 deep-dish pizza places, says proprietor Shawn Millard – until now. He explains that he has “almost 25 years of experience feeding people,” and a “passion for the craft” of preparing food, respecting the ingredients too. “People who know me fight for a seat at my table; people know when I’m feeding them, they’ll be fed well. … I think the community will be pleased with an option that is completely different from the other current options.”
West of Chicago Pizza Company is starting small, at 5604 Delridge Way SW, but expecting to expand as sales grow. Shawn is a resident of West Seattle and is here to stay; he is looking forward to supporting local nonprofits, too, as do so many local independent businesses. You can see the West of Chicago Pizza Company menu on the website and you can order there for pickup, or call 206-339-DEEP – that’s 206-339-3337. Thursdays through Sundays, 4 pm-10 pm (last order at 9:15 pm).
We thank West of Chicago Pizza Company for sponsoring independent, community-collaborative neighborhood news via WSB; find our current sponsor team listed in directory format here, and find info on joining the team by going here.
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Unwind Café is about to open across from Seacrest (aka the West Seattle Water Taxi dock), at 1619 Harbor Avenue SW. It’s actually something of a “reopening” because Unwind Café’s proprietor Vanessa Kammeyer was a co-proprietor of the shop that used to be in the space, Moondrop Coffee and Tea. Vanessa tells WSB that while the new name is a fresh start, otherwise, “everything is the same”:
Same menu; fresh juices and smoothies made with real fruits/vegetables. We have dairy-free bubble tea, organic/fair trade coffee provided by “Grounds for Change,” locally roasted in Poulsbo, which I pair with organic milks only. My dad’s anise/almond biscottis will still be stocked. Bagel sandwiches made with Einstein Brothers bagels, and smoothie bowls topped off with superfoods like cacao nibs, chia seeds, spirulina, granola, etc.
Vanessa notes that she has worked for 14 years in the food-service industry, running the Harbor Avenue shop since October 2014:
One of my goals has been to serve healthy food with great ingredients to my community; Unwind Cafe is my opportunity to do that. And to top it off, we have a great view of the Seattle skyline. … It’s a great place to come and unwind.
Vanessa expects to reopen the shop this Friday.
(WSB photo, this morning)
Back in January, Harry’s Chicken Joint (6032 California SW) posted a somewhat cryptic message on social media: “Thanks to everyone as we enter our 7th and final season. No regrets, no reruns, no spin-offs.” Last night was the season finale, according to this post on Harry’s Instagram page pointed out to us this morning by a texter (thank you!):
(If you drive that stretch of California at night, you know the neon sign was usually on, even after-hours, so the turning-off clip carries extra weight.) The little hole-in-the-wall eatery named after its proprietor’s dad had proceeded slowly toward the exit, cutting back to two nights a week earlier this month, six years after its debut. Pre-Harry’s, the space was long home to Jade West, not-so-long home to Meander’s. As for what’s next – nothing in the permit files yet …
Arthur’s in The Admiral District is celebrating its 2nd anniversary this week.
On Thursday (March 28th), proprietor Rebecca Rice tells WSB, “We’ll have food and drink specials in honor of the date, with a lot of new fun menu previews. We’re starting a fresh shucked oyster program and would love to gauge the neighborhood’s interest, as well as continuing to showcase our amazing Australian meat pies, fresh and seasonal spring flavors, and drinks discounted all night.” Arthur’s opened in March 2017 at 2311 California SW, previously home to Angelina’s.
The sign’s been up for a few weeks, and now we finally have caught up with the folks working to open the Pacific Room at 2806 Alki SW, where Hawks Nest West closed earlier this year. Kurt Niemeyer tells us they’re planning to be a live music venue – 3 or 4 acts a week – as well as restaurant/bar (serving “bistro-type food”), open to all ages. They are remodeling the space right now and hope to be open in May.
(Photo courtesy Luna Park Café)
Luna Park Café is celebrating its 30th anniversary today. Though the café says its “big bash” will be in the summertime, nonetheless it’s “happy to be a landmark business of West Seattle” and invites you to stop by and celebrate with specials including a Birthday Cake Shake that they’ll be offering for the rest of the month. The café’s announcement shared with WSB has words of gratitude for customers, too: “The local support throughout the years has been amazing!” If you’re new and haven’t been there yet, LPC is at 2918 SW Avalon Way, just south of the West Seattle Bridge. P.S. The building and area have even more decades of history, as the café website explains.
(WSB photo, last month)
Almost two weeks ago, when contacted by WSB to ask about reports the restaurant had been sold, Mashiko founder Hajime Sato confirmed it. The restaurant subsequently was closed for several days; we never heard from the new owners, but a longtime employee said in a comment that they expected to reopen last week, and that appeared to have happened, at least when we passed by one night to look. Then tonight, via the same messaging channel we used to contact Sato, we received this message:
Due to issues beyond my control, the sale of Mashiko that I announced last week did not occur. I am still the owner of Mashiko. The restaurant is still for sale, and I hope to have happier news to share about that soon. In the meantime, I am back to working most nights. Mariah and Brandon are still here too, so be sure to stop in for the same amazing sustainable sushi you have come to expect from us!
My family is still planning to move as soon as possible, although things have now been very delayed by these circumstances.
Please accept my thanks to the community for the kind words and support during this extremely difficult time.
Found in city permit files: MOD Pizza, the Seattle-headquartered chain that opened in The Whittaker a year ago, is adding a second West Seattle location. It’ll be at Westwood Village, with a space including the former Giannoni’s Pizzeria spot; the “site plan” document shows the rest of the space as the current Baja Taco, though the same building includes the closing-soon Payless Shoes.
We received a couple questions about the new signage at what had been Pailin Thai Cuisine in Admiral (2223 California SW) and is now Spring House Thai Kitchen and Pho. The former owners retired and sold the business, we were told when we reached the restaurant by phone, and the new owners took over just this past Monday. Same menu and hours – 3:30-10 pm Mondays and Tuesdays, 11:30 am-10 pm Wednesdays-Fridays, noon-10 pm Saturdays and Sundays.
Thanks for the tips that something was up at Mashiko, the acclaimed restaurant at 4725 California SW in The Junction. We have confirmed with longtime proprietor Chef Hajime Sato that, after 25 years, he has sold Mashiko to new ownership. In response to our inquiry, he sent this statement:
After nearly 25 years, effective yesterday, Mashiko has been sold to new ownership who will continue operating Mashiko in its current location. This was an extremely difficult decision, but it is the right one for my family. Thank you for trusting me to make so many meals for you. There are lots of people that I will deeply miss. Thank you for all of the great memories. I wish you many epic food adventures! Do not stop trying new things!
My wife’s cancer has made us reexamine our priorities. We are moving so that we can continue to heal mentally, physically, and financially. I will be making food again soon. If you’re ever near Detroit, come on by.
Sato has made news for, among other things, a commitment to serving sustainable seafood (as spotlighted here in 2011). Meantime, we will be pursuing more information about the new owners and their plans.
After reporting on the permanent closure of B’s Po Boy on Alki, we received this email from Alex Piano regarding Hawks Nest West about a block west, at 2806 Alki SW:
We are sad to announce that the Hawks Nest West on Alki has been sold to new ownership. They will be changing the concept and re-branding over the next few months.
We were given an opportunity to open a new sister location close to our original Hawks Nest in the SoDo area, we had to make the tough decision to sell our Alki spot to remain viable.
We had a fun run, learned a lot and want to say thank you to all the all the local sports fans who came in and enjoyed two exciting Seahawks seasons with us! We had an awesome time and made some amazing new friends. Don’t worry, the original Hawks Nest will be around for the long haul.
We will miss West Seattle and hope to see everyone downtown for the upcoming season! We still live in West Seattle and plan to be involved in the community! Please welcome the new ownership as they are excited to be in the community!
GO HAWKS!
Hawks Nest Ownership
We went by for a look; no note or sign, but definitely dark. We’re not sure exactly when it closed – on social media, a post last month mentioned transition to new ownership but not closure. We’ve noticed it (like B’s) listed for a while as a “business opportunity for sale”, but that kind of listing is often made while the business remains open.
SITE HISTORY: Before the change to Hawks Nest West a year and a half ago, this was Alki Huddle (closed in fall 2016), which followed Bamboo Bar and Grill (closed in fall 2014).
(Photo courtesy Tod)
Multiple readers have sent photos of the sign that just went up in the past few hours announcing the permanent closure of B’s Po Boy on Alki. We know the time frame because we were in the area around midmorning, at which time the sign was still the one that had been up for about a week, saying the restaurant was still closed because of the weather. Previously, an early February opening was promised when B’s Po Boy closed just before Christmas, citing vacation time; the business has also been listed for sale for some weeks. B’s opened a year and a half ago, run by a couple who had moved here from Indianapolis, where they had a restaurant of the same name (which closed in late 2017). The 2738 Alki Avenue SW spot had previously been the site of Fatburger, from fall 2013 to early 2017, following Bada Bistro‘s less-than-five-month run, after two years for the Beachside Café, which in turn was the successor to Alki Bakery, a corner fixture for 25 years, until November 2010.
Other Alki food/beverage closures in the past year include, west to east, Marée Bistro, Sushi Samurai, Phoenecia, Tully’s Coffee (which, as first reported here almost two weeks ago, will become Harry’s Beach House), Saigon Pho.
More info today about the restaurant on its way to the 2676 Alki Avenue SW space from which the former Tully’s Coffee was evicted. It’s from our friends at Capitol Hill Seattle Blog; Capitol Hill is the home neighborhood of Harry’s Fine Foods, whose proprietor Julian Hagood – as revealed in our community-collaborative coverage last Sunday – is opening Harry’s Beach House at the ex-Tully’s. Here’s the full CHS report, in which Hagood promises “killer brunches and seasonally driven fare” at the new place. CHS publisher Justin Carder also notes that the Alki property was sold for $1.5 million last September to a group that includes Hagood’s Capitol Hill landlord.
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