No, this isn't about gardening. My green thumb comes from eating spinach with my fingers. I'm talking about the changes in Magnolia's cuisine scene.
Depending on your point of view, you may see the changes as blooming, or as a patch of weeds if you're longing for the good old days, but we can most likely all agree that our neighborhood is evolving.
When we moved to Seattle 25 years ago, I referred to our city as Des Moines (Iowa) West, a derisive refer-ence to Seattle's dearth of ethnic and fine-food restaurants. Seattle seemed to be where recipes came to die.
Having a special event? It was pretty much Rossellini's 610, and Canlis for fine dining. If you couldn't afford that, it was Denny's. If I took my wife to Denny's for our anniversary, it would be our last. For Mexican food, there was Guadalajara in downtown Seattle, and maybe one or two other pretenders, and there was good Asian food in the International District. Otherwise, it was chicken-fried steak with mashed potatoes and gravy - a stick-to-your-ribs meal, to be sure, but way down the scale on excitement.
If Seattle was Des Moines West, then Magnolia had to be Waterloo, Neb., tantamount to the epicurean badlands. There were always a few spots to nosh in Magnolia, but we were not a dining mecca, and we were certainly in no danger of being featured in Gourmet Magazine. That has changed greatly over the past decade or more. We still aren't a destination like Belltown or Pioneer Square, sitting as we are on our peninsula with no outlet (we like that), but we can now enjoy great meals right here at home.
There are still a couple of mainstays in the neighborhood. It seems as if Gim Wah has been here forever. The Village Pub, now on McGraw, and surviving several changes of ownership over the past few years, has changed the menu but is still serving good calories to wash down with your favorite libation.
Szmania's opening in 1990 was a major development in our dining scene, offering upscale food that attracted locals as well as diners from around Seattle, and their success probably served as the impetus for other restaurateurs to look at our area.
Anthony's Chinook's opened at Fishermen's Terminal, and Palisade fine dining sprouted on Pier 91 at the bottom of the bluff along with Maggie Bluff's Marina Grill, tucked below its more opulent big brother, and offering a casual and more affordable experience, with both restaurants providing a drop-dead view of downtown Seattle. Next door, Sammi Sushi serves up terrific Japanese food.
The ethnic choices these days are many. Back in the Village on McGraw, you can have pizza or pasta at Luigi's (the Mediterranean is a personal favorite), great Mexican food at El Ranchon, and Thai food at Kinnaree. Caffè Appassionato offers breakfast, soup and sandwiches to go with your espresso, or a glass of wine.
Just off McGraw on 33rd is a new Italian restaurant, Mondello, with a Sicilian flair, and on 32nd Avenue West, south of McGraw, is Niko's Gyros, where you can savor Greek food and wine. One block in the other direction on 32nd is Ichiro's Japanese food. And one more pizza place on McGraw is Pronto Pizza & Pasta.
Leaving the Village and driving north on 34th, you'll encounter Magnolia Ristorante Italiano and Lounge just before you reach Thriftway. Sitting alone in what has become a restaurant graveyard, it's worth a visit for the food, and live music in the small bar.
Drive east on Dravus and you'll find Romeo's Pizza & Pasta. Farther on is Pandasia, serving Pan-Asian food, and Red Mill Burgers with its award-winning hamburgers. Also on Dravus, and opening soon, is Mulleady's M2, their new Irish Pub that promises a full restaurant menu.
Just off Dravus, going north on Gilman is the Boxcar Alehouse serving up burgers and breakfast. Rounding out the list are several smaller places with inexpensive and satisfying sustenance: Sunny Teriyaki on West Emerson, right next door to Amante Pizza & Pasta; Magnolia Teriyaki on Gilman, with its sibling, the Pueblo Grill, next door; and both of those only a couple of doors from Katina's Kitchen, serving breakfast and lunch. You can also grab a great breakfast with a super view at The Bay Café at Fishermen's Terminal.
Well, that gives you an idea about how Magnolia has changed, and is still changing. No longer a culinary wasteland, we've become a place to hang out on a pleasant summer evening. We still enjoy our beautiful views, our madrona trees, and the sense of living in a small town, but now we can enjoy all that with an impressive array of gastronomic choices.
Mike Davis lives in Magnolia.
But you knew that.
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