One of the most rapidly changing blocks on Capitol Hill is 12th Avenue between East Pike and East Union streets. Formerly a strictly industrial/commercial area, the block is undergoing extensive renovation that includes restaurants, boutiques and hundreds of condominium units.
Osteria La Spiga, formerly a 50-seat restaurant at Broadway and East Union Street, is the latest new tenant to open its doors on the street. The Italian restaurant in the completely renovated Piston and Ring Building can now serve 180 customers in four different areas. The Piston and Ring building, formerly a garage and recently the scenery shop for Cornish College of the Arts, has refinished, industrially scarred wooden floors, a sense of industrial chic and an open plan with long sight lines. La Spiga shares the building with Café Stellina, which opened last August.
La Spiga began construction in April 2006 and opened the doors for business on Dec. 11.
"We had plenty of time to create a buzz," said Sabrina Tinsley, chef and co-owner of La Spiga.
The dining areas of the restaurant's new home are the main dining room, the bar, an outdoor patio in back and a private dining area on a mezzanine above the dining room that takes advantage of the very high ceilings.
At its previous location La Spiga had to close to host private parties. The new, private dining room - open to the rest of the restaurant, sharing sight lines but still private - allows La Spiga to host private parties of up to 50 without impacting the dining room, which features both booths and tables.
Another difference is that La Spiga previously served just wine and beer. It is justly known for its wine selections, but now the restaurant has a full bar, complete with stools.
"That is important to some people," Tinsley said.
Besides the patio out back, the street-side wall is a large, overhead garage door. In the summer it will open and bring the good weather right inside the restaurant.
Tinsley and her husband, co-owner Pietro Borghese, knew they had outgrown their space on Broadway, but did not want to stray too far.
"We definitely wanted to stay in the neighborhood," Tinsley said. "If we had gone too far I think there would have been some sentiment of betrayal."
That is the kind of statement that comes of a neighborhood-oriented restaurateur. But how do you stay a family restaurant when your staff swells from a dozen to 44?
"We needed to grow," Tinsley said. "I just wasn't expecting to grow quit this big yet."
She said that with the smaller staff there was a close relationship among everyone. With 44, relationships are likely to be less close.
"That's one of the issues we're dealing with," Tinsley said. She added that growing the staff so quickly meant that complete training was not possible before opening. As a result the restaurant service has had some mixed reviews.
She hopes people will understand and not be too harsh if not everything is perfect for a little while.
Happily most of the comments have been positive and business is way up over the previous location.
"My husband kept telling me 'We just have to get the doors open and everything will be okay,'" she said. "He is from Italy's Emilia-Roagna region, south of Venice, and he was right. The restaurant uses recipes from his native area, which is near Bologna."
According to Tinsley, the couple wanted to stay in the neighborhood for personal and business reasons; their market study revealed that Capitol Hill is the most densely populated area in the Northwest "and it certainly hasn't got any smaller."
In fact, directly across the street, are two condominium projects, the Trace Lofts and Trace North.
Developers took the Trace Building, an 88-year-old, four-story, brick warehouse in the Chicago School style at 12th & Union, added a penthouse and created 142 living spaces. Completion is expected this summer and the ground floor will include boutique retail.
Trace North, a new building still under construction and adjacent to the Trace Lofts, will offer 100 additional living spaces and boutique retail. Completion of Trace North is expected in 2008.
A new building under construction by Dunn & Hobbes immediately north of the Piston and Ring Building, on the southwest corner of 12th Ave. and E. Pike St., will offer 24 double-height lofts above restaurant and retail space. It is tentatively named the Agnes Lofts.
The master plan for the Dunn & Hobbes properties on this block calls for 60 to 70 residential units in total, all above one or two levels of retail. The mix of historical and modern structures will surround a European-style retail pedestrian plaza in the center of the block that will provide public pedestrian access from 12th Avenue all the way through to 11th Avenue.
"I love this neighborhood," Tinsley said. "I'll love it even more once the construction is done."
Osteria La Spiga, 1429 12th Ave. E., serves dinner daily beginning at 5:30 p.m. For information turn your browser to www.laspiga.com. Reservations are recommended on weekends. To make reservations call 323-8881.
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