I am finally able to post my BIG NEWS- I am opening a restaurant in Eastlake! Nettletown the restaurant, is taking over the old Sitka and Spruce space in the lil' unlikely spot in a strip mall on Eastlake Ave. Sitka and Spruce is moving to a new bigger spot on Capitol Hill in the Melrose Project building. Matt Dillon, the owner and chef of Sitka, is passing me the torch but will still continue to have a part in the Eastlake space with me. Matt will be my partner, and because many good partnerships are born through friendship, I am overjoyed to have him as a strong support and anchor while I launch into the restaurant whirlpool. I will be heading the kitchen and everyday affairs and Matt will be there to egg me on. The opening date is slated for the end of February.
Nettletown will be a casual cafe with lunch and brunch service to start with and we will add dinners once we get into the swing of things. The food will be eclectic comfort food with influences from my culinary heritage(Chinese, Swiss) an and our collective Pacific coast geography. My boyfriend Jason's description - "Thoughtful creative yummy menu inspired by wild and pacific northwest ingredients at reasonable everyday prices." The menu will revolve around a base of dishes available all of the time along with many daily specials to take advantage of seasonal bounty. A few menu sneak peeks - Crab or fish(depending on availability) cakes with celery seaweed salad and aioli; nettletown noodles-egg noodles with roast pork, seasoned wild mushrooms, tea egg and toasted garlic; brioche french toast with ginger butter and huckleberry sauce.
What does this mean for Nettletown blog? Honestly, I am not sure exactly what this will become in this new era. I plan to continue use this as a place to celebrate wild and seasonal foods, though now it will have more of a focus on the new restaurant. I predict I will have less time for long features but will learn to post the short and sweet. One thing for sure, Foraged and Found Edibles weekly market posts will start up again very soon.
Check out t
his interview series on Voracious, the Seattle Weekly food blog, about me and the restaurant.
Part one- culinary musings,
part two- the lowdown on Nettletown,
part three- two razor clam recipes.
Before - at the Sitka closing party
Before - Matt, one week before Sitka leaves its Eastlake location
During - Jason is a saint! he is doing the remodeling for Nettletown
During - The new "dragonfly" blue
Recarving the bracket for the chalkboard in its new location above the bar
planing the beautiful salvaged wood for the bar top
sunny days make work a little easier
Jason is creating the bar to highlight the character of the salvaged wood
Totem Poles in Vancouver Canada
The warm weather is bringing in more greens and mushrooms than we usually see this time of year. It is always a hopeful feeling to see the first crocuses popping their pretty heads out in city yards, and it's the same feeling as seeing the first tender nettles poking out to get a move on their long season of prickly take over. Nettles and crocuses are some of the first new green growth here when the weather tilts its head towards spring. Early daffodils are on there way. Chickweed and other tender greens are sprouting in mats soaking in the moist soil too. I think I will have a real garden salad tonight.
Before - at the Sitka closing party
Before - Matt, one week before Sitka leaves its Eastlake location
During - Jason is a saint! he is doing the remodeling for Nettletown
During - The new "dragonfly" blue
Recarving the bracket for the chalkboard in its new location above the bar
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