Agate Pass Cafe

Let's not talk about why my mother gets free rooms at the Clearwater Casino, let's just focus on the fact that she is nice enough to give them to her family!  We stayed in a lovely room and it was the perfect opportunity to go to the Agate Pass Cafe in Suquamish again.  We had heard great things from friends about this cafe and had gone there in the fall to have appetizers and salad, it was so inventive and wonderful that I couldn't wait to go back.  The first time we visited this little gem we had the deep fried olives with smoked mozzarella, panko breading with a wonderfully spicy red pepper dip and a kale and apple salad with pancetta, pecans with a maple vinaigrette that was so incredible!  We sat at the bar because I really like watching the action happen in the kitchen and I was drawn to it's gorgeous colorful tiles that I understand were done by the owner along with these whimsical whisk light fixtures hanging overhead. 

This time around I had the special which was cornmeal crusted oysters with dirty rice and a celery root apple romolade.  The oysters were extremely fresh and yummy.  A few of them had slightly too much of the cornmeal crust which made them a little too crunchy (almost hard) but the flavor was on target especially with the romolade.  My boyfriend had the braised duck with pappardelle and roasted broccoli.   The pappardelle seemed like it was house made and the duck was moist and flavorful.  I thought the pairing with roasted broccoli was a little odd, but not bad. 

The lively vibe of this little cafe is glorious and it's locale near the water makes it a perfect spot to pull in on your boat at the nearby dock and have some wonderful cuisine.  As a side note, we popped into the little bar next door (I think it's called the Troller Tavern) for a cocktail before going to dinner and it has to be one of the friendliest bars I've ever been in, we had a great time and they have wii bowling!  A good time is not ALL about the food!
If you go just be aware that they do not take reservations for parties under 5 and it's small so you might have to wait but it's worth it!  Keep it up Mom, I want to go back!

A Fall Day in Poulsbo

Tip #1:  The Department of Licensing in Poulsbo is amazing...no line!
Tip #2:  Go around noon and then head down to the waterfront and explore.

Our first stop was the Portside Pub, cozy little place on the water where I had a cup of creamy clam chowder and a smoked salmon bloody mary!  Yes, a smoked salmon bloody mary.  Alaska Distillery makes smoked salmon vodka.  I'm not sure what else you would do with it (ohhh except I just started imagining a vodka cream sauce over pasta) but the bloody mary was amazing and had a wonderful salty taste of smoked salmon.  Next was Tizleys Euro Pub.  It really sets the tone when you have to go down a little alley and up some tiny stairs.....love it!  Like a little hidden space overlooking the downtown.  Great selection of beers for Oktoberfest, we had the sampler (let the bartender choose), this earthy sausage, onion and potato dish and a glass of wine and our bill was...are you ready for this.....only $16.82 with tax and all!  Rachel Ray should be putting this stop on her $40 a day thing.  Walked around the antique shops and then had a craving for a slice of pizza.  What was so interesting about this little pizza shop was that I asked the lady behind the counter what made her open a pizza place (inquiring minds..blah blah blah) and she points at her husband and kind of smiles so I direct my question to him.  He says, "hey my dad had an abundance of good wood thought I could make wood fired pizza and have an endless supply".  Turns out dad didn't really have an "endless" supply of wood but they are still making pizza.  Interesting what makes people take a certain "fork" in the culinary road.