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Category: American (New) [Edit]
Neighborhood: Queen AnneMon-Sun. 5:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
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Wow, I just had a great experience at Crow this past weekend.
We went with friends for the first time and had a fantastic dinner.
The Lasagna may be the best I have ever had. It was SOOO good!
I cant wait to go back.
Only problem we had was parking but oh well, worth it.
Crow doesn't need any more good reviews but I'm going to give them one anyway. I'll make it short. Prosciutto-wrapped chicken - eat it. Sit at the "chef's counter," order a sparkling mint julep, and watch the chefs work their magic.
FYI: Don't go on a night when there's a play or a ballet anywhere near the center or, if you must, call in advance and make a reservation. It can become standing room only pretty quickly.
If I'm ever missing, check the bar at Crow.
Admittedly, I've only had dinner in the restaurant once. But that's because I LOVE the bar, and the bartenders, and the people who frequent the bar, so that's where I post up. A lot.
Specialty cocktails change seasonally, and these guys obviously have a blast doing proper R&D before penning the final mix. Sparkling Mint Julep has taken me down many-a-time. Champagne, bourbon, mint, I don't know what else. I don't need to. I just go to Crow and order it whenever I want.
Two staples on the dinner menu: lasagne, and roasted chicken. I *never* order chicken. Who goes to a restaurant and orders chicken? Pshaw. Sometimes at Crow, I order the chicken. And usually someone else at the bar will be like "omigod I never order chicken but I crave the chicken dish here." And I'm all "mmm hmmm" with my mouth full.
OH and the wine list rocks. By the glass or bottle. They're good about changing it up, and always have a red and white glass feature. I typically go for the feature because it always kicks ass. The guy buying wine there has a superb palate. He can stay.
We sat along the open kitchen which I was amazed by! The cooks are very focused so don't expect them to be engaging even though they are practically on stage. When I first glanced at the menu I feared it would be limited-there are very few items on it. But once I read the descriptions, the only problem I had was that I wanted EVERYTHING! I was most tempted by the cassoulet- but since someone else in the group ordered it I took my chances with the tenderloin steak. It was perfect and you cannot beat a perfect steak. I can't wait to go back and try everything else! The restaurant had a quaint, warm feel that I enjoyed.
On the North residential side of Seattle Center, Crow sits along a foodie urban renewal district. You can bet I will spend several of my next Seattle trips trying the dining in this area.
Crow wins with presentations. The Servers are model gorgeous, the mood is dark and quiet, and the motif is artsy and elegant, if not downright modern.
I ordered the chicken, which the waitress said was a locals' favorite. I could only describe it as elegantly displayed soul food. It was lightly fried over green beans and smothered in gravy. It's as if my Great-Grandmother from Mississippi did a home cooking assignment at a French culinary school. The chicken itself was perhaps too salty, but with the gravy, the result was addictive decadence. The bread was soft and fresh--I even liked the butter.
The only area I can mark down is the bar. The bartender didn't seem to have passion for mixing drinks. She tended to like the local beers and wines. Which is fine, but I want a good Manhattan... you can't win them all.
Elegant soul food and a beer. Women, take your man out to this place and he'll reward you mightily.
Mmmm... this place was wonderful!! Went after a matinee of La Traviata and was looking for something lovely and in keeping with the mood of that post-opera moment. Luckily, because we didn't have reservations, we skated in just early enough to find seating in this dark, gothic-yet-visually-pleasing restaurant. The food was wonderful and seasonal.... Roasted Pear and Squash Soup (which I promptly went home and attempted to duplicate), Grilled Manchego Cheese in Grapeleaves with Ratatouille, Cassoulet. My friend had the fish offering, halibut something, I don't remember exactly, but every thing brought to our table was delicious and superbly prepared. The service was good and the pacing spot-on. I will definitely go back.
This place has consistently hit the mark for me. Seeing as it is in my neighborhood I've managed to make my way over here a few times and have always had wonderful food. Last time I was there I had the cassoulet which was superb.
It is also great for a late dinner. Instead of trying to beat the rush, don't fight it and head over to Crow after the rush has died down and the atmosphere is much quieter and more relaxed.
I am so happy I had dinner here tonight. The place looks like it was transported straight out of the Mission in San Francisco. It had a bit of an industrial feel, with really nice decor.
The food was great. We did the prix fixe menu for $30. We both had gazpacho - excellent! Flavors of cucumber, red pepper, onion and tomato minced very finely and blended well. Excellent soup for a hot summer Seattle day.
For entrees I had the amazing chicken wrapped in proscuitto over a bed of green beens... yum! The chicken was so moist and tender and FLAVORFUL. I also really enjoyed the green beans, and the sauce on the plate added great flavor to everything. Mitchell had the pulled pork which came with coleslaw and cornbread - it must have been good because there was nothing left of it at the end.
Dessert for me was raspberry-rose sorbet with shortbread cookies - best part of the meal, and Mitchell had a frozen italian custard covered in berries... it was a bit like eating frozen cool whip.
Great wine list, good diversity, I noticed they have a carmenere which is the new love of my life for only $25 a bottle - so I'll definitely be going back to try it out.
This place is great. Always consistent, great wine, awesome service. Thanks to the peeps of Crow for a great dinner last night (and everytime I've ever gone in!) Definitely be back soon.
Seriously overrated!
Treated like a tourist every time I go there.
This last visit lasagna burned to a crisp, disguised by a extra sprinkling of cheese. Come on! No sorry, nothing. Living on former long faded glories.
Total wank. WANK!
I can't believe I haven't written a review for Crow yet!
I had such a wonderful experience here and I can't wait to go back. At the same time, it wasn't that pricey, but the glow of good times makes me hesitate a return trip lest I empty my bank account or sully the original memory.
We strolled in on a random night while we were in the area. We were seated at the counter by the open kitchen and enjoyed a glass of great wine while we watched our food being made.
I don't remember what my date ordered exactly, but I think it had chorizo and was pretty tasty. But I was so in love with my dish that I barely gave him a taste.
I typically try to order something "exotic" like lamb, seabass, squab, filet, etc when eating out, but I took a chance on chicken that night. I had the pancetta-wrapped chicken with green beans.
The chicken was perfectly cooked and juicy with flavor. The pancetta melted into the chicken skin to make a savory, crispy layer of deliciousness. I thought I was served a thigh piece from the shape of it, but it turned out to be white meat with a piece of bone sticking out the end like a "handle". It was a pleasant surprise that I could eat the entire bundle of yummy chicken without having to pick at the bones.
It was served atop a bed of well-seasoned tender-crisp green beans in a brothy, peppery, garlicky pan sauce. My mouth is watering.
I kind of wandered into this place because it was near my hotel. Strangely, and in an Edgar Allen Poe kind of way, a big ol' black crow flew right over me as I was looking at the menu outside. I didn't need a second "sign" to get my butt in there. Pleasant space and what looked like a very cool chef's counter for seating, but I chose the bar. I usually either get a vodka martini or a scotch after a long day on the road, but this time I got a drink called the Jade Dub and it was amazing!! Made by a very capable bartender, it has basil, gin, lemon and some other stuff and it rocked.
I ordered the pork tenderloin on a sort of melange of black beans and corn and it was pretty good. My only complaint was that there was a lot of it. Not usually a complaint of mine, but I have no way to take it home- so I kind of wasted some of it.
Bottom line- great great cocktail- good good tenderloin.
My girlfriend and I went on a monday night, and the place was empty. For some reason our waitress was also the bartender, but she was friendly and the service was fast. We were glad we chose a seat next to the window, because the place was HOT. Granted it had been an 80 + degree day, so far from normal Seattle weather. As far as drinks went, we had the Murder of Crows, the Bronx, and El Diablo. I wouldn't really recommend the Bronx, but the others were great.
For dinner we had the Chicken and the Lamb. Both were very good and the portions were generous. for dessert we had the chocolate cake, which I was not fond of. My girfriend seemed to like it though.
So my friend had about 18 people converge at Crow for her birthday and the results were semi-disastrous.
While the food was delicious as always (Where did the grape leave wrapped manchego triangles go? Love them), the management of our table was less than stellar...
We brought 3 pies for the birthday girl, Crow wanted to charge us $3 per slice to serve it. We ended up dishing it ourselves.
When the bill came, they charged close to $900 just for the wine. Not sure where the communication error was, but some people wanted their own bottle, but the waiters didn't get that.
They also ran the wrong amounts on cards. Why? We itemized it out for them, they ended up undercharging our card and put erroneous amounts on others.
Maybe large groups aren't a good fit for this restaurant, unless one person is rich enough to pay for a $1500 meal. I don't doubt Crow gets this type of clientele, but the rest of us are on a budget. Crow, have you heard we are in a recession? You are LUCKY you have people still eating at your restaurant. To treat us like imbeciles because we need to split the bill is an elitist attitude that will surely reduce your business.
Slice it, dice it, mash it, and serve it to perfection.
Crow's chef has a gift, kind of like the…
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No one likes to eat crow... unless you've been to this fine dining establishment.
I started off with their "Murder of Crows" cocktail, which I believe contained Absolut Citron, Mandarin and possibly some Chambord. It came with a sugar rim and it tasted like a fruitier version of a lemon drop. It's a little sweeter than I usually like, but I thought it looked interesting and knew what I was getting into.
For the second drink I ordered my trusty old friend, the manhattan with a twist. Which arrived with a cherry. "Minus one star," I said to my fellow yelper friend's amusement. I'm sorry Crow, I like you, but I'm very particular about my cocktails and if I order a twist it means I don't want sweet "cherry" juice spoiling the bourbon.
The food was scrumptastic. Is that a word? It is now. My yelpstress and I both had the grapefruit endive salad, which came with hazelnuts, gorgonzola and little wedges of grapefruit. It was a wonderful mix of flavors--bitter and sweet, nutty and tangy. I highly recommend it.
We split an order of bruschetta and their lasagna. Both were delicious, but even though I enjoyed it I felt the lasagna was kind of ordinary. Very tasty to be sure, but no more remarkable than lasagna I've made at home. There were some more interesting-looking dishes on the menu but I think I was in the mood for some comfort food. Their endive salad shows they have a talented chef, so next time I'll be more adventurous when ordering an entree.
This is definitely a place to which I will return.
This place is nothing short of awesome. Great cocktails served by friendly staff and followed up by some of the best food in town. It's a restaurant in the best of neighborhood restaurant traditions.
They're Price Fixe menu is $30 and gives you an appetizer (I had the 3 oysters), one of their proteins (my friend had the chicken, I had the hangar steak, both excellent) and one of their desserts. My dessert choice was Guinness ice cream with some caramel and a shot of Jameson's and it tasted fantastic.
Overall a great experience and I'm looking forward to hitting this spot again.
Based on the other reviews, I guess I should try this place again. The only time I ever went I was greatly disappointed. I ordered this "trio of meats" I believe it was called, not fully understanding it was literally a plate of three different kinds of salami from Salumi, sliced. And the portion? Less than I stack onto a handful of Triscuits at home. I was expecting MEAT meat, something hearty -- and so my whole view of the place was colored along the lines of $15 for a plate of salami I could have plated at home...
I was doubly disappointed about this place because we actually dined with the chef. It was my friend's b-day party, and she happens to be old friends with the chef there, who happened to sit across from me. This made things especially awkward when my food came and I was none too thrilled. I was scared to even look at the lady!
To make things worse, I don't think she liked me too much because I can't eat garlic. Some people seem to take that as a personal affront. At some Italian joints, it's as though I'm offending all of Italy when I ask what can be made without garlic. So anyway, I was going to grin and bear it, just order something and suffer a bit later, but my man announced it to her and asked for a recommendation! So perhaps she sabotaged my meal by suggesting the meat trio. Or maybe that's just paranoia.
Either way, not a pleasant experience, all the way around. I left hungry, drunk from lack of consumption aside from wine, and I haven't been back since. I'll write an update if I should happen to return.
Oh, Queen Anne. I am totally crushing on you right now. Went to Betty on Wednesday night and my gal pal and I swung into Crow on Thursday. Didn't realize they are sister restaurants until I sat down and the server mentioned it. I got a tad nervous thinking menus were going to be exactly the same, but I only recognized one item from Betty's menu. This was a whole new ballgame.
Kicked it off with an 'O' Pear...Clear Creek Pear Brandy, Bartlett Pear Pruee, and Prosecco, which was perfectly refreshing. Had the pomegranate and date salad with pecans and LOVED it. Vinaigrette was perfect and lightly tossed on bibb lettuce. Pecans were spiced with something oh so good that I wanted to inhale this salad with one gulp, but my mom taught me that isn't very lady like, so I used my fork. Hands down one of the best salads I have ever had. This salad and I are in love.
We shared the scallops with bacon and greens in a light cream sauce. Those scallops melted in my mouth. Table service was fantastic, atmosphere is sexy and cozy (right up my alley), and I will be returning for more.
Love the simple menu. Very simple, cool, delicious, easy menu for everything: food and drink. Great atmosphere. Nice service - its nice when you don't have to ask or flag people down to fill coffee, waters, take drink orders etc. They do it breezily and easy - its not forced, they just showed up at the table at the right time. Casual but sophisticated atmosphere.
Organic salad good...
Wine good
The lasagna was fine - it didn't jump off the plate. The salts and seasoning just weren't there. Looked really good, tasted ok. It was fine. Nothing special. It didn't have that turn on the tongue! That snap or piercing quality of "yeah, this is gooood!"
Will go back. Great atmosphere. Love the bars around the (bar) and the kitchen.
Super nice wait staff, great food, they never disappoint me EVER!
Great choice of wine, the grilled cod I ordered was perfect and the dessert was super heavenly! :)
Had a very tasty meal here. It was last year, so my recollection is a bit fuzzy. Just remember thoroughly enjoying my meal at the chef's counter and watching them at work. The space is very cool.
Looking forward to going back.
I had been here before when I was really tired, so another try was a must!
Starting with Hendricks Gin with Rosemary & Agave Nectar - a bit sweet, one is plenty for the taste buds. Grapefruit and Endive salad - large enough to be an entree. Seriously, I expected one small endive with a grapefruit wedge and some roasted filberts - but it was huge, perhaps the chef finishing off the last of his daily ingredients.
We shared the scallops over chopped greens and bacon. The scallops were cooked perfectly, just the right texture, one of my favorite dishes. And with bacon? Hard to screw that up!
The music was obviously getting the staff through the last of their shift, not that I don't like the best of the Rolling Stones, it just didn't seem to fit and it got old. Otherwise, I really like the space, the service was great and the price was fair. Another great neighborhood spot for Queen Anne.
Quality food, short menu (we like!), old standbys mixed with the new, very friendly chefs!
We have now eaten here twice, and Crow has risen to the top 5 of our favorite places to dine in Seattle. The food is great, prices are OK, but what stands out for us is the ability to eat at the bar overlooking the kitchen. We love chatting with the chefs as they prepare food, get their views on the dishes served that night, and most of all we love learning about the food we are eating. Additionally, the chefs are always good for a wine recommendation.
The food we have loved:
Grape leaf wrapped cheese; Smashed potato cake; Cured meat selection; Pan roasted chicken (old standby, excellent); and the fresh fish is always ordered.
Sitting at the bar is great for the two of us; we wouldnt recommend it for more than two, though, as its tough to talk amongst 4 at the bar. For two people, its perfect, and usually not crowded...so there is ample room. We love talking and sharing stories with the chefs, but most of all adding to our knowledge of cooking. They are very open about their recipes and methods, and yo usit far enough away that you dont feel the heat of the ovens or anything like that.
The prices are probably a tad higher than they should be, but we havent felt ripped off by any stretch. But most places make use feel like that!
The servers could stand to brush up on their knowledge, but for us this is a moot point as we rely on the chefs to direct us in our ordering.
All in all, 2 great experiences at Crow. We will be trying out the experience at a table soon.
For some reason almost all of my yelp reviews happen when I'm traveling on business. This affects the places I end up visiting -- ideally interesting non-touristy places where the pretentious factor is low and I don't feel pathetic or out of place dining solo.
As my current hotel overlooks south lake union and features a massive Hooters franchise across the street I was doubly determined to strike out on foot to see what I could find.
Crow was perfect - solo dining at the bar or another tabletop that overlooks the kitchen area with great cocktails and food.
The Royal Pimm's Cup (Pimm's herbal liquor, fresh lemon, lime & soda) and the Cucumber Gimlet (hendrick's gin, cucumber & lime) were absolutely fantastic. I was expecting them to come in standard glassware though so I had a momentary masculinity crisis when the somewhat colorful liquors were served up cosmo-style in martini glasses. For some ridiculous reason I prefer clear concoctions if I'm drinking from a martini glass - I know, silly really. Fantastic drinks and great bartender though.
Food was another win. I literally can't remember the last time I chose "the chicken dish" from a restaurant menu but based on the reviews of the prosciutto wrapped chicken with green beans I couldn't resist and was glad I did.
Excellent, all around.
I've been twice now and feel very comfortable in saying that their food is good. Over both visits I've been there with a total of 10 people so I've been able to sample a wide swath of their menu and I haven't tasted anything bad yet.
To date I have ordered the following:
Rillette (2x): According to one of the kitchen staff, it's actually a Creton since it's served warm but they decided to call it a Rillette because more people know what that is rather than a Creton. At any rate, it's spiced with "Christmas spices": Cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg and the like. Served with crostini and a mound of greens.
Cassoulet: This was a big bowl of deliciousness. Perhaps a tad on the salty side but tasty nonetheless. I should have stopped about halfway through the serving but it was so good I just kept going and nearly finished it. I can't really say anything more about it, it was damn good.
Smoked Trout salad with Horseradish dressing: I RARELY ever eat trout in a restaurant...it's always a disappointment having grown up with family camping/fishing outings where fresh (as in minutes from swimming to frying) trout was always on the menu. Since it was smoked I decided to give it a try. It was great. The fish was slightly smoky but not overpowering and the horseradish dressing had a really nice kick to it.
Things which other people ordered and I tasted:
Scallops: Good, even though I'm not a fan of scallops.
Grilled Manchego cheese: Delightful little pockets of warm cheese. The ratatouille was surprisingly good.
Roast chicken wrapped in Prosciutto: The chicken was moist, the skin was crispy and the Prosciutto adds a nice salty, porky note.
Thats all I can remember right now, but will update when I think of more. The bottom line is, their food is solid and will keep me coming back. Thank you Crow!
...now I need to try Betty.
For a 30+ person party, Crow does a magnificent job. The partitioned area was more than accommodating and the staff (amazing there was only one guy serving us) was Johnny on the spot with everything. I'm assuming he was the rotation's ace.
I wish I could say the food was as good as the service. The dishes were fine in their own right, but there was nothing spellbinding about them. My high expectations were set because everything about this place said "oh yeah, this place is going to kick ass". Its hip and ultra cool "converted art gallery" look got me excited about the impending feast. Perhaps this is a personal issue because with every new restaurant I try I'm always thinking "maybe this will be the one I fall in love with". Alas, such love was not found with the chivalrous Crow. The house special Lasagna and the pan roasted Chicken were commendable attempts at fantastic foods but effort without production can only get you so far.
First piece of advice if you are planning on going at say 7pm on a Saturday night and don't want to wait make reservations otherwise you'll end up waiting, stupid boys who think they know me but don't make reservations, anyways moving on... In my opinion this is not a very good date place, it's very noisy so if you're trying to hold an intimate conversation it's not going to be very successful you can try but unless you're sitting right next to each other instead of across the table from each other you'll fail.
They have a limited by the glass wine list which stinks but plenty of cocktails and beer to pick from; I went with a glass of their Pinot Noir and was very pleased with it.
The menu is small but has a nice variety and something for everyone except maybe not a vegan but I'm not 100% sure. I've enjoyed the chicken wrapped in prosciutto always wonderful. I've had the pork tenderloin with black beans and an avocado cream sauce which has was cooked perfectly but my most recent trip I had the fish of the day which was grilled halibut severed with curry lentils and cauliflower topped with a cilantro pesto. Visually it wasn't very pretty or inviting. The curry lentils kind of reminded me of baby poop but the halibut with the pesto was a party in my mouth. And the lentils were flavorful and filling not poopy at all but I wasn't a fan of the cauliflower, I could have done without the cauliflower but that was more a personal thing than Crow's cooking.
The last time I came for dinner and had the halibut an odd thing happened, my dates dinner arrived before mine. He started digging in instead of waiting for mine which was actually a good thing because mine took another five or more minutes to make it to out table and I'm sure his would have started getting cold by than. At least I had some oyster as an appetizer so I wasn't starving or anything but still I found this odd. I wondered for a second if maybe Crow was a Thai or Vietnamese restaurant because they tend to do things like this all the time but I knew it wasn't. heh
My second and last piece of advice it's in Queen Anne so parking stinks, if you find street parking four blocks away you may want to take it because by the time you come back to get it someone will have already taken it making you have to park five blocks away instead.
We ate at Crow for a friend's birthday party several weeks back. They had eaten here before and said the food was good.
When you walk in, the decor is dark. A few lights are scattered throughout the dining room. You feel a little like you're in some dungeon or medival dining hall. I suppose the darker decor is to fit in with the theme of the restaurant.
We started with the appetizers. We ordered the Mediterranean Sampler, the Salmon Carpaccio, and the Crab Cakes. The appetizers were good, but the crab cakes did not hold their form. The amount of pita bread with the Mediterranean sampler was small and we had to ask for more.
For dinner I ordered the Summer Succotash and it was okay, but not outstanding. Others in our party ordered dishes such as the pulled BBQ pork, the Seafood of the day, and the Sausage Lasagna. Members of our party raved about the pulled pork and lasagna.
Dessert was probably what put a bad taste in our mouth. We purchased a Mixed fruit tart from outside and brought it into the restaurant. They were kind of enough to store it in their refrigerator for us until we finished dinner. Once we were ready for dessert, they brought some plates and forks out, they put candles on the tart and brought it out. We sang happy birthday and then our waiter, Ian, offered to cut the cake for us. Ian collected our plates and then about 5 minutes later our dessert was brought back in plates. As Ian was setting the plates down, he mentioned that they will be charging us $3 for each cut of cake! He mentioned that this was a standard practice and was necessary since they wouldn't be making any money on dessert! (Never mind we dumped over $400 dollars there for 10 people for appetizers, drinks and the main course). They pompously told us that the person in our party who handed the tart to the staff to put in the refrigerator was informed of this policy. The person denied being told this. Many in our party were a little upset, but we didn't raise a fuss. Ian our waiter sensed our displeasure and came out and told us to talk with the manager if we had issue with the dessert plating fee. He could have apologized instead that the policy wasn't explained to us before he cut our tart. At least give us a choice to pay for the plating fee, or move on to a place where they're more outside dessert friendly.
When we got our bill, we swallowed the plating fee for the fruit tart (which ended up being more than the cost of the tart itself!), but were surprised to find that they had also charged us for extra pita bread and for every refill of soda! Ian collected our signatures and didn't bother thanking us on our way out.
Overall, the food here is 4/5. We were disappointed with the customer service and the way they handled the plating fee as well as smaller items like soda refills and pita bread. Many of us left feeling like our experience would have been better had we not brought in our own dessert for our friends birthday. For customer service from Ian, 2/5. The 18% automatic gratuity for our party of 10 was understandable, but the plating fee annoucned after the tart was cut and served was disappointing.
To Ian, thanks for your service, but you we felt like you acted very much like a used car salesman that night.
I walked into Crow at 9pm on a Thursday on a whim, having decided that I would try it out if I could find parking in the area. (A primo spot just across the street decided it for me.) I was expecting a smaller space and was pleased to find it open and almost airy inside, despite the dark colors on the walls and the low lighting. Most of the tables were filled, but the hostess offered me a seat at the chef's counter, which I eagerly accepted -- I love being able to watch the food being cooked, and the three chefs behind the bar were chatting up the customers, greeting some like old friends and welcoming others they didn't know.
Sara, my server, was great; attentive enough to keep my water glass filled (difficult to do if one isn't watching) but not stifling. Unfortunately, the basil lemonade cocktail I wanted to try was out, but she suggested the Spring Ginger Flower which was quite good. I started with the spring fruit salad: spinach, what I think was shaved hearts of palm, plump raspberries, blueberries, nectarine slices, and marcona almonds, topped by a generous shaving of parmigiano reggiano. I was dubious about ordering the salad starter as I didn't want to be too full for my dinner, but I'm glad I did. It probably was not large enough to serve as an entree, but was plentiful enough to be a shared appetizer.
I've been reading my fellow Yelpers' reviews of this place for a long time, so I knew I couldn't go wrong with the pan-roasted chicken with prosciutto and green beans for dinner, and I watched with great anticipation as it was prepared in front of me. The beans were lightly steamed but still snappy, just the way I like them, and the chicken... oh, the chicken. It was golden and crispy on top of a thick, perfectly juicy piece of meat. Just delicious. (And the chef gave me a high-5 when I complimented him on it, which I thought was charming.) The portion was large but not excessive, though I couldn't quite finish it.
Yes, I was full, but I decided that since I was obviously going all out for this meal (pricier than I generally spend on a dinner out for myself) I could at least look at the dessert menu. The couple at the counter next to me had ordered something with ice cream and brownies and chocolate fudge sauce, which looked wonderful, but I selected the "strawberries and cream": buttermilk panna cotta, topped with local strawberries, a balsamic reduction, and crispy sugar-sprinkled phyllo crackers. This dessert was possibly the world's best combination of flavors. Silky-smooth custard, berries that almost exploded with sweetness, the tangy balsamic drizzled over the top, and lighter-than-air phyllo... I want to eat it every day. I don't think I would ever tire of it.
This is one of the longer reviews I've written here, but I think the experience warrants it. I'm only sad that I hadn't been to Crow before now, but you can bet that's a mistake that I won't make again.
I still think longingly of the first meal I had at Crow - mussels in a curried broth for a starter, and a delicious steak (can't remember the cut now, I believe it was a rib eye) for dinner. I've eaten at Crow several times since then and sadly none of those times were as good as the first, although some were very good. I almost always order whatever the red meat entree is and while the meat is always perfectly cooked, they seem to go heavy on the seasoning, particularly salt. A quality piece of meat shouldn't be so seasoned that you taste the seasoning and not the meat, in my incredibly humble opinion. Last time I ate at Crow, I couldn't come close to finishing my steak because I could feel my blood pressure rising with every bite due to the sodium. But the asparagus that came on top of it was delicious and perfectly crisp.
All in all, Crow is a cool space, the wine list is good, the cocktails are supposedly delicious (I'm not a cocktail drinker myself), and I think the service (aside from the hostesses who tend to be a bit on the less-than-friendly side) is a good balance of helpful and not-in-your-face. It's definitely one of the better fine dining options on Lower Queen Anne.
And oh, those mussels. I'd eat them regularly if they had them on the menu still...
What a great place! I was pleasantly surprised at just how much I liked this place. The food was fresh and well-prepared. The wine selection was extensive. Service was fast, friendly, and accommodating. I will definitely make it back here and bring friends!
Though I'd locked myself out of my car before a play and was waiting for AAA to arrive, I wasn't so stressed out that I didn't realize the food at Crow was amazing. The fish of the day was excellent, as were the cocktail and wine selections. The blueberry tart was especially wonderful -- lemon and lavender creme anglaise!
I was slightly disappointed with the oysters on the half shell -- served on an overflowing bed of rock salt, they were a tad overly saline. That was really my only quibble, though.
Now trying to figure out when to go back ... Queen Anne is a bit out of the way!
This place has turned into one of my favorite restaurants in town. Just a quick glance at the menu should tell you why. It doesn't matter what menu you look at (they change seasonally) the dishes are always mouthwatering. The food and service are always exceptional. The cocktails are inventive and delicious and the wine list is good and reasonably priced. This is a great place for people who simply want a really good meal.
I've come here recently for several large parties, which I have to say were run very well. Crow had a section of the restaurant blocked off for us and were more understanding than I was about people arriving late (hint: if you're showing up for a dinner party at a restaurant, don't arrive an hour late. Absence does not make the heart grown fonder, you are not arriving fashionably late, people do not think you're cool because you're too busy to show up on time, you're just keeping hungry people from their food, which is a particularly egregious sin when the food looks and smells as good as it does at Crow).
I've eaten here twice now and been very pleased with the experience. Sitting by the kitchen really gives you a chance to see how they are working as a team. The kitchen space is really well organized and well run, and is amazingly quiet, even in the rush times. I know some folks will say the menu is limited, but when you watch the kitchen you really get a sense of what that limitation enables, in that they have a nice simple assembly line and chefs who know how to bang out the few dishes they serve with great consistency.
My favorite dish so far is the prosciutto wrapped chicken, which is darn near perfect. They fabricate the chicken and use the breast and thigh for this dish. The chicken is started skin side down in a cast iron skillet on the stove and given about 5 minutes over high heat to really crisp up the skin and ham. Then it is into the oven to cook through in the skillet, about 10 minutes since their are some bones. Then the chicken goes onto a roasting tray and back into the oven and the skillet is pulled onto the stove to make a pan sauce with white wine, chicken stock, garlic, shallots, and some herb. Then blanched green beans are added to the sauce to reheat. Finally the chicken comes out of the oven and the beans and sauce are plated and the chicken is placed on top.
From the crisping of the skin, to the perfectly blanched beans, to the presentation that keeps the sauce off of the skin, and even the perfect seasoning on the chicken they are doing everything just right. My only complaint is that the pan sauce could use a little brightness, perhaps some lemon juice, or some balsamic, or perhaps some mustard.
I have had great service both times I have been there.
One last point is that I love to get such great classic techniques in a place with such a casual vibe. If this had been a venue with white tablecloths and a sommelier they would only have gotten a 4, as they would be compared to other Michelin wannabes in the area. As it is, they absolutely deserve a five as one of the best casual dining options in the area.
If it wasn't for the overwhelmingly positive hype and rave reviews I'd heard from friends and reviewers about Crow, I probably would have liked it better.
We finally checked it out last month on a (rarer than we'd like) date night away from our toddler and baby... we had a great time and the food + service were all around very solid, just quite a bit shy of the raves we've heard.
The grilled asparagus and mussels appetizers were outstanding -- yummy crispy bits on fat (but still tender) asparagus pieces, and great salty/savory/just-a-bit-sweet broth with the shellfish.... also one of the signature cocktails my wife tried (I can't remember the name offhand) was also quite good, though a bit over-sweet.
Entrees (steak and halibut, respectively) were, again, very solid, just not remarkable -- more in line with other solid standbys like Atlas or Coastal Kitchen than with say Brasaor Stumbling Goat, let alone a Crush or Tilth, etc.
Service was also solid but not remarkable, and the bathrooms while clean were surprisingly shabby.
All this said -- we'd absolutely go back, and this is not to take away from Crow being very solid -- it's just certainly not jumped into our favorite spots.
Crow just does everything.... better.
Nothing fancy, just really well prepared NW food at reasonable prices with a solid wine list at exceptionally palatable prices. Ordering chicken at a restaurant typically has all the excitement of dating an ex, but Crow's prosciutto wrapped chicken borders on pornographic barnyard bondage. So good, so wrong....
Being pecked in the eye by a surly crow is one of my more irrational fears in life. In fact, I pretty much hate most birds, but crows seem to be the most arrogant of them all, the way they strut around the yard, squawking at all the smaller birds as if they are the bosses of the bird world. I mean, they hardly even move out of the way when cars come near. Damn, narcissistic birds.
I know this has absolutely nothing to do with the following review, but I just felt I needed to get that out in the open. Because even the name alone is enough to make me think twice before going into a restaurant called Crow. I've seen the movie The Birds, and granted it was mainly about seagulls, but I prefer to keep my distance from modern-day dinosaurs, if I can.
Fortunately for me, however, I was not attacked by a crow while eating at Crow. In fact, I was quite distracted by the fabulousness of the food to really notice all the iron crows ominously watching over the dining room.
My husband Roth and I went early on a Friday evening without a reservation and snagged a table just under the wire. But our punishment, if you will, for not making a reservation was a time limit on the table. The hostess told us we'd need to be done by 7:15, and would that be enough time? It was just before 6, so we figured more than an hour would be plenty of time. Or else, what would happen, I wondered under my breath. Would we turn into pumpkins?
Regardless of the time limit, we settled in for a round of drinks. I ordered the Murder of Crows, or Absolut Mandarin and Citron, Creme de Cassis and fresh lemon, while Roth tried the Belgian farmhouse ale (the actual name escapes me, and it's not listed on their online menu) -- both of which were $7 each. A little spendy for beer served in a red wine glass, but the other beers on the menu were under $5, so we figured the $7 beer must be something special. Roth thought it was really smooth, while my drink was mouth-puckering tart perfection.
But the food? My god, the food was sublime. I started with the soup du jour, which was pureed potato and leek with a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkling of fresh herbs on top. It took all of me to keep from licking the bowl, but then I remembered that I was in public. Roth started with the Bartlett pear and bibb lettuce salad, which was dressed in a light vinaigrette and garnished with crumbled stilton and walnuts. Also amazingly fresh and crisp.
For our main courses, I ordered the prosciutto-wrapped breast of chicken (apparently, I have no problem eating birds) with green beans and wine reduction sauce, while Roth opted for the daily fish special, which was pan-seared halibut topped with Portobello duxelle on top of sauteed escarole and buerre blanc. I had heard good things about the chicken, and I was not disappointed in the least. I'm thinking that from now on, I will demand that all my food be served in a similar gift wrapping of crispy prosciutto. Yes, even donuts.
If we were being picky for the sake of being picky, Roth's halibut special seemed a tad pricey for just six ounces of filet - $22? And served without any sort of starch, all of which were offered on the menu as a la carte items. But my chicken was worth every cent of its $15 price, with or without starch. And also, the food runner who brought the soup and salad did not bring me a soup spoon or offer me any fresh cracked pepper (though, he did offer Roth some for his salad, but flat-out ignored me). But again, just being nitpicky, because truly, the dinner was superb.
We finished up just before getting the 7:15 boot, which meant forgoing dessert, but I was so satisfied with my food choices that I couldn't care less. Though, I'm thinking if we'd lingered for even a few more minutes, what with no other open tables for her 7 p.m. reservations, the hostess would've been the one to peck out my eye, as opposed to one of the ornamental crows hanging up around the place as decor.
Perhaps the restaurant was a bit over hyped and maybe I was expecting too much, but I really wasn't all that impressed with Crow. The food was tasty, but to me nothing really stood out as being outstanding or truly unique. Prices were fair - though its definitely not cheap. The wine selection was pretty nice - though I must admit it did seem to tilt a little more towards the mid and high end.
That said, the thing that got me the most is that their menu is incredibly small with a total of six entrees. Which seemed really really low to me.
Also for those who care there isn't a huge amount of parking in the area so for the parallel parking phobic it is something to consider.
I never thought about going to Crow because I thought of it more of a scene place. So one day while having my daily latte at Appassionato and chatting it up with the owner's, I met the chef for Crow. We had spoken several times before and when I mentioned that the hubby and I were having a date night, he offered to make reservations for us at the food bar, where you can watch the chefs cook. Of course, I am not going to turn it down.
This is definetely a great place. A scene it is, but a nice mix of Opera goers and hipsters and singles, everyone is having a great time. They seem to have a really cool bar scene. We arrived exactly at 7:30 and was lucky to find parking which is tough on the weekends on a restaurant crowded street in Lower Queen Anne. The hostess seated us in front of the chef's area with the chef greeting us "Here you are!". After introducing the Hubby, there is nothing better than being personally welcomed to a restaurant by the chef.
The menu is limited but my belief is that there is no reason for any of the food to be bad, if they can perfect all these dishes. Bedause the Hubby was driving and we have a new car, he opted not to have a cocktail. I had something called a "thirst quencher" with campari, grapefruit juice and soda. It was perfect on this seasonally warm day. It wasn't too sweet, but it was great with the Mediterranean Platter we ordered. We were getting full of a plate filled with two different olive tapenades, tzatziki with great chunks of cucumber, marinated mushrooms, pita bread, marinated olives and a nice hunk of feta. Really this was huge.
For the main course, I ordered the Fish of the Day which was Pesto crusted Halibut served over Daal and roasted cauliflower. Hubby had the Hanger steak over a bed of lettuce, fingerling potatoes and a nice hunk of roquefort cheese. We also decided on a side of potato cake and green beans. All this food was outstanding. The portions were generous and as I write this review I have just polished off my leftovers. All the items on the plate complemented each other perfectly. I have never seen my husband enjoy his food so much.
For dessert we shared a rhubard crumble with vanilla bean ice cream.
This was a great dining experience and the chef spoke to us while he cooked up all these great dishes. It was absolutely amazing to watch how much work goes on into preparing these wonderful dishes and the whole beautiful plate comes together at your table flawlessly.
I can't wait to see the chef at Appassionato to tell him will be back!
Pretty affordable, everything we ordered came out to about $85, which totalled $100 with the tip.
Cardamom! The cured meat appetizer has a Salumi sausage with cardamom!
Also one with fennel. Fennel is good, too.
And the vegetable pasta entree has little gourd-shaped yellow tomatoes in it.
And the frozen lemon mousse has basil in the blackberry sauce.
And the walls have Rothko-like drippy paint rectangles.
All these are good ideas.
But cardamom trumps everything.
Oyster Hour Weekdays 5 -7pm!
Neighborhood: Columbia City
Thanksgiving Day at Sazerac
Neighborhood: Downtown
Neighborhood: Queen Anne
Category: American (New)
Neighborhood: Queen Anne
Category: Bars
Neighborhood: Queen Anne
Category: American (New)
Neighborhood: Queen Anne
Category: Italian
Neighborhood: Queen Anne
Category: Greek
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