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happy hour with a girlfriend, dinner out with the SO, late night drinks...all are good at hectors.
we love the back room where you can sit near the fire, have a cocktail and some snacks. service has been excellent the 5+ times we've been here in the last two months. food is always good-i love the mussels, cheese plate and salads. husband loves the burgers and steaks.
and the nachos are to DIE for.
pinch pricey but worth it for us because we can walk.
I don't get Hector's. The decor is warm, interesting and welcoming. The menu reads well, and seems as if the food would be really good. There is a lot of versatility of items offered, and everything on the menu is quality. For example, real maple syrup on the breakfast menu.
The service is also good. Definitely no complaints there. So this brings me to the food. The quality is good, but it's boring and just not good. It's almost like they're using mediocre recipes, like the head chef is actually an amateur home cook. For example, the pancakes: I've never had more dense, heavy, rubbery pancakes. The hash browns were cold, unseasoned, dried out and crunchy, like uncooked spaghetti noodles.
When I had dinner there it was the same deal. The beef brisket was really boring. I love bbq, and this was very mediocre. I do remember the sweet potato fries being very good, but it's hard to mess up something like sweet potato fries. So like I said, it's not the quality of food that is the problem, but both times I've been, it's just been very boring, unmemorable food.
The Brie Mac and Cheese - I blame this creation on my ever growing backside.The homeboys dig it.
Get this stuff though, because good God.....its evil in a "I'm ready to sign my life over because this is IT" good way.
The happy hour is decent, the people watching is prime, and it isnt packed with your typical Kirkland ho-baggy housewives. Service is great, and, which is rare for Kirkland, this place has managed to keep their lease going and the business ....busy.
Oh, and they have Brie Mac and Cheese..... I'm capitalizing those words because they deserve MAD respect (street cred SON!) and a spanking at my house.
Numnumnum.
This very handsome man asked me today if I liked wine. Um, is the sky blue? Doi.
He was handing out coupons for Hector's for half off glass pours, and suggested I try the Crusher viognier. Um, ok cute guy, I will!
So Cici and I headed to Hector's, each had a glass of wine, and a cheese plate of 5 different delicious cheeses, fruit and crackers. With our coupons, we each paid eight bucks before tip. Not bad.
And coupon guy, I think you are a cute nugget.
Word on the street is this is one of the spots where the infamous "cougars of Kirkland" hang...… Read more »
Hadn't been to Hector's in a long time. Got there about 9:30p on a Friday night; it wasn't too busy, but there was no place to sit in the bar. Headed back to the front desk and was greeted with a smiling positive attitude and was immediately seated at a booth in the main room.
Claire (waitstaff) was full of smiles and seemed to know her wines which is always a nice touch especially since i don't know much about wine except they come in two colors.
Ordered the chicken cobb salad (I'm always in search of a good cobb salad - it's one of my things) it was good size portion; could've done with a little less bleu (or is it blue) cheese, but I ain't complaining - just sayin'. The ahi appetizer was ordered as well, but i didn't taste it. It was met with zero complaints other than the sauce that came with it was spicy.
Overall - good experience and I'd check it out again.
The service was great; the food was not.
I'll be quite honest here: it's been a year since I've eaten here. I don't remember too much about the food, except that it was bad enough that I didn't ever want to go back here ever again. Ever.
We went in with a large party (~8 people). The waitress did a pretty good job handling our order promptly and professionally. Their selection is somewhat limited, so it's not like we had a lot of choices to pick from.
You're better off looking at other nearby restaurants.
Went here for lunch last week and I have to say - I'm impressed! We ended up eating in the bar and I found the old-school leather roller chairs to be a bit...well, old school, but comfortable. I'm guessing there's some kind of story behind the gorgeous antique-looking wood bar and backdrop, but there was nothing printed in the menu.
The lunch was good - a bit overpriced in my opinion, but my crab grilled cheese sandwich was PERFECTLY grilled...not too greasy. My lunch companion had a salad but there wasn't much progress made (more from chit-chat than anything being wrong with the salad).
I have it on good authority that the Sunday brunch is a great way to recover from Saturday night shenanigans!
Old world stuffy with horrible coffee and expensive breakfasts. Yogurt parfait was interesting, but small for the price with one strawberry and a few banana slices.
I was offered a coffee refill 4 times, but couldn't finish a second sip.
I would give it a try for lunch but not dinner given the $$$ price tag for entrees.
We love the happy hour (which is extended more during the next door Bank of America construction and the down economy), and if it's not too cold, the outside deck with heaters is fine. You can even come with a child and a dog and enjoy the happy hour outside of the main bar area. I like the mussels, sliders with yam fries and G&Ts. In the main restaurant, I like the crab cake salad, and the crab-corn chowder.
This place was a great experience. I was waiting to meet a friend for dinner, so I stopped in for a quick beer. They had a very nice bar environment, with $4.50 pints. The furniture is gorgeous, and the staff was very nice (not to mention cute). I made my way through the upscale folks and sat down with a group of good looking women for whom I spent most the hour or two I was there talking with. Not a lot of rift-raft make their way through this place from what I saw (This is good). It's a little cramped, but I've seen worse. The televisions are nice for us sports fans, and the beer was fantastic. I'll be there again next time I'm in downtown Kirkland.
Breakfast was so yummy. A little pricier than most places for breakfast, but worth every penny :)
Kind of stuffy - it reminded me of a darker, more dilapidated McCormick and Schmick's. Blue cheese salad was tasty, and so were the beef skewers, but overall pretty pricey for what you get. On the upside, my martini was perfectly dirty (with three olives!) and our server was attentive, despite never smiling or showing any outward signs of personality. We pretty much inhaled our food and left for greener pastures. I wouldn't want to make a night of this place.
Hector's is your mid-grade restaurant, serving American fare that will likely please everyone in your party. It is not necessarily a destination place, but is worth a visit if you are in the neighborhood. Hector's is pretty good sized, with a classy bar and a nice dining area.
The wait staff was superb, and our meal was decent. Prices range from $10-20/plate, and breakfast is served nearly all day. Contrary to previous reviewers, I really enjoyed the salmon-artichoke dip served with flatbread ($9), as well as the crab and corn chowder ($8). My boyfriend also enjoyed his entree, the meatloaf sandwich.
We walked out satisfied, and wouldn't hesitate to return.
I've been here about 10 times for breakfast, several each for lunch and dinner, never stopped in the bar. The breakfasts are luxurious, not too crowded with tables suitable for watching the Kirkland joggers and coffee addicts going through their morning routines. Lunches and dinners are comfortable, with seating in well-padded booths and indulgent waiters and waitresses.
The breakfast items are well-prepared although not quite luscious. This morning I had the french toast (and wished I'd ordered the crepe), and my daughter had the heuvos hectaros, which elicited no complaints.
Lunch and dinner are fairly standard up-scale entres. This is our destination when we're not feeling affluent enough for the wonderful fish restaurants with a view on the other side of the street, but still want the lakeside Kirkland attitude.
After a late night out, Hector's was a cure-all for us. We got there around noon or so and I was still able to order breakfast.
I ordered the high protein breakfast (broiled ground chuck/beef, mushrooms, tomatoes, and an egg) and a cup of the corn and crab chowder.
The soup was great and the breakfast was okay. I asked for the bechamel sauce on the side and it didn't happen. The service brought my plate to me and guilted me into keeping it. How did she do this? She put it down and said, "Oh they didn't put the sauce on the side....if you want....I could bring it back and they can make you a whole new plate...if you want....I can do that...if you want...." I brushed her away and ate it. I'll admit, the sauce actually helped.
Another diner at the table ordered the Chicken Fried Steak, now that was good. I had plate-envy the whole time but still felt 200% better after filling my tummy.
The smoked salmon artichoke dip was horendous.....not a good combo!
The waitress was slow and didn't check back with us enough.
The cheeseburger tasted like the meat was dirty or something?
Bleh.
I've only eaten at Hector's for their weekend brunch once, but I would be down for additional food exploration.
I went WAY out of my norm and did not order the biscuits & gravy for my first trip here... I don't know why. Not that it turned out to be a bad idea. I ordered the Two! Two! Two! - Two eggs, two mini-pancakes, and a choice of two hearty strips of bacon or two pork apple-link sausages. $7.75 I'm pretty sure I got the bacon. Mmmmmmm bacoooon. *ahem* Sorry.
Everything arrived very quickly even though they were busy and our Bloody Mary supply was also well tended to. Very good Bloody Marys, by the way. I don't like mine too spicy, but that's a hit-or-miss instruction for the bartender usually. These were perfect!
My gf ordered the Hectoros Rancheros - Two eggs cooked to order, two crisp corn tortillas, fresh avocado, Hector's ranchero sauce, and sour cream. Served on a bed of black beans and hash browns. $10.75 and it looked DEVINE! That's what I'll be trying next time.
They also allowed us to linger (without an ounce of annoyance) while we had another round of drinks and conversation, even though they were on a one table wait. Bloody cheers to you, Hector!
Dinner was a bit disappointing when I learned that the bouillabaise was out, so I order the scallops, which were prepared "Asian-style" - on rice with assorted veggies. The sauce was trying too hard, and the rice was smooshy. I couldn't wait to finish the scallops, which was not too bad, and get out of there.
Still a fan! Happy hour is great here! half off until 7 PM. The Hector's Lemonade...DEADLY! I mean it, and do not follow it with a shot of jager...even if it is free. This lead to a very different spray tanning experience afterwards...haha! lol. Anyway, I had the Ahi Tuna at Hector's while my wonderful "date"...ok ,ok it was Sarah had the fruit and cheese plate. Her's was huge and mine was very filling as well. Kinda think this place is slowly becoming my favorite HH in Kirkland. =]
I give this classy place 3 stars bc the food was great, the atmosphere was home-like (literally),… Read more »
From what I have read, Hector's is great for breakfast, but perhaps is a little less consistent at lunch or dinner. I cannot (yet) comment on breakfast, but did eat dinner here my last trip to the Seattle/Kirkland area.
I was seated rather quickly, even though the place was fairly busy. My table was in the bar area, which was dark and moody, and the seats reminded me of some restaurant from the 70's. Service was attentive, coming over to the table within a few minutes after I was seated to take drink orders. Good sign. A perusal of the extensive menu showed that Hector's specializes in upscale comfort food (they have beef stroganoff made with tenderloin!) and a strong selection of seafood dishes (to be expected in this area.)
There were about 4-5 things that sounded super good, but I opted for the meatloaf (with rosemary mashed potatoes, collard greens and onion strings.) My server informed me that the meatloaf was on the prix fixe menu, and I could have a 3 course meal for $27. Not bad, since the meatloaf itself was $15.50. I chose the blue cheese salad to start. The salad was a healthy portion with good blue cheese. But that was nothing compared to the entree. It was loaded with 3 thick slices of meatloaf, big scoop of mashed potatoes and a pile of greens. I've probably had meatloaf 32,673 times in my life, so I know good from bad. This was solid, if unspectacular, meatloaf. It would certainly satisfy a meatloaf craving, but doesn't elevate the dish to something fabulous. The mashed potatoes were merely OK, but the greens were very well done. Anyone who has tried to make collard greens know how it can be to do them right.
Totally stuffed, I was reminded by my waitress that I still had dessert to choose. OK, if I must. I opted for a fruit crisp, after noting that it took at least 10 minutes to prepare. This would give me some time for my entree to settle. I could only manage a few bites, but noticed that it was heavy on the crisp and light on the fruit.
I'll be back next time in town to try out breakfast. I'd give Hector's a 3.5 stars now, so we'll see if that goes up after my next visit.
Good food, good times, good bar, usually good service. And a nice, comfortable atmosphere. But nothing special, really, and often overrun by middle-aged divorcees on the prowl.
Great place for brunch, though.
We were here for drinks before heading out to dinner. We got some window seats for optimal people watching, but there wasn't much exciting going on.
Drinks were just okay and the appetizers were meh. Nothing extraordinary.
One of my friends has a story of her sneaking in with her roomie and drinking in their pj's in the bar. I think she was making it up, but seeing how she's a good friend, I'm letting it slide.
What a great bar scene. Beautiful people, great service by Jilly, pretty good food and a FUN atmosphere. Fun, Fun, Fun.
Please see my blog for more details and reviews.
Kirkland is also a really neat town right on the water. Take the time to have a drink and dinner here, it is worth the 15 minute ride from Seattle.
3 Smirnoff 18.00
6 Widmer Hefeweisen 30.00 (there were great)
Quesadilla 4.50
Buffalo Chicken Strips 4.50 (awesome)
3 Terrazas Chardonnay 28.50
Sliders 12.00 (i didnot like at all)
Deep Fried Calamari 9.00 (really good)
4 Mac and Jack 22.00 (good local brew)
1/2 off glass promo -14.25 (????)
Total 134.13 - dinner for three, really solid value!!
I can see how this place would be cougar central in the evenings.
Brunch was ok. Food was typical food service type stuff: french toast from a box, generic hash browns, etc. The service was unfriendly and inattentive.
The wheels shouldn't fall off if a place gets slammed with customers.
Speaking from more of a barfly... the restaurant from what I heard is great - but I can't really stomach going to some place that charges $13 for eggs Benedict...
So I mostly frequent the bar...
Great service... fun recommendations by the bartenders... looking for a dark place to enjoy the game on a Thursday - or just sink back in a cushy chair and talk to your date... I vote Hector's...
You can go here any time of day (breakfast, lunch or dinner) and get good food and good service. They even have a solid kids menu too.
I loved going to Hector's for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Food quality is stable and good. Service is always good.
cream cheese galore
I had the salmon omelet and little did i know that it will be salmon and an overpowering amount of cream cheese. i could barely taste the salmon. it tasted like it was lacking... something, but it definitely was not the cream cheese.
The soup was pretty good, but salty. The service, however, was excellent; attentive and kind. I went there at the height of easter brunch so there was this high pitched screaming kid behind me. Might i just simply add that a screaming kid is the best birth control ever.
Wait - Hectors has FOOD?? I've only gone there for "adult beverages".
I always have a good time every time I go. Great drinks, interesting Kirkland folks.
Just beware of the "I've been dying whats left of my hair for 18 years, and used to own a Cadillac dealership, I like to look at young women" regulars. Of course - i'm just referring to one in particular...
yah - you need to message me for names.
:)
Where was I?
Oh yes. Good service, good bartenders, and one stiff Cosmo!
(next time i'll try the food)
I've been to Hector's for brunch, and it was pretty good. We were seated pretty much right away and the service was prompt and attentive. I remember being amused because there was a guy in an apartment across the street strutting shirtless in front of an open window. It was January.
OK, the food: I had the salmon omelette described aptly in a previous review. It was decent, but pricey, if memory serves. I don't remember being blown away.
We went back with a big group (9 people) on a Friday night. I suppose at some point I'll need to accept that I live in suburbia, but it's not easy. I just can't get over the drunk 20-somethings with their bad highlights, Mystic tans and fake nails. They seem to be everywhere in Kirkland, which is a shame.
OK, I digress -- again. We ordered the nachos appetizer, which was heavy on the chips, light on the cheese (grrrr). The drinks were really, really expensive -- but, that said, very generous. I had one cocktail and was suddenly not so annoyed with Blonde Midriff sitting on the lap of the cocked hat-wearing steroid guy.
I got the portobello mushroom sandwich sans fries. I liked it. But again, I think it was pretty pricey.
So -- eh. Whatever.
Bar's good to grab a drink... Nice and dark like a bar should be. Used to have live music but not anymore (I don't think).
I didn't feel the restaurant as much but the food is tasty.
Sunday brunch is a must here but ask for the back room where there's a fireplace and it feels like you're at 6th grade camp - very cool while sipping your mimosa over the week's catch-up.
Breakfast! Yay!
I've only ever had breakfast here and it's pretty tasty.
Their biscuits and gravy was so good (even though I was only stealing bites from my boyfriend's plate). They put dill in the gravy, which added a fresh dimension to what's normally a gut bomb meal.
The eggs benedict was good, too. Nice, creamy and smooth hollandaise. Eggs done to perfection. Crispy rectangles of hash browns. Very, very tasty!
The coffee flows pretty freely, always an essential part of any breakfast. They didn't mind when the other folks at our table brought in takeaway cups from Tully's, either.
I like the back room with the fireplace and tables that can be squished together for larger groups. Lots of happy little children, covering themselves and the entire floor in pancakes...and once they left, the place was immediately cleaned up such that you'd barely notice there had been such a mess minutes before.
The reason I went here on a Wednesday evening with some coworkers for dinner and drinks was to settle a bet about whether the bar portion of Hector's was in fact a cougar hunting ground.
Our group gradually grew and they were accommodating of us switching from the back room (with live music) to a large table in the dining room to a very large table in the dining room.
I had a tortellini pasta with chicken special (~$16) that was unremarkable - it reminded me of the better end of similar dishes at chain Italian restaurants (disclaimer: coming from NJ I am a bit spoiled.) I kept thinking that for that price for pasta, I'd much rather go to, among other places, Sages in Redmond or Assaggio downtown.
For what is mostly a bar, this place's food is expensive, as the other reviewers' state. Some of the stuff is reasonable, but $16 appetizers should tell one something (and reinforce the Eastside cougar hypothesis.)
After multiple of the younger males in the group did recon runs through the bar, in the end we could not decide. There were plenty of older women with the cougar look and dress, but there were plenty of and mostly older men.
While the place is overpriced, we did actually have a fun time here, so I believe it deserves the benefit of the doubt. On the other hand, I doubt this is the scene of most Yelpers, but it feels like they resonate with their target audiences. I wouldn't come back outside of a similar event where majority opinion ruled.
You know for years I didn't even know this place had a front door, not too mention the last time I was here it was about 12 years ago and a lot has changed since then. And, back then I mostly just imbibed on the decently priced and well poured drinks.
This time was different, I actually tried the food during a Happy Hour meet up with a buddy of mine. Here's the run down.
Appetizers range from $9.00 being the cheapest to $16.50 for the most expensive. But, during happy hour they go half price on all apps and you save a buck or two on the drinks. I had the Mac and Cheese (white cheddar, corn flakes all baked with brie), the beef sticks and had one of my friends chicken sticks. The beef was pretty tender and very tasty, but the chicken was to die for (grilled chicken then breaded with coconut).
I can't say that I'm at all cool with the idea about happy hour being the only reason why decent food is made affordable... but, since it was the best mac and cheese I've had in years and that the beef and chicken sticks were pretty damn tasty I'm saying three stars.
Minus two for Hector's being a cliche and for the drinks being overly priced and not as well poured as in the past.
Hector -- it's not just a verb. That quip has nothing to do with the rest of the review, but it came to mind, and I thought I'd get it out of the way, openly, rather than trying to sneak it into a punning aside in the body of the review.
The food is as good as you'll find in (suburban) Seattle late in the evening. Crab macaroni and cheese is among my favorites. Big portions, big hot plates from the Americana-with-a-twist cooking school (ok, that's kind of 90s), cheerfully competent service.
Last time, I sat near a big table of beery salesmen-or-something, discussing their impending night out to strip clubs. Their conversation was, how to put it politely, not difficult to hear, and it was, umm, the opposite of muted -- and that usual loudness is one thing I dislike about Hector's. The atmosphere can be annoying if you prefer to eat your late-night meal contemplatively. The wooden walls seem constructed to amplify the noise (usually a conscious strategy employed by restaurateurs who want to make their place seem "busy").
You will easily spend $25/person on high-quality diner food, and that's not so bad in Kirkland. Maybe you'll have a few dollars left for earplugs.
Yawn*
I went here once for dinner and once for breakfast. It's just one of those places where you and your friends are like "where do you want to eat?...I dunno where do you want to eat" and it goes on for like 10 minutes until someone get's pissy and says let's just go to Hector's. For breakfast I had the tenderloin skewers and eggs. The skewers were pretty bland even with the hollandaise sauce.
I had dinner there but I just had the Ahi appetizer. Eh.
Don't get me wrong, the place is always busy in there so they obviously don't serve garbage. I'm most likely going to be dragged there again anyway, so I'm going to definitely try something more imaginative.
Hector is set in a trendy kirland downtown which attracts you as soon as you see it. Though being on lake street, they dont have a view of lake washington. Thats one reason it loses its value
About their waiter service. Our server was pretty hospitable and gave his advise about what to try there.
and all the important thing, it's not that great for the price they charge. It will easily put you back by $40-$50 (dinner) and if you are really not very keen on putting a hole in your wallet for decent food, you should stay away from this place. We didnt try their bar which looked impressive but tried wine. I have to say them that they have pretty good collection of wine. Parking can be a little problem.
I'm on the fence about Hectors. As some other reviewers have mentioned, this is the place where you go when you want to eat in a decent atmosphere without having anything special in mind. That's how I ended up there for lunch today, my second visit.
We were promptly seated in a comfy booth (big plus) near the door (cold!) and bar (rowdy with Seahawks' fans). Our service was fine. No complaints but nothing worthy of a letter home.
As for food, I had the ($15!) crab mac and cheese. The first bite...hearty dungeness crab and melted brie...amazing. I spent the rest of the meal searching for more, only to be disappointed when I only found two other chunks of crab in the dish. I even resorted to salt for flavor. Come on! My other half had the chicken brie burger. The chicken breast and slice of brie were positively minuscule, particularly on top of a large bun. He said that the food that was there tasted acceptable. Our friend had biscuits and gravy. He commented that the herb gravy was a little odd, but the biscuits and gravy vanished, so I assume they were edible.
Will we go back? Yes, but not because we've been craving it all week or just can't wait to go back. It's a fine default, but don't expect anything special.
On a side note, the other time I went to Hector's was a Friday night with a group of 10 and no reservations. Despite a long line, we were seated almost immediately. Like I said, it's a fine fall-back.
Don't come here looking for upscale food, like some people seem to have, but rather "regular" food done nicer. Meals like their club sandwich and fish and chips are very nicely done, whereas if you order some of the more classy stuff you'll probably be disappointed, especially given the rest of Kirkland's selection. Only complaint is the price, which doesn't quite justify the food.
The place has also gotten nicer (and busier) since the remodel.
Ended up here one night when the wait at Anthony's was unbearable. In hind sight, we probably should have waited. My brother ordered the crab mac & cheese which was pretty decent. My Ahi was next to flavorless. I have definitely had better-at a cheaper price. My mom & sister both ordered the salmon which was disappointing, dried out and lacking any remnant of flavor.
The service was ok. Nothing remarkable. We won't be back.
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