Walrus and the Carpenter

My boyfriend and I were visiting Seattle for the first time, and we wanted to try west coast oysters, as we’ve only ever had them from the Gulf or the east coast (he’s from North Carolina, I grew up in Maryland before moving to the Carolinas in high school). We got lucky by getting on the wait list early (around 5 pm) and were third in line. By the time our Uber got to the restaurant, it was our turn. The hosts and servers do a great job managing the chaos of a very popular restaurant in a very small space. We didn’t feel rushed to finish our meals, and thanks to the little divider between the bar and the tables, we didn’t have people crushed against our backs, either. I loved sitting at the bar so I can watch all the magic happen — shucking, plating, etc. We ended up ordering the bread plate along with two of each oyster on the menu, so we could both try all seven, using the bread to cleanse our palate between each. They were delicious! They went from being extremely delicate in flavor to being pungent and powerful. The last two were a bit much for me, I wouldn’t be able to eat many of them because of how intense they were, but they were delicious. But it’s the difference between drinking water and drinking whiskey. Both enjoyable, but one is better enjoyed in smaller quantities. Overall a great experience, and we will be back!

Service was great! Wish there were more hot appetizers options!

The food was just average. I expected it to be amazing after reading all the reviews but was left disappointed by the mediocrity

Delicious and chill anniversary dinner

We had a fantastic time. While you wait for your table go to the bar next door, Barnacle. The bartenders are superb at crafting delicious cocktails. Once we got to our table, the entire serving staff was delightful, guiding us in our experience but also enjoying the experience with us. Thanks team for a lovely evening!

After extracting $20 from us at the barnacle bar (where a knowledgeable bartender read off a card to us about our liqueurs), we were moved to some interim waiting stools. The wait staff was unable to get the table before us to leave.

To save you the details, I think only the fried geoduck was notable: the foie gras profiteroles tasted like salty whipped cream, the turnips were a large, tooth-aching portion, and the halibut ceviche tostada was a tiny, unsharable lump indistinguishable from tilapia.

The server spilled my drink into our $6 bread. Save your money and frustration and go somewhere else - anywhere else.

Dylan makes the best cocktails and the entire staff are the most friendly. Delicious food and worth waiting for!