Seattle Restaurant Review | Siam on Lake Union

I figured since I already reviewed a Seattle sushi restaurant and a Seattle steak restaurant, I'd explore another food and go to a Seattle thai restaurant - Siam on Lake Union. Although I must admit, in this instance I already knew how great the food was going to be.


To begin, however, I must dispel one myth just so you don't go into the place with a chip on your shoulder. Siam on Lake Union, located at 1880 Fairview Ave. E in Seattle, is NOT in fact on the water (it's location on the map is on Fairview between Newton and Broadway - there is a huge dock in between the restaurant and the water). Although I arrived at the restaurant after dark, I am pretty sure there is no water view from any seat in the restaurant (although it is very close to Lake Union). I just wanted to get that out of the way since the name, Siam on Lake Union implies that it is either on the lake or has a lake view. But don't let that deter you from going here. The food is great.

As for atmosphere, it is slightly cheeky. I am fairly sure it is owned by people of Thai descent, or at least Asian decent, because cultural ornaments adorn the walls (including a photo of someone over the hostess table when you first go in - first to tell me who it is wins a prize!). In the end it doesn't really do much for the atmosphere. But again, the food is great.

And now, for the service part of the restaurant review. Overall the service was very good. We sat at the bar for a little bit waiting for the rest of our party to arrive (I only drank iced tea...), and the bartender was chatty and made a great vodka tonic. When we were finally seated at our table, however, the service was a little slow. Taking our order took about fifteen minutes (or so it seemed). Once the order was placed, however, our food was out very quickly, almost as if they knew what we'd ordered. Overall I'd rate the service an 8 out of 10.

While I'm here, one quick note about Siam on Lake Union: allegedly they have the best karaoke in Seattle. We didn't experience it the night we ate, but some friends who'd been there before said it was awesome. They set it up in the bar area, and I think they do it every Friday and Saturday night. So if you are looking for something a little different to do this weekend, check out the karaoke at Siam on Lake Union. It should be a blast.

On to the good stuff: the food. As far as I am concerned, I thought it was pretty tough to mess up thai food. That is because I am pretty strictly a phad thai type of a guy. This night I held true to form and ordered the pork phad thai, two stars. As I expected, it was delicious. Just the right amount of spiciness, nice and hot, and a great portion. It was the other dishes, however, that really impressed me. We were a party of 8, and the selections ranged from curries to green bean dishes, and everything was great. If you really are looking for some great thai food in Seattle, you definitely want to check this place out.

Overall I'd give Siam on Lake Union an 8 out of 10. The drinks were cold and strong, the service was great, and the food was excellent. The only things keeping it from a 10 are it's actual location in relation to a lake and the decor inside. I'd highly recommend this place for a date or just for a fun night out at dinner.

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Seattle Sports Bar | Fox Sports Grill

If you haven't noticed by my previous posts, a lot of my social life consists of going out to bars and restaurants. Sometimes its just to drink (always with friends), sometimes its just to eat, but sometimes there are other motivations. About a week ago I had just such a motivation - sports. I am a die hard Kansas Jayhawks fan. I went to school there, I was born in Kansas, and I root for them as hard as I can. And now that I'm out here in Seattle, I need to find a good place to watch all those football and basketball games that will be on TV. The journey to find a great sports bar began with Fox Sports Grill in downtown Seattle.

Although I'd already been to some bars that have televisions, namely Murphy's Irish Pub in Wallingford and the Garage in Capitol Hill, I hadn't had the chance to go to any true sports bars yet. What makes a good Seattle sports bar? There are really three elements: first, there have to be televisions everywhere, and every angle should have the view of at least one TV; second, the people should know what the big game or games are for the day and have them displayed in a way that people can catch the game they want; and third, the atmosphere needs to be conducive to a little cheering at the TV (this includes great service, good beer, and good food).

So now let's get down to my review of Fox Sports Grill so you can see if it passes the test of being a great sports bar. To begin with, it's got a great location, right downtown by Pacific Place. It looks cool from the outside, and it makes you want to go in and catch a game. Pretty good start.

Just a quick side note. When you first go inside the place, don't worry about not seeing and people, a bar, a bartender, a waitress, or tables. It's supposed to be like that. The TVs are there, and the little waterfall is there to give it a little ambiance. Unless you need to catch a play before you grab a beer (which does need to be done sometimes), sit on one of the couches and enjoy for a couple minutes. If the need to quench your thirst wins out, though, just head down the stairs. That is where the magic happens.

Once you get in, if it is a big game, you should see the place packed. This is a good thing. We arrived at about 2:30 p.m. on a Wednesday (New Year's eve) and there were probably only 20 or 30 people there. But, the 20 or 30 people there were watching the Pittsburgh vs. Oregon State game, which in the fourth quarter was 3-0! And for a boring game, you know what? The fans were cheering! Good sign for this place.

We found a table, sat down, and were immediately greeted by a waitress in a great mood ready to make our stay enjoyable. Not only was she fast and courteous, but she brought us out New Year's Eve paraphernalia! What more can you ask for from a waitress? Honestly, though, the service was great, the food was great, and the beer was really cold (the even put an orange slice in my hefenwiesen - shows they actually pay attention to their garnishes!).


On to the number one factor for a good Seattle sports bar - TVs. As the pictures show, they had them everywhere. And they had the channels that were required to watch the game (we don't have NFL network at home, so we were excited to see that they had it).




We had no trouble seeing the game no matter what our viewpoint was (although the big screen was a little fuzzy), and they had several games on while the KU vs. Minnesota football butt whipping was on (I distinctly remember a pretty good Louisville basketball game being on).

So, to wrap this up, I highly recommend heading on down to Fox Sports Grill in downtown Seattle if you ever have the need to catch a big game and want to do it with 150 of your closest friends. They have all the requirements of a great sports bar: TVs; all the games; and great beer and food. I'd recommend you check it out sometime.

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Seattle Restaurant Review | El Gaucho Pampas Room

If you've been reading my other reviews you have probably begun to think that I don't have a negative bone in my body. This is actually not true. At each of the other places I've been, I've just generally had a good time. However, this time I cannot hold back. Believe it or not, I'm giving a negative review of El Gaucho Restaurant. Why negative? Read on to find out why.

El Gaucho is an interesting restaurant in and of itself. It bills itself as private dining, so to go you need to get a reservation. They have several different rooms you can dine in, namely: the 410 Room; the Grill Room; the Wine Cellar; the Pampas Room; and the Bolas Lounge. The setting is supposed to be a swanky 1940's ish type of vibe - meaning it is dark and there is old stuff on the walls (it actually is pretty inviting). We ate in the Pampas room, so my review will be limited to the Pampas Room of El Gaucho in Seattle, Washington.

We had occasion to visit El Gaucho because of a great holiday - New Years Eve. We went with several friends, had a reservation for 8:00 p.m., and were looking forward to having a great time. When we first showed up the place was great. The ambiance was good, the bartender poured me a Captain and Sprite so stiff I thought he put Coke in it, and everthing was going great. Then we met our waitress.

I don't know what her name was, but from the very beginning she was hard to deal with. And there really was nothing good to report about her. Her demeanor was not good (she was telling us what to do all night - even the order we'd order our food in), her service was not good (we went up to the bar to get drinks at least twice during dinner - when we'd try to order from her she would tell us to wait and then never come back), and overall she was just unhelpful. I don't think there is any doubt that her poor service had a profound effect on my impression of the restaurant. But wait, it gets better!

After we sat down, we ordered food. I got the steak sword (they flambe the meat on a sword - it's pretty cool) and my wife got salmon. They were both okay. We also ordered asparagus - it never came! And thirty minutes later when we'd asked where it was for the fourth time, we found out it wasn't coming. And then we were charged for it! The waitress actually said to us, "you ordered it, so you have to pay for it." Unbelievable.

And we didn't have the only food problems. Another couple had to send all of their food back (and I know it must have been bad because they never do that), and they never got anything back! And the length of time it took to get the food was unbelievable. I realize it's New Years and some slack needs to be given, but we sat down for dinner at 8:00, and when we left at 11:30 (to meet the in-laws down the street at the Waterfront (a great restaurant, by the way), the waitress was just taking orders for dessert!

There were a couple of high points, though. First, as I said before, there was no scrimping on the drinks. Also, if you do go eat there, get the lobster mashed potatoes. They are amazing. And the company was amazing!

I'm hoping it was just the service that made our dining experience one to forget. Our bill ended up being about $100 a person, no small chunk of change. If you are going to spend that, I'd recommend going somewhere else. It's not worth taking the chance of getting our waitress!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Have you been here too? Don't let me be the only one to review this great Seattle hot spot. Let everyone know what you thought by leaving a comment.