It’s restaurant week again in Seattle right now, and Joel and I decided to go back to Seastar this year. We had a really lovely time, discussing wedding planning and plans for our next vacation. I got to eat calamari – I don’t know that I’ve ever eaten it not breaded and fried, and I couldn’t decide whether I liked it or not, but I gave it a fair shot.

Starter: Thai seafood salad.

Seastar is one of those restaurants that when I say “I’d like the salmon, is it gluten-free?” they say “we’ll make it gluten free.” They had to check on the spice rub on the salmon, as well as the pesto in the pesto mashed potatoes, but all was safe.

Entree: plank roasted steelhead salmon

We both had the same dessert. Here’s Joel, cracking the sugary crust.

Dessert: vanilla bean creme brûlée

Looks delicious, right? Yup, another wonderful meal that I’m sure I’ll remember.

Twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring, the Seattle Times and a smattering of Seattle area restaurants get together for Seattle Restaurant Week.

Last fall, gluten and I had an unfortunate meetup during restaurant week. But I’m not one to miss a discounted gourmet meal. My only caveat this restaurant week was that I wanted to choose one that I knew would be gluten free. A few I’ve had great success with:
–Salty’s on Alki
–Seastar
–Carmelita (a vegetarian restaurant)

In addition, I found three restaurants with menus that denoted gluten-free offerings:
–Ray’s Cafe
–Cafe Flora (for the vegetarians)
–The Olive and Grape – a Mediterranean restaurant in the same neighborhood as my yoga studio. Which is where we decided to go last night.

Appetizer: Black Walnut Salad Baby arugula and shaved radicchio tossed with a black walnut balsamic vinaigrette. Topped with toasted walnuts, parmigiano cheese, and cherry tomatoes.

Main Course: Sea Scallops Seared and served over a roasted red pepper sauce. Topped with crispy bacon. Served with green pea risotto and grilled asparagus.

Dessert: Well, there was nothing GF on the restaurant week dessert menu. The waiter was more than happy to serve me gelato, but it was a Monday night, and I had leftover Easter candy at home … so Joel got two orders of baklava to go. He said it was good.

Overall, it was a really nice meal, and I was very impressed with how knowledgeable the waiter seemed to be about gluten-free. My only minor complaint was that Joel ordered lamb for his main course, which came with a lamb kebab that would have been GF and we could have shared. We asked that the kebab be brought out on a separate plate; instead we were brought lamb meatballs on a separate plate and the kebab on the plate with pita bread. But, not a huge deal, as my food was completely gluten-free.

The Olive and Grape has breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus, and all have gluten-free options, so I would definitely eat there again. Actually, their regular menu pricing compared to the restaurant week pricing was pretty much a wash. Next time restaurant week rolls around, we’ll go to the most expensive restaurant we can find so we can take advantage of the deepest discount.