Where NOT to eat at Pike Place Market, Seattle WA

Yesterday we decided to take a spur-of-the-moment trip up to the big city, just to get out of the house and take some pictures.  It was already about 1:30 by the time we left, so we planned on eating when we got there and calling it a late lunch/early dinner.  We had all eaten in multiple restaurants there before, so we knew there would be a variety of cuisines to choose from and everyone would be happy.

We started walking down Post Alley, which is like half a block up from the main market street.  Coming down Pine Street, take a left into the alley just before you reach Sur le Table.  We thought it was best to not let me even pass that store.  It is a very dangerous place for me (and my checking account).  But I digress...

About halfway down the alley is the entryway into a bunch of shops and small restaurants.  We see signs for several different food establishments, so we go in.  For some inexplicable reason, we walk right past Pike Place Chowder.  Big mistake, but I'll get back to that later.  We decide on Pike Place Pasta Bar.



Looks okay, doesn't it?  Yeah we thought so too.

We were wrong.  Let me sum up my feelings about this place with another photo...



It's hard to know where to begin describing my dissatisfaction with this place.  First, we sit down at the bar running along the front of the kitchen.  We're sitting there for several minutes before the guy even notices we're there.  Sure there were a few other people there also, but most of them already had their food and were eating.  He was standing there schmoozing with them, but hey... we hadn't really decided what we wanted to order yet, so that was fine.  When we had decided, Brian says something to that effect and they guy says (rather loudly) "It'll be a minute."  Yeah okay fine again.  About another five minutes go by, as I'm watching him slop sauce onto plates for people who came in AFTER us.  Still no one has taken our order.  He kinda glares over at us (like we're some sort of annoyance), then calls his assistant kid over to take our order.  Said assistant kid was sitting at the end of the bar, in the middle of eating his lunch.  Uh yeah... that's just who I want serving my food... some poor kid who is probably sitting down to eat for the first time today and gets pulled away from his meal.  Greeeeeeeeaaaaaaattttttttt.  Forging ahead, we order.  We had all decided to get the same thing... the fettucine alfredo special with chicken.  We were informed that it was close to closing and they were out of chicken.  It was only about 3:20, and their posted closing time was 5:00.  Whatever.  Miko and I decide to get ours with no meat, and Brian gets his with Italian sausage.  Disgruntled hungry boy gets to work.  We get our Caesar salads, served in those red and white cardboard french fry containers.  The dressing was watery and flavorless.  As I ate down through mine, most of the lettuce on the bottom was black and rotted.  I stopped about halfway through and set it aside.  About this time, the kid informs us there is no fettucini.  Let's see... no chicken... no fettucini for our fettucini alfredo.  I am working up to full-blown pissed.  I'm hungry.  I'm losing patience.  He says they have spaghetti and penne.  FINE!!  I get spaghetti, Miko and Brian get penne.  Head guy tears himself away from the other end of the counter to literally throw three bundles of something wrapped in foil at us.  Turns out it was our alleged garlic bread.  Smashed.  Soggy.  Not good at all.  Finally our not-fettucini alfreado arrives.  Miko has like MAYBE 12 pieces of pasta on her plate.  I poke the sauce around on my spaghetti and take a bite...

It's cold.  HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE?  He stood right there and made it in front of me!  The sauce is runny and has about as much flavor as school paste.  Miko takes a bite of hers and looks at me.  The look is not good.  I take another bite, just because I'm SO damn hungry, but I can't even choke down anything more than that.  Miko says she's not going to eat any more of hers, and I agree.  I go into barely-under-my-breath bitch-mode, and Brian suggests Miko and I leave before it escalates into a full-blown incident.  I decide that as embarrassing as it is for the two of us to just get up and leave, it would be even more embarrassing if I were to create the scene that was building in my head.  As this is going on, I hear our server ask the head guy what he's doing.  He says... wait for it... he's making fettucini.  Yeah.  Because someone might possibly order it.  Because it is the special that day.  Yeah.  We walk.

Between the pasta place and the front door is Pike Place Chowder.




It is crowded.  There is a line.  You can hear people saying how good the chowder is.  We get in line.  The girls taking our order are pleasant.  We take our tray and head to the seating outside.  The chowder is hot and flavorful.  The base is creamy... the potatoes are chunky... the clams are tender... and you get a nice piece of REAL sourdough bread with it.



It was very good.

There are a lot of really great restaurants and storefront food places to eat around Pike Place Market.  My recommendation is to eat at ANY of them EXCEPT Pike Place Pasta Bar.