Good Restaurants in King County

[MyAzi]

Can anyone in the King County area suggest some great restaurants. Like the best place for a Burger or Chinese or Thai etc....

I am still looking for great Chinese and Italian. But like all kinds of foods. How about Indian.. I can't seem to find a great Indian place.

[NHYRNUT]

Originally Posted by MyAzi

Can anyone in the King County area suggest some great restaurants. Like the best place for a Burger or Chinese or Thai etc....

I am still looking for great Chinese and Italian. But like all kinds of foods. How about Indian.. I can't seem to find a great Indian place.

Best Burgers when I was there was up on Broadway. No pun intended but the place on Broadway was called Dicks. Good burgers. But watch out for the girl/guy /it/something next to you. Well unless Broadway has changed.

[scirocco22]

Originally Posted by NHYRNUT

Best Burgers when I was there was up on Broadway. No pun intended but the place on Broadway was called Dicks. Good burgers. But watch out for the girl/guy /it/something next to you. Well unless Broadway has changed.

Oh man, Dicks is a Seattle institution! Not known for fancy burgers at all. Modeled after the original McDonald's concept of an uncluttered menu. Just offered one or two burgers originally. Classic natural cut fries, mixed-on-the-spot milk shakes, and a couple choices of soft drinks ...oh and hand-dipped cones. They've expanded the menu a bit but not much. I think there's 3 burgers now.

I grew up only a few blocks from the original one in Wallingford and it was one of the local hang-outs while in high school.

One of the things that hasn't changed is that to work there, you had to be able to add an order up in your head as it was being given, calculate the tax and add it on to the order total, and then count back the change without the help of any machines ...the order takers still have to do that today, I believe.

Here's the page from their website that tells a bit about the history:

http://www.ddir.com/history.html


p.s. that is funny NHYNUT about the no pun intended ...dicks/broadway

Originally Posted by MyAzi

Can anyone in the King County area suggest some great restaurants. Like the best place for a Burger or Chinese or Thai etc....

I am still looking for great Chinese and Italian. But like all kinds of foods. How about Indian.. I can't seem to find a great Indian place.

There's a great little Indian restaurant in downtown Kirkland. I can't remember the name right now but if I think of it, I'll post again.


--'rocco

[Jenbar]

Thai Ginger is the best Thai place. They have, I think, 3 locations.

Chinese... hmmm... I can't remember the name but I think it's something like "Chang's Place"....

[NHYRNUT]

Didn't ask for a fancy burger. Asked for a good one. LOL

[Jenbar]

Dick's burgers are ok... but nothing out of the ordinary.

[scirocco22]

Chinese: if you like Cantonese-style, one place that is long-established and has a great rep for their food and not their atmosphere is Tai Tung in the middle of Chinatown.

--'rocco

[scirocco22]

Originally Posted by NHYRNUT

Didn't ask for a fancy burger. Asked for a good one. LOL

yep, yep... i know but man, thanx for bringing back memories!

Originally Posted by Jenbar

Dick's burgers are ok... but nothing out of the ordinary.

nope, nope... but when you "grew up" on 'em, they're still good! I often make a point to go get one when I'm in town ...just for the memories!


--'rocco

[Jenbar]

Yeah, I would get one "just cuz" too...

[the dufferz]

Originally Posted by MyAzi

Can anyone in the King County area suggest some great restaurants. Like the best place for a Burger or Chinese or Thai etc....

I am still looking for great Chinese and Italian. But like all kinds of foods. How about Indian.. I can't seem to find a great Indian place.

Burgers:

Burgermaster, combo 1. mmmmm. Juicy!
(Bellevue)

[MyAzi]

Thanks everyone...

jen is Thai Ginger a chain? I think we had those in So CA. I found a place called Lamponi in Sammamish that has great Thai but not the best I have ever had. Just the best so far here in WA.

Now if I could just find a great Mexican place!!!

[scirocco22]

Originally Posted by the dufferz

Burgers:

Burgermaster, combo 1. mmmmm. Juicy!
(Bellevue)

Hey, you're back! hooray!



Yep, Burgermaster for burgers ...no doubt. Bill Gates is still a regular there, I think.

--'rocco

[Jenbar]

I agree... Burgermaster is good.

Thai Ginger isn't a chain, it's local to the area - but they have (now) 3 locations. They started out with just one at Redmond Town Center, then one out in Klahanie, and I think there is one in Seattle - or somewhere....

If you are ever up in Bothell/Mill Creek Thai Bistro in the strip center across from the McDonalds - at the intersection of 164th and Bothell/Everett HWY is good too.

I am really picky about Thai places - we love love Thai, but it can vary so much. For example, when they make the Pad Thai almost orangey pink - yuck.

[MyAzi]

Originally Posted by Jenbar

I agree... Burgermaster is good.

Thai Ginger isn't a chain, it's local to the area - but they have (now) 3 locations. They started out with just one at Redmond Town Center, then one out in Klahanie, and I think there is one in Seattle - or somewhere....

If you are ever up in Bothell/Mill Creek Thai Bistro in the strip center across from the McDonalds - at the intersection of 164th and Bothell/Everett HWY is good too.

I am really picky about Thai places - we love love Thai, but it can vary so much. For example, when they make the Pad Thai almost orangey pink - yuck.

Stop the presses everyone... Jen you and I actually agree on something... I too am picky with Thai food. And that orangey pink stuff is yuck!!! I will have to give some of those a try.

[Panterro]

Is Dicks only in Seattle.. every time I went there to see my brother thats the first place we went. When I lived there I used to love hitting the Russian places out in the Universty District. Love them stuffed roll things they make I forget what they are called.

Wish you all had a WHAT-A-BURGER up there.. maybe I can open a frachise.. lol

You all dont like GINGER.. yummy ginger.

Used to live in East Lake. Love the sailboat races.. miss the view of the water and the sun sets..

[Jenbar]

Yes, Dicks is only in Seattle. I think they have 5 locations.

[scirocco22]

Originally Posted by Panterro

... Love them stuffed roll things they make I forget what they are called. ...

pirozhkis? or I've seen it spelled "piroski" or pieroshki, etc.

Somebody just sent me a recipe for the cabbage ones. I think she got it of the web somewhere:

PIROZHKI
(Russian Potato-and-Cabbage Turnovers)

For the dough
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon double-acting baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
2 large egg yolks
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon cold water if necessary

For the filling
3/4 pound russet (baking) potatoes
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 onion, chopped fine
3/4 teaspoon caraway seeds
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 cups chopped cabbage
3 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons water if necessary
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill

an egg wash made by beating 1 large egg with 1 teaspoon water


Make the dough:
In a food processor blend together the flour, the baking powder, the salt, and the butter until the mixture resembles meal. In a small bowl whisk together the egg yolks and the sour cream, add the sour cream mixture to the flour mixture, and blend the mixture until it just forms a dough, adding the water if the dough seems dry. Divide the dough into fourths, form each fourth into a flattened round, and chill the dough, each round wrapped well in wax paper, for 1 hour or overnight.

Make the filling:
Peel the potatoes, cut them into 3/4-inch pieces, and in a steamer set over boiling water steam them, covered, for 12 to 15 minutes, or until they are very tender. Force the potatoes through a ricer or food mill into a bowl and stir in 1 tablespoon of the butter. In a heavy saucepan cook the onion and the caraway seeds in the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and the oil over moderate heat, stirring, until the onion is golden, add the cabbage, and cook the mixture, stirring, for 5 minutes. Cook the mixture, covered, over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes more and stir it into the potato mixture with the sour cream, the water if the mixture is too thick, the dill, and salt and pepper to taste. The filling may be made 1 day in advance and kept covered and chilled.

On a lightly floured surface roll out 1 piece of the dough 1/8 inch thick, keeping the remaining pieces wrapped and chilled, and with a 3-inch cutter cut out rounds. Brush each round with some of the egg wash, put 2 level teaspoons of the filling on one half of each round, and fold the dough over the filling to form a half-moon, pressing the edges together firmly to seal them and crimping them with a fork. Gather the scraps of dough, reroll them, and make more pirozhki with the remaining filling and dough and some of the remaining egg wash in the same manner. The pirozhki may be made up to this point 5 days in advance and kept frozen in plastic freeze bags. The pirozhki need not be thawed before baking.

Arrange the pirozhki on lightly greased baking sheets and brush the tops with the remaining egg wash. Bake the pirozhki in preheated 350°F. oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until they are golden, and serve them warm or at room temperature.

Makes about 50 pirozhki.



--'rocco

[MyAzi]

So when are you making them and having everyone over Rocco???

[scirocco22]

*lol* ...next time I'm in town, perhaps. But perhaps not.

I try hard but I'm a pretty lousy cook. I've attempted to make a nice meal for guests only to have it turn out disastrous. I could tell a whole long story but I'll spare you the misery of reading about it now. Let's just say that the people I invited over that night are no longer my friends ...I think a lot of it had to do with that horrid meal.

--'rocco

[Panterro]

Have any of you tried the red Robin, I hear they are a great burger place.

[the dufferz]

Originally Posted by Panterro

Have any of you tried the red Robin, I hear they are a great burger place.

Good but spendy for a burger joint. Also very noise!

[Jenbar]

Great for families though. We would always go for family birthday dinners - the kids loved the singing and clapping.

[jabm67]

Originally Posted by Jenbar

Chinese... hmmm... I can't remember the name but I think it's something like "Chang's Place"....

There's a "Chiang's Gourmet", I think, at NE 80th & Lake City Way in Seattle, just north of where Lake City Way turns into the freeway on-ramp. Very good stuff.

T&T Seafood (another Chinese place) is now up in Edmonds (south Snohomish County). We went there frequently when they were in Shoreline, and they also were really good. Haven't been there since they moved, unfortunately.

The Italian Spaghetti House, on Lake City Way about 110th IIRC, is a good old family restaurant whose days are numbered. My wife first went there when she was 4, and we still get there every now and then. It's a white-cloth-napkin non-chain sit-down place you can afford and feel comfortable taking kids to, and there aren't that many of those any more. The old proprietor passed away and his kids want to close the restaurant and sell the site. Fortunately (for those of us who like the place) it's on an "unstable slope" so the building itself is grandfathered in, but further development on the site is either expensive or illegal; until a developer gets around that, the place will keep serving good Italian food.

Chada Thai is in a strip mall on Greenwood at 125th N. We've been going there for 15 years now. Inexpensive, good food.

High-end restaurants are another thing. We get to those occasionally. Sadly, one of our favorites closed recently (Calypso, at 80th & Roosevelt) ... the place has reopened as Divine IIRC, but it is not the same.

[MyAzi]

this gal recommended this Chinese place that is in Issaquah and decided to take me to lunch there... She went on raving about it... and EWWW I would not go there again. The food was bland and boring. Not at all the Chinese I am used to.

[Jenbar]

Ohhh what's the name or where is it?

[scirocco22]

...and what kind of Chinese are you used to?


--'rocco

[scirocco22]

And getting back to hamburgers, how about Kid Valley?

I used to go there quite often ...the one in Midlakes in Bellevue. Stopped going there because of the rude service.




Any eastsiders remember Gulliver's hamburgers? That used to be a great hole-in-the-wall burger joint decades ago. There used to be one in downtown Bellevue and one in Crossroads a few blocks north of the mall. They originally moved to Belsquare when it first reopened. I haven't heard of them since. Are they still around?

--'rocco

[MyAzi]

Originally Posted by Jenbar

Ohhh what's the name or where is it?

I think the name was Shanghi and it is right on Front Street on the East Side of the street.

Originally Posted by scirocco22

...and what kind of Chinese are you used to?




--'rocco

the good kind

[scirocco22]

Originally Posted by MyAzi

the good kind

ah, *slaps self upside the head* ...I should've expected that!

Okay, let me rephrase ...do you like spicier Chinese food as opposed to "bland?"

...um, that even sounded stupid. I mean, who likes bland food??!

Okay, again... I happen to like un-spicy Chinese food. However, that doesn't mean bland. I like good flavor --whatever that means.

As I mentioned above, try Tai Tung in chinatown and you'll see what I mean. A lot of the Cantonese dishes aren't spicy but, wow, some of the flavors are out of this world! I find that with Mandarin and Sichuan servings, the same basic flavor seems to underlie every dish. To me, that's what's so unique wth Tai Tung. Every dish has a different flavor within itself and not that same hot spice running through it ...ginger beef, to sweet and sour pork, to shrimp in lobster sauce, to egg foo youngs and their sauces, to the varieties of chow mein, to the chow fun dishes, to broccoli dishes, to ...I can go on and on about the different flavors there.

I'm gettin' hungry. Time for a trip to Seattle.

--'rocco

[MyAzi]

Originally Posted by scirocco22

ah, *slaps self upside the head* ...I should've expected that!

Okay, let me rephrase ...do you like spicier Chinese food as opposed to "bland?"

...um, that even sounded stupid. I mean, who likes bland food??!

Okay, again... I happen to like un-spicy Chinese food. However, that doesn't mean bland. I like good flavor --whatever that means.

As I mentioned above, try Tai Tung in chinatown and you'll see what I mean. A lot of the Cantonese dishes aren't spicy but, wow, some of the flavors are out of this world! I find that with Mandarin and Sichuan servings, the same basic flavor seems to underlie every dish. To me, that's what's so unique wth Tai Tung. Every dish has a different flavor within itself and not that same hot spice running through it ...ginger beef, to sweet and sour pork, to shrimp in lobster sauce, to egg foo youngs and their sauces, to the varieties of chow mein, to the chow fun dishes, to broccoli dishes, to ...I can go on and on about the different flavors there.

I'm gettin' hungry. Time for a trip to Seattle.

--'rocco

I do like really spicy food. I think I killed my taste buds over the years. The hotter the better! I did that to my son too. He says food has no taste unless he can feel it... However.. I don't have to have spicy but I like really flavorful food. I like both cantonese and shezwan styles but they have to have a good strong flavor and not just be oily. The stuff I had yesterday was dry and tasteless.