I’ve walked by this place over 100 times but never had the urge to stop in and eat. The Coastal Kitchen does pretty well, especially on Sunday mornings, where lines out the door and people desperately searching for parking is a common occurrence. The restaurant is part of the Chow Foods series of establishments, featuring a rotating global menu as well as a decor that’s somewhat uniquely Seattle.
The region of the day was Venezuela. I do not know much about Venezuela or its cuisine. It sounds coastal. This is a Coastal Kitchen, so I hope it’s coastal.
There is a section on the menu reserved specifically for Venezuelan dishes, with the rest of the menu being the classic morning fare that you would find in most brunch-focused restaurants. Eggs, toast, pancakes, meats, all the good things that make mornings worth waking up for. Wanting to expand my horizons a bit (at least as far as a diner on Capitol hill can take me i suppose), I picked a scramble laden with regional peppers, Dungeness crab and shrimp. Sounded like a winning deal.
The scramble was light and fluffy, very little grease or gristle which was nice. Not an enormous amount of crab/shrimp but it was ample for the $12 price tag. However, I wish it had a little more seasoning. Usually, reaching for the pepper/salt is just fine for a morning meal. But I felt underwhelmed at not only the overall flavor, but my options for adjusting the dish. Salt wasn’t enough.
I also ordered a side of bacon to go with, but unlike the ethnic liberties taken with my main dish, there really is no excuse for under-salted bacon.
