Summer seems to be the season for restaurants to open up like flowers in Seattle. We got to two of them in their first few weeks open. And those two are just a few blocks apart on Capitol Hill.
The Much-Awaited Opening in the Old Canterbury’s Location
Meliora, 534 15th Avenue East, 206.829.9829, https://www.melioraseattle.com/, has received a lot of hype as experienced restauranteur, Sykh Singh of the Rasai restaurant family, undertook a new restaurant going into the location of the Capitol Hill icon, The Canterbury Ale House. That hype built up as the renovations for the new restaurant took over a year. Meliora modernized and brightened up the décor (previously somewhat cave like at the Canterbury) but they retained the stained glass and suit of armor.
We visited Meliora on its third day of operation and that may be responsible for some of the blips we experienced which we hope will be resolved by the time you read this. This started with temperature control (no AC and no shades on the windows which did not open for any breeze) which made our summer meal rather uncomfortable. (A few weeks later they appear to have put tinting on the windows, but still no shades.) Meliora has three areas. You enter through the bar which has a folding wall that opens up during warm weather, improving ventilation on a hot day. The main restaurant is to the South. And, to the North, on the corner of the building, is a “Speakeasy” that was not completed yet when we visited. We were informed it will be used for special group events.
Two of us got to the restaurant early to check out the happy hour menu. The most interesting item on the happy hour menu was the sausage sampler, but we were told that would take too long to receive it before our dinner reservation so we went with the Tostada Bites and a Clarified Colada (rum pineapple, lime and coconut) off the Happy Hour Menu. The size of the tostada bits (three, each barely more than an inch in diameter) and the drink (one big ice cube the base of which was surrounded by a modest amount of beverage) left us very disappointed with happy hour. The regular menu was much more cost effective.
The dinner menu was not too adventurous — a selection of mostly common high-end Pacific Northwest options. We tried the scallops, the game hen, the pork tenderloin, the short rib tagliatelle, and we opened with the farm salad, the tartare with quail egg and jalapeño, and the watermelon gazpacho. Everything was very well presented but took far too long to arrive. (Again: this was day three of the restaurant’s operation.) The most egregious example concerned an order for beer on tap; it took over 20 minutes to be told the keg had run out, so he ordered a different beer and it was an hour from first order until he got his beverage.
Meanwhile, our bottle of wine arrived quickly, but the food took so long we needed to order a second bottle when the food arrived. The service was not consistent as the table next to us arrived after us, was served long before us and was gone soon after we got our food. Our dining experience took over 2 ½ hours, without dessert, and that was all due to service, not our party’s lingering.
The food itself tasted fresh and all was very nicely presented. But, with the exception of the gazpacho and the game hen, it was rather blandly seasoned. Overall, the dining experience did not live up to the hyped-up expectations. The overall cost of the dinner was not bad for Capitol Hill once we took into account the extra bottle of wine ordered due to service delays. But it was the first week, so we may give them another chance to try a few more items on the menu (to accompany the game hen and the gazpacho).
And a Few Blocks to the South
Opening at nearly the same time as Meliora and just a few blocks South and across the street is Tandoori Flame & Indian Grill, 345 15th Avenue East, 206.567.3399, https://tandooriflameindiangrill.com/, with a second-floor location (above the Subway) that previously housed the Thai restaurant, Bamboo, for many years. Tandoori Flame also is the product of experienced restauranteurs, Jaspreet and Bobby Manhani, whose family of restaurants include Bombay Burger half a file to the South of this location. This remodeled location presents as a more formal, white table cloth restaurant, and, importantly this summer, has air conditioning.
We visited Tandoori Flame (not affiliated with and not to be confused with the three Tandoori Flame restaurants in B.C.) in its third week of operation. We experienced no glitches and the service was courteous and prompt, but with some language barriers limiting the questions that could be asked about the menu. (For example, questions about the type of flour used in the naan could not be answered, and the menu is not labeled, so we assumed something with gluten.)
The menu features the cuisine of Northern India. We ordered the Mixed Appetizer with two vegetable samosas (made with gluten flour) and two each of vegetable, chicken and fish pakora (non-gluten) and a Biryani’s specialty with Chicken (a rice dish with peas, cashews, raisons and saffron) and a Madras Special Curry (with tomatoes, garlic and some roasted hot chilies) with Lamb. We enjoyed all of the food but the appetizers stole the show. The samosas were clearly freshly cooked and each type of pakora had been grilled with a distinct curry flavor. The two main dishes had good flavor with a slow burn, but not as complex a seasoning in the Madras curry as we would have liked.
Tandoori Flame offers beer and wine, but we sampled the mango lassi instead, which was everything we expected in a mango lassi (consider it a dessert in a glass that you can have before the end of your meal). Based upon the application posted on the door they plan to have a broader range of alcoholic drinks in the
future.
The overall expense was not bad for a white table cloth restaurant in Capitol Hill but a little more than some good Indian restaurants North of the ship canal. But it is cost effective for the neighborhood and we do expect to go back. Also, as a second-floor restaurant, there is elevator access, but it is hard to find.
These two additions complement a thriving but less crowded restaurant scene than other parts of Capitol Hill. But be prepared as parking can be a challenge on 15th East.
Dining Out is brought to you by Christopher Howard, now retired from law firm life, but still dining out, together with friends and family who help chose and sample the restaurants. Send comments and suggestions to him at chh@f2t.com or 206.669.5956.
