Paseo @ Ballard

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Killer place- a bit hard to find, since there was no signage. But it was well worth the trek to Ballard on a hot summer day-both  the Press sandwich and the "regular" pulled pork were full of bold flavors and life, and the sandwiches were nice and messy, and went down perfectly with an ice cold water. I could eat at this place at least twice a week, if I lived closer. Next on my "To Eat List" : their Scallion Sandwich!

Anita's Crepes in Ballard

Carrie I first tried Anita's early last summer at the market in Ballard. We were looking for alternative caterers for our wedding, and were very interested in Anita's. We each tried a sweet and savory crepe at the stand, and immediately inquired about the possibility of having them cater our wedding; unfortunately, since they used gas for their cooking, and we were holding our wedding indoors, we had to give them a pass.

The reason I bring this up is to point out that when we went to the restaurant, we did so not just with high hopes, but with expectations based on past experience. Which is what made the actual experience in the restaurant all the more painful for the two of us.

I ordered Anita's Breakfast with over-medium eggs, sausage and a cinnamon crepe; Carrie had the Wild Mushrooms and Gruyer crepe. The flavors of her crepe were flat and a bit muddles, while the Gruyer had a rather weak, watery composition. My plate arrived with the eggs, sausage and crepe all touching the same buttery creme fraiche topping that should have been reserved for the crepe, which was a bit too thick and doughy for my liking. The eggs were decently prepared, and the sausage was quite good - but that had little to do with the skill of the cooks, and more with the culinary acumen of whoever ordered that particular brand.

The service was decent; the waitress was prompt with getting our drinks to us, although I did have to bug her for a warm up for my wife's coffee. The place was fairly busy, and the cooks seemed to be ill-equipped for the sheer volume.

All in all, we've both had better elsewhere, and were disappointed that, at least for us, Anita's had seemed to miss a few beats in the transition from being a stand-based business to a fixed-location one

Volterra

Yesterday (Sunday), Carrie and I met two of our friends, Alex and Ed, in Ballard and went to brunch at Volterra.

First, the pluses. The place has a ton of atmosphere, and never got that crowded. All of the servers wore bright smiles, and we got excellent service throughout the meal; our server knew just when to come and ask us if we wanted more water / coffee.

Now, the minuses. I ordered a dish that consisted of two over-easy eggs atop a duck confit with spinach and hashed potatoes. For me, the portion size was a bit on the light side, and all of the flavors seemed to run together. Carrie ordered a truffle-based dish with hash browns in which the truffle flavor seemed to overpower everything else. The fare that my friends had - the Volterra Breakfast and Francesco's eggs - seemed to fit them just fine.

We may or may not go back to Volterra to give the place another chance; it's not that high up on our list of places to brunch at, however.

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