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soypower
May 3, 2009 01:27 PM
Somewhat overpriced, but absolutely delicious is Gilbert's Deli on Main. They have an amazing reuben and their salads are to die for. Pretty casual atmosphere. Great for lunch.
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Depends what you're looking for. Most of the restaurants in Bellevue are lacking in character and tend to be over priced for what they deliver (I live in Bellevue and dine out often). There are some exceptions and if you can hit the right place at happy hour a decent meal can be had at a reasonable price.
For a good happy hour with decent food and half off of an extensive glass pour list I recommend Pearl in Lincoln Square. www.pearlbellevue.com
For more of a fine dining experience I think that Biz on Main or the new Monsoon next door are the best bets. Sea Star is also good but frankly overpriced for the interest level. 08 Seafood Grill is not a bad bet but the happy hour is very short and at full price you might well be unimpressed.
If you have a car you could drive 10 minutes north to Redmond (take Bellevue Way North avoid 405!) and visit Trellis at the Heathman Hotel. www.heathmankirkland.com It's about a year old and offers high quality food with a local and seasonal focus. The chef even has his own truck garden! Cafe Juanita is a little farther north and is also a NW classic although it's been awhile since I was there.
For inexpensive ethnic food, Facing East is a casual Tiawanese restaurant on the north edge of downtown and I can hardly recommend it enough. They make a dish called Tiawanese Porkburger that is nothing short of mind blowing. A humbow with a tender piece of pork belly, house pickled mustard greens, ground peanuts, hot chili sauce and a sprinkling of sugar. It is simply the best dish served in Bellevue. Period! Most of their other dishes are also quite good. Sadly, facing East doesn't serve alcohol. We often have friends over, drive there for take out and break out the Alsatian wine at home.
There are also a variety of not very interesting Thai restaurants in Bellevue and I would definitely avoid Malay Satay Hut as it has gone down hill over the last two years. Enjoy your visit!
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re: winegut
I like sea star, esp. the raw preparations and of course the king crab. It's not cheap, and I understand why some call it overpriced. I found 08 to be decent quality but sort of uninspired, especially at its price point. I thought the raw scallops on the shell were really good. If we are free to leave the Bellevue limits, I think Third Floor Fish Cafe is way better than Anthony's.
I'm a big Facing East fan; easily one of the top 5 Chinese in the Seatte metro area. Last time I was there I was discussing with the staff the offal items that are not listed in English on the menu. Concept. Decor. Food. I wish other places took notice that a Chinese restaurant can do well by serving regional specialties (without the obligatory chinese- american banalities) while being cognizant of presentation and style. May a thousand of them bloom. I've spent alot of time plugging Bamboo Garden; suffice to say its also near the top for me locally.
Sorry to hear a downhill alert about Malay Satay Hut. I've never been to the Redmond branch, but the Seattle shop seems to be closed very frequently these dats--like always at lunchtime. Agree that Bellevue is lacking in Thai. Chantanee was passable on my last visit, and now its reopened with a cocktalian bent. I approve of the thai-'tail combo on paper, but haven't dabbled yet.
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re: equinoise
I think Chantanee deserves a visit. The menu has expanded and improved. While they are not heavy on the regional specialties many of us would very much like to see in the SEA vicinity, they do have some interesting items such as som tam with small crab, guay tiow (sp?), and some other dishes with young peppercorn and krachai, as well as a list of items that they recommend one not order unless they can eat 5-star food comfortably. The cocktail list and bar selection is impressive, and the drinks I had were very well made. Really impressive digs too, esp. for bellevue. Only issue is the pricing which is about $3 too much per item for both drinks and food.
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re: winegut
Trellis is in downtown kirkland, not redmond. and Cafe Juanita is also in kirkland, only a 7-10 minute drive from Trellis. in terms of quality and service the 2 could not be further apart imo. skip Trellis alltogether and got to Cafe Juanita.
on our visit, the waistaff at Trellis was extremely unfocused and inattentive all evening and the food was no better than a typical hotel restaurant. doesn't do much good to have your own garden when you don't know how to utilize it. very disappointing.
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I agree with some of the other posts - Bis on Main and Seastar for seafood. Since you will be on the eastside, I highly recommend you drive a little further north one night (15 minutes?) and go to the highly acclained Juanita Cafe. One of my favorite restaurants in all Seattle. The rabbit is to die for in my opinion! If you want Italian in Bellevue proper, then I'd suggest Luciano's.
Enjoy your trip to the Pacific Northwest!
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I would highly recommend Chantanee. They were closed for a really long time, but just re-opened. A little hard to find, but great, great food. My son, who is a SeaStar fan sumed it up when we ate there recently "Dad I have a new favorite in Bellevue". http://www.chantanee.com/
Tel.: (425) 455 3226
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re: jaydeflix
Thankyou all for your help! It seems like asian food is very popular there. Any good seafood restaurants that are especially good? Living in Florida I am a bit spoiled!Whenever I visit a new area I always check Chowhound first to see what restaurants I should check out. So far you all haven't let me down!
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re: HungWeiLo
lucky.goldstar
Apr 29, 2009 11:33 AM
Flo for sushi/Japanese... some of the best sashimi I've had lately.
Facing East (Taiwanese, mentioned above) is a wonderful find.
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Flo Japanese Restaurant & Sushi Bar
1150 106th Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98004Facing East Taiwanese Restaurant %u6771%u4F86%u98DF%u5E9C
1075 Bellevue Way NE Ste B2, Bellevue, WA 98004
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