Wright Eats

Quinn’s is one of our favorite places in town these days.  It’s a gastropub (Brit-speak for a pub that specializes in high-quality food), and as evidenced by the ever-packed dining room, the word is out.  Service is great; the waitstaff has been downright enthusiastic on each visit when describing the menu and recommending drink pairings.  And when we walked in for dinner tonight, a sign said “Lunch coming soon.”  I know where I’ll be camped out when working remotely from Seattle.

Have you noticed how poutine is on every new restaurant menu in Seattle?  We first spotted it at Smith last year, then Steelhead Diner, then here at Quinn’s, and most recently at Skillet Street Food.  Quinn’s elevates the dish above its humble roots by replacing gravy with demi-glacé, cheese curds with Fontina cheese, and letting you throw on a slab of foie gras for good measure.  We went for the full foie-topped dish on our first visit, but the extra cost for the 3-oz piece isn’t worth it.  The basic dish is plenty yummy without it.

Tonight’s meal ventured far into the realm of excess.  Things started off quite reasonably – cider for Dawn and Blanche de Chambly for Eric, a house-made pretzel with petrus welsh rarebit, and a grilled romaine lettuce salad.  But things got crazy when we decided to split tonight’s special: the ”ultra burger.”  Take your standard 8oz. wagyu beef burger, replace the cheddar with a layer of braised oxtail, replace the bacon with 3oz of foie gras, and finally swap out the mayo for a nice helping of duck rillete.  Oh, and don’t forget about the rich demi-glacé sauce on the side for dipping your fries.  Yours for only $30.  (After eating this monstrosity, I realized that this is not far from the Saturday Night Live Taco Town skit.)

Quinn’s
1001 E Pike St, Seattle
(206) 325-7711

This entry was posted on Sunday, March 2nd, 2008 at 8:34 pm and is filed under Restaurants.