That's Amore

Photo snagged from their website (My iPhone's lack of flash made our candlelit dinner difficult to capture.)

Perched just above downtown, That's Amore Italian Restaurant provides delicious Italian fare with a spectacular view of Elliott Bay and sometimes the Olympics (if mother nature is on your side that day).

Although I just visited the restaurant with a friend, it would be a perfect romantic date venue, if you hadn't already assumed this from the name. The quaint restaurant offers an intimate environment with a delicious food and wine selection.

We were warmly greeted by the chef as we entered the restaurant. According to their website, he used to cook at the exclusive Columbia Tower Club, among other well-known Seattle restaurants. I'd say he is a little more in his element here in the relaxed and friendly kitchen, in view of the dining area. His food seemed to confirm this.

Hearing about the specials from our server almost had us convinced, but our pizza craving won out in the end. We ordered:

• Insalata di Spinaci (spinach prosciutto salad) - Fresh and flavorful. A bit too small to actually be considered splittable, although we did it anyway.
• The Leschi (chicken, artichoke, red pepper, pesto pizza) - Very tasty! This was definitely big enough to share. We even took a couple slices home.
• Bottle of Cesari, Sangiovese Riserva (Italian red wine,  recommended by our server) - Divine. A bottle is always the perfect amount for two, at least in my book.

Until next time...ciao!

Victrola Coffee Roasters

Victrola's not so subtle, environmentally friendly views are made evident here 

Victrola is my favorite coffee shop right now. And let me tell you, that is saying a LOT.

Victrola's coffee is all fair trade, organic, and tastes exquisite! The vibe in each of their three locations is extremely "Seattle" - local art hung on the walls, Mac books out, and skinny jeans galore. The baristas here know their stuff too. They are to espresso as Michelangelo was to art, Michael Phelps is to swimming, or Lady Gaga is to weirdness. You get the point.

Want good coffee? Victrola is your place.

The Kingfish Cafe'

The Kingfish Cafe may very well be the best authentic soul food Seattle has to offer. In fact, it may be one of the best soul food restaurants, period. The restuarant is tucked away on the back side of Capitol Hill, conveniently located less than a mile from my house! But even if I sprinted to and from my dinner, I would not put a dent in the calories earned from a hearty meal there. This is yet another factor contributing to the authentic nature of The Kingfish Cafe'. Real soul food is about flavor, tradition and history...not so much about health.

Started by two sisters and UW grads, the resturant uses several family recipes that have been passed down from generation to generation. The dining room walls are scattered with framed pictures of their relatives. The famous corn bread comes from mom's special recipe. Needless to say, you feel like you're at home while dining here...just maybe not necessarily your own home, unless you grew up in a large African American family down South!

Three of us went there for dessert. Once we got there, we couldn't resist odering some other food to try as well. We decided on the mac & cheese. Like all of the cafe's entrees, it was a massive portion with a big flavor to match. For dessert, we ordered just one serving of the strawberry shortcake. As you can probably tell from the picture above, this was more than enough for three of us to share!

Note: there is no dessert menu, but just ask your server what's for dessert. On this particular Wednesday, it was strawberry shortcake, and it was delicious! I am willing to bet that there will always be something for dessert, and it will always be a good choice.