Tilth
1411 N 45th Street, Seattle
Tilth is the kind of restaurant I dream about. Really–the duck burgers have appeared in my dreams more than once. The food is ultra-seasonal, organic, and as local as possible. The decor, like the food, is clean and well thought-through, with nothing superflous to detract from the overall experience. Everything in the room and on the plate has a purpose and is perfectly composed. And the chef, Maria Hines, is a James Beard Award-winning, Top Chef Masters-appearing, force to be reckoned with. The food is so creative and beautifully executed you just want to go back again and again to see what she’s come up with next. So please do, for me, because since I had kids I can’t get there enough. The menu changes constantly, so it’s hard to point to favorite dishes, but those duck burgers, with the impossibly thin chips that accompany them, are thankfully always on the menu. On a recent visit (Valentine’s Day brunch WITH the kids), we had the dishes below. I’ll shut up and let the pictures do the talking.
- Pete Knutson’s Salmon Hash with sous vide egg. Yes, Tilth is the kind of place that names the guy who caught the fish on the menu.
Lest I leave you with the impression that Tilth is “kid-friendly,” they don’t have high chairs or a kid’s menu. My kids are 7 and 3, moderately adventurous eaters, and seasoned restaurant-goers, but I wouldn’t take them here for dinner. First, because it’s one of my favorite date-night haunts and I don’t want to spoil that, and second because lots of people come here for a big night out, and they don’t want to spend the evening picking my 3-year-old’s Hello Kitty dress-up magnets off the floor. Brunch, however, is a different story. We booked a 10am reservation, brought a booster for the little one, and ordered straight from the menu. The staff were lovely to us, were kind enough to put the minty condiments normally served atop the french toast on the side for our son, and offered to bring maple syrup without being asked. I can’t wait to take them again, and the kids are keen too.
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