What are you looking for in a dining experience?

Ambience Quiet Fresh, organic food Vegan choices No fried food Comfortable chairs $10 and under dinner

I love to stretch the imagination and not the pocketbook. I look for good service and great tastes. Here is what I love about that great Restaurant in BOW. Everyone welcomed... only place where you will see vw and bmw's in the lot side by side... best places to eat for Seattle and Bellingham.

Staff gets it right. usually don't use pen and paper and yet remember every change and where everyone is sitting. Always something on the menu that is not traditional or from a culture you simply want to try it. You aim to please and if someone calls a few days in advance you will try to get it on the menu.

I may not consider myself a "regular" but you have been on top of my list of favorite places since the late 70's. So I would say I too "like" what you have been doing!!!

Reasonable sized portions of healthy food for $10 an entree. This answers the three questions I have when I go out:

1. I don't like wasting food, so I overeat if I am given too large of a portion. This is a no-win... if I leave food behind, I am wasting it. If I overeat, then I am uncomfortable after the meal, and that reflects on the restaurant. (I just don't do doggie bags, because they always wind up becoming science experiments in the bottom of my fridge.)

2. I want to eat food that is fresh, not overly processed, and - preferably - locally grown. (Obviously, if the ingredients include mangoes, you aren't going to find them grown in WA, but "locally grown, when possible" is good.)

3. $10 an entree means I can go out with my sweetie and spend less than $50.... which is a lot of money, nowadays...

So there's my $0.02 worth! I hope it is helpful! - Christian

Price and good, consistent food is obviously a big one. But along with that is good customer service. Any day I will pick a place with okay food and great customer service, over great food and crappy customer service.

We tend to go back to the people that treat us well!

~bob

Hi Don,

Thanks for asking. In looking at your profile, my observation is that you're doing enough right things to stay in the restaurant business for 25 years.

As to your specific question, being a good cook myself, I absolutely hate to eat out if the food and service are not top notch. That doesn't mean it has to be gourmet, but it better be good. The other factor that's always a consideration with us is whether or not it's quiet. We've eaten in another restaurant on Chuckanut where the food was good, but the noise level was way above our tolerance. We came really close to just walking out.

I realize you can't always control the downright rude loudness of some people, but there are things a restaurant can do to create an atmosphere of relaxation and peace.

Next time we're up your way, we'll stop in and say hello.