Bandoleone

There’s no light on the sign over the door, so Bandoleone sort of disappears into the murk these winter evenings, across North 34th Street from the dazzle of neo-Fremont. That’s too bad, because if you miss Bandoleone, you miss one of the Seattle’s biggest happy-hour bargains. From 3 to 6 p.m. weekdays, the drinks are good and reasonably priced, but the bar menu (also served after 10:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday) is a standout: Variations on dishes from the restaurant’s dining room menu are all priced at $6, so two can dine amply for $24 and pig out for $36. The big, crispy buttermilk-battered chicken wings are sweet and spicy, the dry-seared broccoli dressed in chiles and garlic even spicier. Big, succulent oysters are fried in the same buttermilk batter; there’s a daily special quesadilla (ours was filled with fragrant black-bean puree); and soft fresh tacos overflow with shredded greens concealing strips of grilled flank steak. And that’s just half the offerings. For first-timers: (1) stand next to Waiting for the Interurban with Costa’s Opa behind you; (2) cross 34th Street toward the Fremont Bridge; (3) veer left and walk straight ahead into the darkness. 703 N. 34th St., 206-329-7559. FREMONT