Seeing as it's about the only restaurant in Seattle that specializes in catfish, and seeing how catfish is an item of far more succulence than, say, tofu, Catfish Corner has developed quite a loyal following since it first opened in 1985. If the establishment wanted to skate by on rep, it assuredly could, given this favorable set of circumstances. But thankfully it doesn't, as a buttery, moist baked Cajun catfish fillet with hush puppies and yams on the side reminded me one recent Wednesday. However predictable the fried stuff might be, any restaurant that makes its own tartar sauce, as Catfish Corner (and almost no one else in town) does, is clearly bent on innovation. MIKE SEELY
Serves: lunch, dinner. 2726 E. Cherry St., 323-4330. CENTRAL DISTRICTmo-catfish.com
Judged by vibe alone, Circa's one of the best pubs in Seattle: small enough that you never feel stranded in your booth, casual but not dumpy. It's the kind of place where if you ask the bartender for a food recommendation, a half-dozen regulars will lean over to tell you how much they love the bacon-wrapped meatloaf. The menu fits the space—bold, all-American, and 10 notches above the "bar food" that so often meets our low expectations. There's a mixed green salad tiled over in warm, pink-centered steak and a swaggering balsamic dressing, and a hummus plate that actually feels thought through. You can upscale your evening with a braised lamb shank showered in lemon zest and parsley, or you can stick to the Circa Burger. Made with Misty Isle beef and smoke-tinged from the grill, it's fine dining enough. JONATHAN KAUFFMAN
Serves: lunch, dinner. 2605 California Ave. S.W., 923-1102. WEST SEATTLE
You can get channa masala and Kashmiri naan at 20 mediocre restaurants in Seattle. This strip-mall restaurant in Factoria has them all beat. Nowhere else can you find its Keralan kappa with fish curry, fried cassava root served with a soupy, spice-reddened coconut-milk curry, or the restaurant's brick-red goat curry, which provides a body rush of spices. Choose the unfamiliar, since the cooks are much better at lacy, arm-sized dosa crepes than at tandoori chicken. Join the Microsofties for the lunch buffet, and you can make up your own thali, crumbling a papadum into white rice and dipping a ball of the combo into, say, a tangy yellow yogurt curry, scooping spoonfuls of lemon rice and dal together with dabs of eggplant curry and fresh pickle. Become a regular and they'll let you text in your takeout order. JONATHAN KAUFFMAN
Serves: lunch buffet, dinner. 12821 S.E. 38th St., 425-746-1239. BELLEVUEwww.curryleaf.us
FareStart is what The Office's Michael Scott might term a win-win-win, with maybe a couple extra wins thrown in for good measure. Located on Westlake, just off the tracks of its karmic opposite, the less-for-more SLUT, this airy, light-filled restaurant provides tasty, healthy, affordable lunches, with the proceeds funding a job-training and placement program for its homeless and disadvantaged kitchen staff. Most items clock in under $8, prices rarely heard of at sit-down joints that aren't Broadway or University Way lunch dives. The vegan Field Roast is a crunchy wonder, the seared salmon sandwich a moist delight. The tofu nuggets—accompanied by a sweet-and-sour sauce introduced, said our waiter, by a Vietnamese kitchen staffer—are a credit to both tofu and nuggets. Also check out the guest-cheffed prix-fixe dinners every Thursday night. DAMON AGNOS
Serves: lunch, dinner. 700 Virginia St., 443-1233. DOWNTOWNfarestart.org
Flying Squirrel Pizza Co.
Flying Squirrel has rocketed to the top of the list of Seattle's pizza places, and in the middle of a pizza glut the likes of which the city has never seen. Part of it is location: Friends who live in Columbia City already have the restaurant's hours memorized, and control their obsession by taking alternate routes home. With its red walls, uneven furniture, and vintage-store paintings, Flying Squirrel looks like it belongs in the U District. Owner-pizzaiolo Bill Coury sources ingredients from local producers when possible—Zoe's Meats, Molly Moon ice cream—and can put together a froufrou pie with goat cheese, zucchini, and roasted red peppers to meet the demands of the most discerning PCC customer. But with every pie, Coury keeps in mind that toppings, no matter how organic, play second fiddle to the crust. He's got a good one: solid enough to support sauce and a few toppings without caving at the center, solid enough to crease and crack when you pick up a wedge, and still bubbly and airy around the lip. JONATHAN KAUFFMAN
Serves: dinner. 4920 S. Genesee St., 721-7620. COLUMBIA CITYflyingsquirrelpizza.com
There's always a bustling crowd of mostly Chinese families waiting for dim sum at this I.D. institution. But the line moves quickly, and once at a table, you'll know why they keep coming. The egg custard tarts are small but unforgettable, a warm, creamy center surrounded by delicate pastry. Not to be missed, either, are the shrimp and chive cakes: plump, pan-fried shrimp mixed with herbs and enveloped in a crisp skin dusted with sesame seeds. All the other standards are there too—the soft buns filled with barbecued pork known as hum bao, the pork dumplings called shu mei, the eggplants split and bursting with shrimp—along with plates of noodles that come in handy for children who don't yet appreciate the pleasure of dim sum. It was at Jade Garden that my little girl finally declared: "I like Chinese food!" NINA SHAPIRO
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Grocery Merchandisers-Night $10-$12 DOE.
Beautiful Apartment Village $869
Shoreline Beautiful Holiday Home!
Indoor parking available $75/ month. Cat ok.
Large studios available
John Q 04/23/2009 10:34:44 PM
The latest President Obama’s appointee is Steve Rattner whom is under fire. He is a financier—a wealthy individual making him one of the sought after persons. He was selected to oversee the automobile industry as the Car czar, of sorts, was the head of the Quadrangle Group, an investment firm that is under SEC investigation. He is alleged to have agreed to finance distribution of a film called Chooch, an Americanized Italian term for a person of questionable intellect, in what seems to be a pay for play scheme in which he got control of a New York based pension fund. Maybe he did it for debt consolidation, or perhaps he was a chooch himself. Regardless, visit: www.http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2009/04/17/chooch-steve-rattner-car-czar/ Steve Rattner would get a quick payday loan to make the Chooch scandal go away.