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Our 107 Favorite Restaurants, 2011

From burgers and pizza to steak and sashimi, the Great Seattle Food Pyramid takes shape.

A A A Comments (17) By Jason Sheehan and SW Staff Wednesday, Mar 23 2011
...continued from page 8

MEAT AND POTATOES

Blueacre Seafood should, by all rights, be in the "Things That Swim" section of our little food pyramid. And it would be, but for one thing: Potatoes Minneapolis. Yes, the single greatest dish on the menu at Blueacre Seafood has no seafood in it. The best thing laid on the board by Kevin Davis—a fish expert if there ever was one—and cooked by a crew who spend their days tending to the delicate flesh of sea critters from all over the world is nothing more than potatoes, butter, bacon, and salt. It's an oddity, a white-trash one-off on a menu that focuses with incredible precision on the super–high end of the gastronomic spectrum—where nearly every ingredient has a source and a provenance and a chorus of gourmet bits and pieces to attend it. But Potatoes Minneapolis—nothing more than shredded potatoes soaked with bacon grease and butter, studded with tiny chunks of bacon, then fried in a sauté pan so that the parts touching metal crisp up all nice and brown and those in the middle stay steamy, soft, and white—is so good you might want to order it alone, to wallow in its comfort and greasy luxury with no distractions. JASON SHEEHAN 1700 Seventh Ave., 659-0438, blueacreseafood.com $$$ DOWNTOWN

Dan Stiles
BuiltBurger: a fancy-pants experiment gone horribly right.
Joshua Huston
BuiltBurger: a fancy-pants experiment gone horribly right.

Location Info

Map

Blue Moon Burgers

703 N. 34th St.
Seattle, WA 98103

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Fremont

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The Lunchbox Laboratory

1253 Thomas St.
Seattle, WA 98109

Category: Restaurant > Burgers

Region: Eastlake & South Lake Union

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Palace Kitchen

2030 Fifth Ave.
Seattle, WA 98121

Category: Restaurant > Pacific Northwest

Region: Belltown

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Shultzy's Sausage

4114 University Way N.E.
Seattle, WA 98105

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: University District

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Two Bells Bar & Grill

2313 Fourth Ave.
Seattle, WA 98121

Category: Restaurant > Bar Food

Region: Belltown

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Uneeda Burger

4302 Fremont Ave. N.
Seattle, WA 98103

Category: Restaurant > Burgers

Region: Fremont

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Zippy's Giant Burgers

9614 14th Ave. SW
Seattle, WA 98106

Category: Restaurant > Burgers

Region: West Seattle

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Barrio

1420 12th Ave.
Seattle, WA 98122

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Capitol Hill

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Bimbo's Cantina

1013 E. Pike St.
Seattle, WA 98122

Category: Restaurant > Bar Food

Region: Capitol Hill

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El Gallito

1700 20th Ave. E.
Seattle, WA 98122

Category: Restaurant > Mexican

Region: Central District

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El Paisano Rosticeria y Cocina

9615 15th Ave. S.W.
Seattle, WA 98106

Category: Restaurant > Mexican

Region: White Center

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La Carta de Oaxaca

5431 Ballard Ave. N.W.
Seattle, WA 98107

Category: Restaurant > Mexican

Region: Ballard

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Milagro Cantina

148 Lake St. S.
Kirkland, WA 98033

Category: Restaurant > Mexican

Region: Kirkland

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Rancho Bravo

211 N.E. 45th St.
Seattle, WA 98105

Category: Restaurant > Mexican

Region: University District

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Delancey

1415 NW 70th St.
Seattle, WA 98117

Category: Restaurant > Pizza

Region: Ballard

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Northlake Tavern & Pizza House

660 N.E. Northlake Way
Seattle, WA 98105

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: University District

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Pazzo's

2307 Eastlake Ave. E.
Seattle, WA 98102

Category: Restaurant > Pizza

Region: Eastlake & South Lake Union

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Serious Pie

316 Virginia St.
Seattle, WA 98101

Category: Restaurant > Pizza

Region: Belltown

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Talarico's

4718 California Ave. S.W.
Seattle, WA 98116

Category: Restaurant > Pizza

Region: West Seattle

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Din Tai Fung

700 Bellevue Way NE
Bellevue, WA 98004

Category: Restaurant > Chinese

Region: Bellevue

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Hoang Lan

7119 Martin Luther King Jr. Way
Seattle, WA 98118

Category: Restaurant > Vietnamese

Region: Rainier Valley

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Huong Binh

1207 S. Jackson St.
Seattle, WA 98144

Category: Restaurant > Vietnamese

Region: International District

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Mandarin Chef

5022 University Way NE
Seattle, WA 98105

Category: Restaurant > Chinese

Region: University District

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Naam Thai

1404 34th Ave.
Seattle, WA 98122

Category: Restaurant > Thai

Region: Leschi & Madrona

Pho Bac

1314 S. Jackson St.
Seattle, WA 98144

Category: Restaurant > Vietnamese

Region: International District

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Revel

403 N. 36th St.
Seattle, WA 98103

Category: Restaurant > Asian

Region: Fremont

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Armandino's Salumi

309 Third Ave. S.
Seattle, WA 98104

Category: Restaurant > Italian

Region: International District

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Szechuan Noodle Bowl

420 Eighth Ave. S.
Seattle, WA 98104

Category: Restaurant > Chinese

Region: International District

Photos

Canlis

2576 Aurora Ave. N.
Seattle, WA 98109

Category: Restaurant > Pacific Northwest

Region: Queen Anne

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Japonessa

1400 First Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101

Category: Restaurant > Fine Dining

Region: Downtown

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Sushi Kanpai

900 8th Ave.
Seattle, WA 98104

Category: Restaurant > Japanese

Region: Downtown

Maneki

304 Sixth Ave. S.
Seattle, WA 98104

Category: Restaurant > Japanese

Region: International District

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Pike Street Fish Fry

925 E. Pike St.
Seattle, WA 98122

Category: Restaurant > Sandwiches

Region: Capitol Hill

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Seatown Seabar & Rotisserie

2010 Western Ave.
Seattle, WA 98121

Category: Restaurant > Organic

Region: Belltown

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Tsukushinbo

515 S. Main St.
Seattle, WA 98104

Category: Restaurant > Japanese

Region: International District

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The Walrus and the Carpenter

4743 Ballard Ave. N.W.
Seattle, WA 98107

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Ballard

Photos

Cafe Juanita

9702 N.E. 120th Place
Kirkland, WA 98034

Category: Restaurant > Italian

Region: Kirkland

Photos

Crush

2319 E. Madison St.
Seattle, WA 98112

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Madison Valley & Madison Park

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Delicatus

103 1st Ave. S.
Seattle, WA 98104

Category: Restaurant > European

Region: Pioneer Square

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El Gaucho

2505 First Ave.
Seattle, WA 98121

Category: Restaurant > Pacific Northwest

Region: Belltown

Photos

El Pilon

5303 Rainier Ave. S.
Seattle, WA 98118

Category: Restaurant > Puerto Rican

Region: Columbia City

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Ezell's Famous Chicken

501 23rd Ave.
Seattle, WA 98122

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Central District

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Gourmet Dog Japon

1501 Pike St.
Seattle, WA 98101

Category: Restaurant > Asian Fusion

Region: Downtown

Jak's Grill

4548 California Ave. S.W.
Seattle, WA 98116

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: West Seattle

Photos

Le Pichet

1933 First Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Downtown

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Metropolitan Grill

820 Second Ave.
Seattle, WA 98104

Category: Restaurant > Steakhouse

Region: Downtown

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Mistral Kitchen

2020 Westlake Ave.
Seattle, WA 98121

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Belltown

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Paseo Caribbean Restaurant

4225 Fremont Ave. N.
Seattle, WA 98103

Category: Restaurant > Caribbean

Region: Fremont

Photos

Tempero do Brasil

5628 University Way N.E.
Seattle, WA 98105

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: University District

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35th Street Bistro

709 N. 35th St.
Seattle, WA 98103

Category: Restaurant > Bistro

Region: Fremont

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Tubs Gourmet Sub Sandwiches

11064 Lake City Way N.E.
Seattle, WA 98125

Category: Restaurant > Sandwiches

Region: North Seattle

Book Bindery

198 Nickerson St.
Seattle, WA 98109

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Eastlake & South Lake Union

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Chaco Canyon Organic Cafe

4757 12th Ave. N.E.
Seattle, WA 98105

Category: Restaurant > Vegetarian

Region: University District

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Georgetown Liquor Company

5501B Airport Way S.
Seattle, WA 98138

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Georgetown

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Highline

210 Broadway E.
Seattle, WA 98102

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Capitol Hill

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Lecosho

89 University St.
Seattle, WA 98101

Category: Restaurant > New American

Region: Pike Place Market

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Moonlight Cafe

1919 S. Jackson St.
Seattle, WA 98144

Category: Restaurant > Vegetarian

Region: Central District

Nettletown

2238 Eastlake Ave. E.
Seattle, WA 98102

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Eastlake & South Lake Union

Photos

The Other Coast Cafe

5315 Ballard Ave. N.W.
Seattle, WA 98107

Category: Restaurant > Sandwiches

Region: Ballard

Photos

Sutra

1605 N. 45th St.
Seattle, WA 98103

Category: Restaurant > Vegetarian

Region: Wallingford

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Thrive

1026 N.E. 65th St., #A-102
Seattle, WA 98115

Category: Restaurant > Health

Region: Ravenna & Wedgwood

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Arosa Cafe

1310 Madison St.
Seattle, WA 98104

Category: Restaurant > Bavarian

Region: Downtown

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Beard Papa's

600 5th Ave. S.
Seattle, WA 98104

Category: Restaurant > Dessert

Region: International District

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D'Ambrosio Gelato

5339 Ballard Ave. NW
Seattle, WA 98107

Category: Restaurant > Gelato

Region: Ballard

Photos

The Erotic Bakery

2323 N. 45th St.
Seattle, WA 98103

Category: Restaurant > Bakeries

Region: Wallingford

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Gelatiamo

1400 Third Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101

Category: Restaurant > Dessert

Region: Downtown

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Honore Artisan Bakery

1413 NW 70th St.
Seattle, WA 98107

Category: Restaurant > Bakeries

Region: Ballard

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The Pink Door

1919 Post Alley
Seattle, WA 98101

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Pike Place Market

Photos

Bottlehouse

1416 34th Ave.
Seattle, WA 98122

Category: Restaurant > Wine Bar

Region: Leschi & Madrona

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The Diller Room

1224 First Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Downtown

Photos

Hazlewood

2311 N.W. Ballard Ave.
Seattle, WA 98107

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Ballard

Photos

Liberty

517 15th Ave. E.
Seattle, WA 98102

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Capitol Hill

Photos

Tavern Law

1406 12th Ave.
Seattle, WA 98122

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Capitol Hill

Photos

Zig Zag Cafe

1501 Western Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Pike Place Market

Photos

Beth's Cafe

7311 Aurora Ave. N.
Seattle, WA 98103

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Greenwood & Phinney Ridge

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Black Bottle

2600 First Ave.
Seattle, WA 98121

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Belltown

Photos

Bleu Bistro

202 Broadway Ave. E.
Seattle, WA 98102

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Capitol Hill

Photos

Cafe Presse

1117 12th Ave.
Seattle, WA 98122

Category: Restaurant > French

Region: Capitol Hill

Photos

The Cheesecake Factory

401 Bellevue Square
Bellevue, WA 98004

Category: Restaurant >

Region: Bellevue

Photos

Gorgeous George's

7719 Greenwood Ave. N.
Seattle, WA 98103

Category: Restaurant > Mediterranean

Region: Greenwood & Phinney Ridge

Photos

Harborview Medical Center, Cafeteria

325 Ninth Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101

Category: Community Venues

Region: Downtown

Henry's Taiwan

502 S. King St.
Seattle, WA 98104

Category: Restaurant > Chinese

Region: International District

Hi Spot Cafe

1410 34th St.
Seattle, WA 98122

Category: Restaurant > Breakfast

Region: Leschi & Madrona

Photos

Icon Grill

1933 Fifth Ave. N.
Seattle, WA 98101

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Downtown

Photos

Jules Maes Saloon

5919 Airport Way S.
Seattle, WA 98108

Category: Bars/Clubs

Region: Georgetown

Photos

Marie Callender's

9538 First Ave. N.E.
Seattle, WA 98115

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Ravenna & Wedgwood

Olive You

89 Kirkland Ave.
Kirkland, WA 98033

Category: Restaurant > Mediterranean

Region: Kirkland

Photos

Ma'ono

4437 California Ave. S.W.
Seattle, WA 98116

Category: Restaurant > Pacific Northwest

Region: West Seattle

Photos

Staple and Fancy Mercantile

4739 Ballard Ave. NW
Seattle, WA 98107

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Ballard

Photos

Yummy House Bakery

522 Sixth Ave. S.
Seattle, WA 98104

Category: Restaurant > Bakeries

Region: International District

Photos

Details

BURGERS: Blue Moon Burgers - BuiltBurger - Lunchbox Laboratory - Palace Kitchen - Pick-Quick Drive In - Ranch Drive-In - Shultzy's - Teddy's Bigger Burgers - Two Bells - Uneeda Burger - Zippy's Giant Burgers

TACOS: Barrio - Bimbo's - Chipotle - Chuy El Mexicano - Company - El Gallito - El Paisano - La Carta de Oaxaca - Milagro Cantina - Rancho Bravo - Taqueria El Sabor

PIZZA: Delancey - Northlake Tavern & Pizza House - Pazzo's - Serious Pie - Talaricos

NOODLES: Din Tai Fung - Hoang Lan - Huong Binh - Mandarin Chef - May Restaurant and Lounge - Naam Thai - Pho Bac - Revel - Salumi - Szechuan Noodle Bowl

THINGS THAT SWIM: Canlis - Japonessa - Kanpai Sushi - Maneki - Pike Street Fish Fry - Seatown Seabar & Rotisserie - Tsukushinbo - The Walrus and the Carpenter

MEAT AND POTATOES: Blueacre Seafood - Cafe Juanita - Crush - Delicatus - El Gaucho - El Pilon - Ezell's - Gourmet Dog Japon - Jak's - La Isla - Le Pichet - The Metropolitan Grill - Mistral Kitchen - Paseo - Stan's Bar-B-Q - Tempero do Brasil - 35th Street Bistro - Tubs Gourmet Subs

VEGGIES: Book Bindery - Chaco Canyon Cafe - Georgetown Liquor Company - The Highline - Lecosho - Moonlight Cafe - Nettletown - Other Coast Cafe - Sutra - Thrive

SUGAR: Arosa Cafe - Bakery Nouveau - Beard Papa's - Countryside Donut House - D'Ambrosio Gelato - Erotic Bakery - Gelatiamo - Honore - Pink Door

COCKTAILS: Bottlehouse - The Diller Room - Hazlewood - Liberty - Shea's Lounge - Tavern Law - Verve Bistro & Wine Cellar - Zig Zag Cafe

EVERYTHING ELSE: Beth's Cafe - Black Bottle - Bleu Bistro - Cafe Presse - The Cheesecake Factory - Gorgeous George's - Harbor City - Harborview cafeteria - Henry's Taiwan - Hi Spot - Icon Grill - Jules Maes - Marie Callender's - Olive You - Spring Hill - Staple & Fancy - Yummy House

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It's easy to be skeptical about a restaurant as reputable as Cafe Juanita. Is Chef Holly Smith as great as she's cracked up to be? Is her food worth a chunk of your paycheck? The answer—sorry, cynics—is yes. The menu, which changes seasonally, features innovative dishes made using organic artisan ingredients from Italy and the Pacific Northwest. Your best bet is to skip classic fare like foie gras and put your trust in the wild cards. Try Smith's rabbit, a mouthwatering meal, braised with white wine, baby turnips, and pancetta, that will forever change the way you look at Bugs Bunny. ERIKA HOBART 9702 N.E. 120th Pl., 425-823-1505, cafejuanita.com $$$ KIRKLAND

Crush, chef Jason Wilson's award-winning restaurant in a converted house on East Madison Street, does so many things so precisely and so well that it is sometimes easy to forget exactly how good it is. Since everything on the menu is so good, it's hard to pick out a single exemplary dish on which to hang your specific love and longing. But if you had to choose just one plate, it should probably be the tender, beautiful braised ribs, laid over a cloud of puréed potatoes with baby carrots and parsley pistou—first because they are a truly wonderful expression of the talents living in this galley, and second because probably one out of every three customers who set foot inside Crush orders them. JASON SHEEHAN 2319 E. Madison St., 302-7874, chefjasonwilson.com $$$ MADISON VALLEY

An easy-to-miss hole-in-the-wall in Pioneer Square with an upscale interior and Eurocentric m.o., Delicatus groups its sandwiches into two categories: "The Traditionalists" and "The Progressives." You can't go wrong with either—the portions are ample, the ingredients top-notch, and the ideas delectable. Case in point: the Chief Stealth Bomber, a "Traditionalist" made with roast beef, sautéed onions, sharp provolone, and horseradish aioli on a toasted Italian roll, with jus for dipping. Among "The Progressives," the Pavo Diablo is prime, with smoked turkey, avocado, spinach, cilantro, havarti, a fiery chipotle aioli, and roasted poblano peppers on sourdough. Who knows if that sandwich would suit a principled French immigrant, but it's a fine option for a half-starved businessman on his lunch break. KEEGAN HAMILTON 103 First Ave. S., 623-3780, delicatusseattle.com $ PIONEER SQUARE

Had JFK and Marilyn Monroe conducted their affair in public and in Seattle, they would have dined at El Gaucho. Originally a speakeasy, this swanky steakhouse still exudes the old-school charm that made it so popular in the '50s, complete with cigars and live piano music. The service is impeccable, the cocktails well-crafted, and the steaks super-sized. (The porterhouse weighs 24 ounces.) Even the accompanying sides are served with bravado; El Gaucho prepares not only its Caesar salad, but its baked potato, tableside. ERIKA HOBART 2505 First Ave., 728-1337. elgaucho.com $$$ BELLTOWN

El Pilón is a small, bright little bolt-hole of a restaurant on Rainier Avenue that most people completely overlook until the day they realize that one of the things that's been missing from their culinary lives for far too long is a hit of Puerto Rican comfort food. And the best possible cure for this lack is mofongo, the official comfort food of Puerto Rico and the best thing on the board at El Pilón. Never heard of mofongo? That's OK. It's plantain: fried, mashed with el pilón—the mortar and pestle of the Caribbean—then made into a ball and fried again. It has pork in it—bits of skin and fat, fried up into chicharrónes—and comes with pork chops (fried) or chicken (fried) or carne fritta (non-specific meat), also fried. The giant plantain ball is served in a chicken broth, kind of like matzo-ball soup, and somewhere, in a secret lab in San Juan, Aguadilla, or Mayagüez, there's probably a team of brilliant Puerto Rican scientists working on discovering a way to fry the broth too. It is served in the pilón in which it's made (a wooden vessel looking kind of like a tiki idol), with the ball of fried plantain floating near the top, so that eating mofongo makes you feel like some kind of Polynesian zombie eating the brain of a small wooden god. JASON SHEEHAN 5303 Rainier Ave. S., 501-8167, elpilonseattle.com $ RAINIER VALLEY

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