Now For What I Promised

Like so many others, I had a bad view of buffets growing up. Usually "all you can eat" means highest possible quantity and lowest possible quality (as I so often say). Especially when the "you" is just a "U" like, "All U can eat." That's a dead give away to avoid eating there. I mean seriously, if a restaurant is too lazy to put the entire word "you" in a sign, do you really think the food is going to be held to a higher standard?

My first experience with a fine dining buffet was when I was 19. This was before I even knew what good food was, but thank heavens peer pressure made me shell out the $45 for dinner at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas (that was nearly 8 years ago- anyone know what it costs now?). That was also the first time I ever had creme brulee. I had almost 3 before someone told me what was in it.

I dare say on Sunday I went to a brunch buffet that even beats my memory of the Bellagio- Salty's on Alki. Salty's is one of those places that, if you have been in Seattle for more than 2 days, chances are you have been to. I'm not sure how it took us 5 years of living here to get there. But wowee! First of all, the big tourist draw is the panoramic view across the puget sound of downtown Seattle (pictured above). Second of all, the variety of food was incroyable. I listed most of what I ate in my previous blog.

I actually had a few teachers in pastry school who worked at Salty's, and the pastrys display definitely showed that. What I was most impressed about was that this brunch buffet not only had such high quality food, but the volume of food being served was enormous! It was Raj's dream.

Anyway, I highly recommend that if you live in Seattle that you don't take 5 years to get to Salty's- for the food and for the experience of it all. Also, if you get there before 9 on Sunday, you get $5 off each person on your bill. But that kinda takes the fun out of brunch, doesn't it?