Steel Me Away

Michael's father is in town this week and is, naturally, staying with us. The only unfortunate aspect of this situation is the fact that our guest bathroom is currently what is known as a 3/4 bath - except in this case the missing quarter is the sink. There is still a big gaping hole where a counter top should be, with twisty little pipes poking up ineffectively from below. Oh, well, it could be worse. It could be the toilet that was missing.

Last night we treated Rick, the above mentioned father-in-law, to dinner at Steelhead Diner in the Pike Place Market. He and his lovely wife, Beth, have been more than generous in treating us to past dinners and more, particularly on our recent trip to Las Vegas, so I felt we should return the favor, although unfortunately Beth wasn't able to be here on this visit. I think it may have been the first time we managed to escape a restaurant having eaten with Rick and not had him pay at least part of the bill. I had to be very adamant about this.

Steelhead made for a nice splurge, especially if you like seafood (and I love seafood). Having chosen the crab cake as my entree, I was thrilled to find it live up to its promise of "lump" crab meat. Whole pieces of dungeness crab leg meat made up a good half of the baseball-sized cake. Hands down, this was the best crab cake I've ever had, and it alone is enough reason to visit the Diner. Rick, meanwhile, chose the king salmon special, which was nothing short of divine. They sure know how to take advantage of their position in the Market to get some fine fish; this one practically melted in the mouth.

Other delights include fried Beecher's cheese curds and a deep chocolate cake coated in toasted coconut and topped by a scoop of coconut ice cream. Needless to say, I felt more than a little full by the time the meal was over.

The other good news is that Steelhead has a happy hour! Tuesday through Friday, from 2 until 6, they offer $2 off appetizers and $2 local bottled beers. While hardly the skinflint deals you can find at some other restaurants around town, it's still a good opportunity to get your fried cheese curd and crab cake fix for a little less cash.