Café Campagne

On a visit to Seattle over 4th of July, we visited Pike's Place before realizing - nothing is actually open on 4th of July! Well, not completely nothing... we took a peek at the menu of one of the only establishments with an open door and then popped into Cafe Campagne.

Since it was a lovely Seattle summer day, we were seated on the slightly cramped but pleasant balcony. We took a peek at their extensive wine menu and found a half bottle of Cotes du Rhone Violettes that was significantly cheaper than everything else - 16 vs the normal 30+? Count us in! And though not spectacular and a little on the acidic side, it was not bad.

We ordered the squid, which to our surprise because of our poor reading skills that evening, was a wet calamari! It was acidic, salty, aromatic, and very delicious.

The bread that came was not that great though. I can appreciate a nice crust, but the loaf that came was hard as stale as a rock and could cut through teeth, gums, and then some. When asking for an edible loaf our waitress gave us a spiel of how "our bread is crusty, you must not be used to it!" and "I went and found an uncharacteristically soft loaf for you guys" - but hey, we got an actual nice crusty bread. And that is how we got two loaves of bread.

I believe this was the duck confit - tasty!

Fries were a bit burnt, but good portions.

Coq au vin was a bit bland.

Their French onion soup was lovely; huge portion as well.

The roasted half chicken was considerably smaller than you would expect. A bit bland as well.

We shared a creme brulee for dessert - very good! The cookie was a great bonus.

Cafe Campagne has a great Seattle location right in Pike's Place Market, and has some tasty French dishes (though some chicken things might be a little bland) - do you research on the dishes and enjoy the terrific locale.

Cafe Campagne
Cafe Campagne Yelp
Seattle, WA

Old Fisherman's Grotto

All fishermen's wharves seem to offer some sort of seafood or other, but Monterey Bay fisherman's wharf fully embraces clam chowder. As you walk down the wharf, restaurants hand out samples of their steaming clam chowder - perfect for a chilly walk down and for whetting growing appetites.

On a visit with the family, we decided to take a meal in Old Fisherman's Grotto - partly because they billed themselves as having the best chowder, partly because the place looked cute and cozy, but mostly because they handed out a nice sample cut AND a free appetizer coupon at the door.

We ordered the calamari using the free coupon. No picture to be found because it was standard. Luckily, the clam chowder breadbowl was good: salty, rich, and deserving of their title. (My mother thought it was a tad salty, but as an abuser of the salt shaker, I quite enjoyed it.)

We got a prawn salad that had a spring mix, pickled asparagus spears, and blue cheese. Despite not being a salads person, I really enjoyed this.

We got a seafood pasta, which was extremely disappointingly salty and watery.

We also got two half crabs - one simply steamed, and the other with garlic butter. Standard and fairly fresh crab, although the garlic butter was very weakly flavored.

Old Fisherman's Grotto has hits and misses, though definitely try the chowder. (In case you go with family... it also has a well stocked bar... if that helps your family trips.) It's not a place you would head to just for the food, but for a leisurely and comfortable meal while visiting Monterey Bay, it's a friendly place to stop by and relax for a meal.

Old Fisherman's Grotto
Old Fisherman's Grotto Yelp
Monterey, CA