Food Disappointment.....I Know! I've Had Stuff That Did Not Meet My Expectations!

TWO YEARS IN SEATTLE AND THE GLOVES ARE OFF!! Okay, not really, but I have done a lot of eating out in what is really a short amount of time and the food has been mixed at best. Won’t stop me going out, because it is what I do, but I think I may have a new post type to add called food disappointment. We have all been there, you read or see something and think, that looks/sounds good I should choose it off the menu/go there and try it! So you make plans, call friends (yes I have one or two b***h!) and head out to said establishment or wherever to see what all the fuss is about or if things live up to all they hype. Point of note though, usually I am trying “eat me now” foods a little after the excitement has died down since we all know, I hate lines for food.

I think this helps in some ways as restaurants have had a chance to take a breath after the initial rush and either refined or gotten better at pumping out stuff. Or, conversely, maybe they haven’t been able to keep up or refine and things are not as good as they used to be like they say. Part of this too is my food mood I believe I have alluded to before. I kind of have to be interested—hungry for(?) something before I can settle on what to eat. Yes, can be a hindrance as it puts a little pressure on the item to again, live up to expectations. I mean, I spent so much time hemming and hawing over what I am in the mood for when I finally pick something off the menu that catches my eye, I really want it to be all that and more. Some of, or maybe a little more, of that is present in the below items I have had in this town.

I have also decided not to name and shame, though people may be able to figure out where and who just from pictures of food being eaten. If so, good on you, means you have ventured out to try the local culinary scene! If not, don’t sweat it, since from my opinion only, you ain’t missing much. I know I can be a picky eater but if you have followed and read stuff over the last 12 years(!) you know I am down for most anything and place to eat from greasy diner to 15 course “how much is this gonna cost me” high end. As long as it is good—I’ll try it.

There are a variety of dishes including, yes, one pizza. Considering my rants about it in this town, I could do a whole column on drunk stoned pizza and various other foods seemingly geared to that crowd but these don’t fall into that category surprisingly. Maybe one day I will do a Food Disappointment—the Drunk/Stoned edition but I think I have beat that mantra enough for now and will just leave it for the occasional Insta post. Herewith then, a small serving of dishes which, while looking tasty enough, did not quite taste up to expectations.

Let’s do brunch! I actually quite enjoy brunch, not so much for the food but the getting together and hanging out with friends. My one gripe with it is I always find myself thinking, why am I paying $18 for an omelette, potatoes and toast that I can make at home for a third of that price. I have to wrap my head around it if I decide to order that though usually I end of getting something that isn’t exactly breakfast or something I may not make at home for myself like pancakes or French toast or bacon. That is rare, most times I am going with burger, or, in this case, the menu said pulled pork and, well, you know I like my pork! And I am still trying to find some good stuff here so it did pique my stomachs interest. I am taking a chance since the spot that was chosen is kind of known as breakfast brunch specific. Kind of why I had them slap an egg on there, because, why not.

I think this was some special sandwich they were doing and not a regular thing? Not sure but it is sauced pulled pork on a toasted brioche bun, which, if nothing else, they did butter it. Sadly, the meat was overcooked and the sauce was sweet. Felt like it had been sitting in the pot since the night before and was just reheated. Probably should have just gone with some standard breakfast sandwich with bacon, egg and cheese or whatever though even this one set me back round the aforementioned $18 and seems a regular one would have been $16 or something. And while the salad was nice enough, the picture makes it seem as if there was more than what is actually there. Here kids is where lessons are learned, if you are going to a breakfast/brunch joint best just to suck it up and get what they are known for. Going off menu sounds interesting but most times, turns out disappointing.

I must say, I was at an event and saw this food tent (weirdly not a food truck, but, whatever) serving barbecue and I refer you to my earlier statement about pork. I mean, it all looked good plus they had mac and cheese, how could I go wrong? The meat is smoked, which they tell you, but one bite in and you can taste the smoke. In fact, you taste nothing but the smoke. They killed it with the smoke. Sure, it was a little dry too but, ugh the smoke. I like a nice hint—this is a smack in the face. If it is your thing, then okay! This place is for you! Otherwise, was tad too cloying for me. I did get a side of sauce to try and seems it comes in regular and spicy—my choice. Sadly, not all that spicy and definitely not enough to balance the smoke.

The mac and cheese had promise as it was both creamy and cheesy……and something they also decided to smoke….ugh. And then there was that slaw. I get trying to change things up and what not but it had like shredded mango or something in it. Felt more like a fruit salad. For me it did not quite compliment as possibly intended. The whole thing was a bummer cuz’ I wanted to like it. They give good portion for the money as this ran about $15. Here kids is where our desire to have something we miss lead us to a near miss.

Pizza, yes, I have complained about a lot of it in this town. This though stands out for some specific reasons. It was one I had on my second day here. This spot is seemingly popular and I think in part because it is downtown and gets a foot traffic from tourists and what not. Upon initial inspection it looks okay with its golden crust and all. These are hand tossed oven fired things after all. The crust was actually kind of okay but the toppings failed. The sauce was too sweet, the sparse cheese was barely melted and the also sparse toppings were bland and mushy. Kind of reminded me of what happens when you bake a frozen pizza. Obviously this first taste has not deterred me from still eating pizza, I just don’t do it at this spot. Here kids is where you learn just because it is pizza doesn’t mean it is good pizza. If you are fine with okay-ish then sure. But as I am slowly finding, there are better options out there—even some of the drunk/stoned places.

I do so enjoy me some seafood as my ever eternal search for fish and chips continue, but sometimes I take a deter and try something else for giggles. Let’s forget the salad here. It’s in the pic because, weirdly, they both came at the same time. Instead, concentrate on the lobster bisque. Mmmm. lobster pieces in a smooth, buttery and creamy sauce. Those were the expectations. The reality was more lukewarm gloopy thickness with the barest of lobster. No, I did not even finish this--after I picked out the lobster bits. I know this was a high end place and they should have/could have done better. Here kids is where you learn white table cloths, fanciness and high prices do not necessarily translate into tasty dishes.

Cookies! I have had some good ones here for sure. Bakeries are rather abundant and they do a cookie in some for or another. The basic chocolate chip is usually the standard by which I judge just how good a bakery is. Kind of like chefs and simple the simple omelette, if they can do it right then they can probably do everything else pretty good too. This place I just happened to be walking past and was like “oooh, cookies” and of course I could not resist. In order to get the full breath I had to get enough different ones. A peanut butter, a chocolate chip, a lemon blueberry and a double chocolate caramel. Upon initial inspection they seem okay. Try picking one up and they fall apart, like literally.

These things may not look it but they were so thin, soft and underbaked they bordered on cookie dough. If that is your thing, then sure. But I wanted a cookie with crisp edges and outside and soft only on the inside. These were just a mess and super sweet, even for me. That little sprinkle of salt did not really help. And the lemon blueberry? Yikes, you could not taste the blueberry only the lemon which was very artificial. Seems this place also sells ice cream (this I can resist) and you could make a cookie ice cream sandwich though not sure how since these would not be able to stand up to a scoop. Reminded me of a place in SF sort of like this where they cookies were also a soft messy failure at $3 a pop. I could easily have taken all four and mashed them up into one giant cookie ball. Maybe they should rebrand and just do that instead. Here kids is where ones sweet tooth gets the best of them and seeing is not always worth eating.

I would say lesson learned with all this, but who am I kidding, I like to eat and my food mood is ruled by my stomach thus know I will probably fall into the same traps and try stuff that ultimately disappoints. It isn’t like I go looking for it, it somehow just finds me. Part of the thrill and joy of eating. It is like an adventure, you never really know what you are have and how it is gonna taste till you sit down and chow down. It is what keeps me going out and searching for that next great bite or plate of food. Here kids is where you learn that not everything is gonna be a winner and expectations will not always be met. The goal is to just keep getting out there because sooner or later you are gonna come across something that will blow your tastes buds off and it will be your new favorite food or place to eat that you can tell everyone about. And if something does disappoint, well, you can tell them that too.