Paseo Is Summer

I’ve been enjoying Paseo, the tiny Cuban sandwich shop that has become a Fremont mainstay, for years but now that I’ve moved to the neighborhood and am just a quick walk away I’ve developed a feeling of ownership over the place. This is now my neighborhood sandwich shop and I can jog on over whenever I need a fix. And just in time, too–there’s something about Paseo’s tiny corrugated metal storefront and plastic tables and chairs that perfectly compliment the long, hot days of Summer, and as Summer draws to a close and the days get cooler a trip to Paseo will make you forget that Fall is just around the corner. Sitting outside, people watching as juices from your sandwich run down your arm, you feel transported somewhere else, somewhere tropical and relaxed, far from cold, uptight Seattle. Paseo is just what this city needs.

The menu at Paseo was revamped earlier this year and now features several new options, but the sandwiches remain just about everyone’s favorite and really should not be missed. They come on a baguette, wonderfully chewy and sturdy enough to hold the abundance of toppings, which include homemade mayo, cilantro, pickled jalapeños, romaine lettuce (for a bit of crunch), and a heaping mess of the best goddamn caramelized onions you will ever eat. These onions are so popular that Paseo now offers a sandwich where they are the main attraction. I prefer the grilled chicken breast and the fish, however. The meat is light enough to offset the heavier flavors of the sauce and onions, and tender and juicy to boot. The chicken thigh and pork are a bit rich but also delicious. The scallop, a new edition to the sandwich menu, is excellent; big, meaty scallops are sautéed in extra virgin olive oil and packed (cheek to jowl?) on the bread. Keep in mind when ordering the sandwiches that these suckers are messy and you should have several napkins at the ready to sop up the juicy mess they will leave all over your hands, arms and lap.

The rest of the menu is just as good as the sandwich portion. The West Caribbean Bowl comes with two scoops of sticky jasmine rice, soft as rice pudding, soupy black beans, tangy and with a touch of spice, and a chicken thigh that, like all of the meat at Paseo, has been marinated to perfection. The flavor of tomato infuses everything. The Fresh Fish in Rojo I liked but didn’t fall in love with. The tomato sauce with peas and onion was spicy and a little sweet but the fish was nothing to write home about. Other entrees include a half chicken dinner, grilled pork, prawns, and a tofu dinner I hear tell is one of the best vegetarian meals in town.

So head on down to Paseo while the weather is still nice and treat yourself to a mini vacation.

Paseo

4225 Fremont Ave N

Seattle, WA 98103

(206) 545-7440

El Quetzal

The Quetzal, as the menu at El Quetzal will tell you, is a Central American bird that to the Aztecs was a representation of life and freedom. El Quetzal itself is a small, happy little restaurant on Beacon Hill celebrating life through authentic homemade Mexican food. Each wall has been brightly sponge painted a different color and sun and moon decorations adorn the area near the counter. As you look around you will notice that the clientele is mostly Mexican, and this is a good sign. The nice lady working the counter brings you warm salty corn chips and cactus salsa and hands you a gigantic menu full of breakfast and lunch items. Not listed on the menu is horchata, but be sure to ask for it anyway; they have it, the thick, milky variety, not the watered down stuff usually found in taquerias. The breakfast items consist mainly of eggs and sound very substantial: eggs with Mexican sausage, eggs with tomato and jalapeño, eggs with diced ham, eggs with beans and cheese. There is the usual assortment of tacos, made with “double soft” tortillas and priced at $1.50 each. I, however, didn’t try any of these and instead went straight for the tortas. El Quetzal’s tortas, or Mexican sandwiches, are described on the menu as “gigante”: this is not a misnomer. My torta chilanga, made with breaded flank steak, arrived taking up the entire dinner plate. The bread it was served on was light, crusty, soft and warm on the inside, like the very best French baguette. It was stuffed with tomato, onion, avocado, mozzarella, and chipotle sauce, which gave it a nice hint of spice. God but it was good. My sister’s pombazo was similar to the torta but with sabroso salsa baked into the bread crust. It was stuffed with a mixture of ground beef, peas, potatoes, and carrots, and finished with shredded lettuce, sour cream and cotija. My father’s quesadilla came with the same filling as the pombazo, and its homemade corn tortilla, soft in the middle, crispy at the edges, is what tortillas were meant to taste like.

The flan, which we had no room for but felt compelled to order anyway, came in a wedge and was served with a side of whipped cream and thick caramel sauce. It was dense and totally smooth, lacking the grainy and airy quality of many flans. Every time he has flan my father regales us with the same story about the infamous "truck stop flan", eaten some 30 odd years ago in a truck stop in Mexico and always described as the best flan he's ever had. No flan has ever been able to live up to it, no matter how many he's tried over the years, and so my sister and I were shocked to hear him declare El Quetzal's flan its equal. Here's to life, Dad, and to legendary dessert; you've found your white whale at last.

El Quetzal

3209 Beacon Ave S

Seattle, WA 98144

(206) 329-2970

Monday-Saturday 8:00 am - 9:00 pm

Sunday 8:00 am - 4:00 pm

Gimme Some Tongue

I remember the first time I tried tongue. I was in middle school and over at a friend’s house for some sort of celebration (I tried tongue of a different sort for the first time in high school, but that’s another story). Her dad was from Tibet and had cooked some traditional Tibetan dishes for the party, most of which were meat based. I tried a piece of an unfamiliar meat, sliced in a little dish, and was surprised at the texture. I asked my friend what it was and she told me, a little warily, that it was cow tongue. Instead of spitting it out I went back for more and for this her dad loved me. I was the only one of his daughter’s friends open-minded enough to try his food and he really appreciated it. A lot of people seem put off by the idea of eating a tongue. Why is this? It’s just a muscle. Is it really any different from eating an animal’s shoulder or butt? I think what it comes down to is presentation. My mother grew up in a large family and cow tongue was a cheap cut so they would sometimes get it for dinner. Her dad would simmer it in a big pot and serve it sliced with ketchup. She says that they would gross out the neighbor kids by bringing them over and showing them the large gray tongue boiling on the stove. OK, I can see how that would be unappetizing, but with a little cooking magic tongue can be quite good. My preference is for tacos de lengua and I encourage you to withhold judgment until you’ve tried them. The tongue is cubed and mixed with diced onions and parsley and served in a corn tortilla. The meat is soft, tender, and has a very rich taste, a bit buttery and smooth. It just melts in your mouth. My sincere wish is that people would get over the “gross” factor of eating a tongue and give these tacos a try, because they are delicious and it would be sad to let a personal hang-up get in the way of good cuisine.

Salvadorean Bakery

When I mention White Center to people in Seattle I am usually met with confusion and disdain. “Wait, where is that again? It’s way down south, right?” Noses inevitably wrinkle. White Center just isn’t viewed as a “destination” place, and I think that this is a mistake. Unpretentious in the extreme, perhaps a little trashy yet possessing a charm all its own, White Center is a great place to get food. Businesses are mainly Mexican and Southeast Asian and this makes for some very good, cheap eating. It’s also relatively easy to get to, lying just outside of the Seattle city limits and abutting the south side of West Seattle.

One of my favorite places in White Center is the Salvadorean Bakery. It is, so far as I’m aware, the only place in the Seattle area to try the food of El Salvador. Only some of the employees speak English so it can be a good opportunity to brush up on your Spanish. This friendly, brightly lit bakery has an adjoining room full of booths and tables for eating in, but take-out is an easy option. A must try are the pupusas. These are akin to a corn tortilla, but thicker and pillowy soft. They are stuffed with a variety of fillings, fried, and served with salsa and a spicy, pickled cabbage dish called curtido. There are six varieties, three of which are vegetarian, and are a bargain at $1.95 each. My favorite is the revuelta, which has a pork, cheese, and bean filling. The pork is delicately minced and salted and the refried beans moist and flavorful. The queso con loroco, cheese with palm blossom, I find to be a bit too cheesy and greasy, but if cheesy and greasy is your thing you should like this one. There is an extensive menu beyond the pupusas, including tamales, soups, fried plantains, chile rellenos, and an entire breakfast section. On a recent morning I tried the pan francés con frijoles, queso y crema, a loaf of french bread roughly the shape and about half the size of a football, filled with refried beans, hard cheese and sour cream. The golden, crisp exterior of the bread encases a soft chewy middle and a lava floe of warm refried beans and sour cream. The firm bits of cheese act as a salty accent to the creaminess of the filling. The thing was giant, and a bit heavy for breakfast, but it was so good that I finished all but a few bites. Another breakfast item that caught my eye that I haven’t had a chance to try yet is the plátano frito con frijoles y crema, deep fried plantains served with refried beans and sour cream. I mean to get this the next time I’m there. On weekends only you can get atole de elote, a sweet, hot corn drink seasoned with cinnamon. Creamy and smooth, this would be the perfect accompaniment to a cold winter morning.

While the meals served at the Salvadorean Bakery are grand, the real excitement of visiting this place are the two large bakery cases full of lovely, lovely desserts. Being a total sugar freak my heart beats a little faster when these cases come into view. Everything in there is so pretty, so colorful, so…happy looking, it can be hard to know where to start, but I highly recommend the almond squares. These are little bites of heaven. They are made from a piece of unbelievably moist almond flavored cake that is dipped in chocolate, topped with sliced almonds and coated with a thin layer of glaze. They are so light and airy they will seem to just melt in your mouth. Other highlights include the leche flan, the borracho, a rum-soaked bread pudding (this one packs a wallop), and the sweet, jam filled empanadas. Opposite the bakery cases, on a small shelf by the door, are some very unassuming little loafs of cake wrapped in a clear plastic bag. Don’t let their ordinary appearance fool you. The chocolate cream cake, while unadorned and innocently shaped like a loaf of banana bread, is one of the best cakes I have ever had. It’s not heavy yet it’s very substantial, incredibly moist yet not greasy, and chocolate-y like nobody’s business. I’ve seen a small group of people take one of these babies down in under an hour.

So remember, White Center= good eatin’, and there are few places where this is truer than at the Salvadorean Bakery.

Salvadorean Bakery

1719 SW Roxbury St

Seattle, WA 98106

(206) 762-4064

Open every day, 6:30 am-9:00 pm