Whenever we have the chance to dine out we make a beeline for places I know will feature local farmers or serve house made fare. My favorites are Tilth in Ballard or any of Tom Douglas’ restaurants.
Tonight, however, I took the kids out for a treat to our local neighborhood grill. We ate at the Sandpoint Grill aptly named for it’s location on Sandpoint. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the owner had not only taken the time to source local produce and meats but made the commitment to spell out where things came from on the menu. In the restaurant business that is a true test.
The menu featured produce from Oxbow Farm, Full Circle Farm, mushrooms from Foraged and Found, and meat from Thundering Hooves. Thoroughly impressed that a neighborhood joint would go to such lengths I spoke with the owner and became even more thoroughly impressed.
He rattled off a great number of other local foragers, producers and ranchers. He really knew his stuff. I ordered Thundering Hooves short ribs prepared osso bucco style and they were superb, served in a tomato based sauce teeming with sweet carrots, a hint of citrus and an herb pistou on top. They were meltingly soft and, when combined with a glass of Washington Cabernet Sauvignon, seemed to make my slightly out of control children considerably more tolerable.
As an added bonus Sundays, Mondays and Tuesday nights kids eat free from a very kid-pleasing menu that includes hamburgers & fries, mac and cheese and chicken nuggets. The waiter was exceedingly patient, friendly and brought us crayons, drawing paper and a plate of sliced apples, cucumbers and carrot sticks right away.
I can’t recommend the Sandpoint Grill enough. If you are looking for an approachable, casual restaurant that is family friendly, easy to get to, won’t break the bank but still serves up as much local food as possible give the Sandpoint Grill a try.
Bravo to Sand Point Grill! Our entire family loves the place. Ryan claims it has one of Seattle’s best burgers. I love the fact that we can walk there and their soups are my favorite.
I’ll have to get the burger next time!