Raskin Gets Her Goat; The Stranger Goes Vegan

Seattle Weekly's Hanna Raskin visits an old Phinney Ridge standby: Stumbling Goat Bistro. She says although the place has been around for 13 years, it's still a place worthy of attention:

In addition to tweaking its cocktail menu to satisfy contemporary connoisseurs and continuing to tinker with its weekly schedule, adding weekend breakfast service just this month, Stumbling Goat has employed a succession of ridiculously talented toques who've imposed their own styles on the menu.

That includes current chef Joshua Theilen (pictured).

New owners Keri DeWoody and Angie Heyer hoped he'd reinvigorate the restaurant's reputation for rigorous ingredient sourcing and irrefutable deliciousness. Judging by a pair of recent dinners, their plan panned out.

Overall, Raskin was impressed with the neighborhood bistro, but does point out that "Stumbling Goat does its best work with meat."

The Stranger's Cienna Madrid will see your goat and raise you an array of fake meats. This week, the dedicated carnivore ("Meat makes my mouth water with the same fervor as winning an argument or correcting someone's grammar, to the point where it's sometimes difficult talking around such deep, shimmering pools of saliva.") waxes poetic about her love of vegetarian food:

Lately, I've found that when I'm eating out at a restaurant, I eschew real meat for its fake counterpart. I love how fake meat is persistently chewy, like savory chewing gum. I love its different "flavors," which remind me of sucking on bouillon cubes.

On her short list of worthy fake meat destinations: The Lucky Diner, Moonlight Cafe, Razzis Pizzeria and Jhanjay Vegetarian Thai.

· All Week in Reviews [~ESEA~]
· Stumbling Back on Course [Seattle Weekly]
· Put Your Fake Meat in My Mouth! [The Stranger]

[Photo: Seattle Weekly]