Just Another Pleasant Seattle Sunday

Unless you spent this last weekend with your head under a rock, or trapped inside a cube farm somewhere, you probably noticed that the weather was absolutely fantastic, especially on Sunday. When the first few days of glorious sunshine start to show themselves after a long, gray winter it’s hard not to over do it and go a little crazy with the weekend activities. More often than not I find myself so eager to embrace every minute of sunny weather that I cram my weekend full of appointments with the great outdoors, and by the time Monday rolls around I’m exhausted, having forgotten to pencil in some down time for relaxation. This weekend however, T, my hubby, and I found ourselves in a constant state of relaxation, one that I must admit, is only now starting to wear away.

This past Sunday we reinvented the meaning of lazy. We slept in until 10:00, I went to the farmers market and bought flowers, I might (or might not) have done some laundry, and then it was time to think about dinner. Now, being Seattleites, T and I are naturally very fond of seafood and we enjoy eating seafood at restaurants with a view of the water. There’s no better end to a lovely summer evening than a delicious seafood dinner while looking out over Puget Sound or Lake Washington. We tossed around a few ideas: Ray’s Boathouse, McCormicks, Spud in Kirkland. Then T mentioned he wanted crab cakes. My favorite food ever is Dungeness crab and I have tried crab cakes just about everywhere. The best crab cakes I have ever eaten are from Anthony’s Homeport in Edmonds. When you cut into the cakes, there are big pieces of fresh crab meat, and bread crumbs are only used to form a delicious, golden crust on the outside. They are literally heaven on a plate.

We arrived at Anthony’s around 4:30 and were seated right away at a table looking down on the marina. It was perfect. There were people out on sailboats with their dogs; one couple was having a romantic picnic at a table overlooking the marina. Outside Anthony’s Beach Café below there was a small sandbox where kids were playing while their parents sipped summer cocktails. We were all engulfed by the summerness of the evening and it was deliciously intoxicating.

I always forget that late spring and early summer is Sockeye salmon season, which is ironic because salmon is another one of my favorite foods. As much as I love it though, I never order it at a restaurant. They always want to cover it in some kind of rich sauce, and there’s nothing wrong with that, except that I love salmon best when it’s seasoned with a little salt, pepper, lemon juice, and sesame oil and cooked on the grill. When I eat salmon I really want to enjoy the flavor of the fish. If it’s served with too rich a sauce, the fish’s flavor is masked and it’s not as good.

T and I had our hearts set on crab cakes, so we didn’t really need time to look at the menu, but we had each ordered a drink (I went for the Rhuby Lemon Drop, which is a regular lemon drop with strawberry and rhubarb juices added. T went with his favorite, a Heineken) and wanted something to snack on while we waited for our food and enjoyed our drinks. On the seasonal menu, there was a seared salmon poky appetizer. We both love seared salmon, so we ordered it. Neither of us was prepared for what was to come.

The salmon was cut into small, bite-sized pieces and was served over a bed of fried wanton strips and shredded cabbage. There was light glaze over it that tasted like teriyaki sauce. I took my first bite of salmon and it was like butter, the salmon practically melted in my mouth. It was perfectly cooked and seasoned. The wanton strips and cabbage added a little crunch and the teriyaki glaze didn’t overpower any of the flavors. We cleaned the plate in less than five minutes. If you eat out only once this month, you should go to Anthony’s and order the seared salmon poky. It’s reasonably priced at $9.95 and there is enough served that it could actually make for a meal.

Our crab cakes quickly followed and were just as scrumptious as always. I had forgotten that they’re served over a plum or apricot and butter glaze which is totally unnecessary; the crab is delicious enough on its own. After finishing our meal we sat and gazed out the window at the setting sun and people below at the marina. It had been a perfect day and I was disappointed to see the weekend come to an end, but luckily for me, summer hasn’t even officially begun yet and there are going to be so many more enchanting weekends ahead.