New on the Waterfront

Spring has brought about some changes to our beautiful waterfront, and we spent some time this last weekend checking a few out.

Friday afternoon we noticed a reminder here on Patch about an . We dropped what we were doing and went to check it out. It was a gorgeous sunny day so it didn’t take too much convincing to get me down there for a stroll around town.

At the open house we were greeted by the association's friendly staff and fellow business owners from the area. The new location is at 3311 Harborview Dr. #101, former location of the. It’s downstairs from the , next to the.

In the center of the main room was a table filled with trays of food provided by local restaurants. My notes show the contributing restaurants to this “Mini Bite of Gig Harbor” were , , , , , , and . Water to Wine provided a selection of wines to sample. I hope I didn’t leave anyone out! It was definitely a step above your usual fare at these types of events. I thought it was representative of the creative and diverse food scene we have in Gig Harbor.

The Association’s Executive Director Mary DesMarais was gracious in showing us around the new offices. It was a great reminder of the annual events they host for the community like the , Chalk the Walk, Trick or Treat in the Harbor and the Wine and Food Festival. They also help provide and maintain the Flower Basket Program for those beautiful hanging flower baskets that enhance our downtown in the summer.

For more information about all the events they support and to find out about volunteering to help with the watering of the downtown flower baskets, go to http://gigharborhistoricwaterfront.org/

Our other waterfront new adventure was (finally!) dinner at the . We have been planning on checking it out ever since they opened, but their adults-only policy and limited hours delayed us until we had a free night without the kids. It was worth the wait.

Everything I have been hearing by word of mouth and reading in numerous reviews has been unequivocally positive. This made me wary... It’s like the movie you hear rave reviews about from your friends and your expectations become so high that when you finally do see it, you are inevitably disappointed. Well, not in this case.

The décor is cozy and comfortable. I can’t believe it all fits in that little building but somehow they pulled it off. Because of the limited seating it can be difficult to get last minute reservations on a weekend so plan ahead if possible. But also because of that limited seating, they are able to spare no detail in the service and food they provide.

They have a fairly small menu but it’s diverse and we hear it changes frequently. Their wine list is impressive. We began by sharing a starter of Honey Almond Prawns. These were recommended by a friendly couple who were waiting for a table when we arrived. The atmosphere here feels almost like a private dinner party, and guests were freely visiting with other tables. We were grateful for the tip on the starter as it was unique and delicious.

I went with the Wild Boar Bourguignon after being assured by our server that it didn’t have a strong gamey taste and is one of their more popular entrées. He was absolutely right. 

Rick ordered the Roasted and “Fried” Half Chicken with Apple Cider Gravy. It was perfectly cooked and that gravy was outstanding. No detail is overlooked down to the snow peas with Rick’s dinner. It’s pretty rare that I am jealous over the vegetable side my fellow diner has with his dinner.

I made an exception and ordered dessert as I had been hearing about their crème brûlée. When I was growing up, our special dinner out destination was the Falls Terrace Restaurant in Tumwater. We always ordered the crème brûlée for dessert, and I’ve never had its equal since. That was back in the 1970’s so I was sure it was just my fond memories that made it so good, but now I’ve found one that rivals my memory! It’s classic, simple and perfect.

They have a good thing going there, and I hope they keep it up. Great service + great food + reasonable prices = success. That’s a formula that will keep us coming back for more!