Artusi - Seattle

Ok, I've eaten well this week, but DAMN! I'm so glad this is the note I was left with. I had the short rib pasta which was PHENOMENAL. The pasta was obviously house made, attention to detail and the care of food was unmatched. Then...the desserts! Let's talk about the desserts!!!!! Tiramisu, always a classic go to but this one was RUM forward in the best way possible. The sorbet (black tea orange or something like that), interesting and complex! The semi-freddo dessert with cherries and chocolate, yes please! All of it was so damn good. Next time I'm in Seattle, I'm bringing my whole team here.

We initially had plans to attend dinner at spinasse, however the wait was about at hour and they recommended us to check out their sister business next door. Initially the host sat us down at a table near the door, but after I requested if we could sit at an open table further back, he agreed with a response of sure! Let 's please you. Waiter was patient enough to explain all the pastas on the menu granted there are only 4 5 to choose from. Expect portions to on the smaller side for the price you pay.

Artusi was a near perfect dining experience offering a modern and lively approach to Italian food. We certainly came for the pasta, but was quite impressed but nearly everything else: the short rib is an absolute must, the pork medallions, the clams, the tiramisu just splendid. Although we ordered a bottle of wine, I enjoyed trusting the bartender with whatever cocktail they served us between plates (they knew exactly what they were doing and prepared our palette in a fun boozy way). Our server was my only turn off. We asked to order whatever was best, and they encouraged us to order the gnocchi without the porchetta as they were vegan (thank goodness we didn't listen). I don't ever want to see that omelette thing again, and please just know what a Syrah is.

Still fabulous and delicious. This place is better than Seattle deserves. Don 't believe me? Order the butter lettuce salad and a drink. That 's it. You 'll get a few greens on a plate and feel like you regret reading this Yelp review. And then take a bite and realize that even the Artusi preparation of butter lettuce destroys any comparable Italian place outside of Spinasse and Altura in the city. I have never had a bad meal at this local treasure. My only complaint it that they have redesigned the interior of the place to, I assume, make room for more seats. The previous design of the restaurant may have been less functional but the vibe was way better and now it 's just O.K. Still, you 'll find very few meals as good as this one in Seattle.

I came here for the valentine's day dinner (set meal $65/pp) and it was not the most exciting 4 course meal. I felt like the items were not super creative, nor presented in the best way for the price. The food itself just tasted ok, though not bad and also super small. We shared 1 raviolo with 4 little droplets of filling for 2 people LOL it was sooo small. We wanted more!! We also did the drink tasting set, which was around $35 and this was pretty cool, but I only liked 1 drink (the cocktail). Anyways... I probably wouldn't come back for any set dinner plans.