Rockcreek Seafood & Spirits: Restaurant Review

My family and I always like to try new places to eat so a few weeks ago, we went to the Fremont area of Seattle to a newer placed called Rockcreek Seafood & Spirits.
This place had a very open feel to it, with it's high ceilings and long glass windows making it feel less stuffy and more welcoming. The seating is spaced out well, except for the weird part where the higher bar stool seating is right above a dining table (yea it was weird because it feels like they can see you eat). Other than that, the graphic imaging of a natural landscape stands right by the entrane and gives the entire place an outdoorsy vibe. Now on to the food!...

First were are small plates and appetizers. We had this calamari "kari out' where it was an asian inspired calamari dish served in an actual take out box with chopsticks.
I like that these were whole baby squid that was deep fried. It was served with a salad that was in a sort of sweet and sour dressing, that tasted like a Chinese chicken salad or something of the sort. I thought it was a cute presentation and the flavor was really nice.




Next we tried the grilled ocotopus with kidney beans and tomato. Some of this was better than the other.
I say that because a few of the octopus pieces were very tender, but then some of them were tough and chewy. It had a smoked flavor to it that complimented teh freshmness of the tomato and beans.



Next was a sardine salad that I actually really enjoyed.
It was a bit fishy, so if you are not into that type of tase or if you aren't used to fishier fishes, then I would stay away from it. I loved it however. There was an eggplant puree as a base for the fish along with pickled veggies and some fresh herbs and fried onion/shallot pieces. I loved the freshness of everything blended with the sardines.


We also had fresh oysters on the half-shell. I am such a lover of raw oysters and these did not disappoint. Sorry though, I can't remember the names of all of them, but we did try 4 different kinds from around the Pacific NW.


My beverage of choice was this infused dandelion wine with raw egg white served in this mini vase looking glass. It was very refreshing and light, but not overly sweet. The egg white is basically cooked from the alcohol so it added a nice layer of texture to the drink.


Now for my main dish. I had the hawaiian seared tuna with pickled onions, celery, sliced potatoes, olives and Italian flat leaf parsley over a tomato vinaigrette. I liked how raw the center of the tuna was, but honestly wished for even less cook time on the tuna than it had because it left some parts a bit tough. I also wish the tomato vinaigrette had more flavor to it, or perhaps with something else added. I know you don't want to overpower the tuna so you can taste it's flavor, but there was something about the sauce that just didn't quite match up to the tuna and pickled vegetables. Overall though, I did like this dish but would probably not re-order it. My brother had the black cod dish and I think I would opt for that instead. It was just more pleasing to the palette and had a nice variety of complex flavor without being overpowering.

And lastly, the dessert! Whenever we try a new restaurant, it is almost inevitable that we try the dessert as well! This time we opted for 2 dishes.
This first one was a ricotta apple beignet with a caramel anglaise, topped with powdered sugar. This was a really delicious treat. I liked that they were nice and bite sized and were not overly sweet. I wish there was a bit more ricotta to them and a stronger apple flavor. I was expecting a bolder apple flavor when I read the dessert menu, but didn't really notice it.
The last thing we tried was the RockCreek S'mores which consisted of a Valrhona chocolate mousse, smoked meringue, caramel, sea salt, and a graham tuille (cookie cracker thing). I loveeeed this dish, I think mainly because of the salted caramel flavor melded with that smoked meringue on top. It balanced out the creamy sweetness of the chocolate pudding below. The graham tuille was a nice touch too because there was a bit of saltiness to it as well.

Overall, I am highly pleased I was able to try this place and would definitely want to check out their brunch and happy hour items. This place in the mid-range when it comes to pricing--not overly cheap, but not over-the-top pricing either. Items ranged anywhere from $10 to around $24 with dessert and oysters being less than $10. If you are looking for a new restaurant to try in Seattle, and you love seafood, I would recommend this place!

Do you like seafood? What is your favorite seafood dish?!

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