00:00♪♪
00:05Hey, everyone. Welcome to Seattle.
00:06Today, we're gonna be checking out
00:07my five favorite bites in the city.
00:09We have a very vibrant and diverse food scene here.
00:11I can't wait to share all of this with you.
00:13Let's go check it out.
00:14♪♪
00:17First place I'm taking you to is Key League.
00:19It is a Filipino-American restaurant by my friend Mel.
00:23It is a place that specializes in Filipino soul food
00:26and good vibes.
00:27The dish that I love here is what they're known for,
00:30which is bulalo.
00:31Mel has opened up this spot to give access
00:33to something that is just really found at home.
00:35When you don't feel good,
00:37this is the thing that you need from your grandma.
00:39The special part of this dish
00:41is the beautiful piece of bone marrow,
00:43the perfectly braised pieces of beef throughout that,
00:46soft, tender potatoes that have been cooked through,
00:49corn on the cob.
00:50I think it's so delicious.
00:51I'm so, so thankful this has opened up here.
00:53It's just beef bones and water.
00:57Yeah.
00:58And salt.
00:59And I think in the Philippines,
01:00like, so much of our food is so flavorful,
01:03but it's so simple.
01:04♪♪
01:08Oh, my God, it's delicious.
01:10I am not putting any effort into pulling this apart.
01:13It is pork tender, seasoned very well.
01:16I'm not gonna find bulalo
01:18in every Filipino restaurant out there,
01:21especially a modern one.
01:22I think that is what's so special and unique about it.
01:25I hope you guys come and check it out.
01:27We're here at Kambanegi.
01:29I love this place so much.
01:30It's a great soba-focused restaurant
01:32with an amazing sake list.
01:34Can't really ask for anything more
01:35than handmade soba noodles.
01:36Let's check it out.
01:37We are here with Soma-san,
01:39and she is kind enough to let us into the kitchen space
01:42to see the soba-making process.
01:43I don't see, like, any place, like, making noodle by hand.
01:46And dry noodle and fresh noodle is completely different.
01:50So I start learning how to make soba just for me to eat.
01:56Then after I learn soba-making, like,
01:58oh, this is, maybe I should share my experience
02:02and educate people how fresh soba is good.
02:06Style of noodles that she's serving is a dipping style.
02:09It's gonna be served off to the side.
02:12You've got a bowl of just beautiful hot broth
02:14in front of you.
02:15This broth, so rich.
02:16You've got slices of duck breast.
02:18You've got what's referred to as skune.
02:20Minced duck legs that have been made
02:22into almost a type of sausage.
02:24It's something that I think is so exceptional
02:26and makes this restaurant so special.
02:28Cheers.
02:29Cheers.
02:35We're checking out Xi'an Noodles right now.
02:37It is a specialty noodle shop.
02:39Really, really unique.
02:40Hand-pulled noodles done very well.
02:42It's one of my favorite comfort foods in Seattle.
02:44Come with me.
02:45Xi'an Noodle is dedicated to making these by hand.
02:48They make the dough every single day.
02:49They roll it out,
02:51and they stretch it beautifully across this little bench.
02:54And then pull it up,
02:55tear it to the thickness they're looking for.
02:57There's just something very exciting
02:59about the quality of that work.
03:01For some reason, there are a lot of you back here
03:02doing this.
03:03This is the noodle dough.
03:04They're spreading it out and flattening it,
03:08and then stretching it.
03:14And then you tear it, right?
03:16So, one, two, three.
03:21The first year of living here,
03:22my wife and I made a pact to live close enough
03:24to one of these so that we could get delivery
03:26or come swing by one.
03:27You should go out of the way for it, too.
03:29The heat and the chilies on this dish,
03:31it's delicious.
03:33And I love that kind of tingly feeling.
03:35This is the lamb.
03:36It's sort of braised, cross-cut,
03:39shaved very thinly,
03:40and then tossed in with a bunch of these chilies
03:42and spices and this chili oil.
03:44This is so good,
03:45I have to actually physically stop myself.
03:47Next, we'll throw it to Spinace.
03:49Let's go check it out.
03:51Spinace is your quintessential neighborhood restaurant
03:53in Capitol Hill.
03:54One of the things I love about Spinace is the vibe.
03:57When you walk in,
03:58you're kind of walking into this cozy Italian friend's house.
04:01You're met with a glass of wine,
04:03really friendly service.
04:05One of my favorite bites is a pasta dish here
04:07called Tyrene.
04:08It's very simple.
04:09It's just butter, sage, the pasta,
04:12a little bit of Parmesan, salt and pepper.
04:13Watching them make this dish,
04:14you'll see how simple it is.
04:16You're sitting at the counter where I'm sitting right now.
04:18You can see the entire pasta process being made.
04:21Pretty open kitchen, beautiful space, very quaint.
04:24So much about what I love about this dish is just the umami,
04:28the butter and the Parmesan coming together harmoniously.
04:31Like, you've got to eat it while it's hot.
04:33I'm talking a little bit too much right now
04:34because I'm excited about it,
04:35but I love this dish.
04:39Lastly, I'm taking you to Canlis.
04:41This is the restaurant where I'm the executive chef.
04:43The dish we're going to be making
04:44is a dish called Escabeche Florita.
04:47It is a play off of my grandma's last dish
04:49she made me before she passed away.
04:51My grandma was a little bit sassy.
04:53She kind of broke the rules
04:54where we needed to break the rules.
04:55This is my way of connecting with her on a daily basis.
04:58The vibrancy of the sauce, the crispiness of the fish,
05:01the nice crunchy vegetables.
05:03This is my way of getting to honor someone
05:05who has meant so much to me.
05:07This is it.
05:08This is our Escabeche Florita.
05:09This is my most favorite thing
05:11my grandma used to make for me.
05:12And I like to think of it as a very special celebration
05:15of someone I love so much, so.
05:21I really love the use of the apple juice as a souring agent.
05:26It's a way to connect this to the state of Washington,
05:29which is very famous for apples.
05:30The ways in which I'm allowed to story tell
05:33and express creativity and my Filipino roots here,
05:36it's an opportunity of a lifetime
05:38and also a way to honor my ancestors
05:41and the people who have fought very hard
05:43for me to be where I am today.
05:44Seattle's a pretty amazing up and coming dining city.
05:48We hope to see you here
05:49and I look forward to welcoming you.
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