Renee Erickson is the chef-owner of The Walrus and the Carpenter (as well as several other establishments in Seattle). Because I was so taken by all the oysters and seafood at the Pike Place Market, I couldn’t get seafood off my mind. Until I move to Seattle full time (Seattle needs nurses, doesn’t it?), a visit to The Walrus and the Carpenter was the next best thing!

We arrived early, after spending the day at the Boeing plant on a tour of the factory (completely worth the trip, to see how a Boeing airplane is made from start to finish!).

Oyster Happy Hour is between 4:00 and 6:00 at the Walrus and the Carpenter, so the place was pretty full when we arrived around 5:00.

 

They offer lots of different wines and sparkling wine by the glass, which was great because the menu was essentially “small plates”, grouped according to category (vegetable, fish, meat, dessert).

We started with three types of oysters with glasses of Spanish cava:

 

I really wanted to just keep eating more oysters, but D thought we ought to try other things since the menu looked so good! We tried the grilled octopus, tuna poke, scallop crudo, and steamed clams, along with glasses of different white wines:

We loved everything so much that we raved to our server, who indulged us in some good conversation about the restaurant’s food and wine. A little while later, he returned with a dish of spot prawn crudo sent to us by the chef, advising us that “there are benefits to having a Canadian chef tonight, and because you are so enthusiastic about everything you’ve eaten”. We were so touched by this gesture, because our praise for the kitchen was sincere, and because we expected nothing in return. We made sure to shake the chef’s hand (young gentleman from Calgary) and thank him again as we were leaving.

 

 

The Walrus and the Carpenter might be the prettiest restaurant I have ever visited. With white marble counters and tabletops, metal stools, tiny hexagon floor tiles, an amazing chandelier that looks like huge piece of coral, an open kitchen, metal baskets of oysters, and fine stemware, the place looks and feels very feminine and welcoming. It is pretty obvious to me why it is always so busy and full of locals!