TASTE Restaurant and Cafes

Hi! Happy New Year!

This past year has been one of great excitement and opportunity here at TASTE. We saw the opening of TASTE Café @ OSP (Olympic Sculpture Park, for those of you not keen on acronyms), the growth of our incredible TASTE Events and, not least, the opening of our flagship, TASTE Restaurant @ SAM.

Launching TASTE Restaurant compares, in a way, to raising a child. We had hopes, dreams and fears for our “baby” when it opened to the public seven months ago, and we tried to anticipate every potential issue that might affect the success of TASTE. We wanted to build a place that would give more than it took from the world around it.

These past seven months have laid the groundwork for the path to TASTE’s future: When TASTE was conceived, its mission was to showcase foods from local producers who have committed themselves to sustainable practices and to nourishing the stomachs and souls of our community. The names of farms or fishermen are on the menu not because it’s trendy. We walk the walk so that our customers can enjoy a meal in good conscience as well as take pleasure in the flavors.

Our focus on regionality applies to the wine list, too: All the selections come from only Washington and Oregon. We also categorize our wines by flavor profile instead of varietal. This allows diners to choose a wine based on its herbaceousness, fruitiness or jammy qualities, which we believe makes the ordering process more approachable.

While we are grateful to be a part of the Seattle Art Museum, we do want to encourage people to consider TASTE a destination. Our regular events include the quarterly Splash! Winemaker dinners as well as the Sunday Suppers, which feature some of our favorite local producers. Happy Hour (3-6 p.m.) is a great way to transition from the work day to evening, especially since all the snacks from the bar menu are $5.

Our ultimate goal is always to bring people together around the table to savor the great cooking of executive chef, Christopher Conville, and the dessert stylings of pastry chef, Elise Fineberg. We’d love it if you would share a meal with us.

Cheers,

Alex Van Amburg

Director of Restaurant Operations