Canlis - Seattle

Canlis created a truly perfect and entirely unforgettable evening to treasure. Four perfect courses, with a few surprises sprinkled along the way. My fiancé and... read more Canlis created a truly perfect and entirely unforgettable evening to treasure. Four perfect courses, with a few surprises sprinkled along the way. My fiancé and I both ensured we ordered different items to try as many of the offerings as possible. I’m not going to rank them all, but here are the top three I would say are “must try”: Shaved Wagyu, Striploin, and the Halibut. Enjoy a cocktail, as each one is meticulously crafted (and pretty boozy too). The entire staff operated as a well-oiled machine right before our very eyes. Dirty spoons phasing out of existence, an immaculately set table, your napkin being magically folded when you return from the restroom, I am convinced each staff member is a magician on the side. Amanda, Ashleigh, Dan, Forrest, John, I thank you for injecting your personalities into our experience. The food was great, but the staff is what brought the “meal with a view” to life. It’s been 18 hours since our experience and the only thing that has prevented us from talking about it was sleeping last night. I’m not sure when we will stop. Seven out of five stars.

My partner and I got engaged this past weekend and the Canlis easily took the cake as our favorite activity, huge thanks to Forest and Jeff for making this a un... read more My partner and I got engaged this past weekend and the Canlis easily took the cake as our favorite activity, huge thanks to Forest and Jeff for making this a unique and unforgettable experience! While the views and general ambiance of the establishment are already top notch, it's the staff interactions that truly makes you feel special here. Forest was our waiter though I'd hesitate to label it as that as he did so much more and he's the reason we loved Canlis so much more than any other fine dining establishment. He took the time to listen to our story, get to know us, share some Canlis history, and fulfill every request. I'm truly impressed by Forest, I know he served many other tables aside from ours, but he really made us feel special! He's got the most charisma and social energy/endurance of anyone I've met yet. Despite everything he was already doing, Forest went the extra mile to make the evening even more special for us on our engagement weekend by giving us a lovely tour and the pinnacle of the whole weekend set us up with an isolated bonfire on the roof for us to reflect on the day while looking over the glorious view. The food, glorious. Presentation was on point. All the dishes were either had an uncommon flavor profile such has mixing traditionally clashing tastes but making it work or was taking typical dishes to the highest level of preparation. The portions were moderately sized as you'd expect from a fine dining establishment, but there was a surprisingly high number of courses with multiple portions which is nice. Thank you Forest, and everyone at Canlis who cooperated to help make the experience possible, for the wonderful night we've had. This is how you earn lifelong customers! We're definitely looking to make this a regular annual celebration. TLDR: Canlis is worth every penny and more.

My problem was that we had high expectation given prior review of Canlis. Everything about the restaurant is average, not great and certainly not good value for... read more My problem was that we had high expectation given prior review of Canlis. Everything about the restaurant is average, not great and certainly not good value for the money. Compared to other high end restaurants in other metropolitan areas, Canlis lacks in culinary experimentation, food presentation, menu development and basic taste. There are many other and better choices to showcase the Seattle culinary expertise. The menu lacked imagination and the presentation of the food left much to be desired. The desert was all but tasteless. The wine list was solid, though, but very expensive, even for a high end restaurant. This was one of the most expensive meal we have ever had (and we have had dining experiences at the old Noma, Amass, Fat Duck, Bæst etc) for a food experience that was average at best.

Great experience celebrating a Birthday! Amazing view, good service, good food, and classy. read more Great experience celebrating a Birthday! Amazing view, good service, good food, and classy.

We celebrated a special occasion at Canlis this week and overall I was disappointed. The service is good but not great, the view is stunning, cocktails and wine... read more We celebrated a special occasion at Canlis this week and overall I was disappointed. The service is good but not great, the view is stunning, cocktails and wine were excellent but the food was seriously lacking. For the exceptionally high prices and the addition of a James Beard nomination this year, I expected a top notch culinary experience on par with fine dining in New York and San Fransisco and it was not that. Staff greeted us at the door and hung our jackets. We were about 15 minutes early for our reservation so we enjoyed some cocktails at the bar. We had a lemon drop and a martini. Both were excellent. We were then brought over to our table and and had the gorgeous view to look out on. The chef sent over some gifts from the kitchen. I do not know exactly what these were. They looked like artful tree branches with matcha powder and there was creme fraiche. There was nothing particularly remarkable about the taste. My husband has malbec with his dinner and I had the chardonnay. We both enjoyed our wine very much. The remaining courses were fairly forgettable. I had the radish with poached oyster, the crab, halibut as a main course, the soufflé, the chef sent macarons to the table and I had coffee to finish. The halibut was by far the most disappointing dish I tasted. The fish was cut exceptionally well but the plate was almost completely white. The only color was the crab sauce that was added to the dish table side. The fish was almost completely bland. There was little to no taste at all. Absolutely nothing I had that night was anything special. While the presentation was nice, food should taste good! At this price, food should taste amazing and we a truly satisfying and memorable experience. I do not think we will return.