Many restaurants in the Seattle area are had their Seattle Restaurant Week from October 14-18 to 12-25. Many restaurant owners participated to lure diners to their restaurants. The Coterie Room is one of these restaurants participated that restaurant week. This restaurant now occupies the former restaurant, Zoe's in the Belltown neighborhood. The atmosphere of The Coterie Room is lovely, with a neat herb garden on the wall which was the first thing I noticed when I walked in the restaurant. Another thing I noticed that restaurant is somewhat very dark due to fewer lamps but the interior was very charming.
The Coterie Room offer two separate menus, one for Seattle Restaurant Week and one for regular menu. I decided to use the Seattle Restaurant Week menu because it has three courses which would give me an opportunity to try their dishes out. After reading the menu, I decided to compare it to the other menu to see if they offer same dishes. It turned out both menus are not the same. In my experience, most restaurants who participated in the Seattle Restaurant Week tend to include their signature dishes on Seattle Restaurant Week menu to let new diners know what their typical fare is like. I was somehow disappointed that The Coterie Room didn't do that. I decided to go ahead order some dishes with an open mind and see.
The first course I ordered: Duck Rillette pickled figs, toast & finnes herbs. It was a beautiful dish but I was surprised that Duck Rillette was really cold. It tasted good. I also enjoyed eating the herbs with Duck Rillette.
Moving on to second course, I had Cavabelli with lobster mushroom brown butter, tarragon, black kale, and parmesan. It was a nice looking dish. It is tasted somewhat all right but didn't wow me at all. I was expecting it would be the outstanding dish on the menu. I was disappointed about that.
For the final course, I had Caramel Pear Tart with pine nuts & buttermilk ice cream. It was a really good dessert. I love that they made their ice cream from scratch and it tastes great! It also tasted great with a pear tart. It was a well made tart without being overcooked. I was able to taste pears. I am pleased with that. It was a better dish than last two dishes.
I would rate this restaurant three stars for several reasons. First of all, I feel that restaurant had "dumbed-down" its dishes for Seattle Restaurant Week since their menu is nowhere simliar to their regular menu. They should re-consider their Seattle Restaurant Week menu and make sure these dishes are what The Coterie Room is known for. We, diners want to know what The Coterie Room is known for. They missed that opportunity.
I have to give The Coterie Room some credit for having an excellent servers. The waitress I had was wonderful and very thoughtful. I appreciated their service. Will I come back again? Probably so, because I believe that every restaurant deserve a second chance and I will try order some dishes on their regular menu to figure out what The Coterie Room is known for.
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