Dinner at Cascina Spinasse (followed by drinks at Cannon)

When planning the average 'Bartcation,' restaurant selection usually requires the most effort. First there is standard research on what restaurants are good, leveraging typical web sources. Of course there is consultation with the Holy Bible of haute cuisine at early stages of preparation in order to make reservations feasible. If I am lucky, I may have like-minded foodies who live or have visited at the target locale that I may reach out to (for either suggestions, or verification of such).

Once I have narrowed it down to a short list, my criteria usually focuses on highlighting local ingredients, or places that represent the apex of a region's gastronomic specialty. Examples include visiting: Tadich Grill in San Francisco for their legendary cioppino; Vancouver's Blue Water Cafe for incredible Pacific Northwest seafood; or someplace as simple as Katz's Deli in New York for classic corned beef.

And yet, there are times when I pick a place that resonates with me because of other factors. Case in point was selecting tonight's dinner at Cascina Spinasse. Led by Chef Stuart Lane; "his team creates simple, refined dishes grounded in authentic techniques from Piedmont, while incorporating the products of artisans and small farmers from the Pacific Northwest." As it turns out, I was just getting geared up for a trip to Italy in the end of September, with a week in Piedmont. Whether it was coincidence, or divine providence that dropped a restaurant offering both a glimpse of my future travels along with highlighting local ingredients; I made the reservation and that was it.

Geeking out at the Museum of Flight (in between meals of course!)

The morning of Day 2 started off very slowly, as I hydrated in an effort to offset the indulgences at the previous evening's dinner at Canlis. The plan for Day 2 in Seattle consists of spending the morning at the Museum of Flight, followed by lunch at Lola, and an afternoon at the Seattle Art Museum. The evening's dinner venue - Italian restaurant Spinasse - will be featured in an upcoming post.