{"id":4273,"date":"2016-12-28T21:54:51","date_gmt":"2016-12-29T05:54:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/?p=4273"},"modified":"2016-12-28T22:05:51","modified_gmt":"2016-12-29T06:05:51","slug":"aqua-by-el-gaucho","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/aqua-by-el-gaucho\/","title":{"rendered":"Aqua by El Gaucho & SAM Sculpture Garden"},"content":{"rendered":"

Aqua \u2013 12\/15 before SAM Sculpture Garden walk-about<\/p>\n

We had tickets to what we thought was going to be a special event at the SAM (Seattle Art Museum) Sculpture Garden down on the waterfront. We drove around a little, finding no parking which isn\u2019t that unusual in that area, and decided to stop in to Aqua by El Gaucho<\/a> for a drink and maybe a snack.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Aqua never disappoints. The space, on a pier at the north end of Seattle\u2019s waterfront, is literally on the water as its name implies. The dining room menu has a wide range, but focuses on things from the sea. Again, a nice match of location and dining experience. But, we didn\u2019t really want to spend the money such fine dining demands so sat at the bar instead.<\/p>\n

Being in the holiday mood, we ordered Manhattan\u2019s made with Bulleit Rye<\/a> \u2013 my favorite whiskey ($13.50 each). Sipping a finely crafted cocktail\u2026especially an old-school one like the Manhattan\u2026in a lovely space as this is a treat.<\/p>\n

We needed some nourishment, so we looked at the bar menu. They don\u2019t have a happy hour menu per se, but have a regular bar menu instead. The upside is that you get great value at any time of the day. I had the Pier 70 Burger \u2013 my litmus test for just about any new place I go ($14). Steven had the Steak frites ($18).<\/p>\n

My burger was probably the best high-end bar burger I\u2019ve had in a long time. The toppings were pretty straight forward - lettuce, tomato, and \u2018special sauce\u2019 - and didn\u2019t compete with the beef, which not incidentally done to a perfect medium rare. It seems the new standard bun type is the brioche. I think they are a bit too much bread for my tastes, but given the heft of the burger, I\u2019m not sure there would be many other options. With the ciabatta long out of style and too chewy in the first place, the brioche is a fine compromise. With most burgers from other higher end pubs and restaurants coming closer to the $20 mark, this one at $14 is almost a steal. And I can\u2019t believe I\u2019m saying a $14 burger is a steal. My Midwest upbringing is devastated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/a><\/td>\n<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Steven had the Steak Frites. I\u2019ll let him fill you in on his choice.<\/p>\n

Steven here - Yes, I had the Steak Frites. A steak at Aqua for only $18?? The starters at the main El Gaucho in Belltown are that much or more. It was a fairly small steak, as you can imagine from a bar menu. The pile of frites, however, were generous. All in, though it actually makes a sufficient sized small meal. The steak was not surprisingly cooked perfectly and the frites fresh. Oh, and the pan reduction, that may well be the best part.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Xxxx<\/p>\n

Oh, and don\u2019t waste your special ticket on the SAM Sculpture Garden Christmas walk\u2026or whatever it was if they do it again next year. The whole thing was disorganized and we never did see what made it a special event.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Related Images:<\/h3>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Aqua \u2013 12\/15 before SAM Sculpture Garden walk-aboutWe had tickets to what we thought was going to be a special event at the SAM (Seattle Art Museum) Sculpture… Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4276,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4273","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dining","category-food"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4273","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4273"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4273\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4281,"href":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4273\/revisions\/4281"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4276"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4273"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4273"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foodfriendstravel.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4273"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}