Saleh Al Lago: You'll Love This Place

Feb 12, 1993

John Hinterberger

XXXX Saleh al Lago, 6804 E. Green Lake Way N. ($$$) Central Italian. Lunch ($9 to $14) 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday. Dinner ($13 to $20) 5:30 to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Full bar. Major credit cards. No smoking. Reservations: 524-4044. --------------------------------------------------------------- Saint Valentine was, of course, an Italian. And if he hadn't been, the Italians would have invented him.

An attempt is being made by the international trade association, "Ciao Italia, the Association of Italian Restaurants Around the World," to designate the day after tomorrow as "Italian Restaurant Day."

They don't have to bother. Without official designation it already is. And among the best of them in this city is Saleh al Lago (Saleh at the lake), owned by the enduring partnership of Dorothy Frisch and Saleh Joudeh.

The restaurant is in its 11th year on the northeast corner of Green Lake, and if you are thinking about finding a place for a Valentine's Day dinner, I suggest you call immediately and book a table for 1994 or 1995. 1993 was booked solid months ago.

Saleh al Lago is a remarkable restaurant, not so much for its congeniality and expertise, both of which it has in huge amounts, but because of what it is - a living expression of the philosophies of its owners:

"Cooking is quality and romance," Saleh said recently. "It is not how expert you are. It is in caring, and how gentle you are willing to be. If cooking is just a job to you, then you will take a piece of meat and throw it in hot oil - and it is killed before you even start. A restaurant is not just a place where you cook food and sell food. It is where we participate in our society."

Hence, the hugely popular annual dinner at Saleh's is not a billed affair. The guests pay by donating - to charity. Saleh gives away the prized annual stemware and aprons, donates the food and labor - and all of the take goes to charity. All of it; always.

In addition to all of that exemplary social philosophy, Saleh al Lago happens to be one of the finest restaurants in Seattle and hosts the most prestigious list of the city's clientele, in the arts, sciences, industry and academics.

For all of that, it is relatively inexpensive. Antipasti are in the $5 to $6 range. Salads cost from $2.75 to $5.25, and they are superb. First courses (pastas, risotti) are between $12 and $14 and the Secondi (main entrees) are ALL less than $18.

For a restaurant that has been awarded three nationwide citations for excellence in the past two years, the prices are almost unheard of. Saleh al Lago was picked in the U.S. Top 10 (the Hall of Fame) of Restaurant News for '92; in the Top 10 of Italian restaurants for '93 by the American Academy of Restaurant Sciences.

What to order?

The calamari ($5.75) are always a choice starter. Never deep-fried, the baby squid are lightly floured and sauteed simply in olive oil, lemon and garlic.

The vegetable mixed grill, Misto alla Griglia ($5.25), is a Tuscan classic. The plate is arrayed with roasted red peppers, grilled eggplant and zucchini and served with a mild goat cheese.

I often open a dinner with Spinachi Perugina ($5.25), spinach tossed (not sauteed) with warm olive oil, lemon, garlic, prosciutto, crushed hot peppers and pine nuts. With sections of Italian bread from the Grand Central Bakery and a few sips of a soft red wine, it is superb.

Campogiato ($4.50) is an outstanding salad of romaine lettuce hearts (although on one occasion butter lettuce was used to no ill effect), toasted walnuts, huge, plump bay shrimp and a creamy Gorgonzola dressing.

Probably the most popular pasta dish on the menu is Linguine al Buon Gusto ($13.75). Two of us frequently split an order, but ONLY if we are both intending to order main courses to follow. To split dishes just to save a few dollars is no way to fully enjoy a fine restaurant.

The linguine (all freshly made, rolled and cut in the kitchen) is tossed with olive oil, goat cheese, sun-dried tomato, imported black olives, chunks of garlic and a heady infusion of hot pepper flakes. Despite the strong flavors of the dish, it has excellent balance - no one element overwhelms.

Somewhat richer, Taglitelle con Capesante ($14.75) consists of the homemade egg noodles - none better in the city - tossed with pan-fried scallops and a roasted red pepper cream sauce.

A risotto special changes nightly (prices are between $14 and $16), always made with Italian arborio rice, and frequenyly so mellow and creamy that you'd swear that seafood or wild mushrooms had suddenly qualified as desserts.

Of the main courses, there's always a seafood special - the prawns or scampi are particularly choice - and a choice of two treatments of chicken, four of veal and a beef filet.

A simple, categorical statement: Saleh al Lago serves the best veal in the city. It is always fork tender, always ample and always cut from the tenderloin. These are not "scallopini." Modestly priced at less than $18, the restaurant sells about 40 to 50 veal dinners a night (out of an average of 120).