Bluwater Bistro will sail into Kirkland

The water just keeps getting Blu-er (or is that greener?) for Bart Evans and Dan Anderson. In June, the guys behind Seattle's Bluwater Bistros — with locations on Lake Union, Green Lake and Leschi — took over at Cucina!Cucina! in Kirkland. Their plan: to turn that waterfront locale (2220 Carillon Point, 425-822-4000) into yet another Bluwater Bistro.

That move will make this the first Eastside version of their popular restaurant and bar concept (the pair also own Belltown Bistro, in the heart of Belltown). Their Carillon Point Bluwater is slated for a grand opening in late October, and in the meantime, laughs Evans, "We've been tossing pizza and serving chop-chop salads" at Cucina.

Cucina!Cucina! has changed hands several times in recent years. Originally a Schwartz Brothers restaurant, it was sold to Wolfgang Puck Worldwide, and later to the Canada-based chain that operates Joeys (now doing business on Lake Union and in Bellevue). "We didn't plan on expanding [the Bluwater concept]," says Evans, "but the opportunity was there, and it was such a good spot, it was hard to pass up."

Though they haven't picked a specific date for Cucina's closure ("We'll close as soon as the sun disappears"), they're thinking mid-September. Plans include gutting the space, shrinking the kitchen, enlarging the bar and possibly even keeping the brick oven, since the store's brick-oven pizzas are "hugely popular," says Evans. After a swift turnaround, Bluwater Bistro will be open for lunch and dinner daily.

Via Tribunali doppia, Baguette Box deux

Capitol Hill's sexy Neapolitan pizzeria and bar, Via Tribunali (913 E. Pike St., Seattle, 206-322-9234), is set for expansion, too. Expect a second, family-friendlier, less bar-centric version of Via Tribunali to open on Queen Anne Hill this fall. The now-vacant space, on Galer Street near Caffé Fiore and Trader Joe's, should be open by November, says owner Mike McConnell.

Tribunali's neighboring sandwich shop, Baguette Box (1203 Pine St., Seattle; 206-332-0220, www.baguettebox.com) will soon have a Fremont sibling. Eric Banh — co-owner, with sister Sophie Banh, of East Capitol Hill's marvelous Monsoon (615 19th Ave. E., Seattle, 206-325-2111, www.monsoonseattle.com) — is cloning his sophisticated sandwich shop, to be located at 626 N. 34th St., sandwiched between Peet's Coffee and PCC. ETA: late fall.

Sweet treat — hold the wheat!

First, forget what I'm going to tell you: that Da Vinci Bakery & Café (10003 Greenwood Ave. N., Seattle; 206-782-5735) is a wheat and gluten-free bakeshop. You wouldn't know it, given what owner/baker Kaili McIntyre can do with rice, tapioca, millet and sorghum — among other gluten-free ingredients. But be sure to remember this: Da Vinci's — set in an old house in Greenwood — is homey and adorable, the baked goods are as gorgeous as they are delicious, and the beverage list — fancifully flavored espresso drinks, teas and lemonades — are, alone, worth a stop.

McIntyre, late of Kaili's Restaurant — the now-defunct, gluten-free place that bore her name in Edmonds' Firdale Village — is on hand here at her latest venture, strutting her considerable stuff. While she pulls espresso drinks (like the popular "Picasso" — a cinnamon mocha with a hint of cayenne), slices into the prettiest cakes you've ever seen (say, fresh strawberry and rose cake dressed with rose petals, or the delicious lavender-lemon cake I sampled on a recent visit) and chats up customers, you can sit quietly indoors or out, visiting with the resident cat or checking out her cookbook collection.

In addition to a variety of cookies, cakes and pastries, she's selling some impressive savories including breads, quiches, panini (I tried the housemade roast beef with cream cheese and chutney on delicate focaccia — ridiculously under-priced at $3.95) and a rotating list of salads (pluck them from a deli case, $3.95). Come fall, soups will join the lineup.

McIntyre's new café has been so popular, she's had little time to keep up with her wholesale business, Wheatless in Seattle, though she expects that to change as she hires and trains more bakers. Her gluten-free product is presently available at Nature's Market in Kent (26011 104th Ave. S.E., 253-854-5395). Da Vinci is open 6 a.m.-7 p.m. Mondays-Fridays, 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturdays and 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Sundays.

From Japan to India

Sakura Japanese Bistro, closed in June, reopened in July as Anita's Bistro Fine Indian Cuisine (8014 15th Ave. N.E., Seattle, 206-523-6988). And if my e-mailbox is any indication, diners from Maple Leaf and Lake City are eating up the "Fine Indian Cuisine" now being served at that lovely little spot. One fan raved about the "two tiny, impossibly tender lamb chops" served as part of a mixed grill and another savored the sweet rice pudding with cardamom and pistachio served as dessert.

Owner Anita Kelleppan, a native of Northern India who grew up in Fiji, runs the front of the house and oversees the kitchen. By day she's offering a brief selection from a lunch buffet ($6.95). At dinner, her menu is modest in scope and price, with chicken, lamb, seafood, vegetarian and clay-oven specialties averaging about $12. Open for lunch 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Sundays, and dinner from 4:30-10 p.m.

Fu Shen moves, Yu Shan moves in

Fu Shen — a Lake Forest Park-area Chinese restaurant fixture for more than a decade — finally made its long-anticipated move to its new location near Green Lake (1910 Aurora Ave. N., Seattle; 206-624-3888). The move has been a year in the making, says co-owner Jenny Liu, explaining that it took that long to sell the original Fu Shen.

Liu and her husband, chef Sang Trenh, bought the former House of Pizza last summer, remodeled the place and just this month unfurled a "Grand Opening" banner, introducing a new neighborhood to their long-time service staff and their lengthy menu, which specializes in Chinese seafood dishes — including their signature honey walnut prawns. Neighbors fortunate enough to live within a three-mile radius should be pleased to note that evening delivery service is available. Open 11-a.m.-9:30 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays and from noon-9 p.m. Sundays.

Touting yet another "Grand Opening" banner — and bargain-priced lunch specials — is Yu Shan Chinese Restaurant (14553 Bothell Way N.E., 206-363-5481), now operating out of the old Fu Shen space. Running that tidy spot — located close to the Northeast 145th Street intersection, directly across the street from the daring Déjà Vu — is co-owner Sherry Xu, whose husband, chef Qing Liu, offers an extensive menu of Mandarin specialties.

Those dishes include Beijing-style scallion pancake, Beijing duck and squirrel fish — a name that (sorry Brunswick stew fans!) refers to the shape of the fish after it's been cooked, not the ingredients it's been cooked with. Open 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays, 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m. Fridays and noon-10 p.m. Saturdays-Sundays.

Nancy Leson: 206-464-8838 or nleson@seattletimes.com

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