Tilikum Place Cafe

Reviews 8

A

A Private User

AVOID. Glacially slow service, limited menu that the kitchen does not have the skill to execute. Small portions to boot, I went in on a recent Saturday morning to have brunch; I was very hungry so I asked to start with bread and Nutella as they advertise on their menu. "Sorry, were out of bread, we havent gotten our delivery yet." Really? You have no bread in the whole restaurant? I went on to order their Eggs Benedict special which was advertised as having a "spicy sausage ragu and paprika hollandaise." I dont like the texture of poached eggs, though, so I ordered it with scrambled eggs instead. It came out after about 20 minutes (which is slow unless they were still finishing their prep) with, you guessed it, poached eggs. The server gave me a funny look when I sent it back. Waited another ten minutes. When the dish finally came out properly prepared, I was incredibly disappointed. The "spicy sausage ragu" was a bland, thin sauce with two tiny chunks of sausage in it. The "paprika hollandaise" had no identifiable hint of paprika to it. If youre going to position yourself as (and charge like, the above "meal" plus coffee cost me $18) a good restaurant, you need to make sure you can deliver. Tilikum Place Cafe consistently fails to deliver any time I forget the last time I told myself not to go there anymore.

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JA

Jack Maestas

I value the details of creativity whenever I step into a restaurant. The name of the restaurant actually means something in Chinook jargon and it fits perfectly. The host emphasizes that very meaning right when you walk in. Whether youre by yourself or with other guests, curious eyes will wander. Before your food comes would you notice the intriguing light fixtures? Will the paintings on the walls be a conversation starter? Do the brown and tan earth tones of the wood flooring and cabinetry remind you of a place you might have visited in the Olympic Peninsula? These questions create memories which will determine whether youll come back or not. The atmosphere is comfortable just like the food. The white string which ties around the sandwich wrapped in paper gives it a special décor touch as if it were picture ready for a Bon Appetite photo shoot. The colors of the quiche are vibrant. You can actually tell there is chicken on the chicken salad unlike a guessing game of a fast foods concoction of a chicken nugget. The food is freshly prepared, quite the opposite of a microwaved entree from a dive bar. This restaurant has high standards and is very popular. If you have the time, read the newspaper articles on the wall near the kitchen. Youll understand why.

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SO

Sonya Li

When I saw celery roof soufflé on the menu, I knew it was what I wanted and didn’t bother checking out the other options. It was one of those novel things that lit up my intrigue and I had to taste it. It came on a bed of carrot puree, black lentils, and wilted spinach. The soufflé was light, fluffy, and you get a wonderful celery root note at the end of each bite. The sweet carrot puree enhanced the celery essence and the lentils and spinach made it the perfect winter dish. For a meatless meal, this was incredibly filling and delicious. I was full, but so pleased with my entrée that I had to find out if dessert would be just as good so I ordered the carrot cake with carrot ice cream. I expected cake with ice cream, but when it arrived I realized that it was carrot cake two ways. The cake had a generous amount of walnuts, was moist and very good, but the ice cream was better. The ice cream sat on a bed of spiced crumble and each bite resembled carrot cake exactly! It was fun to have “carrot cake” in such innovative way and I wished I had a larger scoop! This place will be on my “absolute must” list when I visit next year.

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ED

Edrick Pascual

I heard about this place from the Layover show of Anthony Bourdain. We went on a Monday and did not have reservation but we got seated in less than 30 mins. Good start. The host was very nice but she never told us about our waiter or what drinks we would like. After seated no one talked to us for at least 15mins. I also noticed on the menu that the Dutch babies took 20 mins to get cooked. It would have been bettet if they asked what drinks we would like and mentioned that our waitet will be coming. Finally got someone to take our orders but again waited another 10 mins for our ice tea and coffee to arrive. Since the dutch babies would take 20 mins to get cooked, we ordered a bowl of soup. When we got our soup, they gave us the wrong order. We ate it anyway since it would take forever to ask for a change. We finally got our Dutch babies. They were ok. They tasted like egg custard. Nothing special. Definitely wont go back here.

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JO

Joanne Hardtke

This restaurant had almost sent me to the er 1/6/11 however I did loose the entire dinner in the bathroom before finishing. I was very embarressed and choked for quite awhile on something I was afraid was a chicken bone. The restaraunt to its credit did have decent atmosphere, food tasted great, although staff was a little stand offish. The real issue I had was the sharp object that got me in the chicken dish with brussel sprouts and mushrooms which after it was removed ( i hope all of it) looks like a smal black berry or rose burr. I felt it first when I swallowed and it got lodged in the back of my throat. The lighting is dark in there and the mushrooms very dark I did not see it. I am afraid to see into the kitchen to sow how that object landed in the food. Later that night about 2 in the morning I finally got it out.

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AD

adnan albeitawi

To attempt to describe how delicious the food is at this restaurant, would be an understatement. My vocabulary is not expansive enough do that description any justice. The food here is made from scratch, with ingredients that were fresh. The portions are big and will have no problem settling your growling stomach. The staff are polite, offer great customer service, and had a friendliness about them that made you feel like family when you walked in. I was lucky enough to walk in and get a table right away, but I would not recommend you take that chance; instead, call ahead to make a reservation. This is the type of restaurant that will offer you an amazing experience in taste and quality no matter what you order on the menu.

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RI

Richard Dial

Wonderfully delicious, charming and cozy atmosphere, friendly and knowledgeable servers - there are so many good things to say about this neighborhood gem. Tilikum Place Cafe is small, but full of delicious flavor. The regularly changing menu offers so much to excite your appetite that you may want to try it all. Tasting the first bite of your meal is like immediately feeling youve met the love of your life, a moment you will never forget. Do yourself a small favor and make a reservation. You wont find an empty chair during peak times, though maybe you could after 8 pm on a weeknight. Try Tilikum Place Cafe once and you will absolutely want it again and again.

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WE

Wendy Thomaston

This is one of those places thats great, in theory. You walk past, and it looks like it has a great atmosphere and an even better menu. I cant complain about the menu at all, but the the service is so horrible that I will never return, despite its extremely convenient location relative to my apartment. The staff is rude. And I dont mean just one person on the staff. On my first visit, I felt that Id had cold water tossed in my face. And on my second visit, I was refused coffee service ... IN SEATTLE. Normally, I have a three strike rule, but these peoples behavior is so unacceptable that I will not give them the third chance.

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