Relish: Happy Hour at Del Rey
This week Seattlest needed a drink. Lucky for us our friend B at Culinary Fool was hosting one of her monthly cocktail club parties at Del Rey in Belltown. At the time, Seattlest hadn't even heard of Del Rey and was excited to check out a new place. We met B early so that we could hit happy hour before 7pm (a second happy hour runs from 11pm-1am), because like we said: we needed a drink.
Seattlest started with a vodka tonic at a happy hour price of $4. The gin was good, the tonic water tasted fresh and the proportions were right--we were pleased considering the price and use of well gin. Unfortunately, subsequent drinks from the (regular priced) specialty cocktail menu didn't fare as well. Seattlest suspected that we shouldn't order the Pomegranate Martini ($8), as we hold them up to awfully high standards (even the ones we make at home are no comparison to the amazing ones served at Jitterbug). Del Rey's Pomegranate Martini definitely fell short; it was way too sweet and lacked the tart pucker we expect from pomegranate. The last drink Seattlest tried was the Mango Bellini ($8). We love mangoes, and we love Prosecco even more... what could go wrong? Well, Seattlest isn't sure what went wrong but the cocktail managed to taste watered down and dry at the same time.
On to the food!
Del Rey offered a very short list of happy hour food items, but almost all of them sounded delicious and were reasonably priced. Seattlest was tempted by the mac and cheese ($4), but in the end we chose the halibut and chips ($6) and the fried oysters with serrano tartar and slaw ($5).
Our fried oysters were plump and meaty, bursting with briny sea flavor and had a simple, thin, crisp breading. The side of serrano tartar was disappointingly mild--it was still a great tartar, but we were expecting more of a kick. The accompanying bed of slaw was good on its own, but seemed too acidic to meld with the rest of the flavors on the plate. On the whole, the fried oyster plate wasn't exceptional or innovative, but it was still very good and substantial considering the $5 price tag.
The halibut plate was a mound of fries with a healthy chunk of breaded and fried halibut on top. The fries were decent, but a little too pale and under-seasoned for our taste. The halibut, on the other hand, was incredible. Seattlest has never been a huge fan of fish and chips because, despite that crunchy crust we adore, the fish inside is usually dry and unpalatable. Del Rey's fish had a wonderful, extremely crunchy and flavorful crust and the fish was moist and succulent. It was slightly oily and flaky--just how perfectly cooked halibut should be. Seattlest was very impressed.
There were a few hits and misses, but overall we liked Del Rey and we especially liked the inexpensive happy hour food and our gin and tonic (we'd recommend staying away from the specialty cocktails). This is what a happy hour should be about--not just cheap food and drinks, but quality food and drinks that draw you back for more. This experience piqued our interest enough for a return visit to try out their delicious sounding regular menu--and more of those happy hour fish and chips.
Del Rey
2332 First Avenue
206.770.3228
http://www.delreyseattle.com
