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Seattlest will always have a soft spot in our heart for the bar at Brasa. We love the way the wood fired oven perfumes the air from the moment you step inside. We love the high, lofty ceilings that contrast with the dark wood and dim lighting. We love sitting at the far end of the bar and watching all the action in the kitchen. But mostly, we love the kick-ass happy hour prices on food.
Brasa's varied and large bar menu changes ever so slightly throughout the seasons, but you can always find a cheese plate offering, seasonal salads, seafood dishes, burgers, sandwiches and steak frites. Nothing costs over $14, and during happy hour (5pm-7pm daily), everything is half off with a drink purchase. Granted, Brasa's more amazing dishes like the Roast Suckling Pig with Chorizo aren't offered on the bar menu--but how can Seattlest complain when we can eat delicious steak frites for seven dollars?
Seattlest is a creature of habit and we tend to order the same two dishes over and over again. First is the Steak Frites ($14 regular / $7 happy hour price), which we love with all our heart. It's a good-sized portion of steak, cooked to a perfect medium rare and served with a pungent, rich, cabrales butter and a heaping mound of fries. Our other favorite bar menu item is Chorizo with Clams ($14 regular / $7 happy hour price), which is a wonderful, aromatic broth studded with spicy chorizo and tender clams.
Today, Seattlest branched out and ordered the lamb burger with fries ($11 regular / $5.50 happy hour price) and to be extra glutinous, a side of crispy onions ($6 regular / $3 happy hour price) AND a side of mashed potatoes ($7 regular / $3.50 happy hour price). The lamb burger was cooked to a nice medium rare and served on a dense roll with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and onions. It was good, but the burger to bun ratio was a bit off and left the overall impression of a dry burger. We were sorely tempted to ask for a side of that delicious cabrales butter to slather on.
The fries that came with the burger were fantastic, as always. They were just the right cut (on the thin side), had just the right amount of salt, and had the perfect ratio of crunchy outside to soft, fluffy potato inside. The crispy onion plate was like a childhood dream. Paper-thin slices of onion, individually battered and fried up crisp and dark. These were no onion rings; they were slightly greasy, well seasoned handfuls of barely-there onions and Seattlest was addicted on first bite. The mashed potatoes were properly creamy and flavored with just the slightest sprinkle of parmesan and chives. It was refreshing to get a delicious side of potatoes where we could actually taste the potato.
For drinks, Seattlest wasn't in the mood for anything fancy, so we stuck with a gin & tonic, while our companion had a nice red wine. Don't be mislead by our mundane drink orders though, because another reason we love Brasa is because of their first-rate bartenders--in all the years we've been coming here, we never once encountered a bad drink. There are many reasons to love the bar at Brasa. Seattlest suggests you get down there for happy hour and find your own.
Brasa
2107 Third Avenue
206.728.4220
http://www.brasa.com
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Yes! I agree. Happy Hour at Brasa is cheap and yummy. The atmosphere is a little upscale, but my tshirt & tennis shoes uniform wasn't frowned upon. This is Seattle after all.
Joe, That's a great point. It is upscale looking, but when we were in there last week in a tank top and flip flops (sitting next to people in business suits) we still felt at home!