A better view than Waikiki

Shilshole Bay Beach Club

6413 Seaview Ave NW

706-0257

http://www.apulent.com/thursday_nights.html

Thursdays Only, 5 p.m. - 9 p.m.

By Patricia Devine and Jim Anderson

The view at Honolulu's Waikiki Beach isn't even this good!

On Thursday nights from May to September, the Shilshole Bay Beach Club is open to the public for dinner, offering stunning views and a small but nicely done menu. The building also houses COCA (Center on Contemporary Arts), and the Ballard Elks Club. Park for free in the large lot, come in the front door, pass the stairway to the Elks, turn left at the art gallery, and feel the transformation begin. This unassuming 1950s style building hides a Thursday night secret well kept.

A spacious room dotted with linen-draped tables features huge windows looking out to the spacious outdoor seating area, where more tables are set. This is your destination, outside by the palm trees, just a few feet away from the water. Settle in and enjoy a cocktail or glass of wine. Native greenery and cheery pots provide decoration on the prettiest terrace in Seattle while seagulls, waves and the salt-water smell add to the ambiance. Sunsets here are unbeatable, and views of Magnolia and beyond are hypnotic.

The Beach Club often splits the main floor with "special event" activities at one end of the building. If you visit the Beach Club when the reception area is vacant, take advantage of the views at the north end of the grounds. They're plenty stunning even when the north end is booked, but when it's not ... get outta here with the view. The menu is casual: a few appetizers, two salads, and four entr/e sandwiches. Everything is grilled fresh to order, with consistently high quality results. Thick homemade tortilla chips come with creamy and spicy guacamole, also accompanied by a pico de gallo laced with fresh herbs. Entrees are served with a vegetable, and we luck out with crisp green beans, drizzled sparingly with a thick and sweet balsamic vinegar reduction.

The Shilshole Beach Burger ($11) is piled with lettuce, tomato and pickles atop a soft and not too-thick ciabatta roll. Ciabatta has been dealt a severe blow by Jack in The Box's omnipresent ciabatta sandwich ads, making it difficult to even say this word without feeling embarrassed. So we'll just call it "little soft and nice bun," and note that it provides a most hospitable resting place for one very nice hand-formed burger.

The Signature Salmon Filet sandwich ($13), also on a "little soft and nice bun," rolls tableside with rich orange papaya salsa. Uniformity of bun makes it easier in what must be a low-volume kitchen, while assuring that any sando picked will at least have nice bread around it. Other choices include a grilled chicken sandwich and a portabello mushroom.

Mojitos, margartitas and mai tai are the drink specials ($8), and we can think of no better place to sip one.

For those who haven't gotten around to joining the Elks Club yet, come enjoy the quintessential Seattle view. We can't help but fantasize about what the upstairs Elks digs are like. There's some sort of intercom contraption at the door, creating a mysterious and forbidden sense that only "member only" clubs like the Elks can. The downstairs beach club offers "private club" views without the dues structure, and while peopled with plenty who appear to be regulars, newcomers to the Shilshole Beach Club are treated warmly just like the regs.

Tidbits: The best news we've heard in a long time is that Paseo, Fremont's world-class Cuban sandwich shop, is adding a second location in Ballard in the former Gordo's. We're sorry to see Gordo's go, and we didn't even get a chance to say goodbye to the best chocolate malt in town. Sushi lovers are in luck (maybe). Two new places are opening on Ballard Avenue: Shiku in the former Divino, which has closed, and Moshi Moshi Sushi just down the street in one of the new buildings. After looking at the new space and a "coming soon" sign, we have the following suggestion for the owners of Moshi Moshi: if you must use a racial stereotype for your logo, at least get the right country. As for the rest of you: don't keep us in the dark! Tell the Ballard Food Police at ballardfoodpolice@gmail.com.