Anita's has kinks to work out

Anita's Crepes

4350 Leary Way N.W.

779-2523

www.anitascrepes.com

Tues-Fri 10 a.m.-3 p.m. and 5-10 p.m.

Sat 8 a.m.-4 p.m. and 5-10 p.m.

Sun 8 a.m.-3 p.m.

By Patricia Devine and Jim Anderson

Where a dog named Boomer used to lounge in the doorway of his owner's vacuum cleaner shop watching the traffic on Leary Way, a beautiful restaurant has sprung. Decorated with muted colors, fresh flowers and art, and a miniature Eiffel Tower, the space is transformed into a little haven for crepe eaters. The odd angles of the asymmetrical space, the open kitchen, and the paintings on the walls make it an interesting place to hang out with a glass of wine.

Crepes from Anita, formerly found only in farmers' markets, have eagerly been anticipated by fans and nearby residents watched as the classically trained owner opens her first permanent restaurant. Many regulars from the markets are still enjoying the crepes, with the added benefit of a glass of wine. Additional menu items are offered as well including a twice-weekly prix fixe dinner special ($31-$35) with soup, salad, entr/e and a cookie.

Generally speaking we usually find portion-size complaints to be trashy and indicative of size-over-quality perspectives. But forge ahead we must with our portion beefs. Although the expanded menu offerings are skillfully prepared, pleasingly presented, and delicious, the amusingly small prix-fixe portions are better suited to the Incredible Shrinking Man than to a full-sized human. In this month's "Dine Around Seattle" promotion, many Seattle restaurants are offering three course dinners for $30, with normal-sized portions twice this size.

Should they decide to double the portion size, the prix fixe menu just might become very popular. The night we dined it included a artful and delicate arugula and tender cannellini bean salad tossed with herb vinaigrette, adorned with twisted thin slices of picked red onion. The creamy chestnut soup and crusty French bread, served with room temperature butter, was just right for a second course.

The beef tenderloin entr/e was ideal, with slices red in the middle and crisp on the outside. We celebrated the horseradish mashed potatoes getting to keep their skins, which added a nice rustic touch. The evening's other equally tempting entr/e choice was seared duck breast with cherry compote and wild rice. We eyeballed this item from a few feet away at our neighboring diner's table and it looked plenty succulent.

Over on the crepe side of the table the spinach, egg, fresh mozzarella and feta cheese crepe ($10) is a light meal with a larger side of the same salad ($9) served in the prix fixe meal. The crepes themselves, the raw material, are good enough to be eaten on their own, but when fillings are added they are a tad bit on the dry side.

Dessert crepes include seasonal fruit offerings. A fiery Bananas Foster crepe had guests rushing from their seats, digital cameras firing away as flames leapt from the chef's pan. While Nutella and banana in an egg and flour batter sounds pretty darned tempting, the long wait for service can take a bit of the luster off of the dining experience, particularly when the house is less than half full. The warm smiles and kind words of the servers and staff go a long way but sometimes even those attributes fail to counter-balance the wait.

Anita's Crepes is newly opened and hopefully some of the kinks will be worked out soon and they will find their comfortable niche, settle in and become a neighborhood fixture like past residents of the building. We don't know where Boomer the dog is now, but hopefully he's lying in the sun in some other shop doorway, enjoying all he sees.

Tidbits: The Panellets are back! These little yam-based, traditional Catalan cookies rolled in pine nuts are a seasonal offering at Besalu Bakery. By the way, it can be pronounced either PanaYEAs, or PanaLETS, according to James the baker, so don't let that stop you from ordering a few. Watch for new things happening in the 70th Street business district, where Chef Anne Catherine has purchased the former Treed Caf/ and will be serving communal meals made with locally purchased organic ingredients. Know anything we should know? Tell the Ballard Food Police at ballardfoodpolice@gmail.com. The Ballard Food Police visit all establishments anonymously and pay for all food in full.