Logan Schiller, Leah Robbe, and Sean McCabe at Shelby's Bistro and Ice Creamery in the West Seattle Junction with some of the Ice Cream specialties they make. The new restaurant is doing extremely well with an extensive menu ranging from pizza, and sandwiches to salads plus everything from a cone to a 'Mt. Rainier' extravaganza that serves up to 10 people.
Shelby's Bistro and Ice Creamery at 4752 California Ave SW only opened on July 19 and they are already at capacity with wait times for dinner of up to an hour, reports owner Shelby Varden. It's a great problem to have for any new restaurant and he's not complaining. Varden said he's already making some changes, "It's a work in progress," he said, "We're changing the ice cream line to make it faster and only offering food from the kitchen plus cones and cups of ice cream to go."
The new restaurant can seat 140 and employs 55 people right now. Dinner is a crush of people but lunch time is about 75% and through the afternoon are times when you have a better chance of getting a table right now.
The decor inside tells a kind of historical story from the very traditional ice cream bar as you enter to the back area with a 50's and 60's influenced argyle pattern on the wall to the north wall with its huge mural by Amanda Humann which contains elements of West Seattle History up to the present day.
The entire interior is bright yellow making the mood cheerful for everyone from guests to employees.
Food at Shelby's is both varied and extensive ranging from Shareables like Garlic Pizza Chips or Mezza Platter to Pacific Rim Chicken Salad, a Salmon Cobb Salad to sandwiches like Turkey, Bacon Avocado to Grilled Chicken Panini.
Pastas include Prawn and Andouille Sausage Creole Penne to Four Cheese Penne Mac & Cheese. Pizzas are a big part of the menu with such offerings as Chicken Goat Cheese Pizza to Pepperoni, Mushroom, and Italian Sausage.
But Ice Cream is where Shelby's appeals to the entire family. They have cones and cups in the eleven flavors on hand but the sauces and toppings from Hot Fudge to Oreo Cookie Crumbles let you dress it up. You might choose however to let them do all the design and ingredient work with ice cream specialties that include Chocolate Brownie Bliss, Banana Splits (of course), and other sundaes like Praline Pecan, Chocolate Dipped Strawberry and others.
At the top of the ice cream menu are a Banana Double Split (serves 1 -4), the Jammin Jumble (serves 1-5) up to the $29.95 Mt. Rainier that serves up to TEN people!
See the attached menu file for details
"It's really been emotional just how we've been greeted and embraced and supported. We really want to be a part of the community so we thank everyone for their welcome and support."
