I love to eat fish and with all due respect to my omnivorous place in the food chain: local and wild. Good thing I live in the Pacific NW! Be it fish sticks, tempura or chips, there are a lot of ways for me to enjoy fish. There is, however, one place I admit to being addicted to: Ivar’s Seafood Bar. Whether I’m at Pike Place Market or a Mariner’s Ballgame or that Bellis Fair Mall, I get my fish fix. I only order the fish. It’s always fresh moist light and crisp. Ivar’s uses only wild Alaskan deep water Halibut, salmon and Pacific True cod caught on their Katie Ann vessel.
Visiting their website I found out Ivar’s won best seafood in Western Washington for 2008. And Frommer’s ranked the top 10 airport restaurants: Ivar’s was the winner in SEATAC. I guess my taste buds know what they like.
Ivar Haglund opened Seattle’s first aquarium filling it with the marine life from Puget Sound. He charged a nickel for gawking. I guess watching fish made people hungry so he started selling red clam chowder and fish & chips. Boom – 70 years later Ivar’s an icon. If you’d like to thank him you’ll have to be channeled; otherwise, you can visit his statue on Pier 54 next to his first restaurant: Ivar’s Acres of Clams. If this bit of info whet your appetite, you should read about this week in Washington State history.