Pike Place Chowder

Pike Place Chowder was our first food stop in Seattle. Post Alley was very crowded (likely because there were a lot of tourists like us from out of town). The lineup outside of the restaurant was pretty intimidating. They had the line split up into two sections - one on each side of the alley to allow people to pass by in the middle. Since it was a bit chilly outside, I was a bit nervous that it would be a long wait. However, we decided that we would just suck it up because the clam chowder was worth the wait. Surprisingly, the wait was only about 25 minutes (which was relatively short compared to how long the line was). 

For those of you who have heard of Pike Place Chowder, you are likely familiar with its popularity and esteem in the chowder world. For those of you who haven't heard of Pike Place Chowder, the awards pictured above will likely give you a good idea of its reputation. We picked up a menu to look at while we were in line, so that we could make the tough decision of choosing which chowder(s) to try. They offered a sampler that allowed you to pick four different chowders to try. The only downside to the sampler was that you couldn't get the chowder in the sourdough bread bowl. Before looking at the menu, the only one that I knew I had to try was the New England Clam Chowder (because ... it's classic!). 

By the time we go to the front of the line, we had decided that we were going to order the sampler. However, we still had not made up our minds about which chowders to sample. So, we asked the girl working there which four chowders were the most popular ... and we went with that: 

1) New England Clam Chowder - bacon-flavoured clams, cream with herbs and spices

2) Smoke Salmon Chowder - smoke salmon, capers, and cream cheese

3) Lobster Corn Chowder (the special of the day) - lobster, corn, and dungeness crab 

4) Seafood Bisque - cod, salmon, and shrimp in a tomato-based cream broth

(corresponding to the above-numbered chowders - starting from the top left, going clockwise)

My expectations of this place were high, and I was definitely not disappointed. The chowders were nothing short of amazing. I usually have three major concerns with chowder: 1) there's too much cream that makes the broth too thick; 2) the ingredients to broth ratio is not right, so that there's either too much or not enough ingredients; or 3) I can't taste any distinct flavours from the ingredients. I didn't have any of my usual complaints with these chowders.

I have an easy test to gage if the consistency of the broth is right. I spoon a bit of the chowder and let it slide off. If there's no dripping at all, then there's too much cream and the broth is too thick. If all of the chowder slides off the spoon without leaving a thin coating, then the broth is too runny and there's not enough cream. The consistencies of these chowders were just right. The ingredients to broth ratio was good. They didn't skimp on the seafood (which happens a lot), such that I was able to get a bite with every spoon. At the same time, there wasn't too much ingredients mixed in that I felt like I was constantly chewing instead of enjoying the chowder substantially like a soup. The seafood was fresh and the flavour of the ingredients were distinct. I particularly liked that each type of chowder was recognizably different. We were able to identify each type of chowder just by taste. 

I'm not going to initiate a CACR (Cynthia Approved Chowder Rating), but I would highly recommend Pike Place Chowder as a "must try" for anyone visiting Seattle.