Ravenna's Varsity Restaurant
Seattle, WA 98116
Phone: (206) 525-2701
05/02/2008 Posted by anythingatall
A friend and I have had lunch here on a fairly regular basis (3 or 4 times a month) for the past five years or so. Every once in a while we go somewhere else just for a change, but we're always happy to come back. We're both especially fond of their Cobb salad and their French fries. The breakfast food is also consistently very good (though they do have a tendency to overcook their breakfast sausages). Delicious clam chowder too. I've also always been very happy with their coffee -- seems like a trivial thing perhaps, but even in Seattle it's becoming a rare experience to have a cup of drip coffee that doesn't taste burnt, sour, weak, or all three. I was surprised to see such negative reviews here, as this is one of very few restaurants that I am willing to go to on a regular basis. Of course it is crowded and there is a wait on weekend mornings, the place is fantastically busy, but even so it's a shorter wait and a better experience for less money than, say, the Original Pancake House in Ballard... there just don't seem to be very many places to have a nice, casual, GOOD, inexpensive, and unpretentious breakfast in this area. Come to Ravenna Varsity Inn any time during the week, and you'll discover that it's just about the best sit-and-chat spot in town. It seems that my friend and I are constantly asking for special 'tweaks' to our food, week after week (as in, can I get that burger on unbuttered rye, tartar sauce for my fries, a half-size salad on a full-size plate, bacon cooked nice and dark but not dry, etc), and not only are the servers always happy to go to bat for us, but the kitchen always seems to deliver right on target.
Pros: free parking across the street, friendly staff, good food
Cons: be prepared to wait during weekend mornings
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