Brasa

Went here during the 3 courses for $25 throughout Seattle (great idea!). Both my boyfriend and I cook and cook well, so we're a bit snobbish when it comes to food quality. Brasa blew us away! One of the very few restaurants in Seattle that wowed us with the food. We ate the rabbit ragout and ravioli (far exceeding my expectations). Many other "top notch" places tend to disappoint us, food-wise.

Posted 02/21/03

...is half price during happy hour, and imo that is THE thing to do at Brasa. The curried mussels are great, and there's steak frites, lamb burgers, moraccan steak sandwich.. oh! its great. absolutely a winner.

Posted 12/29/02

A friend and I met at Brasa for dinner last week. The clam appetizer was outstanding, the best item we tried. My friend's mushroom pasta was truly delicious, but so overwhelming in flavor that you didn't want anymore after eating about 1/2 of it. My steak was OK, it was very ordinary in cut and quality, but it was cooked perfectly. You can get better pasta and steak elsewhere, but the atmosphere, service, and drinks make it worth another trip.

Pros: Excellent service, interesting food, good drink selection

Cons: parking (what's new?)

Posted 12/09/02

This unique and creative dining spot situated on the edge of Belltown features very nice dining space and a menu that works hard to be different. Quite frankly if I had read some of the preceeding reviews I may have never tried this spot but happened in on 11/23 and was very pleased with the experience, Yes the service was mediocre but not bad or offensive, my water glass was kept full and the food was superb. The calamari was excellent, the spinach salad was great and the tenderloin on potatoes very tender and flavorful! The wine list while super affordable, could use more recognizable Washington and California mid to upper range offerings! We were too full for desert!

Posted 11/25/02

This is not a restaurant that I would recommend to anybody! I think the service and the food are less than exceptional! When the restaurant first opened, I found the atmosphere and food to be ok. During my last 3 visits, the quality has definately gone done. Almost everyone in our party found it difficult to select an entree selection. In fact, we almost got up and walked out of the restaurant. Anyway, we decided to give it a try. I wish we hadn't stayed. The food quality was less than tasty and the price was even worse! Once our food was delivered, it seemed like our table no longer existed.

If given an option to pass on Brasa, do so!

Pros: Atmosphere is nice!

Cons: Poor Menu Selection, Overpriced for Value, Poor Service!

Posted 11/24/02

Absolutely terrible service. We had to wait forever for even the menus to come to the table - about 20 minutes. Then another 15 after we had finally received them did she check on us. Then another 20 for our first course. And we were seated way in the back, away from other diners, because we had an 8 year old with us. Don't get me wrong, the food was excellent, but the service was so bad that I couldn't imagine spending that much again to be treated so badly. Looks like things haven't changed since the opening....

Pros: Curried Mussels, Lovely restaurant

Cons: Slow service, Inattentive service, Unresponsive service

Posted 11/21/02

Skip Brasa! Offering slow, inattentive service and a petit filet main course that is 2oz. (literally 2 bites) of gristly meat. My friend and I chose their promotional Dine around Seattle three course prix-fixe menu (overpriced even at $25). I don't expect fast service at fine restaurants, but I do expect ATTENTIVE service. Forty-five minutes after being seated, we were still waiting with only empty water glasses in hand. They were out of our first 3 wine selections. I gave up on ordering a bottle of wine and chose a specialty mixed drink from the menu ($8) they were out of that, too. We had to request bread since none was brought to us, they didnt take our order for 50 minutes, and our water glasses were never filled without flagging someone down. We spent dinner trying to get service, instead of enjoying each others company or our food.

Pros: Pumpkin Polenta, Romantic Ambience, 25 for $25 promotion

Cons: Horribly SLOW service, Out of 3 wines listed, SMALL portions

Posted 11/19/02

Another one of downtown Seattle's ultra-trendy wannabe top rate restaurants. Expensive menu, poor food. Service? What service? Worst service in town!

Posted 11/18/02

We tried brasa during a $25 promotion for an app, entree and dessert. The menu was limited but had a veg, meat, and fish selection. Food was flavorful with nice seasonal additons (squash gnocchi, pumpkin risotto, pumpkin cheesecake). The service was simply awful and the food did not make up for it. We waited close to one hour between our app and meal being served. The waiter never came by to apolgoize and we had to flag him down to ask where our food was, no bread refill to keep us going during the long wait. He apologized at the end of the meal, but too little too late. Too much competition in this town for me to go back.

Pros: atmosphere, menu

Cons: service, service, service

Posted 11/11/02

Yet another overpriced/mediocre food/bad service restaurant. The wait staff in particular was despicable - no interest in customer service, only in pushing more items to pump up the bill and their tips. It's surprising that in today's rough economy, patrons are keeping this type of restaurant afloat. I for one will NEVER go back.

Posted 10/13/02

After reading the mixed reviews, I decided I had to try it myself before I could make a judgment. Besides the fact that every time the server suggested something, it just happened to be the most expensive thing on the menu, the prices were outrageously high for what you got. I ordered the special, which was a rack of lamb ($28-not on menu) expecting a good size portion. What I got was about 6 small bites (no exaggeration) of fatty meat on a bed of potatoes and mushy cabbage. My friend's portion (beef of some sort) was slightly larger, but at $27, not acceptable either. Even after an appetizer of beef carpaccio (raw beef for $14) and two drinks each we both left famished, disgusted, and $120 poorer.

Pros: nice server

Cons: expensive, small portion, bad food

Posted 09/13/02

Brasa is my favorite restaurant in Seattle. Tamara Murphy's art is beautiful and delicious. The food is simply divine. The staff are friendly and efficient. The atmosphere is intimate comfortable and inspired. With a half-priced bar menu, there is something for everyone. Everyone I have sent to Brasa has come back with raves. We love it!

Pros: high quality, delectable, convenient

Posted 08/22/02

I love the laid back elegant atmoshpere of this undiscovered treasure. The bar menu is served till late, midnight I believe, great alternative to the other late night eats in town. I often wrap up a wonderful evening with a night cap and some tastey morsels accompanied by a friend or six. A great place to actually have a conversation, any night they're open.

Pros: easy parking, not a meat market, privacey

Cons: hard parking, not cheap

Posted 08/04/02

Note that I did not say "exceptional". I had dinner there on 7/18, after not having been there since it opened. Service was prompt and efficient, but not over the top, and both meals were very good. Wine list is well done and offers many selections. Decor is excellent - I have always liked the way they planned the room. Dessert was delicious (the Brasa Banana Split), and just enough for two to share. Portions were decent, though not large. However, if you've ever eaten in truly fine restaurants (and I have, many of them), portions are generally NOT large. If you want big food, eat at Claim Jumper or TGI Fridays. Brasa is a solid choice for a nice, reasonably priced dinner in a classy atmosphere.

Pros: Wonderful decor, reliable entrees, good location

Posted 07/23/02

Eating there was not a pleasant experience. The menu sounded fantastic, but the food was just so uniformly disappointing. As a corollary the value of the meal was abbysmal.

I left with a sick feeling for having spent $200 on such poorly executed, pretentious fare.

The ambience and service on the other hand were terrific, as was the wine - but we won't be back.

Posted 05/23/02