Seven Beef is the newest restaurant by Chef-Owner Eric Banh and his sister, Sophie and with Executive Chef Scott Emerick helm the kitchen. Seven Beef occupies a 4,000-square-foot building that once housed an architect’s office. The centerpiece is the dramatic open kitchen equipped with a wood-burning oven alongside a combi-convection oven. What you don’t see is the cooler in the back that houses the restaurant’s sub-primal cuts of prime, grass-fed beef, delivered weekly by Heritage Meats from their ranch in Rochester, Washington and have a young butcher to break down the animal everyday. (They will cut a three pound, bone-in Côte de Boeuf for $120, which we did have and I’ll get to that later.)
The décor is simple, with exposed wood and metal, white parchment paper-covered tables, and classic wooden chairs, and polished concrete floors. The central portion of the main dining room is lit with bistro lights that remind one of a country festival in France or Italy. The bar, deliberately darker, is brightened with white marble. Vintage plates with feminine patterns serve as a nice contrast to the hearty steaks being served at Seven Beef.
We started the evening with a local beer and non-alcoholic cocktail, Honey Buzz, an interestingly smoky and delicately floral beverage.
Shortly, we had tiny local Washington oysters topped with apple foam. These thumb-sized oysters are small but they were incredibly sweet and creamy. The apple foam added a touch of tartness.
Cougar gold cauliflower soup was incredibly delicious. Silky, creamy and vegetally sweet, beige-golden soup was nicely contrasted with the toasted, crunchy hazelnuts.
The herbaceous, grilled sardine, sun dried tomato, and goat cheese stuffed spring roll was pretty mind bending of fusing Vietnamese and Italian cuisine. At first bite, we’re kind of puzzled as to what to make of it but it grew on us and we enjoyed it. The smoky, oily sardine fish was nicely brightened up by the fresh basil and sweet tomato and salty goat cheese, all neatly packed in a very tight spring roll. The savory-sweet, thick puddle of tomato sauce tied together all of the flavors of the roll.
The burnt acorn squash topped with very caramelized goat cheese was wonderful. The meltingly soft, sweet acorn with caramelized edges gave some depth of sweetness to the squash and the gooey, melted, salty goat cheese and fresh basil added so much flavor to this dish.
The star of the evening was the huge Côte de bœuf that can easily feed a family. The beef came with two sides – thick-cut fries that were perfectly fried to a delicate crispy exterior and fluffy potato interior and a salad of greens mixed with a vinaigrette to freshen up the palate.
The locally raised steak had a pleasant charred flavor and cooked to a perfect medium-rare. It’s tender and seasoned nicely. If the restaurant does have this cut of beef available, you should order this if you have a small group that doesn’t mind sharing.
We enjoyed our dinner at Seven Beef. Food was delicious. Parts of the menu are inventive takes on steakhouse fare (e.g. the grilled sardine spring roll) and it is generally priced on the affordable side (appetizers averaging $10, entrees (not steak) around $16-$28) considering the fact this is a steakhouse. Our waitress was knowledgeable of the menu and friendly. We would go back if we’re ever in the mood for some beef in Seattle.
To view more photos of this visit, please view the photo set or the gallery below:
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Information:
Seven Beef
Website
1305 E Jefferson Street
Seattle, WA 98122
(Map)
Phone: +1 (206) 328-7090
