Chef Ethan Stowell's Anchovies & Olives Opens in Seattle

SEATTLE, February 20, 2009 - Anchovies & Olives, the fourth restaurant of celebrated chef Ethan Stowell, opens tonight at the corner of 15th Avenue and Pine on Seattle's Capitol Hill. This seafood and pasta focused Italian-inspired restaurant is the anchor retail spot of The Pearl Apartments.

Anchovies & Olives joins Ethan Stowell Restaurants, which includes Union, Stowell's much-acclaimed flagship restaurant, Tavolàta, his hopping Italian eatery in Belltown with business partner Patric Gabre-Kidan, and How to Cook a Wolf, his beloved Queen Anne restaurant with Gabre-Kidan, and Angela Stowell, his wife and business partner. Anchovies & Olives is another venture with Gabre-Kidan and Mrs. Stowell. Stowell and his business partners recently created Ethan Stowell Restaurants, a group name that will encompass all of the properties.

Anchovies & Olives occupies a 1,600 square-foot space with seating for 36 guests in the dining area and eight at the bar. The room features massive windows, blond wood, banquet seating along the walls, and metal/mesh lighting fixtures. Gabre-Kidan, whose unique design aesthetic as been instrumental in creating the vibe of Tavolàta and How to Cook a Wolf, was also involved in the design of this restaurant.

One of the unique elements of the restaurant is the 1200-pound John Boos Butcher Block Island Top made of solid Northern Hard Rock Maple that separates the dining area and kitchen. The island top covers 72 square-feet of surface and provides an open kitchen work environment for the chefs.

Another distinctive element of the restaurant is the wine list. Mrs. Stowell, who left a career in wine sales last year to devote her time to the restaurants, has created a list that is 100% Italian, with 60% of it being white varietals. There are wines guests will be familiar with like Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, and Soave on the list, as well as more obscure wines like the 2006 Badde Nigolosu Dettori Bianco Vermentino from Sardegna. The vast list offers 85-plus bottles that range from $28 - $90 and showcases a smattering from super prestigious producers like the 2006 Giuseppe Quntarelli Bianco Secco from the Veneto. The list offers a rotating selection of 15 wines by the glass priced from $8 - $11. A full bar is also available.

"This is a great opportunity for me to introduce people to Italian white wines," says Mrs. Stowell, "and offer something different from the typically red-dominated wine list."

Anchovies & Olives offers a daily menu of Crudo, Appetizers, Pasta, and Fish priced between $5 and $18. The Crudo section includes items such as: Sea Scallops with Grapefruit and Mint ($12), Hamachi with Blood Orange and Fennel Pollen ($14), and Geoduck with Celery and Lime ($14). The Appetizers include items such as: Octopus, Sorrel, and Piccolo Potato Salad ($10), Romanesco Cauliflower, Soft Cooked Egg, and Mint with Anchovy Dressing ($9), Marinated Castelvetrano Olives ($5), and Shrimp, Squid, Taggiasca Olive, and Controne Bean Salad ($12). The Pastas, made fresh daily for all the restaurants at Tavolàta by pasta guru Marshall Nall, offer a handful of options such as: Spaghetti with Sea Urchin and Jalapeno ($16), Squid Ink Conghilie with Monkfish Puttanesca ($15), and Linguini and Crab Aglio e Olio ($16). The Fish options include items like: Branzino with Artichokes and Bottarga ($18), Kampachi with Winter Squash and Oxtail ($18), and Wild Striped Bass with Speck and Sauerkraut ($16).

"The idea behind the menu," says Stowell, "is that every dish will have a seafood element. Yes, we will have some meat on the menu, but it will be something like beef carpaccio with white anchovy, shallots, and Parmigiano-Reggiano."

Stowell, who plans to spend time in the kitchen at all the restaurants, has brought on Charles Walpole as chef de cuisine of Anchovies & Olives. Walpole, who spent three-plus years at the late Mistral, has been at How to Cook a Wolf since May of 2008. Erik Witsoe, a known figure behind the bar at Tavolàta is taking on the role of general manager.

Anchovies & Olives is located at 1550 15th Avenue in the booming Capitol Hill neighborhood known as the Pike Pine Triangle. Dinner is served seven nights a week from 5pm -12am. For more information, call (206) 838-8080 or visit www.anchoviesandolives.com.