Lowell's Restaurant & Bar

1519 Pike Place (Pike Place Market), 622-2036. Mon-Wed 7 am-5 pm, Thurs-Sun 7 am-8 pm, bar open till 9:30 pm. $

"That man at the bar having a cocktail at 7 am was probably hauling produce at 3 am. His day is over already," says Mark Monroe, the general manager of this three-story market mainstay for 50 years. Lowell's is a destination with character, with tourists, yuppies, and the working-class Market clan Monroe likens to a carnival family. The food is generally good, and the characters at the bar who've been warming the same stools for years will happily entertain you for free. You can go for the booze or the burgers (from $6.95), but if you want the best of Lowell's, go by yourself at dusk and order the Mussels with Garlic Bread ($10.95), sit on the first floor in front of the picture window, and watch the ferries trail back and forth across the Sound like floating jewels. MEGAN HAAS


Chef Wang

2230 First Ave (Belltown), 448-5407. Mon-Thurs 11 am-11 pm, Fri-Sat 11 am-2 am, Sun 4:30-11 pm. $$

Chinese food. What can be said, really? Let's face it: The majority of the cuisine native to our overpopulated commie cousins is, at best, mediocre. A stir-fry is a stir-fry no matter how you wok it. But of the billions of Chinese restaurants I have visited in my long career of gluttony, two have stood out as transcending the trend of same-old, same-old Chinese cuisine. The first -- Chen's Dynasty in Portland -- is now a parking lot. The second, Chef Wang in Belltown, continues to dish up a mean Kung Pao ($9.95). Owner and head chef Bobby Wang has been hashing humbao for 35 years, and has mastered some remarkably tasty Chinese fare. His exotic treats include their famous Peking duck ($14.95), and Dungeness Prawns ($16.95), which are butterflied and served on a bed of steamed broccoli in an intense crabmeat sauce. For the super-adventurous, there's the calamari-like appetizer of Frog Legs ($6.95), which are garlic-infused, salt-and-peppered, and then fried into dangly, crisp tidbits. Hey, with a name like "Wang," it has to be tasty! ADRIAN RYAN


Bandoleone

2241 Eastlake Ave E (Eastlake), 329-7559. Dinner Sun-Thurs 5:30-10:30 pm, Fri-Sat 5:30- 11 pm; brunch Sat-Sun 9 am-2:30 pm; Monday nights are Havana nights, with cigar smoking permitted. $$

I call Bandoleone humble only because of its size. Smallish, a tad bit larger than intimate, its size makes it appear as little more than a neighborhood bar. But the gifted mixologists can serve ample and mature cocktails; the bar boasts a cigar menu and wine tastings; and the dining room is cozy. Bandoleone offers the nouvelle cuisine of Mediterranean Spain, tinged with flavors of Portugal, Cuba, and Puerto Rico. Such a wide berth of influences can sometimes lead to palate confusion, such as the case with some of the more elaborate, "busy" tapas items. But my companion and I fought over the Estrella de Cordero Asado ($21), a rack of lamb served amid complex flavors, and the Pato Rojo ($17), a breast of duck with rhubarb glaze and a lovely cornbread pudding speckled with red onion. My compañero wanted to try the Pesca Tarifa (seared tuna), but I checked him with the hunkahunka Chuleta Ahumada ($16) -- a smoked and grilled pork loin wading in a veal/sage demi-glace, confronted with pineapple-mustard salsa and accompanied with signature honey-chipotle whipped potatoes. This dish best exemplified the aim of Bandoleone: to quietly but firmly gloat in its Latin authenticity. RIZ ROLLINS


Il Capo Italian Restaurant

17171 Bothell Way NE, Third Place Mall (Lake Forest Park), 364-6001. Open daily 11 am-7 pm. $

I understand when people refuse to eat inside a mall, since the din, the nauseating scent of popcorn (even when no stores sell popcorn), and the undercurrents of despair in these suburban dens can induce panic attacks or aggression-displacement behavior. That said, I must point out this Italian counter in the Third Place Books mall. Il Capo's Tuscan red sauce is full of fiery, garlicky character, and chef Francisco Rodriguez spoons it thoroughly, with the stern attention of a mother wolf, over his lasagna ($5.95), rigatoni ($6.95), and spinach/ricotta-stuffed manicotti ($3.95). The results are satisfying, but surprisingly not heavy. Il Capo's thick pizza crust is strangely puffy, but with its smooth blanket of mozzarella and ubiquitous garlic, the stuff slides right down. Soups are tasty and well made, but the salads are sometimes wilty, depending on the day. This is easily forgiven though, since Francisco is often willing to prepare requests that aren't on his modest menu. STACEY LEVINE


Sunfish

2800 Alki Avenue SW (West Seattle), 938-4112. Tues-Sun 11 am-9 pm, closed Mondays. $

What makes Sunfish fish fillets, oysters, squid, and shrimp so special is the pleasingly non-greasy, light, and crispy breading (a Greek secret?). These tender ocean gems only visit the deep fat fryer -- they don't live there. Fish choices include halibut or salmon ($6.75), or cod ($6.25), and the fried calamari ($6.95) -- a tempting pile of tentacles and tubules -- appears to be made from the giant squid in 20,000 Leagues under the Sea. After starting with a crisp, top-notch Greek Salad ($4.85) or some Sunfish Clam Chowder ($3 large / $2 small), try the hard-charging Sunfish Special ($7.95), a knockout "fishkabob" of grilled chunks of halibut and prawns, interspersed with seared green pepper and onion. The presence of vegetables in a fish-and-chips joint must be illegal, yet Sunfish blatantly and expertly showcases them center-stage. While beer would be a welcome addition (is there anything finer than frosty, cold beer washing down a sizzling piece of halibut?), the pleasant attitude of the staff makes up for the lack of liquid spirits. JIM ANDERSON


Ohana

2207 First Ave (Belltown), 956-9329. Lunch Mon-Fri 11:30 am-3 pm, dinner Sun-Thurs 5 pm-midnight, Fri-Sat 5 pm-1 am. $$

Tiki-torch madness prevails here at Ohana, with its customary Belltown mixture of madcappery and noise. But look past the kitsch and stick around: Ohana's tweaking of Hawaiian-style fusion adds depth and grace to a cuisine with rich, traditional emphasis on comfort and value. Inexpensive pupus (Hawaiian-style appetizers) and plate lunches provide the conceptual one-two punch at Ohana, such as Ahi Poke ($7.95), a cold, salsa-like mixture of raw ahi tuna, green onions, pineapple, soy sauce, sesame oil, and lime juice; Lumpiang Sariwa ($5.95), Filipino-style spring rolls; and Spam Musubi, a bountiful hunk of rice and Spam wrapped with nori seaweed ($5.95). Chef Dennis Odea's Skirt Steak Teriyaki ($10.95) is superb, with thin strips of marinated beef, lots of rice-cooker-perfect white rice, and a row of simply steamed baby bok choy. Tonkatsu Pork Loin ($10.95), another reconfiguration of a traditional Hawaiian plate-lunch favorite, is served with gravy and slaw, the tender pork breaded with a thick and airy panko crust. Coconut ice cream ($3.95) soothed our gums, still stinging from the spicy slaw. JIM ANDERSON

Price Scale (per entrée)

$ = $10 and under; $$ = $10-20; $$$ = $20 and up