The Wellington
4869 Rainier Ave S, 722-8571
Tues-Fri 11 am-3 pm and 5-9 pm, Sat 11 am- 10 pm, Sun 11 am-4 pm and 5-9 pm.
The Wellington was once a tea room–all delicate china and jam and baked goods–and now it serves what is inclusively called Southern food, but still with a trace of the English parlor. Here is soul food all cleaned up and with a tie on–a sleek dining room, with warm colors and brownish abstract paintings and parlor-style chairs and a wall full of old mirrors, as well as a few African notes, like an interesting vase of flowers made of bright, African-patterned fabrics. Gumbo, after all, is African.
A plate of gumbo ($8.50) was sitting across from me, and it was all I could do to keep my fork out of it–smoky, heavy on the oregano, with bits of andouille and chicken that were impossibly yielding (usually gumbo’s bits are a little chewy). My own plate–fried catfish ($12.50) with tangy collard greens and lovely, almost eggy, macaroni and cheese–was also quite good, with tender fish and crisp cornmeal, although everything could have been hotter (the service is slow, which might account for cooling time). There is nothing like a really hot piece of catfish.
The menu is small but complete–what more do you need than gumbo, smothered pork chops, fried chicken, catfish, red beans and rice? Well, you need side dishes, and lots of them; each entrée comes with two, and extras are $4 each. We added green beans–tender and meaty, although there was no sign of ham hocks (maybe in the broth?)–and a bright-tasting mix of okra, corn, and tomato. You are also given little jalapeño corn muffins, which are fine, although I couldn’t stop thinking of Ms. Helen’s sublime griddle cornbread in her little slice of a kitchen at Deano’s. She is the gold standard for soul food, dressed up or not.
You also need peach cobbler ($5). Trust me.