Image: Katie Gallego from Gruman & Nicoll
This week's top hits from Eater Seattle, Curbed's sibling bar, restaurant, and nightlife blog.
PLYWOOD REPORT -- Chef Brian Clevenger knows a thing or two about pasta, and he's leveraging those skills with a new Madrona restaurant called Vendemmia. Clevenger is currently the chef at Ethan Stowell's Staple and Fancy, and before that he worked at Tavolàta, San Francisco's Delfina, and Serafina and Cicchetti. Vendemmia will open at 1126 34th Avenue sometime in June, if all goes according to plan.
ANNOUNCEMENTS -- Twenty-four-year-old Katie Gallego has been named chef de cuisine of Vespolina following Jason Stratton's sudden departure from his head chef role at the downtown restaurant. Gallego takes the helm at a restaurant that has struggled to find its footing, having first opened as Spanish-themed Aragona before switching gears and shifting into Stratton's Italian wheelhouse. Gallego has honed her skills under Stratton's tutelage at Artusi and Spinasse, where she started as prep cook in 2011. She eventually worked her way up in Stratton's restaurants and was named sous chef at Vespolina late last year.
PLYWOOD REPORT -- Adding to Seattle's ranks of top-notch sandwich spots like Paseo and Salumi — both with a cult-like following — is the equally crowd-pleasing Meat & Bread. Joining John Sundstrom's trifecta of food joints in the Central Agency Building, the much-anticipated arrival of this self-described "man made sandwich shop" from British Columbia is officially opening on Monday, April 13.