This Sunday, Chef Ethan Stowell will open his new restaurant, Staple & Fancy Mercantile, in the Kolstrand building on Ballard Avenue.
“Everyone wants to know about the name,” says Stowell. “At some point, the building was home to a mercantile that offered both staple and fancy products for Ballard residents. The contractors uncovered a brick wall with a hand-painted sign during the renovation. The bummer is the sign is on the second floor, but we liked the history.”
Stowell will be in the kitchen most nights of the week and encourages people to try his $40 four-course chef’s choice dining experience, which will be off-menu items served family style. He will also offer an a la carte menu printed daily. “The two menu options showcase his restrained style of Italian cooking that focuses on clean flavors, stellar products, house-made pastas, and seasonal ingredients,” Kirsten Graham writes in the press release.
The 35-seat restaurant (with a small bar that seats eight) will be open seven days a week from 5 to 11 p.m. Reservations can be made by calling the restaurant at 206-789-1200 or booked online at opentable.com.