Ballard eatery profiled in New York Times

Geeky Swedes Ballard

Ballard takes a prominent spot on the front page of Sunday’s New York Times Travel Section.

Copyright photo courtesy Stuart Isett.

With an article about the Pacific Northwest food scene and Seattle’s almost obsession with eating locally-grown, caught and raised foods, Ballard’s new Walrus and the Carpenter (4743 Ballard Ave NW) is the first of several restaurants mentioned. As Frank Bruni writes, “To eat in and around Seattle, which I did recently and recommend heartily, isn’t merely to eat well. It is to experience something that even many larger, more gastronomically celebrated cities and regions can’t offer, not to this degree: a profound and exhilarating sense of place.”

Continue reading “Seattle, a Tasting Menu.” (Thanks Bob for the tip!)

Geeky Swedes

The founders of My Ballard

47 thoughts to “Ballard eatery profiled in New York Times”

  4. A beard and a bandana?! Is that tool going for the pirate look? If there’s ANYTHING I don’t want near my food, it’s some hippie’s beard.

  5. I would suggest you move this blogs comment system to Facebook as most people are less inclined to leave rude comments where their friends and family can see.

    This is a great blog but these trolls are ruining it.

  8. The negative comments about virtually everything are tiresome, childish, and rude.

    Congrats to The Walrus and Carpenter for the write up. I hope your business thrives.

    My Ballard- time consider removing the comment section. The depressing negative Nellies just take away from the site and contribute nothing.

  11. The staff and food is great. The cliental made me puke in my mouth. I heard one of the affluent patrons say, “I’m allergic to shellfish … make sure there are no shellfish near my plate!”  This is an Oyster-bar, right?

  12. “The cliental made me puke in my mouth.”

    All of them…every night? That’s a lot of people ya gonna have to hate, are u sure you have the capacity to hate that much?

  13. “The cliental made me puke in my mouth.”

    All of them…every night? That’s a lot of people ya gonna have to hate, are u sure you have the capacity to hate that much?

  16. Not sure what’s wrong with ‘affluent’ customers….unless you’re simply petty and jealous. I found out a friend is allergic to shellfish, it can kill him if he eats too much. So when I took him to the Walrus, he enjoyed the lamb and I apologized. He, by the way, I REALLY affluent. I mean silly rich.

    Keep up the anger and hate.

  17. I flipped when I saw the huge color photo spread on the front of the NYT travel section with the mustachioed waiter. 
    The owner took a great risk by opening a place that you can’t see from the street, that is also a few blocks out of the main retail strip further west on Old Ballard Ave. Of course, that has become part of it’s appeal for those that discover it. Love this place, the people, the food, and the quirky entrance that takes you back to a hidden treasure. Teaming with the companion restaurant by Stowell was a smart move too, it works to the advantage of both. You have to celebrate when a small, quality driven locale like this gets such acclaim. What they don’t mention anywhere though is how relatively, small it is. The already consistent wait times are going to be going up. Also, in the NYT this past Sunday, in the magazine section, is a nice piece by local ex-pat writer Jonathan Raban describing a road trip from Seattle to Stanford with his college-bound daughter. The paper has articles that highlight the Northwest on a very regular basis, more than you might expect from the Grey Lady. 

  19. Is anyone else bemused by the impassioned calls to shut down the comments on this blog because someone dares to snark on a restaurant or its patrons? Yet the vitriolic hatefests will drag on for dozens of posts without similar calls for intervention when the subject is “Ballard Hobos” or similarly marginalized people. All seems a bit precious to me.

    And no, I’m not envious. I have eaten at and enjoyed TW&TC and would probably be considered “affluent”, though not affluent enough to be able to make a habit of eating out a lot.

  20. “similarly marginalized people”

    How are hobos marginalized?  

    Somehow I I can’t bring myself to compare a successful, tasty restaurant that provides jobs to many, with the guys who pee, poop and leave needles in my bushes.

  22. In virtually every article on the site the same 4-5 turds post negative comments. That includes the articles about “hobos.” It doesn’t matter what the subject is or whether it is an adult, child, business, or charity, the same people immediately make a negative and pointless comment.

    God forbid if someone has made any money or is employing people, they seem to receive the worst of it.

  23. You’re missing the point. Snark on the hobos and everyone’s OK with it. Snark on the restaurant and out come the calls to shut down commenting. Criticism is OK or not OK, depending on the sentiments of the crowd. That’s all I meant.

  24. You’re missing the point. Snark on the hobos and everyone’s OK with it. Snark on the restaurant and out come the calls to shut down commenting. Criticism is OK or not OK, depending on the sentiments of the crowd. That’s all I meant.

  26. Dave,

    Here’s something that might help: When you are reading MB and you get to the bottom of the post and see that little button that says “22 Comments” …….don’t click on it.

    This way you can be spared the negativity, and the rest of us can continue to waste our time feeding the trolls.

  30. So, if I’m understanding you correctly, what you’re saying is that hateful comments should be condoned when they are directed at guys who piss in bushes, but not at small, successful businesses.

  34. “The staff and food is great.”

    Yes, and I’m sure, like you, they wines they didn’t get so many ‘affluent’ customers. I mean, what a way to kill a restaurant, paying customers.

    What’s it like being 18?

  36. Enjoyed the article.  Thanks for sharing.

    Oh, how I wish I could “hide” specific folks who comment.  Every time… same thing.

  38. Sure. But personally I’d like it to be a hole-in-the-wall, because Ballard is becoming a bit top-heavy with upscale establishments and the diversity would be nice.

  39. I have personally cleaned up bum crap, and it is definitely not pleasant. But that doesn’t make me hate the bum. Is the point I’m trying to make really THAT hard to understand?

  40. The reason to read the comments is because occasionally someone has additional information that is valuable and/or interesting. It is unfortunate that I have to wade through the obnoxious troll comments to do so.

  44. Everybody’s coming from somewhere, Mike, interpreting everything through their own experiences and attitudes. Life is a disorderly thing, something we of privilege often prefer to ignore. Don’t worry, soon the Internet will know enough about you that you’ll never have to experience something online that you don’t like. Won’t that be pleasant?

  46. You had me at the start; not sure you can speak for me in the second; I agree with your third; fourth is sadly true but your presumption that I disagreed was misplaced.  The snark was silly and not helpful.

    Still, I like the ability to ignore some.

  47. So, B+ overall?

    Actually, I wasn’t presuming to speak for you in the second, just making a generalized observation based on my experiences and reading.

    And the fourth was not snark, it was sarcasm directed at the concept of the highly personalized and mediated experience the Internet provides. Please don’t take it so personally.

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