I have the misfortune of being attracted to little hole in the wall restaurants in out of the way locations. An out of the way location might be to your advantage if you're running a meditation retreat, but it's generally not a good thing if it's a restaurant you've got.
On that note...
Cocina Marina of Skyway appears to be closed. At least it was when it shouldn't have been, twice in the last week or so. The place had been El Tapatio for a million years, and did well. It was succeeded by El Agave, a place I liked that didn't last long, and more recently by Cocina Marina. Had the restaurant been located on Queen Anne or in Wallingford, there would be people lined up outside. But as they say in the real estate world, location, location,location. It doesn't help that Skyway is thought of as a neighborhood you risk getting shot in. Personally, for me, it's worth the risk if the reward will be a good enchilada, or pizza, or ribs.
Speaking of Skyway, Gary Pollard has opened Gabby's Q, a take out BBQ joint in Skyway next to the Beachcomber Tavern and the nail salon. I've known Gary for a few years, as we are now both ex Metro transit employees. His barbecue is one of a kind, as he hails from Alabama. His coleslaw is spicy and unusual, full of jalapenos and mustard.
The sauce is slightly sweet and quite good. The meats are all fine and tender.
And finally, my Renton restaurant of the year for 2006, Aloha BBQ, is for sale, due to family illness.
It is still open and operated by the same people. The food is great, portion sizes are ridiculously large, prices are low.
A special last week was Pork ribs with grilled salmon. Oh My God! Was it good!
...So get there before the ownership changes. I've reviewed it previously and it saddens me to no end that ownership is changing. You just don't find creative cooking of fresh food at low prices at many places, served by nice people.
This has been one of those cursed locations..I remember it as a good Mexican place, then a mediocre teriyaki joint, then a Vietnamese place, and finally Aloha Hawaiian BBQ, which has had far more business than it's predecessors, because it was, and is, so good.
7 comments:
Noooo! I can't believe Cocina Marina is closed. The food was fabulous and reasonably priced.
Sad.
--A.
Cocina Marina is indeed closed. I got the inside skinny from the next door barber shop, where this afternoon i got a haircut.
Cocina Marina suffered from last month's windstorm. A tree crashed into their roof, damaging their kitchen.
Since business was slow anyway, I think maybe they saw it as a blessing and an excuse to get out. Too bad. It does look like some remodeling is going on in the space.
I've driven by Aloha many a time, turned off by a bad experience at a Hawaiian restaurant in the U District.
I stopped by today and was wowed, really amazed. Besides myself, only a couple was there. They ordered a regular order of special ribs (1/2 rack) that came with 2 scoops rice and 3 salad choices as well as a cup of fish broth with fresh cilantro, bean sprouts, and a hot paper. It looked mouth watering and easily could feed the 2 people. I ordered the salmon Caesar salad and waited. I wondered, having not eaten all day, what could take so long to make a salad. I figured it was the lumpia (that I ordered separately and was some of the best lumpia I've ever eaten). When I got home, the wilted lettuce told the tale: the fresh salmon filet was cooked delicately spiced and fried. With the little shrimp in the salad and the hint of lemon, it was fantastic - and only $7.99!
If they don't open somewhere else, it'll be a crying shame. In the meanwhile, go there! (Maple Valley Highway near a bar and a convenience store, not too far from the community center.)
Yikes! I need to check my work. I said there was a hot paper in the soup; I obviously meant hot pepper!
Just curious if the Aloha BBQ ended up closing or changing owners? Just read the review and it sounded great, but couldn't find any additional information. Any updates? Thanks for the information and great blog!
Can I just say that I think everyone in Skyway should beg and plead with the former owners of El Tap's to open up their restaurant again? I know where they live!! haha :) Oh how I miss that place. We used to go almost every weekend :(
Aloha BBQ is still open, still under the same ownership, and still good.
The hours are a bit odd...Open 3-6 Mondays, but sometimes later, tuesday thursday, saturday, and sunday something like 4PM-9PM, closed Wednesdays.
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