Lately it seems I have a fetish for Ballard. Okay maybe fetish is too intense a word to use. But I’m slowly realizing that there are some great places to eat just a hop, skip and a jump away from my place. One such place I’ve known about for nearly a year but was hesitant to visit, having heard it was a haven for giggling sorority girls and large parties. But I tend to go to dinner early and so perhaps this night would be a quiet early evening meal at Volterra.

A hip, urban Italian restaurant, Volterra was nearly empty when I arrived shortly after opening. There are two dining areas; one up front sharing space with an ample bar and another around a corner over looking a patio and the street beyond. It was this space where I was seated, under a large skylight, the room all to myself. The staff was pleasant and I enjoyed an easy rapport as I was told of the daily specials.

I decided on the Bowties with Smoked Chicken ($15.00) as the menu promised asparagus and artichokes, two of my favorite vegetables. It took a little longer than I expected for my meal to arrive but I’ll chalk that up to my early arrival and the time the chef was putting into making my dinner perfect. And what arrived was quite well done. A veritable mountain of bowtie pasta (Which, it was admitted to me, was not made in house but was a commercially available brand) arrived in a shallow bowl. Sauced perfectly with a sweet, slightly tart tomato cream sauce. The cream gave the sauce just the right amount of richness to flavor the pasta and went well with the chucks of smoked chicken. And smoked is an apt word for this chicken. A thick taste of Hickory was readily apparent in each cube of chicken meat. If I didn’t know better I’d almost mistake the chicken for kielbasa sausage. Of course this is all well and good but where are the promised asparagus and artichokes? It turns out that the addition of those elements were few and far between. The asparagus seemed relegated more as garnish in their diced, pelletized forms and only a few leaves of artichoke drifted here and there. There was great flavor to be had with this pasta, from the chicken to the mushrooms and even the generous dollop of Beecher’s goat cheese (The grassy notes added extra depth to the dish) but adding some more substantial bits of vegetable would have made this dish great.

My initial impressions of Volterra, made due to a Seattle-based newspaper’s review, have been proved unfounded. With so many items on their menu grabbing my attention and the modern take on Italian, not just the food but also the atmosphere, I will be sure to make another visit for another early dinner.

Many times in searching for a new restaurant to try I surprise myself with spots that are right at my back door. I’ve been all over Fremont and thought I knew enough about Ballard to have hit all the good places to eat. But sometimes it takes outside influence to see those hidden gems, those restaurants that, at first glance, may not seem to hold much in the way of culinary excitement. It was such with my first experience at Market Street Grill.

The setting is one of neutral colors, exposed duct work and smooth jazzy tunes playing over the sound system. The staff was courteous and attentive even if the hostess seemed a little confused at first. I was seated quickly and the waiter informed me of the soup of the day, what menu items were temporarily unavailable and took my order. I started with the Lamb Empanadas ($9.00). The appetizer arrived as three golden pillows floating on a cool, cucumber sauce. The pastry pockets weren’t very flakey but tender all the same. Inside is where the treasure was to be found. Ground lamb had been simmered with cumin and what I believe was chili powder, giving them a distinct “South-of-the-border” taste. Contrasting the warm, spicy bite of the empanadas was a chunky cucumber raita. Made from small cubes of cucumber and creamy yogurt the raita was great in smoothing out any edge to the spicy lamb filling.

For the main course I choose the Roasted Chicken ($18.00). A half chicken arrived atop braised Swiss chard and surrounded by roasted fingerling potatoes dotting a thyme jus. The golden, crisp chicken skin released a wonderfully juicy aroma that was reinforced by the still moist meat below. Unlike many times of eating roast chicken the white and dark portions were cooked through without being overcooked and dry. A perfect compliment to each bite of chicken was the buttery sautéed Swiss chard. Little else was done to it but perhaps a sprinkling of salt which allowed the sweet and slightly bitter notes of the chard come through. The fingerling potatoes were equally well done. Golden brown and crunchy on the outside they held a treasure of smooth, creamy potato flesh inside, no butter needed for these spuds.

Market Street Grill puts on few airs in making itself known in Ballard as they save the crowing for the food. Cooked with attention and care they were able to take simple ingredients and transform them into quality dining.