White Center Now: The blog about White Center

After a year in downtown White Center, Brass Knuckle Bistro (9602 16th SW) is closing. Proprietor Case Justham announced it tonight:

In short, we’re closing at the end of the month, with our last day being Saturday April 27th. I apologize for the shocking speed, the deal we ended up making (more on that shortly) required both a quick close and a few contingencies that needed to be satisfied, which left us with a very short window between announcing the closure and turning over the keys. We’ll be open our normal hours until the 27th, and updating our menu as we sell out of things (I have enough inventory to keep most of the vegan menu till the end, and we’ll continue to prep fried and smoked chicken, while allowing things like ham and pastrami to sell out).

Closing was not an easy decision, business had been good and getting better, and we’ve had a great time in White Center making delicious food, meeting friendly people, and being part of a fabulous community, but between the fact that I like cooking a whole lot more than I like managing, and some very sudden change in my personal circumstances (I’m going to have to move, twice, ugh), it feels like the best choice.

Now, the sweet:

We’ve got a great buyer taking over, an iconic local spot that will be a perfect fit for the neighborhood, that I’m sure everyone will be extremely excited about. I’ll let them introduce themselves with their own announcement, but it’s not a secret if you come in and ask!

Also in the sweet column, I’m far from done with the local food scene, and have retained the rights to Brass Knuckle Bistro and all the associated recipes and such, so your favorites aren’t gone for good, though I can’t currently say what form they may reappear in (I’m leaning towards pop-ups and small events where I can focus on the cooking and not the managing). I’ll be retooling the website and Facebook page with updates on that, so please continue to check in and see what I’m up to.

I also realized that I have 50+ pages of recipes that I developed for the shop, many of them completely original, not including all the variations and employee meal creations that never quite made it to the menu, so I’m putting together a little cookbook that should be available on Amazon sometime in the next few months. Yes, it will include my vegan mushroom bacon recipe! Again, I’ll be updating the website and social media as that develops, so stay tuned.

Finally, I just wanted to say that for all the difficulties that this restaurant odyssey has entailed, it’s also been a lot of fun and I’m glad I did it, and I appreciate every single person who’s come in and enjoyed my food (with the exception of the guy who two starred me on Yelp on opening weekend, screw that guy), and thank you to the entire White Center community, who’ve been nothing but supportive. Onward and upward!

(Photo courtesy Kevin Bui)

Yearning for late-night food? 9:30-11:30 pm tonight (Thursday, February 7th), the Bok-A-Bok Chicken space in White Center will be taken over by the Sin Reglas pop-up. After hearing about it, we asked the chef for a few details:

Sin Reglas: Late Nights is a weekly series every Thursday & Saturday at Bok a Bok White Center. My name is Kevin Bui, and I cook food that I crave late at night from my travels. It’s from 9:30 pm to 11:30 pm, and people should follow the instagram page @sinreglaspopup to see what’s going on. The menu will always have 5 items and 1 dessert. There’s canned beer and canned wine, as well as non-alcohol options for everyone. I do as much as I can by hand, so sausages, pita, falafel, curries, etc.

I’m looking to open a spot in White Center in the future, but right now, it’s about building community.

Address: 1521 SW 98th.

(WCN photos, added Sunday)

Almost three months ago, we mentioned new food/drink places on the way to White Center, including Anju (9641 15th SW). Just got a note from Sam Jo announcing that Anju Bar & Eatery has set its grand opening for next Friday (August 24th), explaining the venue as “a new bar in White Center with Korean based bar food. In Korean, ‘Anju’ means food eaten with alcohol.” They’re in soft-open mode now and will even have their patio set up within a few days; their menu’s only about at half-speed while they “get things dialed in.”

But starting next Friday, Anju will be open 3 pm-midnight, with a 3 pm-6 pm happy hour.

(WCN photo)

Announced by CTO (“Chinese Takeout”), which was co-housed with Lil’ Woody’s and Beer Star at 16th/98th:

Cue the sad violin music because CTO is now officially closed. Now put on the party jams because our crew isn’t going anywhere! Beginning on Monday, June 25th, we will be opening Southside Pizza, featuring whole pies, slices, and pizza joint classics that will have something for the whole family. Chef Manny is bringing his years of working with pizza to the Beer Star building and we’re excited about this new beginning. … Thank you to those that have supported CTO over the last ten months! Stay tuned for a rebirth elsewhere in the future and enjoy the new Beer, Burgers, and Pizza combo soon to exist at the Beer Star Building!

Southside Pizza already has menu items (minus pricing) online (scroll down past the “under construction” part).

Two White Center spaces have new eateries on the way, according to liquor-license filings.

–Da Lat Quan is moving into the empty restaurant page on the northeast internal corner of White Center Square (9988 15th SW).

–Anju is the name of the business that’s seeking a license for the taqueria space at 9641 15th SW.

No other details yet, but just in case you’ve been wondering who’ll be moving into those spaces!

Today is the annual Dining Out for Life benefit for Lifelong, and there’s one participating White Center venue, according to the online lookup – Noble Barton is donating a percentage of proceeds from all meals today/tonight.

It’s opening day at Brass Knuckle Bistro, as we first noted last month, six months after introducing you to the West Seattle family behind the new eatery.

Check out the art:

Sandwiches are the BKB specialty, along with salads and sides. See the menu here. We spotted today’s samples:

Brass Knuckle Bistro is open 11 am-8 pm Tuesdays-Sundays, closed Mondays.

It’s been almost six months since our first reports that Brass Knuckle Bistro was on the way to the former 3.14 Bakery space at 9602 16th SW. Now they’ve announced that March 6th will be the opening date, with a “friends and family” event this weekend for other local businesses. BKB will focus on sandwiches – you can preview the menu online. (Thanks to Gill for the tip!)

By Linda Ball
Reporting for White Center Now

If the ’70s vibe is your thing, then you are in for a treat when Dottie’s Doublewide opens in White Center.

Nate Rezac, the pit boss and co-owner of Drunky’s Two Shoes, has partnered up with his old bartending friend B.J. Kaiser, to create a new concept where Zanzibar briefly lived at 9609½ 16th SW. We mentioned Dottie’s briefly two weeks ago, and finally got the chance to talk with them this week.)

Imagine walking into a retro, sort of midcentury-modern-looking doublewide trailer with ’70s art and vintage neon signs decorating the interior. That’s Rezac and Kaiser’s vision. Rezac has an old vintage travel trailer that they plan to cut up. The side with the door will become the façade; so to enter the restaurant you’ll be opening the travel trailer door. The other side of the trailer will be used in the back between the restaurant and the kitchen, so the food will look like it’s coming from a food truck. The back of the trailer, where the taillights are, will be used for beer taps.

To add to the fun, they plan to have a CD jukebox as well as a turntable with real vinyl records to choose from – or bring yours, and they will spin them for you! They plan to have house DJs from time to time, mostly on the weekends.

Rezac has been in the restaurant industry since he was 15-years-old, and creates most of the recipes at his restaurants. With family in Mexico, he knows a thing or two about tacos, and Dottie’s Doublewide will feature more than 20 varieties of tacos. Of course there will be traditional Mexican tacos, but also some with smoked meats from Drunky’s, vegetarian options such as portabella-mushroom tacos, avocado tacos, and egg tacos. As Rezac put it, a really “wide net” of tacos. Additionally, the menu will feature Tex-Mex cuisine, marinated carne asada, and al-pastor (boneless pork shoulder with pineapple).

Happy hour from 4 to 6 p.m. will be offered seven days a week with two-for-one margaritas. Rezac and Kaiser will have a full bar with an extensive tequila collection, in addition to beer and house wine, plus a selection of better wines. The retro-style bar will seat 20 patrons, with two 65-inch flat-screen TVs behind it. A projection screen will be positioned opposite the bar on a large wall. They plan to show sports or fun video loops – perhaps vintage themed.

Rezac will have a staff of five at Dottie’s Doublewide. He and Kaiser will be in the house as well. Monday through Friday hours will be 3 p.m. to close, with lunch on the weekends and hours of 11 a.m. until closing. Dottie’s will have a capacity of 80 customers.

Kaiser, who is also a general contractor, has built out several restaurants, and Dottie’s is moving along fast since they weren’t changing uses of the building, thereby avoiding many permitting and county headaches. That said, they expect to be open as soon as February 1.

It’s a big weekend for openings around White Center, and here’s another one. Four months ago, as the old McDonald’s at 16th/114th was being demolished, we reported that a company spokesperson told us the rebuilt restaurant would provide “a cutting edge and elevated experience.” Now the golden-arches sign outside declares it’s open, and even without an official tour, some components are visible from outside. The drive-thru has two lanes for ordering. Looking inside, you’ll see two touchscreen kiosks for ordering.

They’re not replacing human help, though – employees were still visible behind the counter, and the company made a chain-wide statement earlier this year about the issue.

Meet Patrick Choy, the namesake and proprietor of Patrick’s Café and Bakery at 10003 15th SW, where it’s “soft opening” day. You’ll find not just baked treats…

… but also savory hot food including pot pies centered on fillings such as chicken or Portuguese sausage, plus beef stew and chili.

Some of Patrick’s creations (here’s the menu) are inspired by the flavors of Hawai’i, where he was born into a family that, as explained on the new café’s website, “owned and operated Sam Choy’s Kaloko … a James Beard Foundation: America’s Classics Award-winning restaurant.” He’s been baking since childhood and built a distinguished career including corporate food-and-beverage leadership, then a neighborhood bakery elsewhere in Seattle, and now he has moved to a larger space in White Center. Hours are 8 am-5 pm six days a week (closed Tuesdays) but keep in mind it’s soft-open mode for starters.

Thanks to the readers who tipped us that the White Center/North Burien McDonald’s is being torn down. Their tips came with the question: What will replace the 38-year-old building? Answer: A new McDonald’s. This was just confirmed by Derek Morrison, a regional media contact for the fast-food giant, who replied to our inquiry:

To clarify, this restaurant is NOT closing, it is undergoing a complete rebuild. This rebuild is going to reflect the McDonald’s of the future, with a cutting edge and elevated experience in both the drive-through and inside the restaurant.

Also, after going by the site earlier today and seeing the banner identifying the contractor as Ziva Enterprises, we found “before” photos on that company’s Facebook page along with a comment that they’re hoping to be done by Christmas.

(UPDATED THURSDAY NIGHT with garage-sale dates/times, Saturday and Sunday 10-4)

ORIGINAL EDITOR’S NOTE: We promised more on the Brass Knuckle Bistro when we first mentioned it a week and a half ago. And now – the rest of the story!

By Linda Ball
Reporting for White Center Now & West Seattle Blog

Case Justham says he doesn’t sleep very well, so he stays up and reads cookbooks all night. His mom Linda Justham says her son looks at the science of food, down to the molecular properties of a dish. Case is quick to point out that he’s not a scientist, but he likes to try non-traditional cooking methods.

Case (photo at right), a self-taught chef, is presently the sous chef and butcher at The Swinery in West Seattle. With mom Linda, sister Piper Carscadden, brother Drew Justham, and wife Amy Justham, they are partnering to open the family’s first restaurant, Brass Knuckle Bistro in White Center. Case will be the chef, Carscadden will work the front end and social media and Linda will do the books, eventually turning them over to Carscadden. The others will be mostly silent partners, although Drew has extensive front-end experience and will probably be present in the first few weeks.

The entire family lives in West Seattle but they chose what was until three months ago the location of 3.14 Bakery at 9602 16th SW for the bistro (and are having a “garage sale” there later this weekend – more on that below).

It’s close to home for Case, who resides in the Westwood neighborhood and worked in White Center in the early 2000s; Linda said it’s a place where they were able to find affordable rent. They came close to opening a restaurant on Bainbridge Island, where they all lived at one time, but decided against it when they all moved into Seattle. Case worked at Bene Pizza on Bainbridge before coming to The Swinery, where he’s been for three and one-half years. He appreciates the freedom he was given to be creative at The Swinery. “I wear a lot of hats there,” Case said.

So, where did the name Brass Knuckle Bistro come from? “White Center still has a tough-guy characteristic,” Case said. “It evolved from knuckle sandwich to brass knuckle to Brass Knuckle Bistro.”

It will be a casual restaurant, geared toward lunch and early dinner. He found it frustrating on Bainbridge to find a good Mexican or Thai restaurant so he wants to do things differently, for example, putting his own spin on Caribbean pulled pork. He said his Philly is an “anchor sandwich” which he’s perfected at The Swinery, but the Philly he has planned for White Center will “knock people’s socks off.”

Brass Knuckle Bistro will also offer salads and vegetarian and vegan sandwiches. Instead of gluten-free sandwiches, he’s planning dishes that would be presented like sandwich fillings atop, for example, ribs, cole slaw, or gourmet fries. He said the reason is that he hasn’t found gluten-free bread that he finds suitable. Case said he plans a small fixed menu and a large rotating cast of specials, which he said are where he shines. “I like the idea of a secret menu.”

Keeping the price points affordable is very important to the partners – they want everyone to be able to afford to eat there. They have applied for a beer and wine permit, and have a great deal of build-out to do, so opening isn’t anticipated until sometime in November. Expecting a rush in the beginning days, Case plans to call on some of his industry pals to jump in; then, he will gauge what sort of permanent help he will need.

This coming weekend – (updated) Saturday and Sunday, September 2-3 – the Justhams will be having a farewell-to-3.14 sale, like a garage sale, to get rid of fixtures and items they don’t need – espresso machines, a pastry cabinet, and so forth – from 10 a.m. -4 p.m. each day, so stop by if any of that appeals to you. They want the space empty by early next week, so the remodel can begin in earnest.

The Justhams do have a website started up, though not complete, at brassknucklebistro.com. Tentative hours when they open will be 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, closed Mondays.

Spotted while passing through downtown White Center tonight: Papered windows and a liquor-license application at the former 3.14 Bakery space (9602 16th Avenue SW), which has been closed almost three months. According to the State Liquor and Cannabis Board‘s online files, the application is for Brass Knuckle Bistro. We’re working to find out more.

As of less than an hour ago, the new Chinese takeout restaurant adjacent to Beer Star and Li’l Woody’s has opened. It’s called CTO – get it? – here is how they explain what they are doing:

We stopped by around mid-afternoon to confirm that they indeed were opening tonight, and they confirmed it. The tables were ready (dine in OR take out):

According to the CTO website, they’ll be open Sunday – Thursday 4 pm – 9 pm, Friday – Saturday 4 pm – 10 pm for starters (9809 16th SW).

12:42 PM: It’s official … the next White Center restaurant opening is this Wednesday (July 19th), just in time for Jubilee Days. Li’l Woody’s announced the opening date today for its 9807 16th Ave SW location, same building as Beer Star (and the future CTO). The local mini-chain also has locations in Capitol Hill, Ballard, and South Lake Union.

ADDED 1:12 PM: More info from the official Li’l Woody’s news release:

… Li’l Woody’s White Center will be open Sunday-Thursday, 11 am-9 pm, and Friday and Saturday, 11 am-11 pm. The telephone number is 206-403-1294.

Li’l Woody’s will be one of two restaurants sharing the building with Beer Star, the expansive, 40-tap beer hall. Li’l Woody’s 1,400 sq. ft space will be cooking-up their beloved grass-fed burgers, shakes using local ice cream from Full Tilt, and hand-cut fries using potatoes grown in Pasco, Washington from Harvest Fresh Produce. …

The White Center space was once home to the Epicure restaurant, a major gathering spot in the 1950s – known to be where “the elite meet to eat.” The “EP,” as it was called, was owned and operated by Joe Boothby, who cooked roast beef on a spit near the front window. The meat became a favorite offering of the restaurant, along with the annual pancake breakfast fundraisers held downstairs. Li’l Woody’s pays homage to the building’s history with the Epicure sandwich: Slow-braised top round, provolone, caramelized onions, and peppercorn horseradish aioli. An extra kick can be added with the addition of Mama Lil’s peppers for $1.

The Epicure joins the club of a special burger found at each Li’l Woody’s location- Capitol Hill has the Chicken Burger, Ballard has the Salmon Burger and South Lake Union has the Turkey Burger.

“We can’t wait to be a part of the White Center community,” says Li’l Woody’s owner Marcus Lalario. “I’m glad that we can celebrate the history of the building and have a part in this new neighborhood development.“