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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 29, 2015)
Sea Breeze Restaurant & Lounge The Seabreeze’s burger is familiar, hearty and a good value. Working-class Seaside eatery serves up solid value I I’d never heard of a “chicken box.” (It’s like a doggy-bag but for birds.) That was be- fore I set foot in the Sea Breeze Restaurant & Lounge, where such requests are common- place. “Oh yeah, people ask for chicken boxes all the time,” server Alice says to a customer who piles in her leftover fries. Despite its name, the Sea Breeze feels a little more country than coastal, more work- ing-class than tourist trap. Nestled at the in- tersection of U.S. Highways 26 and 101, it’s almost like a time machine to when everything was made of wood, when steaks were king, and every plate came gar- nished with a little piece of parsley. On the more lively bar side, over the glow and plinking of video slots and country music radio, you’ll hear the latest on logging politics, woebegone rec- itations of off-roading ad- ventures gone awry and tall tales from the hunt. It’s been this way, more or less, since the 1950s, and I gath- er little has changed. From the steak-is-king menu to the aged decor, you can al- most taste the burnt coffee. As both an outlier and, for the most part, a solid value, ,¿QGWKH6HD%UHH]HZKRO ly charming. The restaurant’s best deal is the burger and beer for $5.25. Now, other plac- es offer occasional specials — or tastier burgers — but none so cheaply and reg- ularly. It’s available every day, from 4 to 7 p.m. The quarter-pound patty is fro- zen and pre-formed, and delivered on a tall bed of shredded lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle and Thousand Island dressing. And though the bun was toasted, the roughage — as well as the ketchup and mustard — were chilled, making the thing lukewarm at best. The Thousand Is- ODQGVSLOOHGRXWWKHVLGHVFRDWLQJP\¿QJHUV The restaurant’s best deal is the burger and beer for $5.25. Now, other places off er occasional specials — or tastier burgers — but none so cheaply and regularly. It’s available every day, from 4 to 7 p.m. 14 | October 29, 2015 | coastweekend.com It was familiar, and it was a hearty burger and it came with a pint of Budweiser (or Bud /LJKWLI\RXSUHIHU$WDKDLURYHU¿YHEXFNV it’s a value I can only trumpet. At the upper end of the menu is the Sea and Steak ($23.95), an 8-to-10-ounce rib-eye steak with choice of prawns or scallops. I opted for prawns, as well as mashed potatoes and gravy, and a cup of clam chowder. The home-made chowder, which the Sea Breeze is known for, arrived almost immediately, with a pat of but- ter on top, just beginning to melt. The base was thick, traditional and quite creamy. There were chunks of potato and plenty of clams, which were a little of the chewy side, and I made short work of it. The main course arrived with a thick slice of garlic toast. The prawns, beer battered and deep fried, were shaped like little “T’s” RU ³<¶V´ DV WKH PHDW KDG EHHQ ÀD\HG 6XFK preparation created more surface area, essen- The Seasider omelet came with hashbrowns and toast. tially doubling the amount of crisp, oily bread- ing. The breading covered the tails too, which ZDVDOLWWOHXQQHUYLQJDVLWZDVGLI¿FXOWWRWHOO where the meat ended and the tail began. It was also quite salty. Sweet and sour sauce and an exceedingly bright tartar offered some bal- DQFHEXW,IRXQGWKHÀD\LQJDEXPPHU The accompanying rib-eye steak was am- ple, about an inch thick, maybe more. Two rib- bons of fat essentially separated it into thirds. It was a tad over-cooked and needed more salt and pepper, but the quality of the cut itself was nothing to be ashamed of. With whipped mashed potatoes and a thick, salty, beefy gra- vy, it was a whole lot of fatty, greasy food, YHU\ PXFK FDSDEOH RI VORZLQJ EORRGÀRZ WR near-nap status. mouth OF THE COLUMBIA COAST WEEKEND’S LOCAL RESTAURANT REVIEW Story and photos by THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA • mouth@coastweekend.com Sea Breeze Restaurant & Lounge Rating: 84774 US Highway 101, Seaside 503-738-7329 HOURS: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday to Thursday; 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday. PRICE: $$ – Entrées hover from below $10 for sand- wiches and burgers to above $20 for steaks SERVICE: Thoughtful and personable VEGETARIAN / VEGAN OPTIONS: Meat is king at the Seabreeze. DRINKS: Coff ee, tea, juice, soda, full bar But unless you’ve just hit the jackpot on the video poker, I’d recommend ordering down menu at Sea Breeze. There are better steaks to be found elsewhere, and better deals right in front of you, from the Broasted Chick- en ($11.95) to the array of burgers and sand- wiches. The Fish Sandwich, with breaded halibut, ZDVWKLFNFUXQFK\DQGOHDQ7KH¿VKKDGEHHQ frozen for some time, and the overall makeup of the sandwich was quite familiar, but with a load of fries it was a wholly acceptable, not-too-greasy alternative. That said, the Sea Breeze isn’t a place you go to on a diet or looking to eat healthy. It’s a place workers go after a day of physical labor. Or, for that mat- ter, before. The Sea Breeze too offers breakfast and, save for pancakes and biscuits and gravy, you can get it all day. In my trips, breakfast offered the most ringing taste. The Seasider ($10.50) — an omelet that split the difference with a scramble — cupped molten, runny sharp FKHGGDUFKHHVHWKDWVDQJDJDLQVWÀXII\HJJV bell peppers and salty-sweet ham. I didn’t think I was hungry at the time, but I devoured it, leaving little left for the chicken box. KEY TO RATINGS poor below average good & worth returning excellent outstanding, the best in the Columbia-Pacific region