12 // COASTWEEKEND.COM
Coast Weekend’s local
restaurant review
RELIEF PITCHER
Relief Pitcher’s Albacore Reuben
one of the coast’s best uses of tuna
Review and photos by
THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA
MOUTH@COASTWEEKEND.COM
T
he drinks are cheap and
strong and the bathrooms
are humid and slippery. The
carpeted floors are lumpy and the
walls are papered with mementos
of decades past — fading pho-
tos and funky keepsakes, a Bud
Light-branded guitar and a metal
sign from the Sports Illustrated
Swimsuit Edition. The Oregon
Lottery, Ducks, Beavers and Sea-
hawks abound.
But the Relief Pitcher — aka
the “R.P.” — in Seaside does
more than keep locals lubricated,
gambling and watching sports. It
boasts appealing and occasionally
tantalizing blue-collar bar grub.
The R.P. is a dive bar of the high-
est order.
While their burgers satisfy, the
Albacore Tuna Reuben ($12.95) is
a star belonging on the short-list
of North Coast Dishes You Have
to Order. Dare I say, it’s among
the best uses of tuna on the coast.
The R.P.’s regional signature
stacks a stout, flaky, seared tuna
steak on buttery, toasted rye bread
with sauerkraut, Swiss and slip-
pery-sweet Thousand Island. It’s
gooey, salty, crispy, juicy, creamy,
sweet and briny. Just perfect.
Like its pastrami-piling
brethren, the Tuna Reuben is
super meaty. But rather than meat
sweats, you’ll be left buzzing on
that high-octane lean protein. But
I assure you: The Tuna Reuben
isn’t diet food; it’s indulgent and
irresistible. You’ll just happen to
feel awesome after.
Dishes like the Tuna Reuben
are why we do this: a reminder
that creaky, unassuming places
are worth exploring, that hid-
den gems exist in every setting.
Even one that looks like a trailer
Rating:
2795 S Roosevelt Drive
Seaside, Ore. 97138
503-738-9801
Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. every-
day
Price: $ - Most dishes hover
around $10-$13
Service: Humble, easygoing,
personable
Drinks: Full bar. Get some-
thing with grapefruit.
Vegetarian/Vegan Options:
Pretty slim
KEY TO STAR RATING SYSTEM
Poor
Below average
Worth returning
Very good
Excellent, best in region
Albacore Tuna Reuben.
Grand Slam Burger.
Pan Fried Oysters.
park, where none of the furniture
matches and the paint is peeling.
Much of the Relief Pitcher’s
vibe — humble, unpretentious,
easygoing and low-maintenance
— is an extension of owner
Peter McClure, who lives on the
grounds and often hangs out when
he’s not working. Bartender Tony
The insides of Relief Pitcher.
deserves mention, too — he’s
personable, magnanimous and a
maestro with the grapefruit.
Tony squeezes them so reg-
ularly into cocktails — mostly
Greyhounds and Sea Breezes —
that he’s keyed in to the seasonal
characteristics of every batch. On
a recent trip he recommended the
Sea Breeze over the Greyhound
because these grapefruit weren’t
as sweet and needed a dash of
cranberry. My goodness, was he
right. A bright, fresh, balanced
(and bracing) cocktail.
No mixology degree necessary.
Nor a bible of bartending botany.
No measuring tools, ornate glass-
ware or small-batch products,
either. Just a press to wring out all
the juice and pulp, and the good
sense to get the ratios right.
I’ll have a devil of a time
ordering anything else at the R.P.
besides a Sea Breeze and a Tuna
Reuben. I mean, I guess there
might be a time where I’m more
in the mood for a beer. But, still
…
As I mentioned, the burgers
are fine if that’s what you need.
I’ve heard them spoken of in quite
high regard, though I find them
short of spellbinding. The R.P.’s
burgers are, to me, a reliable but
replacement-level performer —
simply pressed, dressed and sea-
soned on airy, white bread buns.
They come in a few arrange-
ments, like with pastrami (instead
of bacon), and the Grand Slam
($12.45), which comes with ham,
a fried egg and two kinds of
cheese. It’s heavy but not unrea-
sonable — hardly a gluttonous
abomination. Assuming your ar-
teries are unclogged, at just $1.50
more than a standard cheeseburger
the Grand Slam is hard to turn
down.
Burgers and sandwiches come
with choice of fries or coleslaw.
The fries are hand-cut with the
skin on and taste like they were
once, not so long ago, actual po-
tatoes. And I quite enjoy the extra
milky, cranberry flecked coleslaw
— even if I only need a few bites
of the sweet palate cleanser.
The R.P.’s menu is purposeful-
ly limited. What they do, they do
well. The Fried Oysters ($14.95),
with crumbly, crunchy breading,
are delicately cooked, absolutely
melting the moment they touch
your tongue. No teeth necessary,
their structure practically gives
way under a hot breath.
There are a few other bar
standbys, most of which are fried.
While some (the chicken strips)
bored, and some (like the Alba-
core Tuna Tacos) beckoned, I just
keep dreaming about the Tuna
Reuben.
Credit to the R.P., by the way,
for leaving fish and chips and
chowder off the menu. Really,
I can’t think of any locals who
clamor for them. (Are you a resi-
dent who love-love-loves fish and
chips? Drop me a line!) And that
refusal to bend to tourist desires
is a big part of the R.P.’s charm.
It’s a place, first and foremost, for
locals.
Indeed, the R.P. has its own
community. Regular readers of the
column will remember the inches
I’ve given to the Fiery Food Fes-
tival, a spicy cooking competition
that’s akin to a family potluck.
There are the games, too, and the
gossip.
For me, though, it’s that
signature sandwich. So, Tony,
when you have a moment, another
Sea Breeze and Tuna Reuben,
please. CW