Belle Clementine

If I could give a place 0 stars, I would.
Do not be fooled by the reviews to this place — you will leave quite disappointed and VERY hungry. This place is a rip off. We bought out the entire place for a friend’s dinner. The food was less than mediocre, overpriced, slow (took over 3 hours to have the small amount of food served), and they charged me extra on the generous tip I left. That’s illegal. I have no words at the service and the blind rip off this «restaurant» served us. I do not mind spending money on tasty, urban food restaurants, however at $ 80+ per person for a pre-​arranged course menu and a few drinks, I will never come here again. I won’t even mention that the food wasn’t ready prior to our arrival.

Great concept and love the idea of eating what was available that day from our region. Nice staff and great ambiance to the place.
Food was good. I wouldn’t say it was phenomenal or out of this world but good food. Definitely extremely fresh and the chef kept it simple to bring out the freshness and natural flavors of the signature ingredients.
Here is where I was a little miffed. Granted… I went here for a large birthday party and there is a lot of mouths to feed with the expensive local ingredients but everybody walked out of the place hungry spending $ 40 per person and after a 3 course meal. Not satisfied, hungry. I have a thing with great tasting food but getting enough.
Appetizer was a diced beets and chèvre on toasted bread. There were medley of herbs on here that made this app awesome. I dig beets, especially fresh local beets. And the chèvre worked perfectly with dish app.
Once we sat down we got a radicchio and Kale salad. Great use of winter veggies on the salad. At this point, it is promising that we will get plenty of food. Plenty of serving for everybody to have seconds.
The main course was fresh black cod on a bed of beans. Cod was flavored and cooked perfectly. This was where I started to get hungry. Tiny serving of cod for everybody. Everybody was left feeling wanting more but tiny piece of fish was all one person got. Well, a lot beans… leaving people a little unsatisfied.
To add to our hunger, the side dish was a cabbage dish. This was actually my favorite dish. It was sautéed with I don’t know what but amazing flavors. People got a lot of portions again on the sides yet, still leaving people hungry because all it was was cabbage.
and then it was done. The course was complete. Everybody was discreetly talking about how hungry they were still. Talk of a run to the «Dick’s» even came up. Trust me, I have had a lot of high end delicious food in Seattle but walking away this hungry has never happened. Part of paying to eat is also being satisfied and not leaving hungry.
Again, I am going to try this place again because I think this was an outlier. It was a big birthday party and they probably underestimated the hunger of birthday party people. But for the time being, 3 stars is fair.

Great food, good, clean and simple ambiance, total community feel to your dining experience.
Went here for Sunday brunch with a couple of my friends.
To get started we got the mimosa, an order of french press coffee and assam black tea. The coffee was strong and well brewed.
For the food on Sunday brunch the restaurant has a fixed menu, so we started the first course with pear coffee cake — the cake went very well with the coffee. Then for the second course we had winter salad which added some great tartness and worked well to balance the sweet of the coffee cake. Third for the main course we had the brussel sprouts, potatoes, bacon hash which was amazing and all the ingredients came together very well.
Overall liked the concept of community dining and am definitely going back for dinner service.

Great food and a relaxed atmosphere — perfect for Sunday brunch before or after the farmer’s market around the corner!

Wonderful experience and great fresh food.
We got to mill about the kitchen too. I will be coming back!

Excellent place for brunch. Very classy and delicious food. You’ll enjoy.

I love the idea and feel of this place! I walked past this place one night and wondered what it was. When I looked it up I knew I had to try it out. I kind of like the surprise element of what the menu will be. Since you won’t know what the menu is ahead of time, you’ll have to be pretty open-​minded about what you eat. If you like them on facebook, they do post the evening’s menu the day of.
The night I was there, my dinner companions and I had:
Polenta cakes with beet tartare
Carrot and young ginger soup
Taylor Shellfish Mussels
Fingerling potatoes & kale
Buttermilk cake
The carrot and ginger soup was soooo good! Normally, I hate ginger and cooked carrots but this soup was perfect! And the edible flowers were a nice touch.
The main entrée of the mussels came in ginormous bowls! There was a mountain of mussels and way more than what my table could eat. They definitely do not skimp here.
One of my favorite parts of the restaurant is the open kitchen. You have full view of the chefs and what they’re cooking. Not only can you see into the kitchen, they actually encourage the dinner guests to come in and look around. How cool is that?!
I can’t wait to go back to Belle Clementine and try something new!

Belle Clementine was our introduction to Seattle and was the most wonderful experience during our weeklong stay. We were seated at the end of the table, next to Seattlelites. We quickly has a great conversation with some tips for our trips as well as some great local addresses. The food at Belle Clementine was excellent, fresh and very generous. Eventhough we could not pick our menu, David and his staff accomodated allergies and vegetarian preferences. We had mussels with cucombers, tomatoes and croutons — very fresh. We had a cabbage salad. Main course was veal, the most wonderful polenta ever (prepared like a couscous, with rich flavors), kale, corn and apples. The veal was well seared, the kale was crispy. Dessert was a simple buttermilk cake serves on rasberry preserve. It was ok but not the highlight of the meal. A granite (palate cleanser) between courses would have been nice but not essential.
Would we go back? Yes, with great joy and without any hesitation. It was a great evening.

We had Sunday brunch which was absolutely delicious including the coffee presse. Delightful service and ambiance.
If there was more protein in the entrée it would have been a 5 star. We asked and had we know they could have added something like a fried or poached egg to the BLT and it would have been perfect.

Belle Clementine has a good concept. The food is like the décor, simple and clean. I love the idea of locally sourced food, prepared simply.
That said, if you are going to compose a dish with minimal ingredients, each should shine. We had a Mexican themed dinner. The tuna on our tacos was caramelized on the outside and medium rare on the inside. The tortillas on the other hand were stale and commercially made. A moment or two on a griddle would have helped, but handmade would have been better.
The salad with radicchio and melon was a good concept, but the dressing lacked salt and acid as a foil to the sweet and bitter.
They were very accepting of our food sensitivities.
I like the décor with roughly made long tables and custom cabinets and shelves with warm colors. The blank white wall I looked at could have had a bit of art on it.
As I told my wife, the chef cooks like his spare décor. A few ingredients prepared simply. I would have liked a touch more complexity and depth.

We read. We voted. We went.
We have a fun little foodie group and schedule regular meet ups to go try new places. This month we decided on Belle Clementine. The Seattle PI recently covered Belle Clementine and inspired us to go so we voted then made a reservation for our group which consists of 3 vegetarians, 1 pescatarian and 6 others who will eat anything and everything. Yup, not the easiest group to accommodate all the time, especially at a restaurant which has a pre-​determined menu. Well, we were in for a surprise…
We walked in and saw only three long tables which seated about 10 people each. We also saw an open kitchen in the back with two people cooking. At first glance you could instantly tell the setting was intimate and charming. Had we not had such a large party it would have been clear to us that we would have shared our table with the others in the restaurant which is always fun, too.
We were seated by the host and shortly after that and our drink orders were taken. An appetizer of crostini with a cream cheese-​like spread and cucumbers came out for us vegetarians while the others enjoyed salmon in place of the cucumbers. Shortly after that, the chef then came out and described what we would be having for dinner that evening as there is no menu. Since the setting is so intimate he was able to explain each item in detail to all three tables at the same time.
The meal began…
A delicious black lentil soup with crème fraîche, peppers and cilantro came first, along with our main entrée of braised rabbit and greens for the carnivores and seasoned blasted broccoli for the vegetarians! For dessert we had a dark chocolate brownie and homemade nilla wafer blueberry sandwich.
Everything was so fantastic! This was the perfect place for our foodie group and we unanimously loved it here!
I love the local food, the creativity by the chefs, who also invited us to explore the open kitchen while they were cooking which we did and we asked questions throughout the night which they encouraged. You can buy some of Belle Clementine’s home-​made jams and other goodies there too!
For $ 40 which includes all of your meal, 1 alcoholic drink and tip = amazing deal for the experience you get! Since the meals changes often, I am SO looking forward to coming back here! The brunch they offer looks equally tantalizing.
What a wonderful little find right in Ballard for food lovers!
One note of advice: if your party has any dietary restrictions let them know prior to your reservation and tell your party to stick to their preferences since they plan for ingredients carefully that day.

My girlfriend and I visited BC last month on a whim because it sounded like a cool foodie spot in the Ballard area. We really like the idea of local foods being used, instead of stuff shipped from across the country. The food we were served was really good — I don’t usually say that about restaurants the first time I’m there. Both myself and my girlfriend left feeling full.
We sat at the end of the table, so it was difficult to chat with the people at the other end without shouting over the couple we were seated next to (though the group at the end seemed to know each other and were deep in conversation). I would also recommend bringing a group for dinner if you can find some friends to come along.
Some of the other reviews also note that it costs $ 35 per person (gratuity included in the price), but it actually has increased to $ 40 as per their website. Overall, I give it four out of five stars. An awesome restaurant that is sure to be the next hip Seattle dining spot.

Recently held a family and friends dinner to celebrate my son’s milestones. The dinner was incredible in every way. Despite having 45 people, Dave and his co-​workers turned the dinner into a intimate (hard to do with this many people) occasion with an outstanding combination of food and wine.
You will be hard pressed to find a better restaurant with a staff committed to fresh and locally sourced ingredients superbly prepared and served in a welcoming setting.

I was so impressed with this place. Dave– the chef was amazing. The food was the same. I would go again and again. Everything is fresh and organic– I believe. We had a lamb meatloaf. I didn’t even know I liked lamb meatloaf but oh my what a wonderful surprise. The Kale was to die for, I’m just saying you must treat yourself to this divine dining.
The family style dining was a very nice touch.
I don’t know about the price range because our two wonderful neighbors treated us.
Wow and what a treat it was.
Thank you Belle Clementine you’re amazing!

I love the idea of shared dining as a way to promote the localvore movement. The chef did a great job making you feel like you are in his home and comfortable. The environment wasn’t too loud and it wasn’t too crowded. I loved the simple atmosphere with the wood, big windows, and minimalist kitchen.
I was very apprehensive about community dining as I had done it other much nicer places and felt pressured to talk when I just wanted to relax. I sat next to a great lady who was a food blogger and very nice to talk to, there was no forced conversation here. I like that the crowd was worldly enough not force uncomfortable introductions and conversations, we are all here to relax.
My only problem was the food amount. We were given one crostini with rabbit and onions, very nice, but we got one! Then we shared a salad with the table, lettuce with a vinaigrette, nothing else! Then the main dish was soup and turnips. Sadly my partner only got one ¼ of a turnip. Not enough food to go around, this line up does not equal the advertised three courses. The dessert was simple, but not anything special, poached pear and dry pound cake.

Cool concept and a great value, Belle Clementine serves family style dinners once a night on Thursdays — Sundays. Guests are told to arrive by 7:00, and for $ 35, you get 4 courses plus a glass of wine or a beer, which I opted for (a nice Hilliard’s tall boy). The first course was waiting on a platter at our table, and on our night, was braised rabbit on bread, which was delicious. Next, we had a lovely yellow beet salad. The main entrée was cioppino, which was delicious but a little light on seafood, as I had 4 mussels and 4 – 5 clams. I would love to have seen some fish or dungeness crab, but that would be very difficult at this price point. Likewise, dessert was a little light with some hand rolled chocolate truffles and cookies.
Overall, the concept and space was beautiful. The food is seasonal and fresh, but there are a few shortcuts, which is understandable given the price point. The chef will make accommodations, and created a separate vegetarian dish for one in our group. I don’t know how often they will change the menu, but seems like I had a completely different dinner from the other reviewers. Belle Clementine was a good option for our group, but it could also work well for a couple or even a single diner.

Belle clementine has a lot of the ingredients to be a top seattle restaurant: good location, nice décor, locally sourced food, and an interesting dinning concept with the communal meals. I really enjoyed the intimate family dinner setting, and thought it was well priced given the amount of food (three courses plus one drink). As previously mentioned, the food was locally sourced, of high quality, and simple, but done well. On the other hand, it was almost too simple. I know this place is new, and trying to attract a clientele base for the buy ahead meals, but I think they should take a risk and try and wow their customers rather than play it safe. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the meal, but at the same time I felt like I could just make this at home.
We started off with a kale salad with tahini dressing. This was actually my favorite course as it was something I really hadn’t tried before. The next course was a seafood stew, which was kind of on the bland side, served with plain old roasted potatoes. I think with the addition of some unique spices (possibly chlli, curry, or saffron), it would have really stepped up the dish… and roasted potatoes are good, but why not try some other root vegetables or throw some spices on those potatoes? To finish, we had lemon macarons and dark chocolate truffles. Both good, but at the same time a little boring. I don’t know. maybe add some cardamom to those truffles or some lavender to the macarons?!
Maybe it was just an off night or the chef is still trying to get in his grove, but I think this place has potential. Hopefully, they’ll figure it out.

Belle Clementine is my kind of restaurant.
Affordable, quality, relaxed, locally sourced, different.
They are only open Thurs-​Sun for dinner– and brunch on Sunday. They do one seating per night and two on Sunday for brunch.
Dinner is communal, $ 35 and includes some nibbles, an appetizer, a main course with a couple of sides, and a small desert. Gratuity is included in the price (tax is not).
We start with some amazing Spanish cheese (goat, cow, and sheep) — and some warm Castelvetrano olives (marinated in orange and garlic). It was a perfect snack as we waited for our first course– celeriac and sun choke soup with Macrina bread on the side. The soup was velvety smooth and not too heavy at all.
Next was roasted chicken with a quinoa salad (the salad had kale, radishes and toasted almonds in it). Also on the side was fresh bok-​choi (from Carnation WA) with lemon and garlic. The chicken was cooked perfectly and it went really nicely with the quinoa.
Lastly we had macaroons wit a lemon curd filling and some über rich chocolate truffles. Their pasty cook Sarah certainly knows her stuff. They were probably the best macaroons and truffles I have ever had. The macaroons were the perfect balance of crunchy and chewy– and the lemon curd in the middle was just right. The truffles were creamy and rich and delicious.
The menu is guided by what is fresh and local. I was told to expect a lot more seafood as the season changes.
The meal does come with a glass of red or white wine– or a beer (Hilliard’s Saison or Amber this time) — and some non alcoholic options. Their wine menu is very affordable ($ 23-​$ 35 a bottle– lots of interesting options).
The communal table thing was fine. There are three large tables that each seat 12 people (so only 36 diners per night). Reservations are required. They were at capacity when we were there and the chef said they were booked fully the following night too. I would’ve come back the next night– he told me they were making cioppino…
You are encouraged to step into the open kitchen and chat with their team during the meal. I was the only person who actually did and I’m really glad I took the opportunity to learn and chat with their team. The chef David was super nice and you really get a sense of his passion as you listen about how the meal is put together and where they source the ingredients. He mentioned they might do some cooking classes at some point.
There is $ 2 parking in the private lot right next door (beats hunting for parking in Ballard).
The restaurant is just getting started (been open 5 weeks when we went) and I’m sure they are going to do well. The communal concept is terrific, the restaurant is nice inside, their team is great– and most importantly– the food was locally sourced & excellent.

We had a great time and a great meal.
Course 0: Housemade crackers and Feta cheese.
I’ve never had such a strong feta cheese before, and it was really good. There were two plates brought out for our 8-​person table, so sharing was really easy. The housemade crackers were really good too, but for how much and how strong the cheese was, we could have used a bit more cracker (I didn’t ask for more crackers, so I don’t know if they would have given them to me)
Course 1: Beet Salad
Let me start off by saying that I don’t like beets. Seriously; I think they taste like dirt. These beets were no different, but somehow they were able to mask the dirt flavor and make them sweet enough that I actually enjoyed this dish. I mean, I didn’t go back for seconds, but I wasn’t pissed either. We also had some leftover feta from the previous course, so we all enjoy a bit of that with our beets too.
Course 2: Clams and Chorizo, with roasted Japanese turnips
Two HUGE bowls of clams came out for table. I actually couldn’t believe how many clams we got. They were delicious, and the broth was killer. The chorizo was nice and spicy and gave a great kick to the dish.
The sharing was a little bit more difficult on this course, because there was only one large platter of turnips and only one bowl for spent clam shells. But, everyone at our table was super nice, so it worked out with no problems.
Course 3: Dates stuffed with blanched almonds, and hand-​rolled truffles
Again, a huge plate of these things came out. I probably ate 8 stuffed dates, and just as many truffles (but, I’m a bit of a glutton for things this delicious).
All of the food is definitely «simple,» but don’t let that make you think it’s not delicious. The food is extremely well prepared and will leave you excited to visit again. That said, if you were really excited about the food, you could definitely make these dishes at home. In fact, this seems like the kind of place that would give you the recipe if you asked.
I was wondering how the shared table concept would work out. My wife and I were a party of two, and got seated at a table with a party of six. I was a little concerned that we would be shunned whilst the other party dominated the table talk. But, the whole table was definitely integrated into the conversation, and my wife and I didn’t feel excluded at all. I originally was thinking that we might have just been lucky, but as I reflect, I think that the personality of people who want to visit a restaurant like this was/​will be affable.
The staff was great. Waters were kept full, plates were cleared with ease, and drinks offered at appropriate times. When we arrived, the hostess asked us our names and without referencing any documentation, placed us at our pre-​assigned seats.
I ordered a delicious amber beer (I can’t remember the brewery, but maybe it was Maritime Pacific’s?), but it came in a surprisingly small glass. I’d probably opt for the wine next time.
And there will definitely be a next time. Overall: simple and great food, efficient and friendly staff, and a steal at $ 35/​person

The meals I have eaten at Belle Clementine were masterpieces. Chef Dave Sanford loves simple, local, tasty and unpretentious food. From the look and feel of the space to each ingredient, a high level of intention to composition of experience shows through. What has been exciting are the subtle flavors that give depth to nourishing taste experiences. From the vinegar flavors in the first course, to the comfort flavors in the main course, to the tart and tangy flavors of dessert, each meal is truly a storyline of delicious food.
I can’t say enough good things Belle Clementine. Chef Dave is one to watch, I can’t wait to see where his future takes him.

The aim of Belle Clementine and head chef Dave Sanford is to recreate the experience of dining with good friends at home. And it succeeds in doing exactly that.
The setting is intimate and warm, the food served family style, which adds to the intimacy, and the staff friendly and welcoming. While the food is simple in comparison to eating out most other places (although unless you have particularly talented friends, not compared to eating at home), it’s really well done. Our roast chicken was seriously perfect — moist, juicy and tender. We had a great night, and really felt like we were having a great dinner at a friend’s house… particularly at the end of the night after everyone else had left, and Dave put on our music request and served us an extra pour of dessert wine.
Highly recommended!