Smash Wine Bar & Bistro

Dog friendly, wine variety. Smash has been a great go-​to restaurant for me for the last few years, they exemplify consistency and have a great wine selection.
The patio is great for Seattle Summer days and people watching.

Don’t show up early. They don’t take kindly to people who are anxious to spend money.
My girlfriend and I showed up early without realizing they weren’t open yet. We were hoping to take advantage of the patio. The person had no interest in us patronizing the business. We would have been thrilled to have a glass of wine and hang out on the patio and stay out of her way while she had to do whatever she had to do to open the restaurant but instead was rude and dismissive. Don’t know what is going on here. I used to go quite often and they used to be much more service oriented.

The food tasted like Fran Fine’s mother made our meal for guests, but those guests didn’t eat it. So they reheated it and served it to us.
This restaurant hurt my feelings.

Wow!!! I went here tonight with my girlfriend and our two toddlers. I had a groupon and wanted to check it out.
1) the food was AMAZING! We had the truffle Mac and cheese for the kids (and plenty of extra for us mamas), calamari, and the gorgonzola, dates, and Basalmic flat bread. Everything was delicious.
2) The restaurant went above and beyond for our kiddos. They brought out apples and caramel dip (on the house) to keep the kids happy. And after dinner they brought complementary cookies for the table as well. FREE is the best way to bring repeat business.
***its not very often we get to eat out. And especially when we have the kids in tow it can be a bit stressful. This was honestly one of the best dining out experiences I’ve had here in Seattle.
We may make this a regular spot. Thank you Smashbar for making a night out extraordinary!

Smash has been on my to-​try list for a long time. Luckily, we got the $ 20 for $ 40 coupon from Amazon Local so we finally found a reason to go to that part of town. It was extremely underwhelming and I’d rate it slightly below average (2.5) because it’s not quite a 3 since I will not be coming back.
Everything was overpriced and the food was mediocre. The service was excellent but it was after happy hour and there weren’t that many people in the restaurant.
— garlic fries $ 8 (not the $ 6 posted on their website) — see photos: is that worth $ 8 to you?!
— beef burger (¼ pound) $ 7 (it was cooked WELL done)
+ warm spinach salad with bacon and egg $ 9 (delicious but greasy)
— elk and bison meatballs $ 15 (not the $ 12 posted on their website) — see photos: it’s 2 meatballs for $ 15 (older photos from other Unilocalers showed 6x)
We each had a drink and the bill after tax, before tip, was $ 70+. I’m still hungry.

When I sat down to write this review I had to think for a second about what our group DIDN’T order off the menu… *BEST* happy hour ever! I am only going to give 3 stars because I didn’t have anything I would specifically go back to that spot for.
They have starters, small bites, salads, burgers, flat breads (with gluten free bread option!), and big bites.
**Updating my review to elaborate on the 3 star rating** — ceasar salad wasn’t good, too much dressing and was goopy. The Brussels sprouts that came with the pork chop were soggy. My spring salad was crispy and good. Did not have the Risotto, mac and cheese was mediocre — fries, almonds, and olives were good (hard to mess those up!). 3 stars since I wasn’t blown away by the food, was more impressed with the prices.
++++
We had a group of 6 and landed right before HH ended (which is at 6:30). We started with the pot tots, almonds, olives, and truffle fries. I didn’t have the tots but feedback was good, almonds olives and fries tasty!
We had a couple salads (spring greens were clean and crisp), the prawn risotto, Mac and cheese, two flat breads, and the pork chop. #allthefood.
Absolute steal on $$ since it was HH. Great spot for a date or girl drink session!

Went here to use the 20 $ for 40 $ deal and had a good overall experience. As other reviewers have suggested I’d strongly recommend going during happy hour. However, if you do have a groupon/​amazon local etc you will be unable to use it during happy hour, so plan accordingly! This is very clearly stated on the bottom of the menu. Using one of those deals outside of happy hour however is still definitely worth it.
We ordered a local wine flight, all from Columbia Valley which were great choices and all 3 were wonderful tastes. The price for the flight was fairly reasonable as well.
For food we split the duck spring rolls, and each tried a burger as well. My girlfriend tried the BBQ burger and I had the mushroom and swiss. Both very good, thick, but small overall. The pretzel bun they have these on is phenomenal however. The ingredients were all very fresh and cooked very well, the burger was medium to medium rare and very juicy. They are small, but for 7 $ definitely worth it in my opinion.
Looking over everything else on the menu there were a few items we wanted to try, but seemed a bit pricy outside of happy hour. If you’re looking for a place to enjoy some wine and some good food earlier in the evening definitely stop in and give this place a shot! Outside of that, make sure to bring a local deal along to help mitigate some of the expense. Great location, nice space, and waitress we had was wonderful. Check it out if you’re in the area!

What an underwhelming experience at Smash on Friday.
I had a $ 20 for $ 40 deal from Amazon Local that I decided to use, so we went for happy hour. We knew ahead of time that the deal wasn’t good for happy hour prices, but we still ended up saving a little money. We secured a little spot on the patio since it was nice out.
The flights were tasty — I got the local reds flight and my fiancé got the Malbec flights. Both came with three pours and were tasty.
We ordered a few small bites — calamari at the servers suggestion and asked for no mayo or sauce. We also ordered the Bacon White Cheddar BBQ burger. She told us neither came with any type of mayo sauce at all. When she brought out the calamari it was smothered in aoli. My fiancé can’t eat mayo and he hates to send anything back, so I ate it but the server didn’t catch it. The calamari was nice and crispy but pretty bland. The burger was ok, under seasoned and also bland.
When she brought the check out, she disappeared for about ten minutes. We were unable to get her attention and tell her that the check she brought wasn’t ours. No apology when she finally came back.
There’s some much better wine bars closer to where we live, so I doubt we will venture all the way back over to Fremont for subpar food and service.

Seriously. Hands down. Best Happy Hour in Seattle! And on top of that, the food is remarkable! Wine is delicious! And service is extremely helpful. And you can’t beat the price at happy hour.
My boyfriend and I have had the following and it all was AMAZING: meatballs, hazelnut cheese tortellini, fries, bruschetta, crab cakes, chocolate cake and lemon cream brulee.
The Januik wine was my favorite! A nice red blend.

Grabbed a late dinner here, with the usual challenge of accommodating a family of 5 with varying hunger levels and tastes. We ordered the house selection cheese plate and a few sides for the table, as well as a port flight and several cocktails. While the food and cocktails were great, what really sells Smash is the atmosphere.
The waitresses and bartenders were very friendly, and had great conversation with us about the our visit to Seattle. The food was speedy but we didn’t feel rushed (we occupied a table for over two hours), and our drinks were always full. When my mom was disappointed by her second cocktail choice, they had a new (and delicious) replacement for her with lightning speed.
A great option for a low-​key night of drinking and conversation. The only disappointment was the sub-​par desserts, but with enough booze you won’t care!

The upside to Smash is that they have flavorful food with great Happy Hour prices (half off all food during HH). But even so the experience was generally middle of the road.
We started with a cocktail and glass of wine, both of which were pretty run of the mill. I ordered the Bacon BBQ Burger which came on a pretzel bun. Given the Happy Hour special I only paid $ 3.50, though it was really a slider size burger that I wouldn’t have wanted to pay full price for. My one main complaint is that they didn’t ask me how I wanted my burger and it came out very rare with the middle still raw. My girlfriend ordered the Pork Chops on Bacon Brussel Sprouts and the portion was quite generous — enough for her to eat the leftovers as a full meal the next day.
Unfortunately they were quite crowded so the atmosphere got a bit loud and the service lagged. Overall it was a pretty average experience.

After recently returning to Smash, I realized that the service is just slow. Was looking for a bit of a quicker dining experience and definitely didn’t get it!
Pro-​tip: Don’t get a group-​on esque deal for this place, if you are going during happy hour. The happy hour goes fairly late and they don’t stack, so you actually pay a bit more when using the deal during happy hour.
Still a fun little romantic spot, but will probably not frequent this place often

Per a local friend’s recommendation, I decided to come here for a birthday celebration last night. We were planning on ordering maybe a glass of wine and the cheese plate before moving on. However, we were temped to stay because of the half-​off menu during happy hour. We were so glad we did! I don’t think I have ever been so full and so content in my life. The food was incredible; my friend could not stop raving about the BBQ burger. In fact, he ordered a second one! The meatballs were the best we have ever had.
The service was stellar as well. We were there for over three hours, and never once did we feel rushed or like we overstayed our welcome. Both servers paid close attention to us without hovering, and were quick to joke and laugh with us. It was one of those rare dining experiences that was perfect in every way. We live up North, and will not hesitate to drive the hour+ back down here for another meal.

Monkey seated at window, silently eyeballing Musashi’s.
Monkey do:
Customized FLATBREAD w/​mushrooms, gorgonzola & balsamic
PORK LOIN stuffed w/​butternut squash on maple bacon brussel sprouts
Groupon splurge, but can definitely eat well enough with sharing HH plates. Food is good. May return to enjoy patio seating this summer.

I’ve been coming here a fair amount the last year. I thinks it’s fine time I tell you all what your missing out on. The food here is outstanding, started with the corn bisque, beautiful presentation and delish. Secondly, I ordered the lobster crab cakes, full of lobster tail. They cut no corners on the prep on these tarty treats. Lastly, I had the beef stroganoff and again, they cut no corners. Tender sirloin over mash potatoes and spinach. Attentive and friendly service. As you can see, I went over board on ordering food but can’t wait to dive into the leftovers.

My boyfriend and i bought a groupon to this place for Valentine’s day. I ordered the crispy ginger calamari and the bacon maple brussel sprouts, both in the appetizer size. I can not describe how amazing they both were. The brussels were sweet and savory and the calamari melted in my mouth!
My boyfried had the appetizer size byson and elk meatballs ehich were so delicious. They also melted in your mouth and the tomatoes sauce they came in was so flavorful and fresh. The Lennon butter asparagus was delicious as well.
DESSERT WAS THE STAR OF THE SHOW. We had the lemon butter cookie crème brûlée. I literally sounded like i was either dying out. … something else… while i ate it slowly savoring every bite.
Good service too!

This place is great! I came here with a couple of friends and really enjoyed the place. It was happy hour when we arrived so I ordered 2 glasses of wine, a truffle oil and blue cheese burger and an order of garlic fries. My total ended up being around $ 14. What a killer deal! The best part? The server even reccomended me a great book.
To sum it up; great food, great service, great ambiance. We will be back.

I would give this place a 3.25. Came here with a couple of my gfs for HH and was a great spot. Pretty much all of their menu is half off plus great prices on glasses of wine. I did just notice in the other pictures that the bruschetta comes with 4 pieces but we got 3 on our plate, is it because it was HH price? weird, but it was still good. the truffle mac and cheese was also good and so was the pot tots. the flatpizza was okay, nothing crazy amazing. also realized when I got home we ordered the brussel sprouts but never got them, hopefully we didn’t get charged for them. Would I come back? if I was in the area? maybe, there’s a lot of new places around the area that I would probably want to try first.

Been here a couple times and have liked it. There’s always a Groupon and it makes it feel more worth it. We’ve stuck to the small plates. The mini burgers, calamari, and Flatbreads are always awesome. They have good mixed drinks as well. I ordered a mojito which wasn’t on the menu one time and it was horrible, so maybe stick to the drinks on the menu.
Overall good place, service is usually slow but our servers have always been friendly. Our food had always been really good. Definitely will be back to fulfill the burger and Flatbread craving.

Had a Groupon for this place for months and finally got around to using it! Came in on a Sunday night, around 7:30 and the place was absolutely dead empty. My bf and I stared into the restaurant for a few moments from the car, wondering if they were closed or not. Overall, the experience was great but several factors led to a mediocre score.
We ordered:
— bruschetta
— Malbec flight
— Wagyu sirloin with garlic frites and green beans
— hazelnut cheese tortellini with chicken
— maple bacon pear pie with vanilla ice cream
Our server, who I believe is Dana was very attentive and was eager to answer all and any questions we had (I had plenty!). But then again, we were the only people in the restaurant so that should be expected.
The food was good but not great. The sirloin was tender but not seasoned, the garlic frites were a little dry, and the French green beans were fine. My bf said it tastes like steak he can just make at home… now that’s saying something coming from a non-​foody like himself (he thinks eating is a chore T. T *I cry*). So nothing too special there. For the tortellini, at first, it was delicious! The sauce was perfectly salty with a hint of hazelnut flavor, the tortellini cooked AL dente for a slight bite, and the chicken was tender and seasoned. But after eating it a while, perhaps the cream sauce was a bit too rich for me, it got a little boring and too much for me. I’d say the bruschetta was the best (the tomato, chevre goat cheese, and balsamic vinegrette) part, although the thick sliced of bread made it difficult to bite down without cutting your gums with the sharp ends of the bread.
The flight of Malbec wine is a pretty good deal. I don’t know much about wines but 3 generous glasses of different malbecs were delicious with our meal. To finish off the evening, we tried the maple bacon pear pie with caramel and vanilla ice cream. I can see why the flavors would «go well» together – sweetness from pears, saltiness from bacon, texture from pie crust, and creamy richeness from ice cream complement each other. But the actual pear filling itself tasted a bit too sweet and gooey, similarly to the apple pies you get from McDonald’s. A fresh homemade pie has a fresher, cleaner texture. But it still had a unique flavor and was a treat!
Overall, the experience was decent. A bit odd being the only ones in the restaurant but it made it more intimate for us. The place is a bit expensive for the quality, portions, and taste. Our tab was $ 87 so after the Groupon and tax, our total was still $ 40. Definitely wouldn’t come here without Groupon or else I’d rather go to an expensive steak house.