Pablo y Pablo (hereafter referred to as “Pablo”) (1605 N 34th St.), located in the NorthEdge building (Tableau HQ) and next to Acadia, is the newest restaurant addition to lower Wallingford. Pablo is owned by the Heavy Restaurant Group that runs other well-known restaurants such as Thackeray, Purple Café & Wine Bar, Barrio, and Lot No. 3, to name a few.
From the Heavy Restaurant Group:
“Pablo y Pablo is a Mexican restaurant & bar that pulls ingredients and techniques from around the world. With a name inspired by the deep friendship between Chilean poet Pablo Neruda and Spanish painter Pablo Picasso, Pablo y Pablo is an eatery with an atmosphere of friendship, hospitality and camaraderie. We invite our guests to enjoy a restaurant & bar that pulls influence from across the Latin world.”
Based on its Heavy Restaurant Group pedigree and the description above, it should come as no surprise that Pablo is not a typical Mexican restaurant or taqueria. They are clearly aiming for customers who want dinner and drinks with a side of upscale and trendy.
My wife, Ana, and I recently went to Pablo on a weeknight after work where we met two friends for dinner. First, I must say that the space is beautiful. The entire front of the restaurant has floor-to-ceiling windows and the bright, evening sun flooded and warmed the space. The interior is modern industrial and is just what you’d expect from an exterior that boasts steel, concrete, and rust panels. As an aside, I find the building’s architecture really interesting and think it’s great aesthetic fit for something sandwiched between Gas Works Park and the transfer station. However, this is not an article about architecture or the development of Southern Wallingford. Let’s talk about the restaurant!
For appetizers, we ordered the chips & guacamole and fried hominy (corn kernels) with chipotle salt. The guacamole was creamy, flavorful, and surprisingly spicy. The fried hominy, a first for me, was a standout. The kernels are a crispy, delicious snack that reminded me of mini tater tots. The appetizers are on the small side and difficult to share among four people. I’d recommend sharing them between no more than 2 people.
The drink menu and liquor selection is impressive. The beer and wine lists are modest which emphasizes the agave-based liquors (tequila and mezcal) and specialty cocktails. Along with standard cocktails, Pablo offers several house margaritas with interesting flavor combinations like strawberry & basil, papaya & jalapeno and tamarind & ginger. In classic fashion, I played it safe with my drink order and decided on a blood orange margarita. The margarita was definitely good, but $11 feels steep for a drink that’s pre-made in large quantities and served on draft. Next time I’ll go out on a limb and try a rich, smoky mezcal.
Between the four of us we tried 6 different tacos, chicken enchiladas, and the carnitas. I went with the chicken enchiladas (again, played it safe) and they were delicious. Noticing my indecisiveness when asked about red or green sauce, the server suggested I order my enchiladas “Christmas style” with both red AND green sauces. This is an idea so simple, so brilliant, that it should be printed right on the menu! The enchiladas, served in a small cast iron pan, were smoky, spicy, flavorful, and were topped with just the right amount (a lot) of cheese. Everyone at the table was quite happy with their order and had positive things to say about the food.
Ana tried the pineapple & bacon, bahn mi, and salmon tacos. The salmon was a daily special. She had high hopes for the bahn mi. Ultimately, this creative fusion was good, but not a favorite. Ana’s favorite taco was the simplest of the three – grilled pineapple & bacon. Our friend ordered the baja fish, spiced steak, and jalapeño corn & potato croquette tacos. I heard no complaints and she seemed to enjoy all three.
For dessert we had churros with dipping chocolate. The side of chocolate is served in a tiny ceramic mug. The churros, instead of being chewy, are very light, flaky, and nearly melt in your mouth. This take on churros was fun and it worked. Who doesn’t love to dunk sugar-coated pastry into a mini mug of melted chocolate?
Our water glasses stayed full and the server checked on us regularly enough during the meal. Most notably, our server offered up the creative “Christmas style” recommendation for my enchiladas. Unfortunately, the service stalled out towards the end. We spent about 20 minutes waiting for and then paying the bill. I’m not particularly critical of table service and would say that, overall, the service was just fine.
My only complaint with Pablo is the price point. Instead of the usual combination plates you’re used seeing at Mexican restaurants, almost everything here is à la carte. Chips and salsa are not on the house. Tacos range from $4.5-7.5 each so ordering 3 tacos is easily the same price as a large plate. Side dishes like beans, rice, or a fried jalapeño aren’t included with either the tacos or large plates. They all cost extra. The lunch menu includes a taco combo, but the dinner menu does not. The happy hour menu (3-6 pm) takes a couple bucks off some of the items but we missed that window.
Pablo takes a notoriously inexpensive, casual style and makes it upscale. I get that Heavy Restaurant Group runs higher-end restaurants and Pablo is no exception. Given the fresh ingredients, creative menu, and quality results, most people will probably be fine with the premium. Based on the buzz I’ve read online and how busy the restaurant appears every time I’ve driven past, I think they’re onto something. Wallingford seems willing to pay up for more expensive “concept” restaurants and bars. Overall, we had a great dinner and I can definitely see myself going back to Pablo for a special occasion or to focus on the bar and try some premium mezcal.
The place is not as bad as Thackery, but still the same problem: lack of character food that seems like intentionally toned down and only expected to impress people new to the food scenes. Is Heavy Restaurant Group designing these restaurants targeting people who newly got high-paying tech jobs and just started out to try fancier restaurants? The decorations surely can impress, and the bland and boring food would not scare the newbies away? The price point is to make the rookies think, “I paid much more for this, therefore it must be good?”
It’s part of the whole package. We aren’t likely to ever get something like Señor Moose. Not only is it a serious hard shot to create such a restaurant anyway, but it’s nothing like this outfit’s model. They do this – sort of a formula, invest money into making it nice, but at its heart … well, suits. The buildings that are sprouting up along the arterials here will include restaurants – restaurant businesses managed by suits.
Señor Moose is in Ballard and everything in Ballard is bad because people live in condos and are hipsters and work in tech jobs and have designer dogs and ride bicycles and walk to restaurants which stay open because of the foot traffic.
LOL yes, we’re all horrid! 🙂 TBH…Señor Moose really IS amazing so whatever it takes! But Wallingford still has Rancho Bravo, right? That’s not awful. No Moose, but authentic and made/served by actual Latino folks.
A beautiful flower grows from wherever its seed falls, even in Ballard. Perhaps the key point here, relative to Señor Moose’s location, is that they aren’t in one of those condos. I don’t remember when they opened, but more than 10 years ago, before the current scene. I haven’t been there in years.
Wallingford has restaurants that stay open, and I hope when we think about dining out, we’ll give some thought to places where you might catch a glimpse of the owner. Often they have their little quirks, and could stand to improve in various ways – but they have that potential, unlike restaurants run by suits.
Donn, I think that Tilth is a great example of what you are talking about. Also mkt. And you can’t dismiss The Whale Wins or Joule.
Well, sure … I guess. Maria Hines right now runs only two, Tilth and Agrodolce. mkt is one of 14? for Ethan Stowell; Whale Wins’ Renee Erickson has half a dozen. I don’t know anything about the business and what to expect out of these groups, vs. real one-off independents, but really that’s what I mean. Don’t like Chile Pepper, Rocking Wok, Olympia Pizza, places like that? I’m not sure I do either, but they’re people who bet their whole wad on us, so I hope we don’t write them off just because they aren’t trendy destination restaurants. And we were talking about Señor Moose – it evolved into what it is, and if we ever get anything like that, it will come from an independent, not from Maria Hines, Ethan Stowell, et al.
I think Pam’s Kitchen is an example of a good restaurant where you can see the owner. People complain about the prices there too, but I agree that I much prefer to spend money on a person who has invested everything in my community rather than a restaurant group.
Yes! Pam is a winner.
Donn I take your point about the “chain” aspect of a Stowell/Erickson restaurant and maybe I’m just lucky but I’ve seen Renee cooking at Whale several times…and I haven’t seen Ethan S at mkt cooking but Alvin, the chef, is cooking right out in the open kitchen and talks to patrons…I was relating more to your point about knowing who is cooking your food and interacting with them (owner doesn’t always = chef, even at a one-off place). Bottom line is I don’t write anyone off and I eat at all kinds of non-trendy places…the lo-fat chicken chili at Taco Time is a major favorite! 😀 Bon apetit!
Well, really I don’t really need to have anything to do with the person who cooks my food. It’s interesting to watch in case there’s anything I can use when I’m cooking, but it isn’t a requirement. It really is more about ownership, a dimly perceived notion of evolutionary potential, which I imagine is wider in a place like Pam’s. They can go more different ways, because the risk is
Dinner out isn’t worth it unless you can steal some idea to try at home! 🙂
I won’t eat somewhere if the maître d’ wears pleated pants.
The only place I’m ever going to see a maître d’ is in an old move.
Chile Pepper is extremely underrated, it’s authentic!
Yawn. Just another trendy, hipster, overpriced place. They’re a dime a dozen.
It would have been OK for me if it’s a trendy Seattle hipster place. This is no hipster place but something you expect to find in Bellevue.
I am confused– how ar ethe tacos cheap/ ?dollars and fifty cents each up to seven dollars and fifty cents each/? And sides cost more?
Pablo and Thackery are corporate operations, and as such, are just fine.
If you don’t like either (or both), don’t go. They’ll get along just fine without you.
But enough with the precious whining – good grief.
Of course I wouldn’t go again. Not sure why you think they’d be just fine though. Restaurants have pretty high attrition rates, and it’s not like Heavy Restaurant Group haven’t closed some units before.
I surely am not whining. I am just of the opinion these two new joints are worse than most other places within blocks, including Whale Wins, Joule, Manolin, 36 Stone, Acadia, Stone Way Cafe, Pacific Inn, Varsity Inn, and Essential Bakery. I guess they probably have better quality food than I Love Teriyaki and Solsticio, just not the value.
Also for very similar food, Red Star Taco in Fremont is worth a try. It’s cheaper and more flavorful. I would say also more fun and less “suburban mall” feel.
Very good food. I used to get my hair cut at Fremont Rudy’s and made a point of swinging in there for a taco or two.