Suzi B.
Yelp
It's Juneuary in the Seattle area, and that means we get very excited for any moments of sunshine and warmth and we're especially delighted when there are outdoor, lakefront places to enjoy the rare sunny days. As the pandemic slows down, we're also eager for outdoor spots with wide open spaces where we can get together and have drinks and food with friends again. Dock and Drink delivers on views, outdoor seating (250 seats according to information provided when we called to ask about crowds), sun/shade options, and (if you are an Eastsider like me) a convenient location.
The summer time version of Dock and Drink offers tapas, tacos, sliders, fries, grilled cheese, and a variety of drinks. Unfortunately, all of the food items are expensive, small portions, and not super tasty. It's not fun to pay $90+ for street tacos, corn salad, grilled cheese, wings, and two (cans) roses when the portions are so darned small and the food is bland. I am aware of the adage that in places like this you are paying for the view, but come on, how hard is it to offer good flavor and decent portion sizes? Imagine what D&D could be if that was the case.
In addition to the so-so fare, the experience of getting your food and beverages is clunky at best. You can either go and get your own, but you have to order food at one station and drinks at another. Are they seperate businesses? Is this intended for crowd control? And the other option is to use your phone to scan a QR code and order from the menu online. In our experience, the latter only works 50% of the time with at least one order getting stuck when we couldn't hit submit and there was no clear path to solve whatever was wrong.
They do not take reservations, so it is first come first served for seating.
There are adorable blue Adirondack chairs right by the water and lots of table seating, low and tall and shaded and open.
The staff seemed friendly and efficient.
Development around the Hyatt is pretty packed now that all the buildings are built, but the area is chock full of beautiful plantings and great views. I have a feeling folks living in the apartments there enjoy being there. It would be awesome if Peyrassol, a fantastic little family run restaurant on the street nearby, had an outdoor dining option instead. Their food and beverages are amazing and well worth your time and money.
Bottom line, we will likely return to D&D for the lake side seating and a beverage but probably not for the food. This is more of a drinks and snack place than a nice dinner experience.