Chez Gaudy

The art work inside is really interesting and unique. The drink specials are great choice and the flaming goat is a great apetizer to start off the night. Recommend the place for a date or small groups.

Nooooo! It has been on my list to go back to, and now. *sob* they’re CLOSED???
I am utterly heartbroken.

I’m told they’re closed now.
That breaks my heart!
I loved this place. The service was friendly and the food was tasty.
bye, Chez Gaudy

Just a random Wednesday night, and realizing we missed their ½ price wine night (boo), we came into a cozy, slightly crammed Chez Gaudy. After reading all these Unilocal reviews for the place, my expectations were probably higher than necessary. Though the $ 17 chicken alfredo pasta was good to sample, it just seems like a lot to pay for pasta that doesn’t have seafood.
The gnochi with spinach and drizzled olive oil and nuts was pretty savory; just a word of advice, it doesn’t work well as a leftover, as the potato dumplings get rock hard after reheating. I’ve definitely had better gnochi at Michou Fresca at Pike Place Market. The goat cheese bruschetta was excellent; however, putting canadian bacon on that puppy really threw me off, I wasn’t expecting that. The texture and flavor of the bruschetta was excellent.
I came here just to cross it off my list since I live within a block of it. Would I come back? I dunno, maybe for happy hour. The bruschetta and gnochi were on a special $ 5.50 ea menu, which is some good cheap eats.

It’s been some time since my trip to Seattle… and doing this review has been on my mental «to-​do» list since forever. So hopefully I can do it justice by recalling as many details as possible.
Chez Gaudy… is it’s namesake… «gaudy» interior… but by saying that, the whole effect of this gaudiness is what makes this restaurant so charming and interesting. This restaurant actually «resides» in a residential neighbourhood.
Prior to arriving, I had called ahead to restaurant to make a reservation for a Sunday night. In doing so, I ended up having a nice little chat with the proprietor (i think) of this establishment. Had he not told me about the set up, I would’ve thought our cab took us to the wrong address. There are no bright neon signs to advertise the restaurant. Instead, you have to look for an obscure sign… open a gate and go down a side walkway to find a screen door. It’s almost like going to someone’s home. But once you open the door, the restaurant smells and sounds surrounds you… yes, you are in the right place…
Italian cuisine. Menu consisted of appetizers (some were made for sharing), pizzas, and pastas. I highly recommend the «chicken carbonara». It’s like none other. The pasta is almost crispy and has a nice smoky flavour to it. It’s a bit drier than usual but I think it’s better this way, as it is not as heavy.
We lucked out, because Sunday night was also ½ price bottles of wine night. So it was a great meal of 2 pastas and a wonderful dessert plus a bottle of red. About $ 40 per person. I wish I could remember what we had for dessert… nevertheless, I remember it had chocolate in it and it was DELICIOUS!
Service was warm and friendly. Server was attentive without being too intrusive. She gave us great recommendations.
Would definitely be back to next time we’re in Seattle.
TIP: I’ve been told that TUES night is the night to go. Usually packed so make reservations if you plan to check it out on Tuesdays.
*BIG THANK YOU TO «GABRIEL A.» for the fabulous recommendation!*

Based on food alone, I would have given this place 4 stars, but the service put them up to 5+ for me.
My sis-​in-​law and I were heading out to a 7pm show at the Paramount Theater on a Wednesday night. We wanted to stop somewhere for a quick bite and drink. I called Chez Gaudy at about 5:00pm to make reservations for 5:30pm (I know, super last minute). The person who answers the phone tells me they don’t even open until 6pm (oh no!)…BUT she would ask the cooks if they could get us in right at 6. Turns out, if we could get there at 5:45pm, they would seat us then! So sweet! I ended up getting there early (5:30pm), and they sat me right away and I had a glass of vino within 2 minutes.
The servers were very knowledgeable about the menu items (food and wines) and were enthusiastic about their recommendations.
The food itself was delicious. I ordered the sweet potato risotto cakes (warm, spicy, hearty) and the goat cheese and fig small plate (sweet and creamy, atop perfectly crunchy toasts). Bonus: all small plates were $ 5.50 that day!
All food items came out promptly and wonderfully seasoned. Even though they got us in and out quickly (as we had asked), we never felt rushed frantic. It was a perfectly paced meal.
Staff was attentive (always a full water glass) and thoughtful: our main server (after hearing from the hostess that we were catching a show) offered to call a cab for us. He timed it perfectly: the check came when we were both taking our last swigs of wine, cab pulled up as we were putting on our coats. Our server even walked us out to the cab to say good night!
I was so happy to have found such a sweet spot. I will definitely be back with my sweetheart for a romantic date night.

I knew that Tuesday was something but I didn’t remember what. What a fun surprise when I happened upon Tapas Tuesday! I went with a guy who I wasn’t so into, but all the exciting food being brought around by waitstaff really helped me avoid too much conversation. Bottles of wine were $ 9 each and you just grab whatever you want. There is a little card on the table that explains the pricing system. Each different colored plate represents a certain dollar amount ($ 2-​$ 5 I think). The waitstaff comes around the room with trays of little plates and you take one if it sounds good to you. I am a huge fan of the ravioli and lasagna. As a former New Yorker, I have to say they do good Italian. I ate until I was super stuffed and the bill was only $ 63 for 2 of us including a bottle of wine.
I recommend you make a reservation for Tuesday night. They do 2 seatings and I just happened to be lucky that we showed up at the right time and they had an opening.

I went here with a group for a Tuesday night happy hour. I love the speakeasy atmosphere and the cozy seating. The concept is simple: small plates and $ 8 bottles of wine. The food was great and plentiful! With the prices so cheap, we started off with 4 different bottles and treated it as a wine tasting. As for the food, I recommend the wasabi grilled cheese and the chocolate cake.
We ended up being the last group there, so I definitely encourage making reservations for the 8:30p time slot if your group likes to linger. Groups: they only accept a max of 4 credit cards per table, and won’t split the bill, so make sure you have cash.

I’m not really sure what the speakeasy culture is about, but I’ve chosen to embrace it, at least until it’s uncouth, at which time I will release my embrace of it and deny that I ever liked it. That’s how I roll. Chez Gaudy is a «speakeasy» in quotes, meaning there’s a big sign on the sidewalk pointing at the «hidden» entrance.
The entrance is totally uninviting, which I suppose it part of the speakeasy thing. And some of the tables/​chairs are a little ghetto.
But overall, the atmosphere is fun and chaotic-​in-​a-​good-​way. It’s a like a claustrophobic maze. Great service — the servers seem to be enjoying themselves. The music is a little quiet. The patrons are hippish and loud, which fits the atmosphere.
The food is definitely worth trying. The menu is a little short but there are a number of tasty items. You can tell they take pride in their food.
Apparently they have dim sum style tapas on Tuesdays where the servers walk around with plates and you just grab what you want, which sounds fun. And you get $ 9 bottles of wine, which could be a good thing or a bad thing depending on the quality of the wine.
Something happened in the kitchen and it got super smokey. My friend’s eyes were burning from all the smoke.

After getting the boot from Knee High (I didn’t text the password, or learn the handshake, or something), we searched out another speakeasy for a late dinner on a Saturday night.
My friends were like, where are you taking us? Who lives here?
Patience, people. Patience. You’ll see.
We were seated right away even though we hadn’t made reservations. They had rearranged the place since last time we’d visited – it’s more open now, which I liked. We ordered nearly everything on the menu. It was all flavorful, filling, comforting. The meat & cheese appetizer board was delicious. The lasagna is to die for! Best dish of the bunch by far. Our service was friendly, attentive, chatty, and well-​timed. We polished off a couple of bottles of wine and had a great evening.
I love the quirkiness of everything, that all of the furniture is for sale, that they change up their offerings and have a kind of a bizarre way of doing things.
By the way, can’t wait to spend a Wednesday here – 5.50 cocktails, 5.50 food from 6−11pm. Anyone want to give me a piggyback ride home?

We had a pretty great experience here. We were in the mood for pasta — hot, delicious, flavourful, comforting pasta, and one of us had been here before, and suggested it.
Perfect. When we arrived (about 8:30 on a Saturday night), we had to wait for a table, but the wait was only 10 minutes if that, and while we waited they led us to a comfy couch area and took our drink orders and let us peruse the menus. Very comfortable.
The décor is busy and very cool — lots to look at, without being too dimly lit (I hate that).
The wait staff were friendly, and they have a great list of original, cool cocktails (they’re modeled after a prohibition-​era speakeasy to some extent, so that was sort of a given). My two dates had beer, and I had two cocktails… a ‘Colony cocktail’ (Gin, grapefruit, Luxordo maraschino liqueur and a cherry) and a… I forget what the second one was. It wasn’t on the menu, and it had lots of lime. Both were pretty good.
The food was great. We shared a dish of the five-​spice pumpkin seeds that were SO yummy. And then, we’d ordered pasta, but they brought us each a nice, light side salad first, which was a nice touch. And then the entrees were great — I had the lasagna, which was rich, gooey, cheesy, garlicky, sausagey perfection. If you like light food, and don’t like things rich, this isn’t for you. Fortunately, it was perfect for me. My boyfriend had the pasta puttanesca (olives etc), and our friend had the pasta carbonara (bacon etc) and both were also great. I commented that you know the food is good when you could trade dishes with anyone at the table and still be happy.
The fifth star is left off because for the portion size and the food, the price seems a bit on the steep side — and because five stars is a rarity for me, and I want to go back once more and be sure. But we had a great time, and there WILL be a next time.

Some love, some hate. Or you can flatline yourself right down the middle like me when it comes to this place.
I got a little giddy when first trying to find this hole-​in-​the-​alley spot. The entrance is in a narrow little alley opens to what we thought was the back door but turned out to be a mini-​maze.
Ok, so heres the good part: food. Worth the wait… we definatly waited. It was damn good food and probably the most delicious wine I had.
Between the fresh salads, bubbling mac n’ cheese, faux meatballs and numerous glasses of wine I deemed it worthy of «good eats».
Downers:
the mini-​maze into the dining area
the mini tv screens placed around featuring very-​faux fish underwater. Did-​not-​get-​that.
the wait for the food was awhile unless you’ve order some wine prior.
I feel like Chez Gaudy was fine for that one-​time expierence. Lets just leave it as it was.

Have I really taken this long to update my review on this place? REALLY?
Well let me just tell you — I’ve had a shit ton of food here b/​c it’s so conveniently located a block away from where I live (dangerous), as I mentioned in my last review.
Every pasta dish I’ve had here has been superb — even the non-​pasta dish (The Vegan) was amazing as well. Desserts? Equally as wonderful — especially when it comes in the form of deliciously sinful chocolate something or other.
I have no complaints about this restaurant. At all. I think everyone should have a go here at least once.

WHORE!
(I promise the word relates to my review and I’m not just going through a case of Tourette’s)
Now that I got your attention — from Merriam-​Webster, the etymology for puttanesca is the following, «Italian, short for alla puttanesca, literally, in the style of a prostitute.» How can you resist getting a pasta dish that’s named after prostitutes? (I suppose if they were named after the ladies of the night on Aurora, then yes, you should probably resist it…)
Just like the origin of the word, puttanesca, your taste buds will get loads of action because it’s spicy, tangy, and… wait for it… SALTY. This is of course due to all the tomatoes, olives, peppers, and capers which add a lot of flavor to the red sauce. The pasta is wonderfully cooked — al dante and that’s the way I like it.
As an appetizer, we had the wasabi grilled cheese sandwiches and that comes with a mustard spread, pickles and fruit chutney (the chutney was so good that I didn’t want to give it up when the waitress cleared the table)! The wasabi grilled cheese is very good — it has a hint of wasabi so it’s not too strong and it tastes wonderful with chutney and mustard. For dessert, I ended the night with their trifle and guess what? The chutney came back! Very good trifle — the sponge cake was really moist!
The place is really cute, very cozy. The lighting is dimly lit, but with strings of decorative lights going across the restaurant. Music choices are wonderful too — it was Ben Gibbard and Imogen Heap night since they only played Death Cab, Postal Service, and Frou Frou. The only thing that was weird —was that their power kept going out and they had to restart the generator several times throughout our dinner, maybe the A/​C was working too hard for a hot Seattle night?
Like the description of the puttanesca on their menu, I will totally sell myself for another trip to Chez Gaudy.

I think I need to get out more.
Or maybe out more to the right places with the right people. Katie and I marched our sassy shoes over here after a wine tasting, or two, up on Cap Hill and needed to eat. Stat. I have heard so much about this place, and am so glad I went.
This place is a bit hidden, although they did have a sandwich board out front. We were given our choice of seating (which all seemed a bit close to other tables, but whatevs)… and looked at the menu.
The Mezza Board and Pizza du Jour were delish. The pizza was topped with marscapone, artichoke hearts, salami, parmesan, and probably some other gluttonous items and it was big enough for us to have a couple pieces each with leftovers to take home. The Mezza Board was yummy, although K-​Town found an uncooked noodle in our white bean spread. Other than that, it was all tasty.
Our service was good, food came out quick, and once again, another place I have now been and can check off my list.

Like a torrid love affair, I keep going back for more.
Carly and I split the Mezza Board and the Pizza du jour tonight and both were absolutely fabulous. The white bean spread was fabulous with just the right amount of rosemary and garlic. The tapenade was perfectly tasty and the hummus, slightly spicy.
The flatbread pizza was a generous portion and at $ 8.99, it’s one of the tastiest, most reasonable flatbread pizzas I’ve seen. Marscapone. Artichoke. Garlic… olive oil and cheese. It was divine.
Our bill worked out to about $ 15 per person and we had plenty to eat.
Chez Gaudy definitely redeemed itself tonight. I’ll stick to every other night but Tuesdays when I dine here… it seems to work out best for both of us this way.

Chez Gaudy
What a warm, inviting little restaurant!
From the dark alleyway nearby I was kindof skeptical as to what type of restaurant it would be. However, once inside, it felt as though we had traveled to a completely different place from the world outside.
We settled into a little table and bench area in the back, and ordered some cocktails. The pumpkin pie martini tasted just like g-ma’s pumpkin pie (with a little kick haha). The Sangria was pretty good as well. It would be better if they served it in pitchers.
We also tried some «Flaming Goat», goat cheese set aflame at your table with big chunks of bread to enjoy it with. It was some of the best flaming cheese I have had thus far, and the portion size was perfect for two people to share.
Atmosphere: Cozy, Warm, Intimate
Food: Excellent
Drinks: Excellent
Waitstaff: Friendly and Attentive
Overall: I would love to go back to on a date or with a small group of friends!

I am another year older. While I’m not sure how I feel about that, I do know that Chez Gaudy helped ease me into my 24^th year. Instead of thinking about my quickly aging self, my brain and stomach went to a happy place once I walked through Chez Gaudy’s door. And a happy place is where you should be on your birthday.
It’s easy to miss Chez Gaudy from the street. Don’t be fooled though, this tucked away, hole in the wall eatery fills up fast. Knowing this, my boyfriend and I made reservations a few days prior to secure our place on Friday night. Once we arrived, we were escorted to our table in a small side room. While there were a few other tables in this room, our table felt private and quiet. The ambiance is charming. The service here was top notch, as well. We were immediately greeted by our server and her attention to us did not wane throughout our meal. And the food! The food was delicious. I tried the carbonara with smoked salmon and chard, while Bryan had the ravioli, which was amazingly and deliciously cheesey. And the starter salad deserves a shout out, too. Tasty!
Really, I couldn’t have asked for more from a birthday dinner.

Yum, yum, and yum.
My boyfriend took me to Chez Gaudy on one of our earlier dates and it was delicious. I don’t recall what he ordered, but I had ravioli of some sort. About a year went by, and after some friends from work met up here and told me it was still delicious, I had to go back.
It’s still yummy. This time, I enjoyed some sort of pasta puttanesca. My dining companions enjoyed their food as well, although what they ordered escapes me now. My vanilla lemon drop was also quite lovely.
I really enjoy the ambience of the place, as well. It’s small and cozy, dark enough to be intimate, but I hear they also serve large groups (the friends from work were in a group of at least ten people). It’s fancy enough, but not to the extent that you feel like you should dress up to eat here.
I can’t speak for the pricing, because I have yet to actually pay for a meal here. I’m still undecided on how I feel about the whole place being 21+.

OMG… I have found my new heaven.
A group of 5 of us went here tonight for a friend’s birthday… I called the night before to make a reservation for 5, and they were already pretty full, so call 2 days early if you have a group going. ;)
I LOVE this place… There is nothing better than an amazing wine selection, ESPECIALLY with ½ price bottle of wine night on a Sunday night and the AMAZING food they have there!!! We relaxed on the back cozy velvet couches and enjoyed our evening at this great hidden treasure of Seattle…
We had:
* 2 bottles of wine (one was a Chateu de la Chace Broilly I believe, don’t know the name of the other — both ½ price for Sunday!)
* Caprese Bruschetta — fresh mozzarella, olive oil, pesto and tomatoes on lovely hardy bread
* Greta & Anzlo woodblock — gouda, brie, herbed cheese, salumi, pears infused with apple brandy and rosemary
* Flaming Goat — tangy goat cheese flamed tableside with brandy and squeezed lemon. I have to mention that the bread they served with this dish was our favorite — a rustic potato and rosemary bread… we asked for another side of it since it was so delicious!
* Ignazio’s Affair woodblock — manchego, salut, stilton cheeses, apple slices, toasted almonds and honey, flatbread
All of this cost 5 of us $ 96. The bottles of wine were at least $ 40 normally, but only around $ 20 on a Sunday
And OMG, talk about an orgasm of food — I was dyeing over the honey and toasted almonds, the cheeses were all amazing, fresh greens, the bruschetta had the freshest and most succulent mozzarella and pesto… ugh… I felt like re-​enacting the Meg Ryan café scene from «When Harry Met Sally»
And the owner, Greg, who has a page in the menu called «Greg’s 7 wine wonders of the world» was SOOO fabulous, along with his waiters, they made us feel extremely at home and comfortable, and we had the best time ever!!!
5 SOARING STARS through the roof!
Can’t wait to go back! If you love cheese and wine and good bread, this is the place for you! Reservations recommended :)