MONDAY, APRIL 11TH, closed from 2:00-5:00 for last minute hood cleaning and maintenance. Apologies!

Need a place to stay while on Whidbey???

As you have it, our eldest's piano teacher has these great vacation rentals and we want you to know about them! Secluded, beautiful property.  Multiple units.  Quiet and peaceful.   3.5 miles from Langley.

I directly copied the info below from her website, www.pinecottageandchalet.com 

Contact Kathy Fox for details at 360 730 1376.

Perched above the Saratoga Passage, embraced by tall cedars, the property offers inspiring vistas of water and the Cascade Mountains - Pilchuck, Glacier Peak, Mount Baker and the Three Fingers are all visible on clear days. At night, the lights of Camano Island dot the horizon and meld with rising stars.

       There is a warm heart at the center of both the Cottage and Chalet, emanating from natural wood and soft corners, making them inviting getaways for all seasons. Quiet surroundings are interrupted occasionally by eagle cries. There are several nestings nearby which can be spotted from window or porch.

       Kitchens are stocked with breakfast provisions the night before so that your privacy is guaranteed and schedule choices are your own.

       Each accommodation has its own phone line.

The Chalet offers spacious accommodations where you can go by yourself, with your family, or another couple, and feel a comfortable privacy.  The Pine Cottage has the feel of a snug and well appointed ship's cabin.  Finished entirely in knotty pine, this one room cottage has an efficient galley.  Sleeping accommodations include a queen size bed and a fold out from the comfortable love seat that faces Saratoga Passage.

 

JAPAN RELIEF EFFORT: Text Redcross at 90999 to make a $10 donation while dining at Prima and we'll enter you into a drawing for a $100 Prima Gift Certificate!

Closing at 3:00 Sunday, March 20th for a fundraising dinner for the South Whidbey Children's Center. Apologies, but it's for the kids!

OYSTERS! by lucas clark

Rachel and I recently retuned from a few days in Vancouver BC. A short but sweet mini vacation as well as the opportunity to celebrate the successful conclusion to our first year of wedded-dom! Hard to believe, it is only one year since Sieb and Jenn shut down Prima and helped us throw the best party of our lives. During our trip, we shared many of the highlights from that day, including some of the hysterical toasts and speeches. Many of which I had forgotten. One of my favorite memories was the Herculean efforts of our self-appointed designated driver, Sam (the infamous wine rep from Noble Wines). Sam made sure that all those in need arrived back (safe and somewhat sound) to each nook, cranny and corner of the island (and China City). A personal note to Sam: if and when Rachel and I get married again, we promise you will get an actual invitation!  As long as you promise you don't wear that headband.

We stayed at an old (it was built in 1279 BC, or something like that) but beautiful hotel called the Victorian, on Homer Street in Gastown. However, we did opt for a suite rather than one of those classic European style accommodations with shared bathrooms. I am way shier than Rachel. We went with few plans except to visit a few museums and of course drink and eat (in that order). Somehow we never made it to the museums but were incredibly successful with the latter.

Leaving out the drinking, we did an excellent job of re-exercising our seafood taste buds, with a particular focus on oysters (it was a second honeymoon… of sorts). We ate them at nearly every place we went. The best, in our humble opinion, was a medium sized oyster from the Strait of Georgia, called a Gem, which we found at the Pourhouse Restaurant also in Gastown. I can only say that in every way we had a great time… thank you, thank you, you delectable and beneficial mollusk!  That's Rachel's dinner at Cork and Fin over there on the left.  She ate it all.






Speaking of oysters, we (Prima Bistro, you, me, all of us) are so lucky to have one of the greatest oyster resources on the west coast in our backyard… Penn Cove. Penn Cove oysters have won 7 of the last 8 Most Beautiful Oyster Competitions held each year at the Elliot Oyster House in Seattle – which, by the way, we beat in King 5’s Best Out Door Dining category, last year. I’ve had Penn Cove oysters at Bay 13 in Portland (Rachel’s former place of work), Zuni in San Francisco, Spago in Las Vegas and of course all over Seattle. They are the perfect ambassador for the flavors and beauty of Whidbey Island (except possibly the view of the mountains from Cascade Avenue on a blued sky afternoon). They pair exceptionally well with many of the fine white wines we have on our menu.  Pictured above are Penn Cove selects...served how we serve 'em...on rock salt, with a white wine mignonette and lemon.

In the 19th century Oysters (just like lobsters) were not the luxury item they are today; cheap and eaten primarily by the working class. Just another clue to my growing conviction, either I was born into the wrong class or, at a minumum, the wrong century! According to wiki, the first oyster beds to become word famous were located in waters around New York City and became popular in that city’s booming restaurant trade.
While oysters are traditionally featured in summer white wine events, I think they are delicious any time of year, even when there is a little snow on the ground. So, put on those mukluks (if necessary), come in for a little wine (maybe a Sam sighting), we’ll shuck you a dozen of Penn Cove’s finest, and the rest, well…