Delicate lovely Italian restaurant Spinasse was a request on my part because I wanted to feel the Tajarin Love. Even before we had ordered (though I had been reading and rereading the menu and photos on yelp and Foodspotting for a few days, so I was quite ready) we were greeted with an amuse bouche of a salmon mousse on bread cracker. Our waitress was very patient and generous with big smiles and checking in while leaving us alone as we lingered throughout our meal, eating slowly and savoring the flavors… and also because we were full even before we walked in. But we were determined to enjoy anyway!

We started our overindulgance (ok, this was my fault again) with Antipasto misto della casa, which is “A taste of all our house antipasti”. That’s right, instead of picking I just picked them all, muahaha. For this visit, that included

• Pio Tosini prosciutto di Parma Prosciutto di Parma aged 14 months with marinated apricots.
• Bruschetta di salmone Cured salmon bruschetta with Spinasse’s own ricotta and roasted beet.
• Insalata di cicoria di campo, a local chicory salad with marinated rabbit, parmigiano-reggiano and balsamico.
• Insalata rusa, a Summer Russian salad with carrots, cherry tomatoes, spring onion, salsa tonnata and anchovy.

These were delicious, I loved the textures and slight bitterness with the chicory salad that was balanced with the rabbit contrasted with the parmigiano-reggiano saltiness and acidic yet sweet aged balsamico; the prosciutto was a generous portion that I layered atop the soft bread; the bruschetta had the bright roasted beets where I made sure not to lose a single little cube; and my favorite of the four was the Insalata ruso with the flavors of the carrots and cherry tomatoes with the creaminess of the salsa tonnata.

Ah, and then the promised and well reviewed Tajarin al ragù o burro e salvia, a fine hand cut egg pasta with ragù or butter and sage. I went with butter and sage because I wanted to taste the handmade pasta in all its subtle detail. It was ridiculously amazing, I think I could have eaten that pasta dough raw with the butter and sage out of the way because that pasta was just so fresh and good. The strands of the pasta were just so impossibly thin, like the gold thread you would expect Rumpelstiltskin to spin. Each forkful is luscious and melt in your mouth- though that could have also been the ridiculous amount of butter. Well, that’s why I agreed to try out a Flywheel spin class the next morning at 6am- so no worries about what I’m eating here. If the reward after every spin class was this dish, I would buy a membership today. I tried not to scare other diners by letting them see my eyes roll back as I enjoyed these exquisite silky strands sprinkled with Parmesan .

We finished with the Anatra con prunge, a dish of braised duck leg with plums, tremiti olives and basil. So complex in flavors, with each of the components really great on their own, and a symphony all together. But boy was I uncomfortably full, and also mad at the Unicorn and my lack of forethought earlier when ordering at Skillet Diner. I had read that Spinasse had been called the best Italian in Seattle, which I wondered if that was hype… but it really isn’t.

Seriously, just looking at the tajarin again and this video which highlights how they create the pasta and the dish, I want to go eat it right now, and I just ate it for dinner the other night… Except this time I would save up so I could order more rather than having 2 other meals that were not Spinasse that day. I have a crush on Spinasse and want to stalk it- how fortunate for it that it is located in Seattle and not where I live.

Pasta: Unique Eats from Lissa Gruman on Vimeo.