Etta's Seafood050

If you'd like to eat at one of Tom Douglas' restaurants and have kids in tow, bypass the posh Palace Kitchen or Dahlia Lounge and head to the Pike Place Market. Etta's Seafood, named after Douglas' daughter, is a casually sophisticated place that manages to make families with kids feel welcome in the nicest possible way. A summer foray into the busy restaurant for lunch yielded only a short wait for a table, although evening reservations are recommended. The room was packed with a combination of business lunchers and sneaker-shod tourists, and a few well-dressed, well-behaved kids, some seated in high chairs. Kids get crayons and a kids' menu to color, and can choose from a selection of simple foods like noodles with cheese, toasted cheese sandwiches, and fish 'n' chips. Drinks come in small glasses, but sippy cups aren't available. On weekends, Etta's serves an appealing brunch that would also work well for parties with children. Menu items like French toast with maple syrup, dried cherry scones, seasonal fruit fresh fruit, and Yukon Gold home fries are offered until 3pm on Saturdays and Sundays. Regular menu items tend towards simple sophistication (spice-rubbed King Salmon with cornbread pudding and shiitake relish), and clam chowder fans will love the smoky, creamy chowder studded with bits of tender fresh corn and drizzled with silky scallion oil. The restaurant, painted in tones of dusky purple, yellow, and red-orange, offers plenty of visual distractions. If you have wigglers, see if you can get a window table - kids can watch a steady stream of foot traffic go by. Look for kid-pleasing touches like a row of colorful blown-glass ducks against one wall and snakelike light fixtures fitted with colorful regular-sized bulbs. Expect the kind of quick, smart service appreciated by parents eating out with kids. Our server took the time on a busy afternoon to explain, without condescension, the green wasabi roe on our tuna sashimi salad to a curious seven-year-old. Later, when he asked a different server about refills for his Roy Rogers, she promptly brought one despite working in another section. On an evening visit, our server dealt with spilled milk with aplomb, brought the children's food out first, and engaged the kids in talk about their evening. "Everything here tastes good!" exclaimed the older child end of the meal. He begged to be brought back. And his wish will most likely be fulfilled, given the good food and pleasant, no-hassle experience we had here.