Third Floor Fish Cafe

I remember that this place was the place to go when I first moved here 10+ years ago. The food back then was divine and the creativity was there. The view is awesome!
The food now is medicore. This restaurant will be closing December 19^th.
I guess that it’s a good thing!

Nice view by the marina and looking across of the water is Downtown Seattle.
This is a higher class and romantic restaurant in Kirkland.
Service: Excellent
Environment: Romantic and Cozy (not small)
Food: Excellent
Dishes:
–Oyster Shooter $ 2 each — Fresh
–Fried Oyster $ 8 for only four — however it tasted really good, not oily and the Toban Djan Aioli is a killer.
–Yukon Gold Potato Purée as a side $ 3.5 — it is really smooth and tasty
–Oven Roasted Free Range Chicken $ 23 Balsamic Grilled Onions and Spring Vegetables — I usually do not order chicken at some fancier restaurant because I love seafood or steak. But this night, I am in the mood for chicken. What a nice surprise! When the dish arrived, the chicken had a golden skin, not greasy, tender to the bite and the dish stayed hot until my very last bite of my chicken, the sauce and veggie are the perfect combination. I will definitely order chicken again at this restaurant.
–Lamb Shank — it was really good too but the chicken is still better. I cannot believe that.
Kudos to Heather, my waitress. She is knowledgable, professional and friendly.
Note: If you are on a budget, try their happy hour and their $ 30 prepix dinner are all good.

Fish Café continues to be a dependable but average happy hour experience. Okay food, okay service, okay ambiance. But I have to take them down a star because they have raised their happy hour prices in the bar, beyond what the quality of the food justifies.

Nice location and excellent view, this is the kind of place that you will enjoy with your family or with colleagues/​customer when doing business.
Exceptionally located this café offers a very nice menu options and the place is very quiet and enjoyable. The specialty is sea food and the clam chowder is very good!
The portions are huge and the presentation of the dishes is very good. The wine selection is also very good and people will find it a little be pricey but is worth.
The unique downside that I saw was the service because it was not good. In my case we were a large group and the waitress missed a glass and went dark several time leaving us alone without a possibility to order o ask for something else. Maybe she was alone but it is something that called my attention because these are basic mistakes.
If you are in Kirkland this is an option to explore

I’m not a fancy eater… I like great, simple food and appreciate a great view. Got it here.
Bit pricier than I wanted that night… but the halibut was very tasty and we were relaxing with friends. Service was good, though a bit slow from the bar.
Would go back, more likely when parents are in town.

We’ve been there twice so far, and loved it both times! First time it was just the two of us. We went without a reservation so did not get the window seats but the view was still spectacular from where we were sitting. We shared an organic green salad, 2 different entrees (beef tenderloin and halibut) and desert. Everything was delicious! The service was ok but I guess because they were very busy that night.
The second time we brought 4 other friends with us and this time we got the window seat. Everyone order different entrees (3 different fish entrees and 1 ordered the chicken), everyone at the table loved the food and of course, the view! We all also ordered desert and although the desert menu wasn’t the most impressive (they have the classics like brownie, strawberry short cakes, sobert, ice cream, crème brûlée), but everything was still pretty tasty and freshly prepared.
We do think the servers could have more smiles but overall the service was fine. We’d been to Palisades on the west side and we totally think this place surpass Palisades on the quality of food, and it’s slightly less expensive! For the food, we’ll definitely go back again & again.

Happy Hour: $ 7 burgers, calamari, fish and chips (which look like fish sticks and are tiny). Beer: $ 5, wine $ 7.
The view was amazing, and I love the dark wood and low light. Service was okay, but not upscale anymore.
I’d come here with my family as a kid and recall this place being upscale, with excellent service and food; although I came here for HH., I wasn’t that impressed.
I’ll still come back because it’s quiet, low key, and has decent food.

Dave, really… that Ahi is a situation. We took a photo with a QUARTER just to get a perspective on how freakin small it REALLY is. SIZE MATTERS! This was just off the hook tiny! I must admit that I like their St Michelle as their HH chardonnay. And the view… beautiful. So…2 stars… is that too harsh? Hmmm…

What happened to this place? This used to be a really great restaurant to take someone to for a special occasion. I should have clued in that something changed when I was so easily able to get last minute Valentine’s reservations, not to mention that it was only a third full on one of the biggest restaurant days of the year.
The appetizer was the sesame coated ahi tuna. It was really excellent tasting, but to say that it was small would be a tremendous understatement. It was about three small bites of tuna and a pickled carrot salad. Good, but comically tiny and overpriced.
The main course was a huge disappointment. We both had the monkfish on mushroom risotto. Risotto is a pretty simple dish (add arborio rice to cooking stock, stir) so I’m not sure exactly what corner they had to cut to make it taste so awful. My best guess, with no exaggeration whatsoever, is that they microwaved leftover long grain (fluffy) rice or a bag of instant rice, and poured it on top of canned mushroom soup. The fish itself was very oily and overseasoned. Neither myself nor my date were able to eat the entire entrée, it was unappetizing and far too salty.
I can’t comment on dessert because at this point we decided not to risk it and high-​tailed it outta there. We went home where I cooked us another meal.
I can’t figure out what happened here, because the Fish Café used to be a local favorite for special occasions. I’ve eaten there many times before with a VERY different experience. As always, the view and location are fantastic, but I probably won’t be returning.

My rating is based only on happy hour… I have not been to the dining room since I was a kid, when it was a go-​to spot for a fancy special occasion dinner. It’s sad to think of the Fish Café losing its 5 star edge — we used to love this place. The décor does seem a little tired, and a bit dated. But like I said, I haven’t done dinner here in years.
What we DO love here, and I mean LOVE, is happy hour. Amazing deals on appetizers and some good deals on drinks. Beware, however — my date didn’t realize the «specialty drinks» were not priced at happy hour rates and ended up spending $ 30 on drinks alone! But the fish and chips made up for it. I don’t know what they put in that dipping sauce but there must be a little crack in there somewhere… it’s that good. We’ve been known to order seconds and thirds. I also love the ahi plate. The service is friendly and the atmosphere is really classy for a bar. The views are amazing. This is a favorite spot for sure!

I made it here for the 30 for $ 30, but like I usually do, I ordered off the regular menu.
The place is constructed of dark wood and it’s dimly lit, but has a tremendous view of the water. It reminded me a lot of Daniel’s on Leschi. We sat in the dining room, but I did peek in the bar.
I ordered the calamari and thought it ordinary. Ahi followed and it was done quite well, but the accompanying pea vines were really overcooked. Looking at, it was just a pile of mush. Not good at all. My friends were a little happier with their dishes and we all thought the pork was the best at the table.
Staff was friendly and attentive, but this place didn’t knock my socks off. When in Kirkland again, this wouldn’t be a place I’d be dying to go to.

Great service, view, and ambience. Food is consistent and the bar is great. They were very sweet, put a sparkler in my sister’s birthday cheesecake.

Our friends took us here for dinner last week. The view was quite nice because we were seated next to the window. The food was also pretty good and the price was decent. Overall, good meal, good ambiance.

I have been here twice. The first time was when I visited the area (before I moved here) about 5 years ago. It was a waaaay fancy 5-​star, damn near black tie dining experience. Food was so amazing it was scary.
Second time I went here was a year ago shortly after I moved here. It did not seem nearly as fancy as it was before. It was a little classy, but not that high-​end 5-​star black tie place that I remembered. It was still very nice, albeit a bit loud.

I have been here a few times, and I am not wowed by any means. I usually walk out a lot lighter in the wallet and still wanting more. They know how to cook fish, well duh. it’s the «fish café». However, for me to pay sixty bones for a meal and a glass of wine plus dessert to me is a bit redick. Unless it was somewhere five stars, which this place isn’t to me. Service has always been ok and I did have halibut once that was divine. A friend of mine had a 30^th bday party here a couple years ago and we got treated very well, good appetizers, etc. But seriously, I live really close to here, and I never think… I am CRAVING Fish Café. I’m just not that into it.

I found my way here thanks to their participation in Seattle’s 30-​for-​30 (
). I made reservations even though it was a Monday night, and I wasn’t anticipating much of a crowd. I’m really glad that I did though, because the place was relatively busy.
The food was amazing. The Potato/​Squash soup was flavorful and filling. For my main course, I ended up getting the Curry Risotto, which I’m normally hesitant to order because I’m deathly afraid of spicy foods. The waiter though, assured me that «it wasn’t at all spicy» and much to my delight, it was not «all risotto» either. The desserts — there was three of us so we got to try all three — were also good, but paled a little in comparison to the savory meal we just had.
The portions were perfect — not too much, not too little. I love to eat and I was definitely full by the end of the three-​course meal. We were there for almost 3 hours, just catching up, and the wait staff was great. They kept servicing our table and did not pressure us in any way to leave (which sometimes happens in other restaurants I’ve been to).
I didn’t realize there was valet (my friend who had met us there did), so we parked on the street. There’s ample street parking along Lake Washington Blvd., but if you’re in a rush, definitely look out for the valet signs!

This place weirdly hit both high marks and low marks and thus ended up in the middle.
High: the appetisers were well sized and tasty. The chef was able to create something tasty for me that was outside of the normal menu (I have allergies). Waiter knew ingredients of the food. The view was pretty.
Low: the waiter only had three tables and yet we had to practically wave a flag to get our bill. Water spilled all over the table. Not too helpful in menu choices. Food was overly salty. The risotto in my husband’s halibut plate was so sour as to be inedible.
Dessert: — charged $ 9 for a chocolate pudding… and when it came out, it was just pudding in a glass with whip cream and a cookie. For that price, I expect it to be plated in some fancy manner. We went to go get our coats from coat check. and there was no one there. We waited. and waited.and I finally wandered over towards the kitchen and found a waitstaff cleaning some dishes and he got us our coats. No idea where everyone else was as it was only 8:45pm

I’ve been here a number of times during the past decade, and most recently, last week for a business dinner. While I can’t speak to the meat dishes, the seafood dishes I have had were all well-​prepared. Our group started with the Dungeness crab rolls (bland), calamari (decent) and grilled prawns with polenta (superb). Had the seared Alaskan sea scallops caramelized onion farro, smoked bacon with a carrot reduction. The scallops were large, and slightly rubbery. But still very good and very flavorful with the bacon. The salmon was also quite good, and on this evening, a swordfish on top of Chinese noodles looked wonderful. The wine list had some nice picks by the bottle, including some nice French whites, but the wines by the glass list was pretty basic, although I did find a nice Albarino. And one the wines by the glass list seemed very fairly priced, with most choices for whites at $ 7 or less.
The view is one of the best on Lake Wasgington and is a big draw. They do have a parking lot across the street, but it seems to fill up early, so I had to park on the street the past two times. Service was slow, but I’m not sure if it was because of the group (6 people). All in all, the seafood is pretty solid, and more exciting than Anthony’s next door, but service could be improved.

Went here last weekend with some out-of-towner’s (can’t keep them away in the summer!)Sandy, the new hostess is a friend of my daughters, she is awesome!
We had a great meal and the view is very nice, the service is definitely spotty … they would say «sure we’ll get you some more bread and butter!» and then it never happened… they screwed up the wines by the glass (how hard is two whites and a red?) The food was very good though, I really liked the Salmon that I had, and everyone else liked their choices also… not over cooked and great sauces…
This is a decent alternative to Anthony’s next door…

Kirkland has grown up even though the traffic has become a mess. So many new restaurants and stores. My sister recommended this restaurant and I was hesistant to go after having read the 2 previous reviews. So after dinner, I’m glad to say that I totally and wholeheartedly disagree with Wes adn Jessica. The staff was spectacular. The whole place was packed full. We had calamari, clams, crab eggroll, and shrimp polenta for appetizer. Love it!
There were 6 of us. We had scallops, halibut, ahi, beef, chicken, and salmon. Everyone ate their plate clean! I had the free range chicken and the portion was huge! I loved it! I usually don’t eat the skin but how can I resist such cripsy delight! For dessert, we had mango rice pudding (OK i thought it sucked) but the panna cotta and crème brûlée was creamy and we licked the dish clean.
So, there you go… and honestly, the décor was old school but i’m not here for décor, i’m here for the food and the service. Another server recognize one of the guest on our table and she sent over crab roll appetizers for the whole table. That’s service above and beyond if you ask me!
So why not 5 stars? The water tasted like tap water.
Go, eat, enjoy! The view during sunset is spectacular!