THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Moxie

THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED Moxie Restaurant Review:

THIS ESTABLISHMENT IS CLOSED With its Lower Queen Anne location, Moxie has a mixed mission: serving the after-work crowd, pre- and post-theater diners, and those seeking a more upscale post-game venue than is commonly available around here. Fortunately, the restaurant handles its constituencies well, with a menu of creative Continental and offbeat “home” cooking. (Want examples? How about mac ‘n’ cheese that mixes mushrooms with three cheeses, lamb burgers and crab melts?) With its urban, understated décor, Moxie makes a good date venue or a place to linger with pals. Among starters, we find the Caesar salad, wrapped in an anchovy pancake, a creative take on a common starter. Rogue River blue cheese flan, meanwhile, has an outstanding bite. Among entrées, fish dishes and the pork are standouts. Pork comes rare, served tender in a flavorful sauce that is sweet but not overpowering and with a savory bread pudding and slightly bitter greens. Fried whole trout with rock shrimp and corn salsa, served with grilled flatbread, upscales the normally down-market fish taco into a much better dish. Clever cocktails and a diverse wine list pair well with the food, though we’d like more excitement on the beer list. The dessert menu---how do we ever make it here?---features a moist chocolate cake that will jolt the senses.