Ethan Stowell and Renee Erickson to open Ballard restaurants

image courtesy of Kolstrand_Building via Flickr

We learned from one of his restaurant employees last week that Ethan Stowell, renowned Seattle restauranteur (whose most recent honor was recognition as a 2008 Food & Wine Best New Chef), is busy at work opening a restaurant in Ballard.  From DPD permit records, we have discovered that Stowell will be opening his new restaurant in the remodeled Kolstrand Building at 4743 Ballard Avenue NW.

In addition to Stowell lending his stature to the Kolstrand, Boat Street Cafe’s celebrate owner and chef Renee Erickson will add to the Kolstrand buzz by opening a restaurant there called Walrus and Carpenter Oyster Bar, a reference to Lewis Carroll’s The Walrus and The Carpenter, where a walrus and a carpenter ask oysters to join them for a walk on the beach with predictable results:

“O Oysters,” said the Carpenter,

“You’ve had a pleasant run!

Shall we be trotting home again?’

But answer came there none–

And this was scarcely odd, because

They’d eaten every one.

We contacted Kirsten Graham, Stowell’s public relations agent, for comment and she responded, “I have no comment.”  We have also reached out to Renee Erickson and will report back with our findings