The Room
Ethan Stowell opened How to Cook a Wolf on Queen Anne Avenue in 2009 — the third restaurant in the Stowell group, named after MFK Fisher's 1942 culinary essay. The dining room is intentionally tiny: thirty seats, exposed brick, four-tops along the western wall, a counter facing the open kitchen.
The Seattle Times review held the room among Queen Anne's most-considered Italian dining rooms across multiple cycles. The format is intentionally non-cutting-edge — a small-room Italian operation that the neighbourhood books on a Tuesday.
The Food
The pasta programme is hand-rolled — the cacio e pepe, the seasonal ragù, the brown-butter ravioli. The wood-fired pizza programme runs four rotating pies. The seasonal vegetable plates and the antipasti opening handle the menu's wider draws.
Wine programme runs Italian-classic with an honest by-the-glass programme. Cocktail bench is aperitivi-led. Service is the Stowell-group standard.
Best Occasion Fit
First Date: The bar at How to Cook a Wolf is one of Queen Anne's most-reliable first-date seats. The pasta shares well, the wine programme is the conversation, and the room's intimacy reads as warm.
Birthday: Birthdays at How to Cook a Wolf are warm, pasta-led, neighbourhood-Italian affairs the room handles with sixteen years of practice.
Solo Dining: The bar at How to Cook a Wolf is one of the better Seattle solo-dining seats. The pasta fills the meal, the wine programme is the conversation.