Shea's Lounge   

It's not quite 'Alice Through the Looking Glass,' but close. You go up a well-worn flight of stairs to a short narrow hall, make a right and arrive in front of a very ordinary door with a small sign that identifies it as your destination. Open that door and those pedestrian surroundings give way to an elegant, intimate space that caters to fewer than three-dozen diners. Red-toned terra cotta walls are on three sides, with the fourth featuring several large semi-circular windows that overlook Elliott Bay and the Olympic Mountains. Dark wooden beams and chandeliers are overhead, with candles providing illumination. In short, it's a setting that seems almost magical and certainly one of the city's primo spots for a romantic repast. Chez Shea offers seasonal four course prix fixe dinners, with occasional variations within each season. You'll start with a salad followed by soup and then a vegetable course. You'll have four to six choices of entree, which typically embrace seafood, beef, poultry and pork, and might include filet of beef tenderloin or confit of Muscovy duck leg. There's also a vegetarian option. Select from a generous wine list to complement your meal. Desserts such as banana-chocolate rum mousse are a la carte. -- J.T. Whiting (Photo: Steve Hensyel)