Farm Café is a cute, mostly vegetarian restaurant in a charming Victorian-style house that’s full of quirks: the host sits right in the middle of the front dining room at an old desk, and once you’ve signed in, you walk through the kitchen to find a cozy L-shaped bar in the back. The décor is subtle, warm, and full of modern-yet-rustic elements like amber-tinted chandeliers that remind us a bit of jellyfish. It’s a great place for dates, between the conversation starters and flattering lighting.

In warmer weather, a colorfully lit patio is a spectacular place to sip on too-sweet blood orange margaritas (we’ve given up on finding a good margarita in the Northwest), or better, sparkling cocktails like “The Goldenrod,” whose little bubbles send up whiffs of Saint-Germain elderflower liqueur and orange peel. The wine list is full of some of the region’s best, and the draft selection comes in as wide a range as hoppy locals can get.

Happy hour is briefer than twilight, from 5pm–6:30pm, but if you can squeeze in, chicken wings with Farmstead blue cheese sauce are a good snack, spicy, with a vinegary bite that is softened slightly by the creamy cheese. A $2 seasonally changing cup of soup has to be one of the best deals in town. We’ve been thoroughly satisfied by a velvety delicata squash. Avoid hand-cut fries that can taste dry and chewy, as though they were fried ahead of time for the happy hour rush.

On the regular menu, an herb-crusted tofu with “mushroom Marsala” is heralded for its vegetarian heartiness, but succumbs to that unfortunate haphazard-pan-world veggieness. Although the breaded tofu is texturally right on, we find the overly thymey potatoes annoying and the sauce bland. Fish is also prominently featured on this short menu, and rightfully so. Pan-fried Idaho trout has come expertly cooked, whole, so that the bones help the flesh retain every drop of moisture. A simple dusting of coarse sea salt and an accoutrement of roasted winter vegetables (parsnips, carrots, and Brussels sprouts) was ideal.

Don’t skip a fabulous “Sunken Chocolate Soufflé,” a dense, dark chocolate cake with a molten center that, when broken and mixed, makes more of a pudding than a soufflé (which totally works in its favor). A topping of homemade coffee ice cream gives it an amazing finish.

Le Pigeon this may not be, but it’s a terrific second choice when the first one’s too busy.