Chef-owner Dustin Ronspies cares so much about food that we almost worry about him—we can imagine him as the earnest hero of a graphic novel, affably living to serve while slowly being destroyed by the very thing that sustains him. Art of the Table is certainly a labor of love—despite a full schedule of set-menu suppers, the staff has topped out at four.

Each week’s menu is based on trips to farmer’s markets, which yield ingredients (peach, arugula) that are veritable snapshots of Washington State seasons. But Ronspies also goes outside of the Modern (Foraged) American mold, with, say, plump handmade ravioli.

On Thursday through Saturday nights, there’s only one seating at 7pm—it’s like a trip to Herbfarm—minus the long drive, pomp, and circumstance. (“Happy Mondays” bring à-la-carte small plates.) The wine list undershoots expectations, but there’s an incredible list of international ales and lagers. The restaurant is tiny—20 seats at most, many at a communal table—and has a sweet, sunny, yellow-walled DIY vibe that is the Fremont-Wallingford hallmark. In the small kitchen, the bandana-clad chef might pause for photo ops and small talk as diners peer in over the pass-through. Each dinner is a low-key affair in which everyone is treated like family, and that’s a central reason why we love it.