Waterfront is beautifully situated on Pier 70, capitalizing on the belief that being eye-level with the Puget Sound will make any seafood dish taste better. But we’ve had mixed experiences here. At times, Waterfront is among the best seafood restaurants in the city, featuring over-the-top feasts like the “Seafood Bacchanalia,” a tower for two of wild salmon, lobster tail, sea scallops, wild prawns, and red king crab legs. At other times, even that notable offering is boring: pasty shellfish, watery and flavorless flesh.

With Waterfront’s kitchen being so inconsistent, it’s hard to justify the heavyweight hit to the pocketbook (a “Thai-style” seafood stew’s price tag is just laughable, and lobster tails or crab legs will put you way back). But keep things simple—the more ingredients in a dish, the shakier the results.

The place is huge and properly fancy for those who like to throw money around, but it feels a bit corporate and rather cold, as if a hotelier or someone with an ice heart designed it—all those white tablecloths and lavishly upholstered booths are less impressive when they hover above the sort of industrial carpeting you’d find in a movie theater. The wine list has plenty of lovely white bottles that will pair magnificently with seafood. Do yourself a favor and save this spot for warm weather when you can sit on the patio and enjoy the water view without the dining room to spoil it.