Well, it looks like many months worth of behind-the-scenes effort is starting to take the physical form of a new Linkery restaurant on the corner of 30th and North Park Way. We anticipate that on Sunday 18 May, the Linkery will celebrate its last day at 30th and Upas, and re-open later that week at its new location: 3794 30th Street.

Most people reading this probably know at least a little about our move, but I also know that many of you also have at least some questions about it. So I’m slapping together this quick FAQ in the hopes that it is helpful.

Why is the Linkery moving?

So we can do a better job of serving our community. There has been such a large demand for what we’re doing — for which we are extremely grateful if a touch pleasantly surprised — that the space we’re operating out of is overloaded. Waits for a table can get long, the dining room is cramped and loud, and the working conditions aren’t very good either due to how crowded it is. And we’re preparing so much food it pushes the limits of our refrigeration, prep areas, and cooking/ventilation systems. All of these factors start to limit how well we can do our jobs, and in turn how well we can serve you. Oh, also, in order to keep pursuing the things that move us — handcrafting food and beverages outside the industrial process — we need the financial weight provided by a midsize restaurant.

Does this mean that prices will rise?

No, in fact, we anticipate the opposite. Without the financial pressures of very limited seating, we are really looking forward to introducing more lower-cost items to the menu and serving more of our community. In particularly we want to be more approachable to casual diners who just want a quick bite and a drink, while excelling at multi-course dinners as well. Of course, the price of food is very volatile right now so anything could happen, industry-wide.

Will you be better able to accommodate kids and families?

Yes, that’s a big goal for us in the new space. We have a family bathroom, a seating area which is designed to be family-friendly, and we will have an actual printed kids’ menu with dishes that are not too challenging for young palates but also embrace the Linkery spirit.

Will you take reservations now?

No, that still seems like one more thing for us to possibly mess up, which means it’s expensive to do it right, which means we would have to raise prices, which we don’t want to do (see above). We’ll keep it chalkboard style.

How ’bout private parties?

Yes! We have a private room which seats about 35. We haven’t figured out the finances yet but basically you’ll be able to rent that room for private events. Also, if you’ve got an organization that would like to meet there in “dead time” for us, let us know (after June, though). We’re open to using the space to serve our neighbors however we can.

Will the menu stay the same?

Almost entirely. We intend to add a few more lower-priced items and “bar snack” type items, to better serve folks who want a casual dining experience (see above). While still keeping our Market Menu which seems to be more appealing to people who are having a coursed meal. So basically it will be the same.

Will your hours change?

We’re thinking we’ll move the kitchen hours back by 30 minutes, so that first orders are at 5:30pm and last orders are at 11:30pm. The business hours will stay more or less the same, open from roughly 5pm to midnite.

Will you serve lunch?

Yes, eventually. That’s the plan, anyway. We’re opening a small sandwich counter that will serve simple sandwiches from house made ingredients during the day. Also, by autumn, we expect to open our full kitchen beginning in the early afternoon on Saturday and Sunday.

Will you serve breakfast at the new location?

If you look up and see a sounder of pigs flying over the new Linkery, that probably means we’ve started serving breakfast.

Will you have bike racks / dog parking?

Yes, though it may take a month or two.

Outdoor seating?

No, but those glass doors roll up so it feels like it’s outside. Which is neat.

Will you have more taps/cask/wine selections?

Yes! Though it may take a couple months to get everything up and running. When we are done, we will have
* 4 or 5 draft beers
* 5 cask beers
* 1 cask wine
* 4 specialty bottled beers on draft (through a modified cruvinet)
* 12 red wines on draft (with half glass and full glass pours)
* 4 or 5 white/pink wines by the glass

What other cool things will you have?

Well, we built room for a brewery which we hope to have licensed and running before the end of the year.

What else should I know?

1) It seems like we’re just moving, but really we’re building a new restaurant from scratch and then learning to drive it. We appreciate your patience as we get better with the new stuff, and we promise we will take care of you when we make mistakes and learn. Please help us by bringing things to our attention if they aren’t right.

2) We will probably not really be done with everything when we open. Physically the restaurant will be a work in progress for months — that’s how it was at the current place, too, and it works out well for everyone because we build it out organically according to what takes shape in the space with the whole community. Of course, we — the restaurant and the people — are works in progress as well, so it’s only natural that the facility would be, too.

Isn’t this change in scale going to change the essence of the Linkery and what we like about it?

Well, I suppose that’s possible. Many things will certainly be different. But the Linkery is really just a bunch of people — the people who work here and the people who come here — and those people will be the same. So I think the essence and spirit of the Linkery will be the same, even if manifested a little differently.

What’s happening to the current location?

I’m glad you asked! This event actually marks the birth of a new neighborhood restaurant, which is really exciting. We are committed to the location on 30th and Upas and to serving that immediate area with farm-to-table food, so we will continue to own and operate a restaurant at that space. But knowing that our hands would be full with our expansion, we’ve asked our friends Dennis and Elena to manage this new restaurant.

So, 30th and Upas will be home to Sea Rocket Bistro, a farm-and-sea-to-table restaurant throwing down beaucoup local seafood and produce and other good stuff. Dennis and Elena bring their own personality to the place, which means while the restaurant is in the Linkery family, it is also its own thing which I think is the best way for our ideas to grow. This restaurant will opening after the Linkery leaves the space, after the space is closed a brief time for redecorating and moving equipment, etc.

OK, thanks for making all this possible, we are very grateful to be a part of it. Next week we’ll be celebrating our last few days at the current location and 3+ years of great memories.