Happy New Year! It’s almost here. I’d bet that each of us is excited to celebrate the end of 2020. Yes, lots of unpleasant stuff, but also — if we’re honest — some great innovations are part of the memories too.

While we can’t gather shoulder to shoulder at our favorite establishment to raise a glass of bubbly and bid farewell to the last 12 months, we can utilize the technology that has come to the rescue: virtual gatherings. We’ve been “seeing” our co-workers, grandkids, even health care providers, on screens big and small. Let’s collectively celebrate — say goodbye to 2020 and possibly recall some blessings and good memories, in spite of it all.

Kelnero invites folks to celebrate virtually, with bubbles, friends and your favorite memories of 2020. Share what you will not miss about this most interesting of years and what you look forward to in 2021.

Buy your ticket online at toasttab.com/kelnero. (Search on the Cocktail Crates menu for “Hippity Happity New Year Partay!!!!” because,  well, they let owner Kris Kelnero name the event). Ticket includes an invite to a virtual party NYE starting at 9 p.m., a personal size bottle of champagne, and some party favors. Add on a bottle of bubbles or two, or some special cocktails at discounted prices. And if you need snacks, their kitchen will be open for takeout until 9 p.m.

Celebrate with feasts from our local restaurants. Here are the hours posted by our local establishments and special meals/menus offered for your New Year’s Eve dining pleasure

The Loft in Edmonds: Open both New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day from 3-11 p.m.

Bar Dojo says you have time to order your New Year’s Eve holiday dinner! They offer Seafood Boil, or their Prime Rib Holiday Feast. New Year’s Eve specials must be ordered by Dec. 29. Pick up will be Dec. 31. To order, call 425-967-7267

Chanterelle’s New Year’s Eve specials are now available for pre-order. Pick up time will be on Dec. 31 between 3-6 p.m.
Option #1: Prime rib topped with a Gremolata sauce — served with mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables
Option #2: Mexican sea bass with a citrus Beurre Blanc sauce — served with roasted red potatoes and steamed vegetables( pics here)
Add a bottle of champagne or take home a mimosa package with your order

Chef Dane invites you to celebrate the conclusion of 2020 in style! Here’s the New Year’s Eve dinner menu:

Winter Salad pomegranate seed, pears, pine nuts, champagne vinaigrette
Roasted Prime Rib peppercorn demi or blue cheese horseradish sauce, 10oz
Parmesan Risotto Cakes
Grilled Asparagus roasted peppers, blistered cherry tomatoes
Molasses Oat Bread
Salted Caramel Chocolate Tart or White Chocolate Cheesecake w/passion fruit coulis
$50 per person

Additions:

Appetizer Sampler for two – stuffed mushroom, brie and fig pastry, bacon-wrapped prawn, French onion apple tartlet $20
Or choose a 6 oz Atlantic Lobster Tail citrus hollandaise $24 each
Details: Dinner is available hot and ready to eat New Year’s Eve between 5-8 p.m.
Pick up at the Lynnwood kitchen or available for local delivery ($10 delivery charge)

Epulo Bistro hasHoliday Meal Bundle Kits- available for pickup on Dec. 31 beginning at noon. Ring in the New Year with a delicious appetizer and entree. Or dine onsite — their heated and tented patio is available for seating.( Reservations are recommended.)

My favorite pie at Epulo is the Arugula Pizza — house-made pizza dough, baked fresh and topped with a truffle oil base, thin sliced prosciutto, and fresh arugula, topped with shaved parmesan cheese.

Pizza makes one thirsty? Try a Negroni — here is Epulo bartender Niles Peacock showing how it’s done fb.watch/2Dl5XDPvwZ/

Niles shares more wonderful drinks to be enjoyed on site or at home. The Italian Snowball is made with Rum-Chata, Amaro, St. Elizabeth All Spice Dram, molasses, and a gingersnap rim. All the ingredients are sure to fulfill your holiday desires.

If you’re in the mood for something tasty and non-alcoholic, try a delicious Huckleberry Lime Shrub made with Ginger Beer!

Fire and the Feast will be open 4-8:30 p.m. on New Year’s Eve and closed on New Year’s Day.

Salt and Iron’s Holiday Boozaar will be open noon-7 p.m. on New Year’s Eve and they’re closed New Years Day. 

Scott’s Bar and Grill invites you to celebrate the end of 2020 with a special serve-at-home dinner of salmon, fillet of beef or prawns. Learn more here.

 

Taki Tiki is open on New Year’s Eve from 4-10 p.m. with an “East Coast Toast” at 9 p.m. for all patio tables. Mahalo to these guys for offering an option that gets one back home before midnight.

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For those disappointed at the cancellation of the New Year’s Day Polar Plunge, here is some solace…

The Edmonds Uplift Society Polar Bear Plunge is pleased to announce the society’s new tradition, in partnership with Daphnes and the Edmonds Historical Museum. The society is raffling off two Edmonds Uplift Society Polar Bear Plunge robes and two framed prints of the original Edmonds Uplift Society photograph that proudly hangs in Daphnes.

All proceeds will go directly to the Edmonds Historical Museum.

Both robes are embroidered with 2022 for the next plunge and one is embroidered with the original 1932 Edmonds Uplift Society logo and the other has the 2007 re-established logo. The robes and the membership books for the Edmonds Uplift Society were officially retired in 2017 but the society is making two robes and the prints available to support the museum.

Tickets may be purchased at Daphnes for $25 each during opening hours. Multiple entries are allowed and you need not be present to win. The drawing will be held at Daphnes on New Year’s Eve.

The two winners will be welcomed into the Edmonds Uplift Society and lead us down the hill for the plunge in 2022.

It’s an opportunity to support a local lounge and the museum!

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We’ve had to say farewell to many things we cherished in 2020 — hugs, handshakes and some of our favorite places that shuttered their doors for good. Most recently, we learned of a great coffee spot, Coffee 407 in downtown Edmonds, which announced it is closing.

And yet, restaurants have opened up too —  several documented in this column over the past year . I commend these brave folks and encourage our readers to continue to support our local eateries.

Goodbye to 2020… and hello 2021…Here’s to a New and BETTER year.

— By Kathy Passage

A specialty gourmet food broker for over 30 years, Kathy Passage has in-depth knowledge on food and the special qualities of ingredients used in the exquisite products she helped bring to market. Kathy brings this unique perspective from the “other side of the plate” to writing about the food and restaurant scene in Edmonds, Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace.