On Dining: Two old friends with a new vision

What do you get when you blend the talents and cuisines of two longtime restaurateurs? Find out this fall when Jim Malevitsis, formerly of Axis and Adriatica, teams up with Raffaele Calise, who owned favorite Italian spots such as the original Salute! and La Dolce Vita. The longtime friends will open Dera Cucina Mediteranea, an Italian-Mediterranean restaurant, in the former Barocho location at 2801 Western Ave. in Belltown.

"We want to do some dishes that are not the usual Italian or Mediterranean fare," said Malevitsis. They hope to transplant the ingredients and dishes on which they were raised, still common fare in Europe but not often seen in restaurants here.

"(Calise) is southern Italian, from the island of Ischia, which originally was colonized by the Greeks," Malevitsis said. "That's what we have in common."

When they're finished renovating the Barocho space, they expect it to seat 82 people for dinner. The bar will accommodate another 30. They plan to serve lunch and dinner.

"It's right across from the new Seattle Art Museum sculpture park," Malevitsis said. "We're so excited about that."

If all goes well, they'll open the doors in September.

World-class recovery

A big welcome back to World Class Chili, where proprietor Joe Canavan reopened the doors last week after a three-month break. The little place (93 Pike St.) has been a Pike Place Market institution for 20 years. Canavan, sidelined by complications after hip surgery, said he used his lengthy recovery time to study calculus, a topic he had always hoped to master.

"I've got a few more lectures to finish up," he said.

And now, he has a lot of Texas-style, Cincinnati-style and California-style red to cook up. He'll be open 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Saturday.

First-class bisque

Speaking of Pike Place soups, the seafood bisque at Pike Place Chowder (1530 Post Alley) recently won top honors at the Great Chowder Cook-Off in Newport, R.I. Our local chowder heads (and we say that fondly) won first prize in the seafood (non-clam) division against a host of East Coast contenders.

The win is no fluke. Pike Place Chowder's West Seattle sibling, the Charlestown Street Cafe, won the clam chowder division three years running (2000-2002) and was retired to the Cook-Off's Hall of Fame in 2003.

Coming, but not soon

The Daily Grill chain is planning a branch in Seattle, expecting to serve its big-portioned brand of American classics at the Sheraton Seattle (1400 Sixth Ave.) when the hotel's expansion is completed next spring.

The 7,000-square-foot restaurant will have more than 200 seats and will provide room service for the 1,253-room hotel. The company, which started in Beverly Hills in 1984, has more than a dozen restaurants in California and more than 20 overall, including one in Portland.

Ice cream stars

One name you probably know, one name we bet you're going to know better in years to come. Emily Luchetti, former pastry chef for Stars restaurant and a James Beard award winner, will team up for an "ice cream social" at 7:30 p.m. July 31 with Dana Bickford, talented pastry chef at Eva Restaurant & Wine Bar (2227 N. 56th St.). Bickford, an alumna of Lampreia and England's Fat Duck, will be preparing recipes from Luchetti's book, "A Passion for Ice Cream," in this Cooks and Books event. Luchetti, currently pastry chef at San Francisco's Farallon restaurant, will sign books and talk food. Cost is $36, not including tax and tip. Reservations required; call 206-633-3538.

Missing Miami?

Through July 23, Oceanaire (1700 Seventh Ave.) will feature the specials of guest chef Sean Bernal, former chef at Tambo and Pescado in South Florida. He made his mark with what he calls "Latinean" cuisine, blending Caribbean and Latin American flavors.

Bernal will head the upcoming Miami branch of Oceanaire.

Clarification

When we wrote about the Pike Place Market News' quest for great corned beef sandwiches last week, we neglected to mention the tasters were specifically critiquing the mighty Reuben. (One sandwich they tested, at Sestos, uses pastrami.) A quick recap of results: Three Girls Bakery was the overall winner; Sestos received the "Best Dill Pickle" award, and 94 Stewart had the classiest room. Read the full account of the Reubenquest at www.pikeplacemarket news.com.

Got news? Send it my way at rebekahdenn@seattlepi.com or 206-448-8190.

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