In my continuous effort to try all the restaurants in my neighborhood [#, #], I recently went to Moxie on First. Located across from Racha on lower Queen Anne (some would say Uptown, I say whatevs), the awning outside displays their logo–Food with nerve. Obviously a play on one definition of Moxie (courage, nerve), it made me wonder. Can food have nerve? Seems a stretch, a bit anthropomorphic, if you will. I would, however, associate the food at Moxie with the third definition of the word–skill, know-how–cause these guys most definitely know what they’re doing.

When eating at a restaurant for the first time, I grade on a standard scale: atmosphere, service, menu creativity, presentation, and general yumminess with food and drink. Moxie wowed me in all five.

The restaurant is split into two sides, boasting what seemed to me as two different atmospheres for two different patrons. The left side contains casual two-tops and a bar, allowing small plates and drinks for those not interested in a formal, sit-down dinner. The right/back side of Moxie offers classy comfort with warm colors, dim lighting and candlelight, and pillows lined against the wooden bench along the wall. It was the most excellent destination for an intimate conversation over food.

The short but detailed menu was rather difficult to decide on because everything sounded appealing. I spent an indecisive 10 minutes trying to choose the wild king salmon (sweet corn, lima bean, bacon succotash, cherry tomato salad, $25), bbq poussin (fire-grilled, summer apricot-cherry chutney, minted pinenut couscous, $20), kurobuta pork chop (apple cider-brined, drunken beans, raspberry-chipotle glaze, $24), or the quinoa cakes (caramelized baby carrots, crisp cucumber salad, lemon-lime yogurt, $18). I went with the bbq poussin and my dinner partner chose the wild king salmon. For drinks, I couldn’t pass up the Cantaloupe Kamikaze, which if you ever go, you must order immediately.

My dish was great; the couscous was flavorful and the chutney added extra pizzaz, however, I immediately regretted ordering it once I realized poussin meant a whole baby chicken on my plate that I had to tear apart by hand, which is potentially really awkward when dining in a classy restaurant. The salmon, however, was simply grilled to perfection and accented by the fresh cherry tomatoes and succotash with a hint of bacon. Who would have thought succotash, a dish made popular by lack of food and ingredients during The Great Depression, could be so tasty?!

At this point, my dinner partner and myself were far too impressed with what we had experienced to pass up dessert. We went with the chilled dark chocolate terrine with fresh summer berries and the grilled peach cake with melba sauce and vanilla ice cream, both $7. The terrine was pleasant. Our very patient and attentive waitress explained it as “a consistency between chocolate mousse and pudding.” I’d say it’s a little denser and a little rich, but perfect for the chocolate lover. As for my dessert, I’ve since dreamt about it. If I could package that peach cake and melba sauce up in convenient and cheap grocery-store ready packaging (and if I didn’t have a figure to watch), I’d eat it every night. It was that good.

I went from being pretty impressed with Moxie to tipping the scales to incredibly impressed, all because of two slight details. Around 9:30, the music volume was raised, perhaps signaling the end of dinner hour and the beginning of bar time. After a few songs, I realized that I’d heard a couple of the bands on KEXP, and asked the door guy/maitre d’, which band it was because I couldn’t place it. It was here that I discovered a) the music was not some cheesy Muzak station, but actually from an iPod and b) the door guy, who I saw acting as an expo and running food around, was not a door guy at all, but actually one of the two Moxie owners, getting his hands dirty and interacting with his patrons.

Final verdict: Spectacular food and drinks, inviting atmosphere, fantastic music and an intimate neighborhood feel–this is what makes Moxie a restaurant not to miss.