Food at Medin's is 'worth the wait'

Ballard restaurant serves traditional Italian ravioli and other entrees for less than $15

By NICOLE TAJIMA, Features Editor

Published: November 3, 2004

About four blocks away from Fred Meyer is a wonderful Italian restaurant that specializes in ravioli. Medin's Ravioli Station is a small, red brick building that can be easily overlooked when driving on Leary Way in Ballard.

When thinking of ravioli, one often thinks of Chef Boyardi or the Olive Garden. Medin's has real, Italian style ravioli. They have dishes like grilled sirloin, ravioli that is filled with beef, cheese, herbs and spices. For those not feeling so carnivorous, there's the spinach ravioli, filled with spinach, cheese, pine nuts and currants (fruits similar to raisins). The indecisive can opt for the sampler which allows the diner to sample all of the various types of ravioli.

Not only does one get to choose what kind of ravioli they like, one can pick what sauce they would like to accompany their pasta. The sauces include traditional marinara (tomato sauce), alfredo (cream sauce), tomato cream or roasted red pepper. The tomato cream sauce is delicious. Since it's like mixing the marinara and alfredo sauce together, it's a little rich, but not too much to handle. The roasted red pepper sauce has chunks of red bell peppers and a hint of spiciness to it.

As with most restaurants, complimentary bread comes with the meal. However, this isn't just ordinary, French bread. Medin's serves warm focaccia (flat) bread topped with caramelized onions, garlic and herbs. This bread is good enough to eat alone, but it comes with a small dish of olive oil that has basil and garlic infused in it so it tastes like pesto.

The food at Medin's is delicious, but what makes it even more enjoyable is that it's also affordable. Nothing on the menu is over $15. In fact, the most expensive items on the menu are the peppered steak and the stuffed pork loin which are $14.95.

Although the food is fairly priced, one's wallet might fair better if water were the only beverage. A single can of soda is a whopping $1.50, and, since it comes out of a can and not a tap, there are no refills.

The restaurant's only other drawback is the slow service. There was only one waitress handling the phone, the bar and the dining room.

Rushing a meal at Medin's might not be a good idea because then one may not really enjoy the food. Real Italian food is not meant to be devoured quickly; it is meant to be savored and eaten over an extended period of great conversation and good laughs.

So if one is in the mood for a delicious, filling meal, wander into Ballard and visit Medin's Ravioli Station. The food is definitely worth the wait.

© 2008-2010 The Falcon        Contact        Advertise        SPU.edu