Q: Is there a dress code?
A:  Since the beginning, Canlis has been the swankest, dressiest restaurant in Seattle. Today, we try to maintain that tradition by requesting that men wear a suit or sport coat (though we don’t require it in many areas of the dining room). Casual attire? Not appropriate. The bottom line: Everyone likes to look good. In 1950, people knew fashion and loved to show it. We ask our guests to help us keep that tradition alive. Dress to impress, we look forward to checking you out!

Q: What is your corkage policy?
A:  We ask that the bottle not be on our list (feel free to call and have us look it up) and that you bring no more than three 750ml bottles. The charge is $35 per 750ml bottle.

Q: How do the valets do it?
A:  They never hand out tickets, and yet more often than not, your car is waiting for you before you make it to the door! We’ve been accused of never telling the secret. The truth? You wouldn't believe us if we told you.

Q: I heard a nasty rumor…
A:  Believe it or not, 50 years later, we still hear of people scared to come in for fear of “the dreaded card.” Is it true that if you don’t spend enough at Canlis they give you a card asking you not to return? Peter Canlis offered a thousand dollars to anyone who could produce the card with his signature. That stack of bills still sits in our safe today, untouched and unclaimed for over half a century.

Q: Table #1: How did it become so famous?
A:  Table #1 was Peter Canlis’ personal table for 27 years. Only he or his personal guests ever sat there. It was the only table that had a telephone, and from its banquette he could keep an eye on the entire restaurant. Today, it is our most requested table.

Q: Does Canlis really have a “personal whisky consultant” on staff?
A:  Yes...and thank God for him! The oldest of three sons, Matt Canlis, a minister, lives with his wife and four children in Scotland. As a result, the family has been collecting and cellaring one of the country’s rarest single malt whisky collections.

Q: Is Canlis the most expensive restaurant in town?
A:  Not by a long shot. According to the 2008 Zagat guide, we’re number 7 (which surprised even us).

Q: What’s the most expensive bottle of wine on the list?
A:  The most beautiful thing we’ve ever tasted commands the highest price—a magnum of 1990 Domain de la Romanee Conti, La Tache Grand Cru. $17,500.

Q: Is it worth it?
A:  Absolutely.