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 Where: The Sunlight Cafe, 6403
Roosevelt Way NE
Owners: Joe and Margaret Noone
Friendly Folks, Good Food
Located north of Ravenna Park, the Sunlight Cafe relies on fresh
ingredients and a homey atmosphere to attract and retain regular customers. Steven, one of
the cooks in the cafe, describes the menu as "hearty vegetarian grub" and notes
that after working there for almost two years, he is still very happy to eat there,
too.
The menu has a wide variety of meatless selections boasting Middle-Eastern flavors combined
with very American formats. When reviewing the cafe, I tried the Avocado and Swiss Melt
and was very satisfied with the portions and impressed with the quality of the food.
The Sunlight Cafe offers all the espresso and coffee items Seattlites love, as well as
basic drip coffee. The service is very friendly and the entire staff is enthusiastic about
the cafe.
 What sets the Sunlight Cafe apart from other
cafes is the sense of community. The wait and kitchen staff used the word "home"
most often to describe their place of work: They serve "homestyle food,"
and employees see the Sunlight as "a second home."
The cafe has high ceilings and huge windows that create a warm, open
atmosphere for locals to read the newspaper and chat. Paintings hanging high on the walls
were made by employees. Lower, near the booths and tables, local artists are featured
monthly-- a selection of watercolors and photographs by Roosevelt High School students was
hanging at the time of this review.
The cafe has been open for twenty-two years and has earned regular
clientele. Several employees noted the regular, John-the Walker, a homeless man who stops
by several times a day asking for "just one penny for coffee."
Steven noted his criteria of a good restaurant: live plants over
fake, and whole cloves of fresh garlic. The Sunlight Cafe has both. When asked about
favorite dishes, no one on the staff could list just one. Jon said a nut burger (roasted
nuts on rye bread) and then named the Saturday and Sunday Brunch treat, Tahini French
Bread. Steven listed Brown Rice Salad and Tofu Picante. Craig's favorite is Tahini Over
Rice.
Items are all in the five-to-ten dollar range and a wine list is
available. There is no time limit for sitting at a table and relaxing, in fact, sticking
around a while at the Sunlight Cafe is recommended.
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