by Libby Graham
photo by Nich Anderson
It was with great pleasure that I attending the highly anticipated grand opening weekend of Bake’s Place Bellevue on Sunday, May 13. Formerly situated in the highlands of Issaquah, this fine new Eastside establishment has a bigger seating capacity of 100 and resides in Bellevue’s downtown core. Bake’s Place provides free courtesy parking in the Columbia West Building, where they are located, and two greeters at the door personally extended a warm welcome
to me. The service that evening was impeccable and I enjoyed one of their tasty cuisine specialties, a House Chop Salad with peppermint tea.
Famed jazz chanteuse Dee Daniels gave a truly stellar performance, delivering her smokin’ brand of gospel and blues-infused vocals to an enthusiastic sold-out crowd. Her outstanding band was comprised of bassist Chuck Deardorf, drummer D’Vonne Lewis, saxophonist Brian Kent and pianist Tony Foster. Dee’s 90-minute set spanned a variety of styles such as Frank Sinatra’s “That’s Life”, Earth, Wind and Fire’s “You Can’t Hide Love”, and the Billie Holiday classic “Love for Sale”.
The musicality of Dee Daniels and her fabulous group was truly an inspiration in such a splendid setting as the new Bake’s Place in Bellevue’s “South Side” (as Dee put it). I was immediately taken by the hushed, intimate ambiance of the room with its general layout being very conducive to superior listening. Looking out of the beautiful floor to ceiling windows, one saw a gorgeous patio with colorful umbrellas, perfect for accompanying guests in the warm spring and summer days. I was equally impressed with the overt friendliness of their staff as well as the bountiful, succulent menu selections.
Bake’s Place owners Craig and Laura Baker have done a fabulous job ushering in Bellevue’s newest venue and their eclectic range of live music offerings is sure to entice many concert goers throughout the region.
For more information, visit bakesplacebellevue.com