One of the dishes I miss after moving to Seattle from the Midwest is the humble tenderloin sandwich. A giant plate-sized piece of pork, pounded flat, breaded and deep fried? Yes please. After finding out about Loretta's Northwesterner, which is basically the only place in Seattle that serves tenderloin sandwiches, we made it a priority to visit on a surprisingly rainless and cloudless February winter weekend.
Breaded Pork Tenderloin Sandwich ($18) - That's the stuff. A perfectly fried and breaded tenderloin, easily 3 or 4 times the size of the almost vestigial bun, topped high with veggies (on the side, of course, to assemble to taste). It's a very respectable size, larger than many places I've visited in Indiana and Iowa. Thick breading encrusts a perfectly cooked tenderloin, allowing a hard crispy shell to develop, while the interior meat, pounded flat, remains tender yet moist. Both the breading and pork are liberally seasoned with salt, pepper, and spices, which creates a well seasoned bite. They include tons of romaine, red onion, tomatoes, and tangy pickles - with everything in place, I almost had to unhinge my jaw to eat the sandwich. The bottom bun is slathered with an ungodly amount of mayo. It's necessary to add more creaminess and fat to the relatively lean meat. The one qualm I have that prevents me from anointing this sandwich the best in the west: the bun. While toasted on all sides, it's dry and kind of crumbles apart while eating. Otherwise, this sandwich is excellent and easily competes with the many pork tenderloins I've eaten in the Midwest. (5/5)
Fries ($6) - A $6 basket comes with a generous portion of freshly fried potatoes. The fries are skin on, which basically makes these crisp starchy sticks a health food. I found them to be fried a bit too far, rendering the interiors fluffy but dry. They have good crisp exteriors, though, and aren't overly salted. (4/5)
Tavern Burger ($7) - Loretta's is actually more famous for their burgers than the tenderloins, with many publications in Seattle claiming they serve the best in the city. People often recommend getting the Double Tavern Burger, but we opted for the single given that we were planning on a couple of stops for desserts and pastries afterwards. For a full meal, I'd definitely want to upgrade to the double - the single isn't that large, probably comparable to a cheap fast food burger with a slightly larger patty. The beef is heavily charred in flavor, lending a great smoky aroma and a beefy bite. It's cooked well done, so the entirely of the burger is the same brown color, but there's more than enough moisture coming from the other ingredients to offset the dryness of the beef. There's a requisite slice of melted American cheese on top and plenty of fatty mayo-based secret sauce underneath, dressing a bunch of chopped onion and sliced pickle. The tanginess from the pickle balances out the fat and meat quite well. I'm not sure I'd call the burger the best in the city, but it's certainly pretty good. (4/5)
I don't eat at dive bars very often, but I'd definitely return to Loretta's for the tenderloin sandwich. It's not a dish commonly found in the PNW and the fact that Loretta's rendition is actually really good, is a boon to the city.
Bathrooms - Two tiny unisex rooms read more