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Rocket Taco to set down on Capitol Hill in old Kingfish Cafe space

There is yet another new chapter coming for a legendary Capitol Hill restaurant space.

CHS has learned that Rocket Taco, a family restaurant with Capitol Hill roots first launched on Whidbey Island earlier this year, will touch down on 19th Ave E in the old Kingfish Cafe location with plans to open in 2018.

“We already feel like we’re part of that strip since we live a few blocks away,” Jill Rosen tells CHS. “We’re really excited to be among friends.”

While Rocket Taco is a family-run venture first fired up in the sleepy island town of Freeland, Whidbey Island where the couple also keep a home, the family restaurant’s launchpad is stronger than most. Steve Rosen is an industry veteran who helped create Blue C Sushi and build Madison Holdings, the company behind concepts including Boom Noodle. His current ventures include Elemental Pizza, a two location wood-fired pizza concept. But Rocket Taco is Jill’s baby. And she has had tacos on her mind for awhile.

“I think our first conversations about tacos were about eight years ago in San Diego,” she said of the restaurant’s genesis and a lack of good Mexican food options in her home city. “Why not in Seattle?”

Ready to wrap up her career as a dental hygienist, Jill started looking for opportunities to grow a new business on top of Steve’s big concept experience. “My past projects were larger scale,” Steve said. “This is so different.”

The plan had been to originally launch the taco idea here on Capitol Hill near where they live not far from Holy Names. But the opportunity on Whidbey was too good to pass up. The island, instead, became the start point for Rocket Taco. Soon the orbit will include the peculiar connection of 19th Ave E and Freeland.

The Rocket Taco concept is simple — “quality, affordable, hand made food” with fresh, house-made tortillas and an emphasis on speed, consistency, and accessible pricing. Jill says the tortillas are crucially important. “I spent a long time playing with menus and tortillas,” she said. “Boy I had a lot of tortillas failures.”

Having watched the way issues like service charges and with more venues on the Hill phasing out tipping, the Rosens say they fully support the city’s move to a $15 minimum wage and are still sorting out the best way to balance earnings across the front and back of house staff. “We’re exploring that in real time right now,” Steve said.

Simpler issues are solved. Rocket Taco Capitol Hill will be a lunch and dinner place with counter service and a casual feel similar to the Freeland original and with a similar tiled look. The Kingfish’s old bar, however, is at a completely different scale than the original Rocket — the better to serve up the restaurant’s scratch margaritas. There will be a TV showing sportsball, Steve insists though Jill was less sure of the need.

The savvy Rosens inherit a restaurant space on the rebound after decades of hard love from the legendary Kingfish Cafe days. After an extensive — and expensive — overhaul, Ernest Loves Agnes lasted just one year in the space before shuttering to start 2017. Owner Jason Lajeunesse’s attempt to reboot the project with a collaboration with Brian Clevenger called Contadino lasted only six months. The sale to the Rosens hopefully helped that crew recoup a good portion of its costs. What is left is a rebuilt restaurant and bar space in an increasingly busy neighborhood ripe for a concept to stick. The rebuilt bones also mean that Rocket Taco’s Capitol Hill launch date will come relatively quickly with plans for service to begin in January.

“It’s beautiful,” Jill said. “It looks like Rocket Taco inside. Colors, tiles. ‘This is meant to be,’ I thought.”

Steve, the industry veteran, sees the Capitol Hill launch of Rocket Taco through the prism of the trends he has been watching for years. “You see fewer and fewer people are wanting to leave their neighborhoods if they can get what they need near their house,” he says. The neighborhood restaurant that caters to a few block radius is alive and well — even in the 19th Ave E suburbs of Capitol Hill.

Jill sees opening a Rocket Taco in her home neighborhood a little differently.

“This feels like coming home,” she said.

Rocket Taco is planned to open in January at 600 19th Ave E. You can learn more at rocket-taco.com.

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veggiemama
veggiemama
6 years ago

YASSSSS! Tacos!!!!!!!!

gregoryh
gregoryh
6 years ago

I was really hoping for a ramen or poke shop.
:’-D

WA_CHI_20
WA_CHI_20
6 years ago

Just looked at their Whidbey Island menu.

3 tacos for $12

:(

Knife Fight (@tefl0nheart)

WOW SO GLAD THAT WHITE PEOPLE CAN BENEFIT MORE FROM MY PEOPLE’S CULTURE- I HOPE THIS SHOP FAILS, AND THAT REAL MEXICANS WHO CREATE RESTAURANTS
SUCCEED.

Jim98122x
Jim98122x
6 years ago

Perhaps somebody who can spell (tequila) *reposado*, at least?

Bob Knudson
Bob Knudson
6 years ago

Your comment is a great example of reverse racism. I’m sure this space was available to a Mexican if he/she wanted to take the substantial risk of opening a new restaurant in Seattle.

By the way, the pre-eminent Mexican restaurant in the USA is owned/operated by a “white person”….Rick Bayless in Chicago.

David
David
6 years ago

Bob – the fact that you, and others, think that you can make a statement like, “the pre-eminent Mexican restaurant in the USA is owned/operated by a “white person,” is part of the problem. It’s not evidence that there is no a problem.

zeebleoop
6 years ago

TRY SCREAMING SOME MORE!

As a person of Hispanic descent myself, I don’t have a problem with white people making tacos. Nor do I have a problem with Latinos that work in the kitchens of Chinese, Italian and “American” restaurants.

While I don’t 100% agree with @Bob’s comment, I do believe your line of thinking “only one culture’s people can represent that culture’s food” only works to further divide us as a nation. What if a Mexican person wanted to open a hamburger shop or pizza place? Should people of Germanic and Italian descent comment/protest that they hope it goes out of business; because burgers and pizza aren’t Mexican?

I would suggest dedicating more of your misplaced anger (and all caps) at actually helping your fellow Mexicans to write business plans and get loans so that more of our people can actually start their own businesses. Be that slinging tacos or burgers or whatever.

oliveoyl
oliveoyl
6 years ago

oh white people :(

spoon fight
spoon fight
6 years ago

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/food/wp/2017/05/26/should-white-chefs-sell-burritos-a-portland-restaurants-revealing-controversy/?utm_term=.787b562d436b

“…anyone who loves Mexican food should thank gabachos for their insatiable desire for chili, nachos, tacos, micheladas, fajitas and all the “Mexican” food trends that have swept across the U.S. over the past 125-plus years.”

I had to look up what Gabachos meant

Mary
Mary
6 years ago

I am so excited about this! There are no affordable quick lunch options on 19th! Plus I love tacos.