Burgers, barbecue on Capitol Hill

Questions? Keep those cards and letters coming! This just in from ...

Gina Anstey: Just curious if you had any insight as to what the new arrivals on 15th Avenue East (Capitol Hill) might be. Finally, someone has come in to take over the old Jack's location next to the Rainbow Grocery, and it looks as if the failed Irish pub is reincarnating. I've just seen liquor-license notices but would love to hear the scoop. Let's hope these places have edible food and reasonable prices!

I took a stroll down 15th last week on your behalf, Gina, and here's what I found. You're right: The former Jack's Bistro (405 15th Ave. E., Seattle) is obviously in the throes of a makeover, with a gorgeous wooden bar set up in one quadrant of the room and big cushy swivel chairs facing it. I stopped by Jim's Barber Shop, next door, and Tim the barber (Jim's son) told me what he knew: "It's going to be a sit-down deli and bar," he said. "And the new owner, Mike Brown, told me he's going to serve the best hamburger in the neighborhood."

Mike Brown?, I wondered. Mike "Brownie's Seafood Broiler" Brown? The guy whose restaurant history has included ownership of Rain City Grill and Da Vinci's Flying Pizza (both now defunct) and Kirkland's 21 Central? Well, sure enough, the liquor license posted on the door bore the name Brownie's Inc. And indeed it's that Mike Brown who's revamping the old Jack's.

As for the former Maguire's Irish Bistro (332 15th Ave. E., Seattle), born last June and closed in January: It's slated to open any day now as Kozak's Bar & Grill. In fact, a bold new sign was being hoisted while I looked on, and I found out later — via a phone chat with new owner Agnes Kozak — why that sign bears a subtitle: "Original Smoke House." Kozak, who will run the place with her husband and business-partner Greg, says their new restaurant will specialize in house-smoked meats.

A look at the preliminary menu has me hoping the Kozaks, who once owned a Quizno's, aren't biting off more than they can chew with such an enormous list. In addition to the usual smokehouse favorites — ribs, brisket, sausages, chicken and turkey (among other smoked platters served with 'cue-friendly sides) — the extensive menu includes a wide array of burgers, sandwiches, wraps, soups and salads, plus a long list of appetizers and desserts.

"We know there were a lot of restaurants open [in this space] before," says Kozak, "and we want to make sure this place — and our prices — fit the community." Those prices, with many items in the $10-and-under range, are more than reasonable, Gina; and as a neighbor you'll be happy to note that the Kozaks plan to keep extended hours, offering lunch and dinner from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays and to 10 p.m. Sundays.

From Kerry Fitz-Gerald: Five years ago I wrote to you asking for a restaurant recommendation for my soon-to-be 5-year-old, who had asked to go to a "grown-up restaurant" for his birthday. Aidan, my now soon-to-be 10-year-old, has a new request: He'd like to go to a restaurant that serves spit-roasted boar. He learned of this dish through cookbooks he's checked out of the library and we are unable to make it at home (no spit, no boar, no ventilation). He'd really like to try it. I'd appreciate any help you can offer.

Happy birthday, Aidan. Though local restaurants offer spit-roasted meats aplenty, getting your mitts on spit-roasted boar isn't so easy. And until I hear from someone who's serving it, here's what I suggest you do: Take a wild-boar tour!

Start at the satay bar at Wild Ginger (1401 Third Ave., Seattle, 206-623-4450) where you can order a single skewer of Bangkok boar satay. Then head over to the Harvest Vine (2701 E. Madison St., Seattle; 206-320-9771), where Basque chef Joseba Jimenez de Jimenez's exceptional tapas menu frequently includes organic wild boar. Last week he was offering chuleta de jabali, a pan-roasted wild-boar rib chop.

Next, it's on to Volterra, chef Don Curtiss' new Italian restaurant in Ballard (5411 Ballard Ave. N.W., 206-789-5100) for your main course: cinghiale al Gorgonzola — that's roasted wild-boar tenderloin with a Gorgonzola and mustard cream sauce. For dessert? A slice of coconut-cream pie at the Palace Kitchen (2030 Fifth Ave., Seattle, 206-448-2001) There you can check out the wood-fired spit-roaster as it bronzes chicken and ducks, just to see how it's done, but alas young fella: no boar.

From Don Butler: Since recently relocating from the East Coast, I've been unable to find a place to get scrod. Folks back there get it with little difficulty, particularly in seaport cities. I was heartened to learn through an acquaintance that [someone she knows] got scrod at McCormick's Fish House. I'm tempted to go there! Can you please check this out for me and for your readers?

Wherefore art thou, scrod? First: a brief lesson in nomenclature. Scrod is defined by Webster's as "a young fish, as a cod or haddock, especially one split for cooking." Mark Kurlansky, author of "Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World," describes scrod as "a small cod fillet. The word, he says, was used in the United States as early as 1849 and likely comes from the Dutch schrode — meaning "strip." According to Kurlansky, in the 1920s, after filleting machinery was introduced to New England, scrod's popularity increased dramatically. "Once filleting became industrialized," he writes, "scrod became a household word."

Not around here, says national seafood consultant and Seattle-based seafood guru Jon Rowley, weighing in on the subject via e-mail: "Scrod is not a term used locally. It is a New England term referring to pollack (East Coast variety), hake, cod, haddock, ling (East Coast ling, not our ling cod), that are 1.5 to 2.5 pounds — small fish. According to the FDA, 'scrod' used on its own on a menu (i.e. 'Today's Special: scrod') is considered mislabeling and technically illegal. You'd have to say scrod cod, scrod hake, scrod pollack, etc."

Sorry to say, Don, you'll continue to hanker for scrod here on the Left Coast. Turns out it's not available at McCormick's Fish House (722 Fourth Ave., 206-682-3900) nor even at McCormick & Schmick's in Boston (I called). But the nice folks at McCormick's Fish House would be pleased to hook you up, so to speak, with a fillet of fresh Alaskan ling cod — not a true cod, but a delicious one — prepared with a Dijon crust and horseradish cream.

Nancy Leson: 206-464-8838 or taste@seattletimes.com. More columns at seattletimes.com/nancyleson