L’Oursin
L’Oursin
L’Oursin
L’Oursin

A hint of Paris here in Seattle, J.J. Proville’s new L’Oursin glows with pendant lights and Parisian signs.

Seattle Met

L’Oursin, French for “the sea urchin”, is a 50-seat, Pacific Northwest inspired, French restaurant. Owner operators JJ Proville and Zac Overman, who raised $27,000 through a Kickstarter campaign before Mētis broke ground, claim its location on the ground floor of the Craft Apartments represents the “perfect spot”. The corner of 14th and Jefferson is not only the intersection of the Central District, International District, and Seattle U neighborhoods, it is also an up-and-coming foodie haven, with Seven Beef, Nate’s Wings & Waffles, and Peloton all in close proximity.

“We’ve been working on this for eight years, now we’re still kind of in disbelief about it,” says Overman.

Team

  • Phil Showstead
  • Joe Mckay
  • Ben Frey-Booth
  • Ian Dugas
  • Ludo Secretant

Collaborators

The L’Oursin build-out was realized in collaboration with Jonathan Jason Proville, Zac Overman and goCstudio. Special thanks to Performance Mechanical Group, Anvil House, Eager Beaver Works, NW Elements, Ace Fire Systems, Tydi Concrete Cutting, Structural Radar Imaging, Kor Drywall, Merit Electrical, Ferguson Waterworks, Armorclad Floors, and Total Plumbing. Photographs courtesy of Suzi Pratt.

Press

“

Inventive small plates share menu space with classics like roast chicken and sustainable seafood at this intimate, French-inspired bistro in the Central District. Natural wines and aperitifs are also available at a snug bar or in the dining room, which is decked out with sunny yellow walls and blonde wood tables.

” — Zagat
“

It was lovely to step from a chill drizzle into L’Oursin’s caramel glow, to have an aproned server hasten to the door in welcome, to have plenty of hooks handy for wet coats. Zac Overman and JJ Proville’s 50-seat bar and restaurant in the Central District is such a pretty place, so French, with sunny-hued walls, honeyed wainscoting, curvy bistro chairs and mirrors all around. Not an Edison bulb in sight. Instead there are graceful globe wall sconces and a spiky fixture above the entrance modeled after the restaurant’s namesake, a sea urchin.

” — Seattle Times
“

L’Oursin offers classic French cuisine and seafood, all sustainably sourced and fresh.

” — L'Oursin