Edgar’s Cantina at Safeco Field, Seattle
Edgar’s Cantina at Safeco Field, Seattle, won Honorable Mention for the 2013 Best Concept Silver Spoon Award because the themed area is what Centerplate’s John Sergi, chief design officer, calls a “destination within a destination.”
It opened to the public on April 1, 2013 to kick off the Major League Baseball season, with special appearances by Seattle Mariners Hall-of-Famer Edgar Martinez and local celebrity restaurateur and Centerplate culinary partner, Chef Ethan Stowell.
To create Edgar’s Cantina, Centerplate, along with the Seattle Mariners, removed 384 seats from the centerfield bleachers at Safeco Field to make room for the two-level restaurant and bar. Located on the “Home Run Porch” in the outfield, Edgar’s features an innovative “Northwest Mex” menu created by Chef Stowell. The cantina features a line of signature cocktails created by Seattle legend Anu Apte, owner of the Rob Roy lounge. These new drinks are all made with Zac, the specialty mezcal that the Cantina’s namesake, Edgar Martinez, and business partner Gene Juarez import from Mexico.
Steve Dominguez, GM for Centerplate at Safeco Field, said the two-story cantina has a great view of the playing field, unlike its predecessor, a Mexican restaurant that had a cave-like feel behind the bleachers. “It has become the hottest spot in our ballpark, definitely a destination,” Dominguez said.
Capacity is about 150 people and they have had to practically bar the doors some days. “Revenue has tripled in that area,” he said. Edgar’s Cantina has received best restaurant designations locally, “and we’re in a ballpark,” he said.
From concept to opening took about nine months and cost Centerplate $380,000, he added. “It’s important to do it right.”
Prices are reasonable. Most food items are $9, whether it’s three tacos or tortas or nachos. “You can switch the protein.”
Edgar’s Cantina “brings people closer to the action; it’s the only destination at Safeco Field that allows anyone in the park to have a custom-blended craft cocktail from one of the country’s top mixologists, made from Edgar Martinez’s own brand of Mezcal, alongside authentic tacos and tortas created by two top chefs in the country—all within touching distance of a Mariners’ outfielder,” Sergi said. “That isn’t just unique within Safeco—it’s unique within Seattle and unique within the country, which is why it’s becoming a part of people’s bucket lists.”
Interviewed for this story: Steve Dominguez, (206) 664-3174; John Sergi, (203) 975-5926