I spent the first 10 years of my life living in Tacoma, Washington, with Seattle as the very cool city that we would go to on special occasions to visit the Space Needle or Pike Place Market. Since my parents live in Olympia now, when I go, I always make sure to spend a couple of days there. On our last trip, we went to Bateau, where we had excellent drinks and a clam dip with Ritz crackers that I still think about, and then a fantastic dinner. After posting about it on IG, Renee Erickson, the mastermind behind it and several other incredible restaurants in Seattle (as well as being an award-winning cookbook author!), reached out to me and we started chatting.
Fast forward to the next summer and we met up in Rome, which begat a story in Wm Brown magazine on her husband Dan’s fantastic sandwich shop, Mean Sandwich, and the beginnings of our list below. Our second contributor, Naoise, helps run what I think is the most impressive cookbook store not just in town, but in the country. We met when Matt was there signing copies of his cookbook, A Man & His Kitchen, and I knew we had to tap her for this. I met Alex Bradley in the Centurion Lounge at JFK in its speakeasy-style 1850 Bar. He recognized us from Instagram and introduced himself, then showed me how he organizes all of the travel tips he gets from Yolo and Monocle, and I was very impressed. (I’m not just interested in information, I’m just as interested in figuring out how to organize it!) And finally, Jodi and Alan Davis come to us via Eric and Renee—they are restaurant and gallery owners in Bremerton, a ferry ride away. I’m so glad to be able to update my (not yet fully systematized) list with their favorites. —Yolanda
RENEE ERICKSON & DAN CROOKSTON are cornerstones of the Seattle food scene. Renee is the chef-owner of nine Seattle restaurants under the Sea Creatures umbrella, including The Walrus and the Carpenter and Barnacle (in Ballard), The Whale Wins (Freemont) and Bateau (Capitol Hill); she published her third cookbook, Sunlight & Breadcrumbs, in 2024. Dan owns and runs MEAN Sandwich, a cult-favorite sandwich shop specializing in truly novel combinations.
Dive Bars
Ballard Smoke Shop – The Ballard Smoke Shop is one of our neighborhood’s oldest dive bars, the kind of place where bar stools are filled with regulars day in and day out. They serve a trashy, cheap, delicious smashburger: a thin, juicy patty topped with American cheese and pickles on a soft sesame-seed-speckled bun. Plenty of pinball and arcade games to take your mind off current affairs. Just drink, eat burgers and play games.
Loretta’s Northwesterner – Loretta’s is simple, unfussy and quintessential Seattle, complete with beer-flavored beer and their simply delicious Tavern Burger. A charbroiled masterclass in simplicity: toasted bun, special sauce, raw white onion, pickles, American cheese, and charbroiled beef along with a healthy dose of nostalgia for every backyard burger that you wished tasted this good. There are great booths for close encounters and an awesome back covered patio area, where you can stretch your legs out in front of the fireplace.
Cocktail Bars
Essex – Our neighborhood bar, within walking distance, feels more like a small European bar with their simple 12-seat L-shaped bar, whale wallpaper, and brass fixtures with a white marble tile bar. Cocktails here transport you and the staff always serve with a smile.
Deep Dive – Our city’s quintessential speakeasy, tucked underneath one of our most iconic buildings, the Spheres. Decorated by celebrated Seattle artist Curtis Steiner, with his extensive collection of curiosities, this bar serves up top-shelf spirits mixed into classic and nouveau cocktails for visitors from all over the world. Also served is the famed “Seattle Dog” on a silver platter alongside a small yet delicious menu of bites to keep the cocktails flowing.
Barnacle Bar – Barnacle acts as a beautiful waiting room for your table at our city’s most famed Oyster Bar, The Walrus and the Carpenter. It offers the city’s most extensive list of amaros alongside its small but powerful menu offering a European-style drink and snack.
Shibuya Hi Fi – Shibuya is unassuming from the street—no sign, barely a noticeable entrance. However, once you push open the doors, you are warmly welcomed into a cedar-clad room set perfectly to listen to the vinyl records playing through the vintage speakers. Our favorite thing is to book an album listening and take our shoes off, snuggle into a couch and listen to an album from start to finish.
Wine Bars
Le Caviste – Caviste is where we head when we feel a strong desire to visit Paris immediately. You can sit at the bar next to a tiny tea candle, drink delicious French wine and nibble on some truly exceptional charcuterie. It’s perfect for a late-night snack and drink after the theater, or to wind down after a rough day at work.
Walter’s Wine Shop – Walter’s is owned and operated by our city’s master sommelier, Chris Tanghe; therefore, a visit here is a learning adventure every time. My favorite thing to do at Walter’s is sit at the counter order small bites and ask Chris for his help in pairing them perfectly with wines I’ve never seen or heard of before.
Sandwich Shops
MEAN Sandwich – I am biased here, but I love MEAN Sandwich. The sandwiches are super creative and generous. A favorite is the fish with the crispy fried lemons & pickled jalapeños, and if I am not getting that, I am getting the burger. Dry aged local beef, Akron style with American cheese, onion, mayo and shop-made pickles and mustard. Get them both and share with a friend. —Renee
Un Bien – Started by the family who had to sell our beloved Paseo, the team behind Un Bien make Caribbean-style roast sandwiches stuffed into our local Macrina Bakery Italian Rolls with their famous carmelized onions cut thick and juicy. Un Bien continues the tradition of delicious sandwiches made with delicious ingredients and exotic flavors.
Local Tide – It’s a unicorn seafood restaurant, setting a high bar on sustainability and trying to keep things affordable. Bravo Vincent. Thanks for the yummy food honoring our local fishers.
Pizza
Delancey Pizza – There’s a corner in NYC, Delancey & Essex, where owner Brandon Petit resided before moving to Seattle and opening up his now locally famous wood-fired pizza shop, Delancey Pizza, next door to his European-style bar, Essex. Renee and I have an-off menu pizza that we get nearly every week we are there, the “Trailer Park Girl”—a white pie with pepperoni and preserved lemon and a side of pickled peppers for the win!
Wilmott’s Ghost – Inside the Spheres, a set of three spherical buildings housing a Costa Rican-style jungle, there also resides a beautiful Italian restaurant that we love. Its different fritti and Roman-style pizza (think Detroit Style), with its square shape, soft thick dough and crispy cheesy crust, has me salivating just thinking about it. Finish with the city’s best tiramasu and you’ve got yourself a fine meal before or after the symphony.
Mexican
Pancita – Really great and innovative Mexican food. We love the Serrano Caesar, a delicious and spicy tribute to the OG salad from Tijuana. Janet is bringing in all heirloom corn and nixtamalizing it in-house daily. The last time I was there, I had the clam pozole and I can’t stop thinking about it.
Italian
Pasta Casalinga – When I am missing Italy, I go have lunch at Pasta Casalinga, tucked into the Pike Place Market, next to my favorite Italian speciality store Delaurenti. Michela and her team make pasta every day. With the menu changing often. Creative pastas dishes that are inspired by the Pacific Northwest—items are from the Ocean, Garden & Farm. There is always Rossopomodoro, traditional tomato sauce, and Lasagna Casalinga. Take one home frozen for an easy weeknight dinner.
Lioness – Our sweet new Italian spot…probably not PC to mention my own spot…but it’s pretty wonderful. Haha.
Cafe Lago – I have been in love and going to Cafe Lago most of my career. I love Carla and her ability to evolve with the time while keeping Lago Lago. I love her antipasti plate, caponata and lasagne. Super affordable wines and a really great classic Negroni. Very excited that she brought on Lauren Thompson as her new chef, excited to see her touch on things.
Music Venues
Tractor Tavern – The Tractor, as it’s lovingly known locally, is the quintessential Seattle music venue, enough room for 200 or so and a rotating list of bluegrass, metal and singer-songwriters from all over to tantalize our eardrums with their sounds. I love its gritty decor, beer flavored beer, tattooed bartenders and the general understanding that this place will outlast us all!
Neumos – It’s a bit larger than most of my favorite venues, but because of it, they are able to host up-and-coming acts as they grow from small clubs on their way to stadium sell-outs. Top on my list of shows I witnessed at Neumos’s is the The Black Keys from my hometown of Akron, OH.
Pinball
Add-A-Ball – Add-a-Ball opened in the basement of the glass shop in Fremont more than a decade ago. It’s grown, as have the games over the years. If I find myself bored or just needing a night out, I am usually at Add-A-Ball with friends. My favorite part about their game selection is the variety and styles of games they have, from pinball to arcade games and older skill games that keep the repair folks working around the clock.
NAOISE MCGEE is an Irish native based in Seattle. She runs events programming at Seattle’s beloved cookbook store, Book Larder, located in the Fremont neighborhood, which caters to cooks of all kinds, and hosts authors and chefs from all over the world.
I started visiting Seattle regularly in the early 2010s, and relocated here during the pandemic after many years in New York and some in Los Angeles. My husband was born and raised in the city, and now we’re raising our own children here. While it’s changed in many ways since the 1980s/’90s, and is navigating the growing pains of a small city struggling to keep up with housing demand in yet another tech boom, it remains a place that honors and centers its natural beauty, adapting around its stunning and swimmable lakes and Puget Sound. Mountain ranges studded with evergreens envelop the city, snow-capped in winter and heather-purple into the long, bright summer nights. Home to a large Scandinavian diaspora as well as Ethiopian, Japanese, Vietnamese and more, the food scene grows more exciting and diverse all the time, and with our rainy weather to endure, we earn our reputation as one of America’s most bookstore-filled cities.
Since I live here, I can’t speak to where to stay personally, but I’ve heard excellent things about Harry’s Guest House. Then there’s the Palihotel, which is close to Pike Place Market.
Book Larder – Soon celebrating 14 years in business, Book Larder is a beacon for lovers of food and cooking in Seattle—we are all cookbooks and food writing, with a passionate and deeply knowledgeable staff. We regularly host visiting cookbook authors and chefs, and have welcomed everyone from Samin Nosrat to Ruth Reichl through our orange door into the in-store kitchen for talks, demos, classes, and more. We are extremely fortunate to have an incredible roster of local authors like Kenji Lopez-Alt and Aran Goyoaga, and offer signed editions of a host of titles, as well as specialty pantry items, homewares, and locally made goods.
Saint Bread – Housed in a former marina on Portage Bay, nestled amongst the classic Seattle houseboats, is this all-day cafe and restaurant with a Scandinavian-meets-Japanese menu, helmed by prolific local restaurateur (and utter gem) Yasuaki Saito. Enjoy your sugared cardamom croissant and yuzu-polenta cake as you watch boats pass through the ship canal, and if you’re there in the summer months, you can paddle up to their seasonal waterfront bar and grab some Japanese barbecue from their hinoki-fired truck—kayaks are available to rent just down the street! Saint Bread’s recent James Beard nomination is well earned, and the line is more than worth it.
Cafe Suliman – Tucked away in Melrose Market on Capitol Hill is this true hidden treasure, where chef Ahmed Suliman serves up casual yet unforgettable, seasonally-inflected Arabian dishes from the Levant, Egypt, and North Africa. A wine program full of character is led by Cantina Sauvage‘s Marc Papineau, and they often host visiting producers. Another all-day space—that rare treasure!—you can stop by for some Arabic coffee and cake, lunch, or dinner. (A little bird told me that Kyle McLachlan was recently spotted there, for the Twin Peaks fans among us…)
The Corson Building – For my money, if you’re having one dinner in Seattle, The Corson Building is not to be missed. The ivy-cloaked, turn-of-the-century former home makes for a truly unique, romantic dining experience, where chef Emily Dann and her husband Matt create pure magic with seasonal produce and locally sourced meats and seafood that showcase the bounty of the Pacific Northwest’s coast and farmland. The menu changes frequently, and the service is always warm and impeccable.
Watson Kennedy Fine Home – Watson Kennedy is a love letter to objects. Soulfully curated, the entire shop is color-coded through beautiful displays, making it a true joy to browse. Filled to the brim with everything from local Seattle-made goods, vintage serving and glassware, textiles, books, stationery, homewares of all kinds, even jewelry, art, and children’s toys. I have never left Watson Kennedy without clutching something that felt like a special discovery, for myself or someone else (this year I did the entirety of my holiday shopping there, in one visit!). They also offer private shopping and curated gift packages, and it’s walkable from Pike Place Market (where they also have a smaller, satellite location).
ALEX BRADLEY is a speechwriter and producer at a local Seattle tech firm and has called Seattle home since 2008. He lives downtown with a Frasier-worthy view of the Space Needle.
I relocated to Seattle from the UK in 2008 and in that time have been witness to the city’s substantial growth. The Pacific Northwest offers the unique ability to ski and sail on the same day, all while enjoying wine from the second-largest wine-producing state and spectacular seafood. Seattle’s outward-looking nature stems from its commercial impact, being home to giants like Boeing, Amazon, Microsoft, Starbucks and T-Mobile. This has attracted diverse communities over the years—19th-century Nordic migration, longstanding Asian migration, and more recent Latino and South Asian residents have all enriched the city’s culinary and cultural landscape. Poised to be one of the host cities for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, hopefully more people will get to experience Seattle and the PNW!
Coffee
Café Vita @ KEXP – Vita is an established local roaster and has a few cafés dotted around the city. Right by us they have a unique location in the building of KEXP, a local public radio station renowned for its music. This location used to be a demo café with rotating roasters for La Marzocco, which has its US HQ in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood, but the pandemic put an end to that. Fortunately Vita stepped in and the café continues with the coffee as good as ever; you can sit and watch the DJs and there are frequent events.
Herkimer – Super solid. If you’re passing one it’s worth a stop. Their locations are more in neighborhoods vs downtown, but they’re a great local roaster and you should pop in if you see one.
Ada’s on 15th – Great coffee and books focused on engineering (named after/inspired by Ada Lovelace) on Capitol Hill. Wonderful gifts for kids interested in science.
Starbucks Roastery is like if Willy Wonka made coffee stores. Not your normal Starbucks! The Princi (a collaboration with Rocco Princi from Milan) has a bakery onsite and makes the best pastries in Seattle… seriously! Try the raisin & pistachio girella (basically a pain aux raisins) for a sweet pastry and the olive sfilatino, a savory olive baton-shaped breadstick.
Restaurants
Le Pichet – Wonderful French bistro steps away from Pike Place market. Lovely for lunch with a glass/bottle of their Savoyard wine. Famous for their roast chicken in the evenings (allow an hour, cooked to order!). Green salad is a must, as is onion soup in the winter. Bar seats 8 & 9 are our usual/favorite. We prefer going for lunch (no reservations), but dinner is super cosy (reservations accepted) and they have more substantial dishes.
Stateside – Cool Vietnamese/French place in Capitol Hill, delicious and our favorite restaurant in Seattle. Hack: ask nicely for the off-menu cheeseburger bao bun from the bar menu at Foreign National, the sister cocktail bar next door—one split between two is perfect and comes with the best burger sauce ever. Cocktails are great, and you really can’t go wrong with anything on the menu. Chef Eric is a Daniel Boulud and Jean-Georges alum (don’t worry—there’s no foam in sight!), and Seth running front of house is superb.
Taylor Shellfish Farms – The place for oysters in Seattle. Family-run company started in 1890, and now one of the largest wholesalers of oysters, clams, geoduck etc. in the US. They have a few oyster bars in town, which are superb. Try the Olympia oysters if they’re in season/available when you visit. Surprising wine and cocktail programs. The must-have is the whole Dungeness crab—they boil every day and “crack” the crab, making it easier for you to pick apart. The star of the show is the crab dipping sauce they make in the outer shell with the brown meat, heavy cream, sweet chili… the sauce is addicting. If a friend was visiting Seattle just for a layover/one meal, this might well be the top recommendation and is perfectly PNW.
Pasta Casalinga – Informal lunch counter in Pike Place. Homemade pasta, weekly changing menu.
Lark – Very Pacific Northwest tip-toeing to fine dining, but in a more relaxed PNW manner.
Canlis – No Seattle restaurant list would be complete without Canlis, Seattle’s peerless fine-dining restaurant. If you go, you have to have the salad. You can also just stop by the bar and have a burger and excellent cocktail, which is what I would do vs. the full set menu/dining room.
Spinasse – Excellent Northern Italian; try the tajarin al ragu.
Via Tribunali – Reliable Neapolitan pizza places (small locally owned chain) with good wine.
Shiro’s – Acclaimed as the best sushi in Seattle, which is saying something. Post-pandemic, the menu is a set omakase. The sushi bar is a longer, more expensive menu. I am always full from the menu in the dining room, so have never done the more involved counter menu. You can also order takeout! Shiro retired and then got bored and started another sushi restaurant, Sushi Kashiba in Pike Place, which people love. Its dining room is smarter than Shiro’s (with prices to match), but it is excellent.
Matt’s in the Market – Seattle classic tucked away on an upper floor in Pike Place, modern American, PNW wines.
The Walrus & the Carpenter – Amazing oyster bar out in Ballard (taxi ride away from downtown), worth a visit. Run by Renee Erikson, a local foodie star, and multiple James Beard nominee.
Bateau – Sticking with Renee Erikson, she has a steak restaurant on capitol hill that is superb; she has a farm on Vashon Island, and is beginning to introduce meat she has raised from the beginning into the restaurant. Not a traditional steakhouse by any stretch, but good food.
Lioness – Yet another Renee staple, this time out in the Phinney Ridge neighborhood, a small Northern Italian spot—think spritzes, small plates etc. Very fun.
MARKET Seattle – Restaurant in the Seattle Art Museum, outpost of a seafood restaurant from up in Edmonds, famous for their crab and lobster rolls.
Local Tide – Great counter restaurant in Freemont. My favorite burger in Seattle (smash burger style), also epic prawn toast. Again, famous for lobster and crab rolls, but TBH it’s the burger for me. Local tip—skip the line/queues for Local Tide and grab a seat and a local beer next door at Aslan Brewing. You can order most things (the seafood rolls excepted) off of the Local Tide menu for delivery to your table.
Bangrat Market– Good Thai in Belltown.
Bars
Roquette – Excellent cocktails and reasonably priced caviar service in a dim and sultry setting. Particularly into their brandies, calvados, etc. Our favorite bar in Seattle.
Canon– Known as the best bar in the city, but I don’t really go anymore—I think they take themselves too seriously and it’s full of people who go because it’s on “the lists.” I add more as a warning not to go vs. a recommendation to go.
Foreign National – Sister bar to it’s next door neighbor Stateside, they do very good small bites and cocktails. MUST have the cheeseburger bao buns. To die for.
Le Caviste – Great French-focused wine bar with small plates.
Activities
I would use Butler and arrange a day’s wine tasting.
Barking Frog– A good restaurant in Woodinville – also a decent hotel after a night out of the city/close.
Hop on the Seattle>Bainbridge ferry for a beautiful 20-30 minute ferry ride to Bainbridge Island. You can do it on foot and walk into Winslow (the town), or if in a car, I would drive around to the Japanese American Internment Memorial/Park—it’s run by the US Parks Service and is a lovely place to wander and reflect for a few minutes. After that, head to the Bainbridge Harbour Public House for lunch—the burgers are excellent and they have a good selection of PNW ales, inc. cask. (Closed on Sunday/Monday).
Pike Place Market – The nation’s oldest farmer’s market started in 1907 and home to the first Starbucks (and the only “corporate” operated vendor in the market!). Several restaurants already mentioned above. Famous for fishmongers. Despite the tourist throngs, definitely a working market. Skip the fish-throwing vendor at the mouth of the market and head to Pure Food Fish Market ~1/3 of the way down for the best fish—to the right-hand side of the stall as you look at it, there is what they call the “drive through,” where if you’re in the know (and know what you want) you can pop your head in there and they will serve you far from the crowds of tourists in the main body of the shop!
Rachel’s Ginger Beer – Locally made, great variety of flavors
De Laurenti’s – My favorite deli in Seattle and right at the entrance to the market. The best meats, cheeses, oils, wine etc in a charming old (opened 1946) environment. They’ll happily put together a picnic for you if you call in advance/order online.
Hotels
Four Seasons would be my pick of the downtown hotel options, although I’d throw in the Thompson as a solid chain alternative. If taste/preference is more traditional, then the Fairmont is nice post-renovation with a good lobby bar. The Lotte hotel is not in the best location, but is super, and the Asian hospitality and attention to detail shows. Others to consider: Hotel Andra, Inn at the Market and Palihotel.
Transport
There’s only one person to use for car service: Endashaw Alem. I’ve been using Endashaw for airport pick ups/drop offs and car service for over 13 years. Always on time, unfailingly polite and a good human.
Call/text on Tel:+1-206-900-2627
Email: info@superlimoservices.com
JODI DAVIS & ALAN DAVIS own a neighborhood restaurant in Bremerton—a ferry ride from Seattle on the edge of the Salish Sea—called Hound+Bottle, and the studio gallery space Jodi Co, home to Jodi’s creative design consulting and artist collaborations. They’ll soon be opening a tiny flagship store, 89 ½ Yesler Way, for their blown-glass vase collection.
Our favorite spots to eat live under our friend Renee Erickson’s Sea Creatures umbrella. Just for the record, while The Walrus and the Carpenter will always be our favorite. Lioness is my girlfriend go-to spot, and Willmott’s Ghost has the very best pizza and salad take-out for a ferry commute feast.
Next up, is a true local spot—Cafe Paloma. Sedat has been serving visitors and neighborhood friends for over 25 years. His Mediterranean menu is vegan and vegetarian friendly. It’s a true every-person meet up spot and an if-you-know-you-know quiet corner where you’ll find artists and architects sipping martinis.
Darkalino + Hometeam for the tonno salad, their version of a Niçoise salad (so good!), and great pasta and meatballs in the heart of Occidental Square.
Hometeam + Gallery throws the best “everybody’s welcome” parties and drops. From celebrating Shelly’s Leg, Seattle’s first openly gay disco in the ‘70s, to the unexpected lowrider/classic car meetups in the middle of the historic park, and collabs with Filson and Nike.
The beautiful former bank’s interiors were designed by neighbor Olson Kundig. When the weather is good, it has the best outdoor seating.
Oyster Cellar on First Ave. is another great go-to. Focusing on lesser known, small oyster growers. They offer tasty sides, salads and cocktails. It sits just up from the waterfront, on the edge of downtown where there are not a lot of choices. It’s a happy-making find.
Molly Moon is coming to the waterfront! We’re all thrilled to see Molly’s delightful ice cream happening in the historic Washington Street Boat Landing Pergola.
The Waterfront Park is hopping. It’s taken years, but we’re finally seeing it all come together and it’s stunning. From the native plant focused landscaping, the return of the iconic George Tsutakawa ferry terminal fountain, the city is finally connecting the Pike Place Market to the waterfront and bookended with the Seattle Art Museum Olympic Sculpture Park. The views are next to none, and the air is saltwater fresh.
For nightlife the Showbox in the market is historic and still has the best shows—it’s a right of passage for all Seattle bands big and small.
The Rabbit Box in the market proper, is the sweetest room and theatre. It celebrates all performing arts and is beloved by up-and-coming and well-established artists.
Long Brothers Fine and Rare Books is an exciting new addition to Seattle’s retail scene. It’s quirky, it’s cool, it has a bar in the back serving small bites, coffee, beer and wine. They host First Thursday Art Walk musical pop-ins with recent guests ranging from trombonists to lounge-y dj sets.
Marigold and Mint Botanicals offer the most beautiful bouquets for that special someone to small posy arrangements perfect for your desk or sweet gesture. Bobbi Medlin in Pike Place Market has an edited collection of Euro curated home accessories and outsider art finds. Tiny perfection.
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