Favorite Restaurants
Ballard
Capitol Hill
Downtown/Seattle Center/South Lake Union
Fremont/Wallingford
Green Lake/Phinney Ridge
Magnolia/Queen Anne
University District
West Seattle
- Ballard Pizza Company—extra-large slices of pizza made with good, fresh ingredients
- Cocina Esperanza—best Mexican food in town; inexpensive
- Kangaroo & Kiwi—Aussie and Kiwi pub with fantastic food and trivia on Wednesday nights at 8 pm ($5/team of 5)
- La Carta de Oaxaca—delicious, authentic, reasonably priced Mexican food
- The Other Coast Café—East coast sandwiches with northwest attitude; easy to grab and go for a picnic at the Ballard Locks (there is also a location in Capitol Hill)
- Paseo—located in Fremont and Ballard; amazing pork sandwiches; good value
- Ray’s Cafe—this is the casual, upstairs venue of the more expensive Ray’s Boathouse restaurant. Fabulous views of Shilshole Bay/Puget Sound; wonderful deck where they give you cozy blankets if it’s cold
- The Sexton—Southern-inflected restaurant and watering hole in old Ballard; delicious mac & cheese and chicken pot pie
Capitol Hill
- Café Presse—traditional French food; small plates
- Dick’s Burgers
- Eltana Bagels—Wood-fired bagel cafe
- Hot Mama’s Pizza
- Marjorie—great food, a little pricier, but the plantains are a must-have
- Molly Moon’s ice cream—absolutely fabulous ice cream; try the salted caramel and Theo chocolate; might encounter a long line, but if you just want a pint, you can cut the line and go straight to the freezer
- OddFellows
- Piecora’s New York Pizza
Downtown/Seattle Center/South Lake Union
- Belltown Pizza
- Boat Street Café—lovely restaurant; excellent
- Buckley’s—located in Belltown; great hangout bar; lots of TVs to watch sports; official hangout spot for Dukies during basketball season
- Café Campagne—located near Pike Place Market; wonderful lunch
- Collins Pub—near Pioneer Square on 2nd Avenue; fabulous pub food; nice atmosphere; patio; great spot to go before or after a sporting event
- Citrus—new, upscale club in South Lake Union; VERY trendy
- Elliot Bay Oyster House—on the waterfront at Pier 56, quintessential Seattle experience, not very expensive, progressive oyster happy hour 4-6pm on weekdays
- Flying Fish Restaurant—great oyster happy hour 4-6pm every day
- FX McRory’s—located in Pioneer Square, across from Qwest Field
- Harbor City Barbecue—located in the International District; great dim sum; really economical
- Il Bistro—Italian restaurant in Pike Place Market; cheap happy hour food in the bar
- Il Corvo—Italian place in Pioneer Square
- Kell’s Irish Pub—located on Post Alley near Pike Place Market; awesome Seattle establishment; relaxed, upbeat social atmosphere
- Lola—one of Tom Douglas’s many wonderful restaurants, this one with a Greek flair; particularly great breakfast; moderately priced
- Lunchbox Laboratory—near the flagship REI in South Lake Union; great burgers; inexpensive
- Macrina Bakery—located in Belltown (also on the top of Queen Anne)
- Main Street Gyros—inexpensive gyros downtown
- The Metropolitan Grill—best steak in town; huge portions; expensive
- Salumi—specializing in cured meats; great lunch sandwiches
- Serious Pie—one of Tom Douglas’s restaurants, this one an upscale pizza joint
- Steelhead Diner—located near Pioneer Square; great food and atmosphere; moderately priced
- Tat’s Delicatessen—located in Pioneer Square; good sandwiches; inexpensive
- Tutta Bella—located between downtown and South Lake Union; great Neopolitan pizza joint
- Twist—located in Belltown on First Avenue; upscale lounge
- Zoe—located in Belltown; “absolute favorite”; expensive
Fremont/Wallingford
- Agua Verde Café and Paddle Club—on Portage Bay between Wallingford and the University District
- Ballroom—located in Fremont; very popular spot; upscale casual; trivia nights on Wednesdays are lots of fun; pool table
- Blue C Sushi—located in Fremont; what could be more fun than a conveyor belt of sushi?
- Dick’s Burgers—located in Wallingford
- Dot’s Delicatessen on Fremont Ave.—a deli offering lunch and dinner of soups, sandwiches and platters of locally sourced, housemade sausages and pâtés
- Eltana Bagels—Wood-fired bagel cafe
- Molly Moon’s ice cream—located in Wallingford; absolutely fabulous ice cream; try the salted caramel and Theo chocolate; might encounter a long line, but if you just want a pint, you can cut the line and go straight to the freezer
- Nectar—located in Fremont; lots of bands play here
- Paseo—located in Fremont and Ballard; amazing pork sandwiches; good value
- Tilth—in Wallingord; known for its organic, locally sourced offerings; expensive
- Tutta Bella—located in Wallingford; great Neopolitan pizza joint
Green Lake/Phinney Ridge
- PCC Natural Market—great, healthy deli selections
- Red Mill Burgers—located on Phinney Ridge; great burgers, shakes and onion rings
- Santa Fe Café—located on Phinney Ridge
- 74th Street Ale House—located on Phinney Ridge; delicious pub grub
Magnolia/Queen Anne
- Chinook’s—located at The Fisherman’s Terminal between Queen Anne and Magnolia; bustling seafood restaurant; moderately priced
- Dick’s Burgers—in lower Queen Anne
- Hill Top Ale House—located on the top of Queen Anne; delicious pub grub
- Maggie’s Bluff—at the bottom of Magnolia at the edge of Elliot Bay Marina; enjoy a milkshake and hamburger while looking out at the Puget Sound and boats
- McMenamin’s Pub—near Seattle Center in lower Queen Anne; good pub grub; great fries
- Peso’s—located in lower Queen Anne; fun, upbeat joint; great for happy hour and a casual night out
- Racha Noodles—located in lower Queen Anne, near Seattle Center; great Thai food and very friendly service
- Red Mill Burgers—located in the Interbay between Queen Anne and Magnolia; great burgers, shakes and onion rings
- Toulouse Petit—located in lower Queen Anne, next to Peso’s; one of the best happy hours in the city; Cajun-French cuisine; huge selection; amazing food; great value
University District
- Blue C Sushi—located at University Village (known as UVillage); what could be more fun than a conveyor belt of sushi?
- Boom Noodle—located at University Village
- Burgermaster—on 45th St. just east of University Village
- Cedars Restaurant—Indian food (the mango curry is really good!)
- Chipotle—on University Avenue (“The Ave”)
- Guanazo’s Tacos Pupuseria—have to try the pupusas
- Hawaii BBQ—large portions for a small price
- Itadakimasu—Japanese, Korean, Hawaiian food
- Le Fournil—just south of the University District on Eastlake Avenue; wonderful French café with great lunch and breakfast specials
- Mod Pizza—build your own pizza
- Noah’s Bagels—at University Village, attached to the QFC grocery store; great bagels
- Pallino Pastaria—at University Village; simple pasta and sandwiches
- Portage Bay Café—located on Roosevelt Way; all organic breakfast; delicious!
- Ruzhen Mongolian Grill—large portions
- PCC Natural Market—located just north of the University District in View Ridge on 40th Ave. NE and 65th St.; great, healthy deli selections
- Tea Republik—tea and smoothies
- Tubs Gourmet Subs—located on Lake City Way; best sandwiches you’ll ever have!
- Voula’s—featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, greasy-spoon pacific northwest breakfast
- World Wrapps—at University Village
West Seattle
- Salty’s on Alki—amazing all-you-can-eat brunch; moderately priced