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6 Best Places To Eat In Seattle

Seattle is known around the world for its coffee culture, the Space Needle and Pike Place Market. But what about Seattle restaurants? We’ve asked a local expert to share her picks for the best places to eat in Seattle Washington. Discover how to eat like a local in this wonderful Pacific Northwestern city.

Seattle Skyline
Image: docbombay /Depositphotos.com

Seattle is famous for its cutting-edge coffee culture. But coffee is just one aspect of Seattle’s culinary landscape.

Locals dine at the best restaurants in Seattle, shop at Pike Place Market for some of the country’s freshest fish and eat Asian specialties at cool food trucks. In our opinion, Seattle is one of the best food cities in America.

This is a city that serves everything from burgers to haute cuisine. But how does a Seattle tourist know how to navigate the rich Seattle dining scene?

A Local’s Picks For The Best Places To Eat In Seattle

To answer the question of where to eat in Seattle, we asked local expert Laura Lynch of Savored Journeys and Savored Sips to provide inside tips for the best food in Seattle. Laura lived in Seattle for seven years. Here are her recommendations for six of the top restaurants in Seattle:

Favorite Local Seattle Restaurant

Breakfast at Lola - Best Places to Eat in Seattle Washington
Brunch at Lola is not a light meal. Pictured here is Lola’s loaded Eggs Benedict. | Image: Laura Lynch

I have two ultimate favorites in Seattle. These are the first two restaurants I recommend to visitors and take out-of-town guests.

If you love brunch, Lola is an absolute must for classic favorites. It’s an upscale Greek-influenced restaurant for lunch and dinner, but the restaurant also serves Northwest inspired breakfasts. I am in love with the eggs benedict. It’s piled high with Bavarian ham and drizzled with creamy dill hollandaise that’s to die for.

For dinner, I love Staple & Fancy. It’s dark, rustic interior with exposed brick and beams creates a comfortable ambiance. It’s owned by one of Seattle’s top restaurateurs, Ethan Stowell, and is consistently good.

The chef’s menu includes a parade of dishes delivered all at once to the table as appetizers, followed by a pasta, main dish and dessert. The food is always stellar and it’s exciting to see what will come out of the kitchen next.

Lola is located at 2000 4th Ave, Seattle, WA 98121, USA.
Staple & Fancy is located at 4739 Ballard Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107, USA.

Iconic Seattle Food

Elliot's Oyster House - Best Places to Eat in Seattle Washington
You shouldn’t miss oysters at Elliot’s Oyster House when you visit Seattle. | Image: Laura Lynch

Oysters are a Seattle icon. In fact, there’s nothing that feels more Seattle than a plate of freshly shucked oysters.

One of my favorite places in Seattle to eat oysters is Elliott’s Oyster House on the downtown waterfront. Elliott’s is a classy restaurant with a fantastic view of Elliott Bay and an extensive menu of local favorites.

This Seattle restaurant serves the freshest oysters on the half shell, as well as Dungeness crab (another Seattle icon) and other seafood specialties.

Elliott’s Oyster House is located at 1201 Alaskan Way, Seattle, WA 98101, USA.

Favorite Seattle Cafe

Coffee - Best Food in Seattle Washington
It’s always a good time to drink coffee at a Seattle cafe. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

I wouldn’t say there’s just one special cafe for coffee in Seattle. That’s because Seattle is well known for its coffee – from huge companies like Starbucks and Seattle’s Best Coffee to smaller cafes like Slate and Milstead & Co.

Most tourists in Seattle flock to the original Starbucks in Pike Place Market, but I prefer the smaller cafes. Seattle Coffee Works is just a few steps from Starbucks and offers a much more personalized experience.

Coffee shops are located all over Seattle.

Special Occasion Meal

Art of the Table - Best Places to Eat in Seattle Washington
The plates at Art of the Table please both the eyes and taste buds. | Image: Laura Lynch

We really enjoy going to Art of the Table for a special occasion meal. The food there is art.

The restaurant creates a new menu daily depending on ingredients that are sourced from local markets. Order the chef’s tasting menu made up of 7-10 dishes and you’ll eat like a king.

The restaurant has moved from a tiny sliver of a location in Wallingford to a larger space in Fremont. They even offer a 5-seat chef’s table with an excellent kitchen view.

Art of the Table is located at 3801 Stone Way N Suite A, Seattle, WA 98103, USA.

Favorite Seattle Dessert

Though we really aren’t dessert people, we could never resist the Smoked Caramel Panna Cotta at Heartwood Provisions. It’s served with brown butter apples and hazelnut crumbles and is one of the most decadent desserts I’ve ever eaten. It’s worth every calorie!

Heartwood Provisions is located at 1103 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98101, USA.

Hidden Seattle Gem

Pizza at Veraci - Best Places to Eat in Seattle Washington
Veraci serves Neapolitan pizza in Seattle. | Image: Laura Lynch

A pepperoni pizza from Veraci in Ballard is one of the best things you can eat in Seattle. Of all the pizza we’ve eaten around the world, we’ve never found one that can beat Veraci. While you can find Veraci by the slice at random street markets, we recommend the Ballard location.

Veraci is located at 500 NW Market St, Seattle, WA 98107, USA.

Meet The Seattle Local Expert

Laura Lynch is the creator and writer of two blogs, Savored Journeys and Savored Sips, both which explore food and drinks around the world. Laura is an avid world traveler and lover of great food and wine.

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About The Authors

About The Authors

Daryl & Mindi Hirsch

Saveur Magazine’s BEST TRAVEL BLOG award winners Daryl and Mindi Hirsch share their culinary travel experiences and recipes on the 2foodtrippers website. Since launching the site in 2012, they’ve traveled to over 40 countries in their quest to bring readers their unique taste of the world.

Disclosure

We update our articles regularly. Some updates are major while others are minor link changes and spelling corrections. Let us know if you see anything that needs to be updated in this article.

Original Publication Date: January 6, 2018

sasha

Sunday 19th of January 2020

7 years in Seattle does not make you "local" her tourist trap picks prove this.

Dave

Friday 3rd of January 2020

I don't think that whoever wrote this even knows the city. They talked about Tully's, it's been closed for several years. They don't even mention Espresso Vivace for coffee, which is almost always in the top coffee shops in the city. And mentioned by top chef as the best coffee.

Mark

Thursday 14th of November 2019

Elliott's? There are at least 10 other places to get a quality oyster from then there. Do the research and don't be so lazy.

Daryl and Mindi Hirsch

Monday 25th of November 2019

Our Seattle local expert shared her favorite places to eat in Seattle based on many years of living in the city. Perhaps her taste is different from yours.

Evelyne

Monday 5th of March 2018

This is really a very very helpful guide. Every so often I go there but did not know the resources you provided! Thanks to you guys!

same day taj mahal tour by car

Thursday 18th of January 2018

Great, that is so awesome place and have so many good things to enjoy. Food is looking so delicious and yummy. Pizza is my favorite and wants to eat that pizza.

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