Seattle Restaurants

Seattle Restaurant Reviews

Thanks to inventive chefs, first-rate local produce, adventurous diners, and a bold entrepreneurial spirit, Seattle has become one of the culinary capitals of the nation. Fearless young chefs have stepped in and raised the bar. Nowadays, fresh and often foraged produce, local seafood, and imaginative techniques make the quality of local cuisine even higher.

Seattle's dining scene has been stoked like a wildfire by culinary rock stars who make cameos on shows like Top Chef and regular appearances on "best of" lists. Among the 2010 James Beard nominees were Matt Dillon of the Corson Building; Jerry Traunfeld of Poppy; Rachel Yang of Joule; Mark Fuller of Spring Hill; and Ethan Stowell of Anchovies & Olives, How to Cook a Wolf, and Tavolàta. The winner? Jason Wilson of Crush restaurant won the "Best Chef Northwest" award.

The city is particularly strong on New American, French, and Asian cuisines. Chefs continuously fine-tune what can best be called Pacific Northwest cuisine, which features fresh, local ingredients, including anything from nettles and mushrooms foraged in nearby forests; colorful berries, apples, and cherries grown by Washington State farmers; and outstanding seafood from the cold northern waters of the Pacific Ocean, including wild salmon, halibut, oysters, Dungeness crab, and geoduck. Seattle boasts quite a few outstanding bakeries, too, whose breads and desserts you'll see touted on many menus.

Seattle is also seeing a resurgence in American comfort food, often with a gourmet twist, as well as gastropub fare, which can mean anything from divine burgers on locally baked ciabatta rolls to grilled foie gras with brioche toast. But innovation still reigns supreme: local salmon cooked sous vide and accompanied with pickled kimchi or fresh-picked peas can be just as common as aspic spiked with sake and reindeer meat. Many menus feature fusion cuisine or pages of small-plate offerings. One thing's for sure: chefs are highlighting their inventions with the top-notch ingredients that makes Pacific Northwest cooking famous.

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