Like Moths to a Flame

After every meal I ate at Beth's—whether huddled at the short, dirty counter, stuck between the howling old punk from the dining-room radio and the droning sad-bastard rock blowing out from the dish room, or tucked away among the tables, going slowly cross-eyed from the crawling strobe effect of the drawings fluttering on the walls—I felt like crap for hours afterward.

Then I got better.

Peter Mumford

Location Info

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Beth's Cafe

7311 Aurora Ave. N.
Seattle, WA 98103

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Greenwood & Phinney Ridge

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Beth's Cafe 7311 Aurora Ave. N., 782-5588, bethscafe.com. Open 24 hours, 363 days a year.

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Then I went back to Beth's.

I didn't do it because I had to. There wasn't any deep, journalistic revelation I was chasing. In the realm of one-note restaurants, Beth's is the one-note-iest: You can know nearly everything there is to know about the place after 30 seconds inside.

I went back because I loved the place. And that's the thing—the rub, so to speak: While most restaurants are about want, Beth's is about need. You're either the kind of person who needs Beth's in your life or you aren't.

So you make your decision. You take your chances. You live with the consequences. And come morning, you look at the wreck of yourself in the mirror and ask again: Do I ever need to go back to Beth's?

If you're like me, eventually the answer will come back yes. And when it does, Beth's will be there waiting.

jsheehan@seattleweekly.com

Price Check
 12-egg Triple Bypass   $19.50
 Ham scramble  $8.75
 Breakfast burrito  $9.50
 Hash and eggs   $8.75
 Pancakes, eggs, and bacon  $8.75
 Short stack  $4.95