Looking as if suburbia had finally colonized the bamboo-forested rebel camp in House of Flying Daggers, Bamboo Garden does Szechuan food the right way, bringing out its intricate spiciness. Chengdu hand-shaved noodles float in a tingly sesame-paste-thickened broth redolent of Szechuan... More >>

Bistro Turkuaz is a long, yellow breadbox ending in a blood-red wall, behind which is a magical kitchen that produces some of the most nuanced Turkish cuisine in town. At the top of Union Street on 34th Avenue in Madrona, this family-run spot is quietly fantastic. Hummus and pita and grape... More >>

Branzino comes off like a handsome older man, charming without trying too hard. The upscale Italian restaurant is always crowded in the evenings, drawing as many loudmouthed businessmen to the bar as it does cozy couples on dinner dates. Its menu is divided into five sections: antipasti, fish,... More >>

Brasa’s ocher dining room, with its curves and mezzanines and showcase bar, may get you in the mood to spend money. Chef Tamara Murphy cooks as epically as her surroundings, imbuing her meats with the smoke of her wood-fired oven and celebrating the marvelous powers of olive oil. If you're... More >>

Café Campagne is devoted to French bistro cooking the way Amy Winehouse is devoted to eyeliner: visibly, avidly, with shades of the ridiculous. Yet the cafe is more than a studious recreation of a Parisian resto. It's a warm, echt-Seattle restaurant that holds its own in the romance department ... More >>

Stop by this market stall during a slow moment and you'll spot the women who run it nimbly folding trays' worth of pelmeni (tiny meat-stuffed dumplings). The baked piroshki get rewarmed in the microwave, so pass them over in favor of dumplings or stuffed cabbages like that woman in your... More >>

Cauliflower does not get the love it deserves. Long lumped by picky children into the same category as Brussels sprouts and lima beans, it rarely makes a menu at all, let alone earns center stage. But it should. Like mushrooms, cauliflower soaks up the flavors around it, and if cooked correctly,... More >>

Pasta is still the focus of this neighborhood trattoria, nearly one year after its muse, Justin Niedermeyer, split. Jason Stratton, who originally worked with Niedermeyer to launch Spinasse, is its new chef and inspiration. Whether you order cipollini stuffed with salt cod ($12), roasted... More >>

Seeing as it's about the only restaurant in Seattle that specializes in catfish, and seeing how catfish is an item of far more succulence than, say, tofu, Catfish Corner has developed a loyal following since it first opened in 1985. Thankfully it doesn't skate by on its rep, as a buttery, moist... More >>

Tiny, bare-bones Chang Ahn Jung's reputation has barely spread beyond Korean foodies, but its food is good enough to warrant a peak-oil trek to Federal Way and back. (One critical warning: The restaurant's sign is mistransliterated "Jang An.") What makes this place so much better than Korean... More >>

It's standing room only at West Seattle's favorite miniature alehouse; this place is almost always packed, whether you go on Friday night for the fabulous French fries or for a Sunday brunch of Hawaiian sweet-bread French toast. It's the kind of place where if you ask the bartender for a food... More >>

Over the course of 18 months, Sitka & Spruce founder Matt Dillon and Wylie Bush gutted a gorgeous Spanish revival building under a highway overpass to create a urban-rustic restaurant that aspires to be a center for Seattle's food community. The communal dinners that fund their enterprise range... More >>

Whether because of good planning or good luck, co-chefs Jesse Thomas and Craig Serbousek opened Crow in a corner of Lower Queen Anne that might’ve been considered out of the way three years ago, but is now rising to meet their culinary standards. Condo developers and the Gates Foundation ar... More >>

Jason and Nicole Wilson's Madison Valley restaurant is becoming like nirvana for a certain class of local grubniks--a white-on-white temple to Chef Jason Wilson's James Beard Award-winning modernist's take on Pacific Northwest cuisine. The renovated 1903 house is beautiful, the restaurant itself... More >>

You can get channa masala and Kashmiri naan at 20 places in Seattle, but for a rare taste of Keralan dishes like fried cassava with fish in a coconut-milk curry, you'll have to drive to this all-pink strip-mall restaurant in Bellevue. Look over the "specialties" and "combos" sections of the... More >>

A reconfigured strip joint (no joke), Dahlak exudes the air of a private club: a bit cliquey, a bit hidden, set back from the street. The perfumed room, often hazy with the smell of frankincense burned during the traditional Eritrean coffee ceremony, is awash in spice. So are dishes like zegni... More >>

Not surprisingly, Rosticeria y Cocina El Paisano, which is owned by the butcher shop two doors down, specializes in meat. Its Mexican-style roast chickens vary from crackling-skinned to dry, depending on how long they've spent out of the oven and under the heat lights. Uniformly fantastic: tacos... More >>

Now in bigger, fancier digs, FareStart serves tasty lunches cooked by rigorously trained homeless or formerly homeless chefs. The lunch menu has the basics—turkey sandwiches, burgers, and fish and chips—but also ranges upscale with entrees like seared scallops over beluga lentils. Its... More >>

Musician Bill Coury quit his day job to focus on his family-friendly pizza joint, which looks like it was lifted straight from the Ave, with walls painted harlot red, thrift-store abstracts, and a guitar-heavy soundtrack. Coury's 15-inch pies—from the simple pepperoni to more froufrou ones... More >>

Gabriel Slimp serves his barbecued meats just as God and man intended: naked (with sauce on the side). You want to pay attention to how his brisket and ribs turn out, with their shiny black crust, red smoke ring just underneath, and tender but not mushy flesh, with all the fat and collagen... More >>

Perched next to the I-5 overpass that divides the International District, Green Leaf delivers a quick meal that will fill you up. Across the board, the dishes are presented beautifully, and there's no scrimping on size. Regulars here are often fiercely loyal to their dish of choice, whether... More >>

Harvest Vine is a mecca for small plates. Seat yourself at the bar and witness a succession of heat-infused conceptions. Employing tiny cast-iron skillets, nimble-wristed chefs sauté individual dishes. From your close vantage point, you'll be privy to the best views and smells emerging from this ... More >>

Ethan Stowell's third restaurant looks like a cross between a cigar box and a sauna, and not much bigger than either. It's a casual neighborhood joint for people who enjoy hanging out in tiny, refined spaces and are comfortable ordering off a menu that refuses to define itself in courses. A meal... More >>

If you can stand the body crush in the lobby, this Hong Kong-style restaurant is the place to go for dim sum. Dozens of delights, a good mix of tradition and novelty, circle the room: The pastry around the shrimp-and-onion balls crumples at the touch; the barbecued pork buns have the texture of... More >>

At Joule, you'll witness husband-and-wife team Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi in their open kitchen, tending to their many small creations. Their menu is esoteric and familiar, offering comfort as well as challenge. Joule's "mac and cheese" dish is black truffle-flavored spaetzle, with the... More >>