Scott referenced Cafe Press in one of his posts…which is a tasty little joint and the readers of CD news should indeed make their way there if yet the food has not yet been tasted. BUT WHERE ELSE?!?!?!
The CD is great for the easy downtown and ID access for food, but what about supporting close to home? Where to go in the CD for food, coffee, beer and do we even have a farmers market??? Every other neighborhood does.
Please dear readers, open my world to more tasty places!!
I know its closed but it looked like it was getting repainted recently?
Ezell’s famous chicken is awesome. Also my friends keep telling us we have to check out Catfish Corner.
Picorra’s at 14 and Madison (the cd side) mmmm pizza
I grab spicy strips from Ezells far too often for my own good. Killer fries, and their peach cobbler is divine. Ignore the bums from Tent City that are pan-handling there this month.
Cafe Vega on Yesler, by Pratt Park, for coffee. They’re resuming an open mic night on Thursdays. Go the extra four blocks from Starbucks and give them your money!
Seattle Central Grind at Cherry and MLK for coffee (I have yet to go there myself – is it any good?).
All Purpose Pizza and Ale at Jackson and 28th. Good pizza and pasta (but not inexpensive), extremely child-friendly. Bonus points: you might see local celebrities the Deuce Eights chilling across the street at Flo Ware Park. I wish these guys all the best, but it’s always struck me as a real contradiction – like a little piece of yuppie Wallingford squeezed in between rib joints and nail salons. The times, they are a changing.
Moonlight Cafe at 19th and Jackson. Perfectly decent pan-asian food, but more on the glistening heavy Chinese side than the creamy light Thai side of things. All dishes come in meat and vegetarian versions. They *only* accept tips as cash (for tax evasion?) which is annoying enough that I may stop going there.
More Ethiopian than you can shake a stick at. I’ve only eaten at Hidmo, and only once, and it took over an hour to serve us even though we were the only customers. But the food was good.
http://www.yelp.com is your friend.
Have been to Central Grind only once and it was good – pretty casual service – a chess set and board set out, which is a good sign (no one was using it, though)
Kokeb on 12th near Columbia is good (was there once at current location and once at previous location)
Thompson’s at 23rd and Union has excellent food, but it sometimes takes a bit of courage to go there. Increasing their good-customer base would help that whole sad intersection – the warm weather evening eat-and-walk group has had very good meals there
To clarify: open mic night at Vega starts Thursday February 1st, and they’re at the corner of Yesler and 20th.
According to thecentralarea.com Vega has also extended their hours: 7am – 9pm M-F and 10am – 6pm on weekends. Vega is family-owned and every dollar helps, so show the love.
Catfish Corner rocks! And it’s really the nicest, best service in the CD.
Great mexican food, friendly, family-run:
http://millerparkseattle.blogspot.com/2007/12/happy-new-year-el-gallito.html
Assimba, the Ethiopian restaurant next to Catfish Corner (Cherry & MLK). Also family owned, as are many of the other fantastic Ethiopian restaurants our neighborhood is (or should be) famous for. Scrumptious, and cheap!
Stretching the borders a little, Vegan Garden near 12th & Jackson — opened by some ex-Moonlight Cafe people. We go there a lot. I won’t bring up all the wonders to be found a little to the west in the I.D.
I also LOVE — and couldn’t believe I passed it by all these years — Northwest Tofu (just west of Jackson & 20th)!! They make their own tofu, and are not strictly veg as you might suspect. Authentic Chinese hole-in-the-wall. CASH ONLY!!
And hello, don’t forget Casuelita’s on Judkins, a true neighborhood treasure, run by Theo, a hella nice guy who grew up on the block.
Friday afternoons at MLK & E. Union by the Grocery Outlet.
Tougo Coffee on 18th and Union — a %^&$ fine cup of Joe. Also Central Cinema is a nice mom and pop place where you can grab a bite, watch a movie or both!
http://www.tougocoffee.com/
http://www.central-cinema.com/
From the Seattle P-I:
North Shore Hawaiian Barbecue (606 N. 105th St.) will open a second location next month, on the outskirts of Little Saigon. The new spot will serve a more extensive menu of island-style grinds at the corner of Yesler and Boren in the space that used to be Lloyd’s Rocket.
Yo, what is this warm-evening walking-and-eating group of which you speak? That sounds great.
Love the Central Cinema. Their turkey-dog-pigs-in-a-blanket with chiplote mayo are soooooo good! And less than $4!
I also love Assimba, the Ethiopian place on 23rd and Cherry. Their food is fantastic! Make sure to ask for some Awaze (spicy paste) on the side! Looks like a hole in the wall, but it’s worth it.
For a little cafe, I’ve had good luck with Katy’s on 20th and Union.
As noted, the farmers market is at MLK &More detail here. Union. It’s terrific, but only open early May to late Sept. More detail at: http://www.yelp.com/biz/madison-madrona-farmers-market-seattle
Moonlight Cafe is actually Vietnamese. They do have some random faux-Chinese stuff on there, like vegan General Tso’s chicken, but that’s an anomaly. It’s good, fresh Vietnamese food that I don’t think I would classify as “glistening.”
Hi neighbors – I am Chef/owner of Justfood Catering a full service company that caters social and corporate functions and has just expanded with Justfood TOGO. Justfood TOGO offers a weekly menu of fresh healthy soups, stews, sauces, condiments and a weekly entree with sides for pick up or delivery. Sample menu: roasted carrot & sweet potato ginger curry soup, roasted poblano, chorizo and potato soup, chicken fajitas with cumin lime black beans.
If you would like to be added to the weekly menu, email Chef Brenda at [email protected]
seconding the central cinema recommendation. they have a cafe so you don’t actually have to see a movie to eat there. they serve a wide variety of tasty foods as well as beer & wine. their menu’s online on the http://www.central-cinema.com page
http://www.yelp.com is also a good resource for discovering restaurants
Coconutty, a member of this site owns All-Purpose Pizza at 29th & Jackson
The food is top quality – and JustFood, know it or not, is responsible for many neighborhood weddings and functions of all types! Also, the annual Mr. & Mrs. Bert Benton 20th Avenue Block Party held every Labor Day weekend! Great fresh street BBQ food, live music and entertainment for all!
Just wanted to invite everyone to join us on Sundays for Game Day at The BottleNeck. We’ve got a pretty awesome grilled cheese sandwich/Bloody Mary combo going and we just received a really nice mention in The Seattle Times. You can check it out at:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/foodwine/2004158431_happyhour03.html
My partner and I live in the Central District and we love meeting our neighbors. The BottleNeck is located on Madison between John and 23rd and we open at 4 PM Tuesday through Sunday. Come on by!
Drove by Lloyds Rocket and I believe the new sign said Hawaiian BBQ open soon………Also in the CD that was not mentioned, Bottleneck Lounge on Madison @ 23rd, full bar, sandwiches, soups, app. fun little joint with great neighborhood feel. And of course the best bar food in the CD Twilight Exit on Madison and 22nd across from safeway. Check them out, recommend both! Cheers, Chef Brenda Lee
Holy heck Batman, have you had the Americano at BTG?! it’s amazing, so smooooth, so rich…so perfect! must try asap… right at 15th and Madison can’t miss it!! hurry quick!
Interesting, I bus past BTG on the way to work each morning and I’ve always wondered how their coffee is. I guess I’ll have to stop by one of these mornings!
To add to what’s already been mentioned, Twilight Exit actually has pretty decent burgers which are definitely worth checking out. 2 for 1 on Sundays ’til 4pm.
Also, I’ve never eaten at the Bottleneck but I can vouch for the drinks. Be wary of the “Sum Bitch” however. :)