This sexy open-fire cooking restaurant is an injection of excitement that Ballard needs. We particularly love the burger, which has a yeasty and sweet brioche bun that works well with the perfectly charred thick patty. Grab a reservation at the counter here, where you’re in close proximity to the kitchen action (a.k.a live flames) and chefs with Lionel Messi-level footwork. The whole experience is entertaining, intimate, and a great place for a date or special occasion.

This semi-upscale Chinese restaurant from Mercer Island has expanded Downtown. The result? A satisfying group meal in a lush space that doesn’t involve the same rigamarole as nearby Din Tai Fung, which is a huge win for the neighborhood. Gingery pork buns and black garlic-slicked wontons are crushable. Toothpick-fastened cumin lamb is just as tender as it is tear-jerking. And the forbidden roast duck, complete with sesame-swirled hoisin and sweet caramelized lemon, is a shining standout—and we’re not just saying that because the skin glistens from overhead lighting. Keep Vivienne’s in your front pocket for pre-theater dinners or a celebratory Saturday lunch.

Locals have enjoyed Ms. Helen's dishes for decades, most recently in catering form. Now the restaurant's new home is a counter inside the Seattle area's largest Harley Davidson showroom—and the food is more exciting than the shiny bikes. On weekends, you can order from a limited (and changing) menu that includes chicken and waffles, shrimp and grits, and a tender fall-apart smothered pork chop that never even heard the word “tough” growing up. Entrees come with sides like meaty greens, mac and cheese, or spectacular clove-dusted yams—but your best move is to just order all three. They run out of food quickly, so get here when they open at 11am to eat a comforting soul food breakfast that you’ll be thinking about well into the next Sunday. 

The former Little Market location in Portage Bay is now Joe’z, a counter specializing in excellent Oklahoma-style smashburgers and bodega-style breakfast sandwiches. There are still (slightly scarcer) shelves stocked with artisanal crackers and bottles of wine. But you can also sit down to a really great lunch involving sandwiches and crisp hand-cut fries that’d make In-N-Out jealous. The burgers themselves are reason enough to swing by, with juicy seared patties, stringy charred onions, and a garlicky lemon aioli in place of standard special sauce. Though the real draw here is the homemade bun, buttery and brioche-y in all the right places. For a standout midday meal you don’t need to jump through hoops to secure, the neighborhood has officially been blessed.

This Tijuana-style taqueria operates out of Fair Isle Brewing’s kitchen Sunday through Tuesday. But judging by the excellent tacos on hand-pressed tortillas, they should be full-time residents. The small-but-mighty menu features juicy chicken tinga and charred adobada spinning on a trompo al pastor. Yet our favorite of the trio might just be the calabacitas, sweet from a long roast and pops of corn drenched in chipotle cream and queso fresco. Yeah, the side chips are a little too salty, but their salsa blended with habanero and caramelized onion is so good, it’s worth chugging more beer to offset the sodium. We can’t think of a much better brewery dinner alongside Fair Isle’s farmhouse saisons.

In a narrow pocket of 400 Fairview’s food court, this promising al taglio pizza counter serves crunchy Roman-style rectangles worth rerouting SLU lunch plans for. You’ll see the usual tomato-splashed suspects done well—like a basil-brightened margherita or a classic cheese pie polka-dotted with crackly halal pepperoni. But Pizza By Ruffin doesn’t stop at the basics. Punchy green jamaican curry catapults an otherwise monotonous mushroom slice to another lunar plane, squash is paired with brie, and they’re even loading pies with gumbo ingredients. And sure, there might be a bitter-burnt bite of crust here and there, but we all know that’s far better than an underbaked pizza. In a neighborhood bereft of solid pie options, this counts as progress.

Expensive party restaurants often have bad food—call it correlation, not causation—but La Mar is the Peruvian transplant here to squash that claim. The dining room with furnishings seemingly plucked from a luxury showroom feels right at home on Bellevue’s Old Main, only the menu is stacked with really great stuff. Snacks like flaky chicken empanadas or wonton tacos stuffed with creamy tuna tartare would be demolished at a wedding cocktail hour. Blowtorched Nikkei nigiri highlights hamachi that nearly disintegrates beneath bright sauce drizzles. Even the complimentary taro chips and herby green dip are poundable. With a massive space and ample weeknight reservations available, a serious birthday dinner or after-work team drinks become effortless to plan.

Shomon Kappo is the sister restaurant to sushi institution Shiro's—and it lives up to that pedigree with a fun and fresh experience. Sitting at the light wood counter, you’ll get an eight-course mix of sushi and other Japanese small plates (think buttery Hokkaido scallop nigiri and a deep-fried Dungeness crab nugget). And unlike omakase spots that are more cramped and stuffy, the 14-seat counter is buzzing with enjoyable energy while still spacious enough to feel like you’re at your own private table. This place is pricey (around $185 per person). But from the fantastic food to the above-and-beyond service, it's worth shelling out a bit more at Shomon to celebrate a special occasion.

The newest addition to Southcenter’s growing restaurant lineup is an excellent choice when you need dumplings and buns in the South End. A must-order is the House Special BBQ Pork Bun, which could almost be a dessert. It's got an airy donut-like chew with a sugary crumble top and lots of saucy pork inside. And be sure to get the salt and pepper chicken wings hidden under a pile of crispy fried shallots and tender honey walnut prawns for sharing. While a couple of dishes miss the mark, you can find enough great stuff to have a very satisfying meal after a long day of shopping. Dim sum is served all day in the expansive dining room, but weekend mornings tend to get busy—stop by for a late lunch or early dinner to avoid a wait. 

La Chingona Taqueria’s colorful second location in West Seattle has tons of tables, strong margaritas, and even better food than its already excellent Bellevue food truck. The fish tacos are the best in Seattle—flaky cod covered in a crispy golden breading and drizzled with tangy chipotle dressing we could chug on its own. Inside there's papel picado strung overhead, bold murals, and welcoming service at the lively spot that's perfect for an easy weeknight dinner. Be sure to share tasty dishes like meaty pork ribs doused in a cinnamon-heavy mole, loaded chilaquiles, and tres leches with slices of aromatic white peaches. 

Rimini has what Italian restaurants in Seattle don’t. Classic meatballs contain pork, veal, and beef, and no trace of orange zest. Homemade cheese tortellini in a garlic-spiked cream is so silken that it’s tough to stop eating until fullness hits like a parmesan-blasted brick. And there’s a Sicilian fellow named Tony who serenades the dining room with Sinatra standards and asks each table, “Va bene?” approximately six times per course. We wouldn’t expect less from the family behind Rimini, who also runs Montalcino in Issaquah. Turns out, crispy cannoli shell tastes very good while Tony's belting "That's Amore."

The crackly rings of bouncy yeasted dough at this Fremont counter are game-changing, and yet, it’s not too annoying to get one (for now). Backyard Bagel’s snaking line progresses relatively quickly, food flies out in less than five minutes, and they're not skimpy on the lox. For purists, there’s a beautiful simplicity in chewy everything bagels stuffed with whipped scallion schmear. But don’t count out The Cali Crisp, a vegan sandwich full of avocado mash, bright corn salsa, pickled onion, summer tomatoes, and just enough Kari Kari chili crisp to tickle the sinuses. The only catch? Sell-out happens around 11:30am, so don’t sleep through that Sunday alarm.

Embarking upon a rowdy bar crawl is normally the only way to have a fun time in Belltown. But if you require a full meal (and an earlier bedtime), there’s Lenox. This Afro-Latin soul food spot feels as electric as a night out at a luxe resort. Majesty palms and lively chatter are abundant. Crystal-clear clarified piña coladas look like ice water and taste like vacation. And lest we forget the phenomenal food—like braised beef wrapped in empanada pastry flakier than a third-tier friend, grilled chicken thighs on a swipe of guava BBQ sauce, and crackly lechon with coconutty greens we’d like to protect at all costs. Let the rum flow and go to this place for an exciting group dinner or date where it’s not imperative that you hear the other person’s ramblings.

If you laugh in the face of soft tacos, Situ is your new personal Disneyland. The menu at this Mexican-Lebanese counter spot focuses on deep-fried stuff—and the result is not just a symphony of crunches, it’s an asset to Ballard Ave’s dinner scene. There are perfectly crispy chips with Seattle’s contender for best guacamole, nachos topped with beans that could stop time, and exceptional carnitas rolled up into taquitos. We also love the excellent fried tacos held together by toothpicks and stuffed with fillings like spicy roasted cauliflower with chickpea mash. Come and go as you please either at the front counter or by the disco ball-lit back bar, where margaritas flow like water. Just remember—and if you don’t, posted signs will remind you—“Don’t eat the f*cking toothpicks.”