More than 10 years in, and thisromantic trattoria on Capitol Hillcontinues to entrance diners with food from Italy’s Piedmont region. The nest of delicate tajarin pasta with butter and sage sauce is a Seattle comfort food mainstay, but every dish from chef Stuart Lane is memorable. After a satisfying dinner at Spinasse, one might want to head over to next door sibling barArtusifor a digestif and dessert, or stop by the bar another night for snacks like beef tongue with salsa tonnata (tuna sauce) and burrata with pomegranate seeds and toasted pistachios.

Star chef Michael Mina’s new Seattle restaurant serves Washington and Oregon beef as medium-rare steaks, whole butterflied branzino and a smattering of vegetable sides, as well as a black truffle mac and cheese. Bourbon Steak is a classic American fine dining restaurant, done right, with a teal floor, large windows offering views of downtown, and cushy orange chairs perfect for settling back with a glass of wine.

James-Beard-Award-nominated chef Rachel Yang and partner Seif Chirchi offer simple but refined dishes at their Korean-influenced Fremont restaurant, including a smoked mackerel kedgeree and a famed kalbi short rib over grilled kimchi. Expect inventive dishes too, like smoked tofu or beef tartare with Asian pear and pine nuts. With an inviting, open space and easy-going service,Jouleoffers a special night out sans pretension. Sit at the bar and watch chefs plating dishes, and sip on one of Joule’s creative cocktails, like the lapsang souchong tequila drink with lime and Thai chili agave.

明星廚師Mutsuko Soma使蕎麥從頭夏娃ry day atthis Fremont destination, which was chosen as one ofEater’s Best New Restaurant in America in 2018. Soma serves traditional soba shop dishes like seiro soba (cold with dipping sauce) and super-crunchy tempura but also more creative dishes like soba with oysters and gochujang broth and oreo tempura served with mini toasted marshmallows. Make a full night of it by sampling some sake and snacks at next door sibling barHannyatoubefore heading over to Kamonegi for dinner.

After building a strong following as a pop-up inside Fremont’s Pomerol, the contemporary Indian tasting menu specialistMeeshabecame a full-fledged restaurant in 2020. Among some of the can’t-miss dishes from chef Preeti Agarwal are rarah keema pao with expertly prepared ground lamb, the fried Amritsari fish, and the paneer in tomato sauce with black cardamom. Takeout is still an option, but the lively dining room and patio are also open for business.

Each piece of nigiri in an omakase sushi dinner is a delightful moment to share with a date. Renowned chef Taichi Kitamura (a 2018 James Beard Award semifinalist) provides a wide variety of fantastic meal options at his Eastlake destination restaurant. It has a full sushi menu, as well as a nigiri omakase, which includes 12 pieces of seasonal selections, and brunch on the weekends. Sushi Kappo Tamura sources its seafood from Pacific Northwest producers like Taylor Shellfish and Skagit River Ranch, and has a rooftop garden that provides produce for some of its dishes.

This Madison Valley restaurant by Chef Aaron Tekulve serves constantly changing 8-10 course tasting menus packed with locally sourced ingredients, and also has a wine bar with a menu of exclusively Washington wines as well as a-la-carte snacks reminiscent of Spanish tapas or northern Italian cicchetti. The patios for the restaurant and wine bar are both fully covered, with heaters for each table and canvas to help block the breeze, perfect for a romantic night out for those who don’t feel comfortable with indoor dining at this stage in the pandemic.

One of Seattle’s only dedicated kaiseki restaurants, located in the shadow of the Space Needle, makes food almost too beautiful to eat. The premium kaiseki option takes diners on a journey that includes small bites, soup, sashimi, a braised dish, a grilled dish, a rice dish, and dessert. In keeping with kaiseki’s emphasis on seasonality, the menu changes monthly, and customers covet the counter seats, where the chef can tell diners the story of each dish, from ingredients to preparation to picturesque plating.

In March 2020, the Canlis family — who owns the71-year-old Queen Anne icon——在其網站上發布“美食不是what Seattle needs right now.” Since then, the restaurant wasn’t afraid to try out a host of different looks, including aburger drive-thru, but has now returned to full indoor service with new executive chefAisha Ibrahimat the helm. The past year of creative menu shifts and a super-seasonal approach from Ibrahim inspired by Japanese kaiseki cooking has re-energized a classic. The current four course menu offers options like poached and chilled mussels with kohlrabi, striploin with green onion and celeriac, and grilled sablefish with matsutake mushrooms.