A Stoner’s Guide to Dining in Seattle

Every stoner has a favorite food they eat after they smoke weed, based on their personal tastes and the complex ways cannabis affects the appetite, heightens sensations of taste and smell, lowers inhibitions, and sometimes triggers unignorable food cravings. That said, there are certain elements that many popular stoner foods share. Many, like Doritos, nachos, Taco Bell tacos, and chicken nuggets, are crunchy or crispy. Some snacks, like Flaming Hot Cheetos or Takis, are powerfully spicy; others offer lip-pursing sour flavors, like sour Skittles or Sour Patch Kids.

The common theme is an intensity of flavor — with large amounts of salt, sugar, acid, fat, and spice — normally bolstered by a generous dose of MSG. The result is craveability, with flavors that linger in the mouth and satisfy even the strongest case of weed-induced hunger.

Washington, one of the first states in the country, alongside Colorado, to legalize recreational cannabis use in 2012, has a large stoner population. Even before legalization, the scent of weed smoke constantly floated around parks, street corners, and bars in Seattle. For many in the city’s dining community, smoking a joint before going to dinner is a must. And many Seattle chefs (like Tio Baby’s Will Gordon) also use cannabis, making dishes that specifically appeal to the stoned palate.

The following restaurants offer some of the best options for stoned dining in Seattle, with caramelized fish-sauce coated wings and lobster garlic noodles at a Capitol Hill Vietnamese restaurant, a birria-stuffed version of a Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme at a sci-fi-themed bar in Fremont, and more great munchies, listed alphabetically.

Ba Bar

The fish sauce wings at Ba Bar’s three locations around the Seattle area are one of the most intensely flavored dishes at any Seattle restaurant. The skin is super crispy; the glaze is thick with caramelized sugar, and the fish sauce offers a jolt of umami. Squeeze lime wedges over the wings before eating to brighten the flavors, and if spicy munchies are your thing, dip them in sambal. Another good stoner dish on the Ba Bar menu are the garlic lobster noodles, which are greasy, rich with the flavor of lobster meat and garlic, and supremely satisfying. As a plus, Ba Bar’s Capitol Hill location is open until midnight every day to satisfy any late-night munchies.

Birreria Tijuana

Birria quesatacos are hands-down one of the best stoner foods on earth, with the super tender beef contrasting with the crispy tortilla and cheese that’s oozed out onto the griddle, And Burien’s Birreria Tijuana is one of the Seattle area’s best for the dish. The aguas frescas are a good pairing for the tacos, or for something special, the mangoneada, with its contrast of sweet mango and salty, spicy, tangy Tajín, hits the spot.

Chachis PNW

Charles Midencey, a self-proclaimed stoner who cooks for stoners, has done a number of popular pop-ups in the last couple of years, which have made everything from gussied-up Tacobell Crunchwrap Supremes to pozole to several types of pizza. The goal is to serve the perfect munchies, and Midencey hits the mark every time. He’s even working on a book called the Munchie Bible, a recipe book by a stoner, for stoners.

Carnelian Bay

Fremont’s new immersive sci-fi-themed bar, beyond serving delicious cocktails, offers a late-night menu of palate-stimulating food. The highlight is probably a version of a Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme made with meltingly tender birria beef. The fried chicken tenders are also perfectly executed.

Pho Bac Súp Shop

Pho Bac Sup Shop’s pho is a perfect dish for almost any occasion, though the pure decadence of the restaurant’s fatty whole beef rib pho makes it an excellent munchie food. The casual, festive space features a long bar, where people often dine alone, and it's easy to meld into the background here and focus on the simple joy of a bowl of noodles and broth.

Taku

Shota Nakajima’s Capitol Hill chicken restaurant serves flavorful twice-fried karaage with a number of sauces and dry seasonings. Nakajima’s culinary philosophy centers around packing his dishes with umami, a flavor that makes dishes satisfying by letting your body know (or tricking it into believing) that you are consuming protein. For a satisfying sauce option, try the spicy teriyaki.

Taku

Tio Baby’s

Former Westward Chef Will Gordon’s new bar in Fremont is Tio Baby’s, a former pop-up that serves food that people want to eat when they’re drunk or high. Gordon’s go-to munchie snack back in the day was either wings or nachos, and he serves excellent versions at Tio Baby’s. And for the fast food munchie fans, he’s also serving a spare rib sandwich that’s intended as a really good version of a McRib.