Chef-owner Lucy Ye runs this affordable, allergy-conscious Asian restaurant on Aurora Avenue. The kitchen is nut-free and seafood-free by default, and the restaurant caters well to those with other dietary restrictions. There are plenty of gluten free options on the menu too, including gluten-free teriyaki, which is hard to find in Seattle. The spicy fried chicken sandwich, and the minced pork rice are highlights. Hangry Panda is also known for its milk teas, made with house-made syrups — The Panda Milk is made for sesame lovers, with a slightly nutty taste and a salted milk topping. The restaurant focuses on to-go orders, but there are four bar seats available to dine-in.

Massive pastries, filling sandwiches, and creamy quiches make this bakery a great casual spot for breakfast. Service isn’t stellar, but it’s easily worth the visit for an egg sandwich that can rival those found on the East Coast. Breakfast sandwiches are available in half or whole portions, and the bakery also occasionally offers soup and sandwich combinations. There is ample indoor and outdoor seating, or you could just cross the street and eat in the park.

Beer lovers in Seattle should already be familiar with Über Tavern. Owner Rick Carpenter is legendary in the PNW beer world, as the founder of Seattle International Beerfest and Portland International Beerfest, and more recently Totfest and Bratfest. This easy-to-miss spot on Aurora Avenue houses one of the strongest beer collections in the city. There’s a rotating selection of 17 beers on tap, from IPAs to saisons, hefeweizen to quadrupels. In the fridge, there’s an even more impressive selection of bottles, cans and half-price growlers to go. A simple food menu is available, but you can also order delivery. Dogs are welcome.

The classic honky tonk is alive and well in Green Lake, complete with line dancing, live music, and well-priced cocktails. There’s a daily happy hour from 3-6pm, which knocks off a dollar for all regular priced drinks. When hunger strikes, stick to the basics: burgers, wings and tater tots are all solid choices. The Little Red Hen offers line dancing lessons on Mondays.

James Beard-nominated chef David Nichols and his brother Ian Nichols supply this Green Lake restaurant with produce from their family farms. The “pan-American” menu is an homage to the multiculturalism of the United States. Standout dishes include the grilled sweet gem Caesar salad with Oaxacan oregano breadcrumbs, and a massive plate of pork barbacoa, designed to be shared. Creative, seasonal cocktails complete the experience. The Harvest Queen, named after a type of pear tree, is made with cachaça (a Brazilian spirit made from fermented sugarcane juice), braulio (an Italian amaro), yellow chartreuse, and egg white. Eight Row also boasts a thoughtful zero-proof cocktail list, featuring nonalcoholic spirits like Pathfinder, Spiritless 74, Seedlip, and Wilderton Earthen.

This Green Lake cafe is focused on wellness, using locally sourced, often organic, ingredients. Retreat has an almost intimidating selection of superfoods and adaptogens to supercharge any smoothie, as well as six ‘wellness lattes’, with ingredients like activated charcoal, mucuna pruriens (velvet bean) and ashwaganda, a medicinal herb. The smoothies and grain bowls are delicious, as are the breakfast sandwiches (served all day and loaded with eggs, bacon, tomatoes, aged cheddar, and avocado).

A colorful oasis off of Aurora Avenue, Bongos is the place to go in Green Lake for a hearty Caribbean meal. The restaurant is housed in a refurbished gas station, complete with a sand-covered patio and wooden walls that block highway noise. Try the ‘Desi’ sandwich, a sweet and spicy combination of braised pork, caramelized onions, peppers, and aioli, that packs a punch from pickled jalapenos. Grab extra napkins; it’s drippy. A side of maduros (fried sweet plantains), or yuca fries, complete the meal. Open all year round, Bongo’s fire pit is perfect for cooler evenings.

This neighborhood staple has been championing local brews since 1987. Today, it continues to support craft brewers, with a rotating selection of 12 taps from Washington and beyond. Come hungry and tuck into their elevated pub grub; the crab cakes, grilled cheese (with tomato basil bisque), and veggie burger are all standouts.

Winner of Eater’s ‘So Hot Right Now’ award in 2013, this intimate Italian restaurant from Ethan Stowell Restaurants has just 18 seats inside. But when the weather is nice, the front window opens onto the sidewalk patio, which can host up to 24 more people (thankfully, reservations are available). mkt is in Tangletown, which is technically Wallingford, but is Green Lake in spirit. The menu focuses on simple, ingredient-driven dishes — think green beans grilled over a wood fire or ravioli stuffed with porcini mushrooms and drizzled with olive oil. It’s everything you’d expect from an Ethan Stowell Restaurant: elevated, unpretentious, and delicious.  

One of Seattle’s best neighborhood sushi spots is tucked away in Green Lake. Kisaku serves a Japanese staples like yakisoba, udon, tempura, and grilled protein dishes (try the unaju, barbecued eel) but the sushi here is a standout. The creative rolls can sometimes hide the extremely high quality of of this restaurant’s fish; ordering nigiri and sashimi is recommended for truly appreciating the prodct. The fatty tuna, octopus, and scallop are especially good. Lunch sets start at just $10, and there are two omakase menus available, starting at $55. Service can be slow sometimes, but the food is worth it.

This Seattle icon’s Green Lake location is just minutes from the water, making it a perfect spot to tuck into some clam chowder after a walk. Be warned: the family-owned spot has a casual vibe, but a steep price tag. That’s because all of their seafood is fresh, and sustainably harvested, with most of it coming in from Alaska. Menu standouts include the Dungeness crab cake (skip the sandwich version; it overpowers the delicate crab), the stuffed halibut, filled with crab, prawns and pesto, the panko-crusted fish and chips. The chowders are also a highlight, including a slightly sweet lobster chowder and a cioppino-style chowder with salmon, halibut and cod. Get a sampler to try them all. Duke’s outdoor deck is open throughout the year, and there are happy hours from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m, and 9 p.m to close.