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Biscuits at Seattle Biscuit Company
Suzi Pratt

12 Places for Amazing Breakfast in Seattle

Old-school diner food, perfectly executed pastries, and more

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Biscuits at Seattle Biscuit Company
| Suzi Pratt

Breakfast is more than a meal, it’s a state of mind. You can eat eggs, bacon, biscuit sandwiches, or pancakes at any time; breakfast can be the fuel you need to jump-start your day or the landing pad after a long night that’s bled into morning. Breakfast can be a quick bagel on the go or a hours-long bacchanal that includes multiple courses and necessitates a nap afterward. It might not be the most important meal of the day, but it’s definitely the most fun, and Seattle has more than its share of spots where you can experience a great one. Here are 14 of the best ones, as always ordered geographically north to south.

Know of a spot that should be on our radar? Send us a tip by emailing seattle@eater.com.

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Zylberschtein's

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This Pinehurst Jewish-style deli is a go-to spot for decadent bagel breakfast sandwiches like the Frankel, decked out with house-smoked pastrami, two fried eggs, cheddar, and mayo. There are also sandwiches made with fluffy house-baked croissants like the super-satisfying 15th Ave., which is loaded up with bacon, eggs, cheese, and greens. There’s a plant-box-lined patio for onsite dining and a plethora of pastries for takeout.

The Fat Hen

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This small neighborhood cafe in Ballard has drawn long lines in the past for its simple, lovingly crafted food. Some items on the current menu include salmon toast, a buttermilk fried chicken sandwich, eggs benedict, and a shakshuka skillet.

Rachel's Bagels & Burritos

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Formerly the much-loved Porkchop & Co, this Ballard shop was reborn as a breakfast spot during the pandemic. The perfectly chewy bagels are excellent across the board, with offerings like bagels topped with za’atar and shichimi togarashi (a Japanese chili pepper and spice blend). There are also great bagel sandwich options, like the Nick and Nora, a riff on avocado toast with chili crisp. Beyond bagels, the shop serves satisfying one-pound breakfast burritos with fillings like Oaxacan cheese and guajillo chili salsa, and J Kenji López-Alt-approved biscuit sandwiches.

This U District biscuit shop offers the kind of biscuits that breakfast lovers dream of—pillowy interior, crispy exterior, flaky bite. The “fast break,” Morsel’s signature sandwich, is a behemoth stack of eggs, fatty bacon, and cheddar cheese on a biscuit of your choice that’s smeared with earthy tomato jam. You can also opt to grab one of its buttermilk biscuits plain with butter and jam on the side; there’s strawberry balsamic jam, chocolate hazelnut jam, and raspberry jam, among others. For the gluten intolerant, Morsel usually has gluten-free biscuits available.

Seattle Biscuit Company

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This little shack-sized joint on Leary Way has a hidden gimmick: All of the ingredients are sourced from places so close that co-founder Sam Thompson, a former professional endurance runner, can jog to them. The biscuit sandwiches here have none of the asceticism associated with long-distance running, however: We love the one with fried chicken, sausage gravy, and sweet onion mustard; another fan favorite is the Che, SBC’s version of a Cuban sandwich. But these biscuits are so good it almost doesn’t matter what you put between them — flaky, warm, with just a hint of sweetness.

Saint Bread

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This waterfront bakery has a religious devotion to dough, offering perfectly executed pastries like buckwheat furikake croissants, and Japanese melon pan (a sweet bread), and seasonal treats like local plums nestled in a bed of frangipane, circled by flaky croissant dough. Saint Bread also makes some full meal options to-order, like fried egg sandwiches with American cheese served on house-made Hawaiian buns or melon pan, and an okonomiyaki-style tortilla with eggs, cabbage, sweet potato, green onion, ginger, mayo, bonito flakes, and Bulldog sauce.

Oxbow Bakery

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In 2022, Sea Wolf opened this new Montlake shop in order to start making the baked goods they didn’t have the space for in their original location, namely bagels. And these are some good bagels! Crispy on the outside, that signature chewiness on the inside, and a telltale tang of sourdough. They also get a little creative with their spreads here, offering a Calabrian chili cream cheese that is excellent, if not an ideal pairing with cinnamon raisin bagels.

A bagel sandwich with cream cheese, onion, and sprouts. Oxbow

Volunteer Park Cafe & Pantry

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This new cafe from a pair of Canlis alums, Crystal Chiu and Melissa Johnson, has been impressing Capitol Hill diners with its pastries, many of which are gluten-free. In an elegant glass case in the cafe, creations like smoked black tea shortbread topped with a puffed kamut brittle line up next to classics like galletes filled with seasonal fruit. For something heavier, you can order an egg and cheese sandwich.

After a fire and a relocation, the Capitol Hill diner Glo’s has reopened — with a unionized staff, an extreme rarity in the restaurant business. The famous item here is the eggs benedict, but don’t worry if you show up after they’re out of hollandaise, because the whole menu is full of great stuff like corned beef, biscuits, and coffee cake. In true Seattle diner fashion, there’s an extensive cocktail list as well, in case you’re having one of those days.

A plate of corned beef topped with an egg Harry Cheadle

Temple Pastries

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The glorious array of baked goods at this bright bakery includes familiar items such as cookies, croissants, Kouign Amann, macarons, and breads. Patrons also might encounter combinations like black sesame yuzu, Jasmine green tea, and guava cream cheese. The cruffin (croissant baked into a muffin mold) is a dream, particularly the cinnamon variety.

The Station

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This community-oriented coffee shop across the street from the light rail station is an old-school sort of hangout spot, with local artists on the wall, pop music flowing from the speakers, and a Seattle Public Libraries machine by the door that dispenses short stories. The good vibes come with hearty breakfast sandwiches and an even heartier biscuits and chorizo gravy dish. There are lots of flavored mochas and lattes, but the best drink might be the Cafe Cola, which is Topo Chico, espresso, and chocolate.

Geraldine's Counter Restaurant

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This Columbia City classic is famous for its French toast. It also offers plenty more comfort fare like pancakes, omelettes, and biscuits and gravy. Geraldine’s has a covered outdoor patio and is open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. every day.

Zylberschtein's

This Pinehurst Jewish-style deli is a go-to spot for decadent bagel breakfast sandwiches like the Frankel, decked out with house-smoked pastrami, two fried eggs, cheddar, and mayo. There are also sandwiches made with fluffy house-baked croissants like the super-satisfying 15th Ave., which is loaded up with bacon, eggs, cheese, and greens. There’s a plant-box-lined patio for onsite dining and a plethora of pastries for takeout.

The Fat Hen

This small neighborhood cafe in Ballard has drawn long lines in the past for its simple, lovingly crafted food. Some items on the current menu include salmon toast, a buttermilk fried chicken sandwich, eggs benedict, and a shakshuka skillet.

Rachel's Bagels & Burritos

Formerly the much-loved Porkchop & Co, this Ballard shop was reborn as a breakfast spot during the pandemic. The perfectly chewy bagels are excellent across the board, with offerings like bagels topped with za’atar and shichimi togarashi (a Japanese chili pepper and spice blend). There are also great bagel sandwich options, like the Nick and Nora, a riff on avocado toast with chili crisp. Beyond bagels, the shop serves satisfying one-pound breakfast burritos with fillings like Oaxacan cheese and guajillo chili salsa, and J Kenji López-Alt-approved biscuit sandwiches.

Morsel

This U District biscuit shop offers the kind of biscuits that breakfast lovers dream of—pillowy interior, crispy exterior, flaky bite. The “fast break,” Morsel’s signature sandwich, is a behemoth stack of eggs, fatty bacon, and cheddar cheese on a biscuit of your choice that’s smeared with earthy tomato jam. You can also opt to grab one of its buttermilk biscuits plain with butter and jam on the side; there’s strawberry balsamic jam, chocolate hazelnut jam, and raspberry jam, among others. For the gluten intolerant, Morsel usually has gluten-free biscuits available.

Seattle Biscuit Company

This little shack-sized joint on Leary Way has a hidden gimmick: All of the ingredients are sourced from places so close that co-founder Sam Thompson, a former professional endurance runner, can jog to them. The biscuit sandwiches here have none of the asceticism associated with long-distance running, however: We love the one with fried chicken, sausage gravy, and sweet onion mustard; another fan favorite is the Che, SBC’s version of a Cuban sandwich. But these biscuits are so good it almost doesn’t matter what you put between them — flaky, warm, with just a hint of sweetness.

Saint Bread

This waterfront bakery has a religious devotion to dough, offering perfectly executed pastries like buckwheat furikake croissants, and Japanese melon pan (a sweet bread), and seasonal treats like local plums nestled in a bed of frangipane, circled by flaky croissant dough. Saint Bread also makes some full meal options to-order, like fried egg sandwiches with American cheese served on house-made Hawaiian buns or melon pan, and an okonomiyaki-style tortilla with eggs, cabbage, sweet potato, green onion, ginger, mayo, bonito flakes, and Bulldog sauce.

Oxbow Bakery

In 2022, Sea Wolf opened this new Montlake shop in order to start making the baked goods they didn’t have the space for in their original location, namely bagels. And these are some good bagels! Crispy on the outside, that signature chewiness on the inside, and a telltale tang of sourdough. They also get a little creative with their spreads here, offering a Calabrian chili cream cheese that is excellent, if not an ideal pairing with cinnamon raisin bagels.

A bagel sandwich with cream cheese, onion, and sprouts. Oxbow

Volunteer Park Cafe & Pantry

This new cafe from a pair of Canlis alums, Crystal Chiu and Melissa Johnson, has been impressing Capitol Hill diners with its pastries, many of which are gluten-free. In an elegant glass case in the cafe, creations like smoked black tea shortbread topped with a puffed kamut brittle line up next to classics like galletes filled with seasonal fruit. For something heavier, you can order an egg and cheese sandwich.

Glo's

After a fire and a relocation, the Capitol Hill diner Glo’s has reopened — with a unionized staff, an extreme rarity in the restaurant business. The famous item here is the eggs benedict, but don’t worry if you show up after they’re out of hollandaise, because the whole menu is full of great stuff like corned beef, biscuits, and coffee cake. In true Seattle diner fashion, there’s an extensive cocktail list as well, in case you’re having one of those days.

A plate of corned beef topped with an egg Harry Cheadle

Temple Pastries

The glorious array of baked goods at this bright bakery includes familiar items such as cookies, croissants, Kouign Amann, macarons, and breads. Patrons also might encounter combinations like black sesame yuzu, Jasmine green tea, and guava cream cheese. The cruffin (croissant baked into a muffin mold) is a dream, particularly the cinnamon variety.

The Station

This community-oriented coffee shop across the street from the light rail station is an old-school sort of hangout spot, with local artists on the wall, pop music flowing from the speakers, and a Seattle Public Libraries machine by the door that dispenses short stories. The good vibes come with hearty breakfast sandwiches and an even heartier biscuits and chorizo gravy dish. There are lots of flavored mochas and lattes, but the best drink might be the Cafe Cola, which is Topo Chico, espresso, and chocolate.

Geraldine's Counter Restaurant

This Columbia City classic is famous for its French toast. It also offers plenty more comfort fare like pancakes, omelettes, and biscuits and gravy. Geraldine’s has a covered outdoor patio and is open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. every day.

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