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Two pieces of nigiri.
Why share this with someone?
Harry Cheadle

9 Seattle Restaurants Where You Can Comfortably Eat Alone

We assure you, you can go to restaurants alone. It’s fun!

by Jade Yamazaki Stewart and Harry Cheadle Updated
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Why share this with someone?
| Harry Cheadle
by Jade Yamazaki Stewart and Harry Cheadle Updated

Going out to eat by yourself is a bit like going to the movies by yourself. At first it may seem strange not to have someone to share the experience with, but once you get used to it, you may find the freedom liberating. You don’t have to ask whether anyone wants to share a dessert or an app, you don’t have to worry about check-splitting drama, and you can spend as long as you like lingering over the food, reading a book, or chatting to the bartender when it’s slow. Solo dining has another major advantage, which is that you can sometimes score a walk-in seat at restaurants where getting a reservation for four is borderline impossible.

What makes a restaurant a good place to eat alone? A few factors are in play here. First, any place that emphasizes sharing plates is out. Second, places that have bars or counters are preferred, since sitting by yourself at a table can sometimes feel like you’re wearing a shirt that says “MY DATE CANCELLED.” Third, the restaurant should be unusually welcoming — servers or bartenders who are happy to talk with you or a scene of regulars who will say hi.

Here’s a list of places that fit those criteria, from diners that feel like home to higher-end experiences.

Know of a spot that should be on our radar? Send us a tip by emailing seattle@eater.com. As usual, this list is not ranked; it’s organized geographically.

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North Star Diner

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Diners are the classic dining-alone spots. The food is usually inexpensive and filling, the coffee is bottomless, and they’re typically open all day. North Star closes at 3 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays (and isn’t open at all on Tuesdays), but it’s otherwise open into the evening and serves outstanding diner classics, sometimes with a vegetarian spin (the vegetable hash is a favorite). Peruse the wall of astronaut portraits, or check out the TVs above the bar, which are typically playing ASMR-type painting videos and cartoons on mute.

8580 Greenwood Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 457-5794
(206) 457-5794

Also featured in:

The Walrus and the Carpenter

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Chef Renee Erickson’s original Ballard seafood bar is just as perfect for a celebratory meal as for some oysters and a glass of wine enjoyed alone at the bar. Most of the dishes here are so small that it’s easy to order a couple of plates alone. Or just have some oysters and a tall boy of cold Rainier.

4743 Ballard Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107
(206) 395-9227
(206) 395-9227

Also featured in:

COMMUNION Restaurant & Bar

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It’s been hard to get a reservation at Communion since it made a couple of national best restaurant lists in 2021 (and nabbed an Eater Award). So showing up alone to snag a seat at the bar has sometimes been the only way to experience Kristi Brown’s “Seattle soul” cooking, which blends Southern Black food traditions with the diverse flavors of Seattle’s Chinatown-International District. Luckily, everyone, from diners to bartenders, are welcoming at Communion, and you’ll feel part of the fold immediately.

2350 E Union St, Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 391-8140
(206) 391-8140

Also featured in:

Le Pichet

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Le Pichet is a classic Seattle hangout for food writers, off-work bartenders, and other restaurant industry insiders. That’s because it’s about as close as you can get in the city to a traditional French cafe, where it’s perfectly normal to have a cafe au lait and a croissant alone at breakfast, a baguette sandwich alone at lunch, or a solo glass of wine anytime in between.

1933 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98101
(206) 256-1499
(206) 256-1499

Also featured in:

Sushi Kashiba

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People often come to Kashiba as a kind of pilgrimage — it’s the namesake restaurant of Shiro Kashiba, the grandfather of Seattle’s sushi scene, and he’s behind the counter himself on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays. On those days, the line to get a seat at the walk-in-only omakase counter can be daunting. But even when Shiro san isn’t here, you can expect top-quality sushi and good conversation with the chefs and other customers at the counter.

86 Pine St Suite #1, Seattle, WA 98101
(206) 441-8844
(206) 441-8844
Two pieces of nigiri.
Sushi at Sushi Kashiba
Harry Cheadle

Also featured in:

Pho Bac Súp Shop

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Pho Bac, undoubtedly one of Seattle’s best pho shops, is also one of its most popular for solo diners. The atmosphere here is colorful and loud, but not in a way that makes one feel left out of the fun, and the bar is always packed with solo diners enjoying piles of shrimp fresh rolls and slurping big, satisfying bowls of pho.

1240 S Jackson St, Seattle, WA 98144
(206) 568-0882
(206) 568-0882

Also featured in:

Gan Bei 21 and up

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Gan Bei used to be the late-night C-ID hangout for chefs who wanted some Chinese fried chicken or sausage claypot with a beer after their shifts. Last call for food is now at 9:30 p.m., but the small restaurant remains a refuge for those who want to enjoy the comfort of a meal without conversation. And the XO-sauce green beans are not to be missed.

670 S Weller St, Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 625-0408
(206) 625-0408

Also featured in:

Il Nido

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It can be hard to get a table at this Italian place on Alki, which serves some of the most famous pasta in Seattle. But who needs a table? The bar is walk-up only, often has seats before 6 p.m., and you can get the full dinner menu while you sit next to one of the many regulars who come here for the wine and the company.

2717 61st Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98116
(206) 466-6265
(206) 466-6265

Also featured in:

Off Alley

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This 14-seat Columbia City small plates restaurant in a renovated alleyway is one of the most communal restaurants in Seattle, where everyone talks to their neighbor and maybe even winds up splitting a couple of small plates and a bottle of natural wine with them by the end of the night. Note that Off Alley only takes reservations for slots from 5 to 5:45 p.m. and is walk-in-only after 6 p.m. Given how many best-of lists this place has been on in the last couple of years, expect a wait.

4903, 1/2, Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA 98118
(206) 488-6170
(206) 488-6170

Also featured in:

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North Star Diner

8580 Greenwood Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103

Diners are the classic dining-alone spots. The food is usually inexpensive and filling, the coffee is bottomless, and they’re typically open all day. North Star closes at 3 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays (and isn’t open at all on Tuesdays), but it’s otherwise open into the evening and serves outstanding diner classics, sometimes with a vegetarian spin (the vegetable hash is a favorite). Peruse the wall of astronaut portraits, or check out the TVs above the bar, which are typically playing ASMR-type painting videos and cartoons on mute.

8580 Greenwood Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 457-5794
(206) 457-5794

The Walrus and the Carpenter

4743 Ballard Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107

Chef Renee Erickson’s original Ballard seafood bar is just as perfect for a celebratory meal as for some oysters and a glass of wine enjoyed alone at the bar. Most of the dishes here are so small that it’s easy to order a couple of plates alone. Or just have some oysters and a tall boy of cold Rainier.

4743 Ballard Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107
(206) 395-9227
(206) 395-9227

COMMUNION Restaurant & Bar

2350 E Union St, Seattle, WA 98122

It’s been hard to get a reservation at Communion since it made a couple of national best restaurant lists in 2021 (and nabbed an Eater Award). So showing up alone to snag a seat at the bar has sometimes been the only way to experience Kristi Brown’s “Seattle soul” cooking, which blends Southern Black food traditions with the diverse flavors of Seattle’s Chinatown-International District. Luckily, everyone, from diners to bartenders, are welcoming at Communion, and you’ll feel part of the fold immediately.

2350 E Union St, Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 391-8140
(206) 391-8140

Le Pichet

1933 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98101

Le Pichet is a classic Seattle hangout for food writers, off-work bartenders, and other restaurant industry insiders. That’s because it’s about as close as you can get in the city to a traditional French cafe, where it’s perfectly normal to have a cafe au lait and a croissant alone at breakfast, a baguette sandwich alone at lunch, or a solo glass of wine anytime in between.

1933 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98101
(206) 256-1499
(206) 256-1499

Sushi Kashiba

86 Pine St Suite #1, Seattle, WA 98101

People often come to Kashiba as a kind of pilgrimage — it’s the namesake restaurant of Shiro Kashiba, the grandfather of Seattle’s sushi scene, and he’s behind the counter himself on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays. On those days, the line to get a seat at the walk-in-only omakase counter can be daunting. But even when Shiro san isn’t here, you can expect top-quality sushi and good conversation with the chefs and other customers at the counter.

86 Pine St Suite #1, Seattle, WA 98101
(206) 441-8844
(206) 441-8844
Two pieces of nigiri.
Sushi at Sushi Kashiba
Harry Cheadle

Pho Bac Súp Shop

1240 S Jackson St, Seattle, WA 98144

Pho Bac, undoubtedly one of Seattle’s best pho shops, is also one of its most popular for solo diners. The atmosphere here is colorful and loud, but not in a way that makes one feel left out of the fun, and the bar is always packed with solo diners enjoying piles of shrimp fresh rolls and slurping big, satisfying bowls of pho.

1240 S Jackson St, Seattle, WA 98144
(206) 568-0882
(206) 568-0882

Gan Bei 21 and up

670 S Weller St, Seattle, WA 98104

Gan Bei used to be the late-night C-ID hangout for chefs who wanted some Chinese fried chicken or sausage claypot with a beer after their shifts. Last call for food is now at 9:30 p.m., but the small restaurant remains a refuge for those who want to enjoy the comfort of a meal without conversation. And the XO-sauce green beans are not to be missed.

670 S Weller St, Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 625-0408
(206) 625-0408

Il Nido

2717 61st Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98116

It can be hard to get a table at this Italian place on Alki, which serves some of the most famous pasta in Seattle. But who needs a table? The bar is walk-up only, often has seats before 6 p.m., and you can get the full dinner menu while you sit next to one of the many regulars who come here for the wine and the company.

2717 61st Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98116
(206) 466-6265
(206) 466-6265

Off Alley

4903, 1/2, Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA 98118

This 14-seat Columbia City small plates restaurant in a renovated alleyway is one of the most communal restaurants in Seattle, where everyone talks to their neighbor and maybe even winds up splitting a couple of small plates and a bottle of natural wine with them by the end of the night. Note that Off Alley only takes reservations for slots from 5 to 5:45 p.m. and is walk-in-only after 6 p.m. Given how many best-of lists this place has been on in the last couple of years, expect a wait.

4903, 1/2, Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA 98118
(206) 488-6170
(206) 488-6170

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