The University District is frequently (and wrongly) written off as a place only college kids would want to eat; the story usually goes that it’s rife with sketchy lunch counters, nondescript multinational fast food chains, and an overabundance of boba tea joints. But the truth is that the U District is one of the city’s essential dining destinations, with a dizzying array of global cuisines concentrated on its main street, University Way (confusingly known as the Ave).
The Best Restaurants in Seattle’s University District
A guide to University of Washington’s neighborhood, for Huskies and visitors alike
Mark DeJoy is a lifelong Seattleite who has been writing about PNW food and nightlife since 2021.
There’s Korean food, regional Chinese specialties, Indian groceries, Vietnamese kitchens, falafel windows, and more on nearly every block. And practically everything is both affordable and genuinely good, so figuring out where to eat in this neighborhood is more a matter of grappling with the paradox of choice than anything else. So, here’s a short list to get you started.
In December 2025, we updated this map to include Slurp Station Aburasoba, which specializes in a kind of ramen without broth.
Send us a tip by emailing seattle@eater.com. As usual, this list is not ranked; it’s organized geographically.
The Best Restaurants in Seattle’s University District
A guide to University of Washington’s neighborhood, for Huskies and visitors alike
Mark DeJoy is a lifelong Seattleite who has been writing about PNW food and nightlife since 2021.
The University District is frequently (and wrongly) written off as a place only college kids would want to eat; the story usually goes that it’s rife with sketchy lunch counters, nondescript multinational fast food chains, and an overabundance of boba tea joints. But the truth is that the U District is one of the city’s essential dining destinations, with a dizzying array of global cuisines concentrated on its main street, University Way (confusingly known as the Ave).
There’s Korean food, regional Chinese specialties, Indian groceries, Vietnamese kitchens, falafel windows, and more on nearly every block. And practically everything is both affordable and genuinely good, so figuring out where to eat in this neighborhood is more a matter of grappling with the paradox of choice than anything else. So, here’s a short list to get you started.
In December 2025, we updated this map to include Slurp Station Aburasoba, which specializes in a kind of ramen without broth.
Send us a tip by emailing seattle@eater.com. As usual, this list is not ranked; it’s organized geographically.
Birrieria Pepe El Toro
This Tijuana-style birria de res specialist doesn’t play around when it comes to birria. It serves birria and quesabirria tacos, birria tortas, birria mulitas, birria ramen, etc. However you order it, the beef is cooked with expert patience, slowly enough to render every last bit of its fat, but not so long that it dries out. The meat’s flavor is deep and complex with adobo notes, not muted and pot-roasty. Beyond the star ingredient, there’s a fantastic attention to detail here: The tacos are brushed with chile-infused oil before they hit the flattop, and the corn served with the ramen is sweet and crisp.
Mark DeJoy
Taste of India
This Roosevelt Way standby serves a wide survey of Indian cuisine and has a large heated and covered outdoor dining area. The aloo gobi, okra masala, and Tandoori prawns are excellent, but the karahi gosht — a deep, fenugreek-inflected curry that has a tomato and chile base without yogurt or cream — is particularly worthy of your attention.
Xi’an Noodles
Diners come from around the city to Xi’an for one thing: wide, chewy biang biang noodles, made by hand every morning, at their best when adorned simply with chili oil. The pork dumplings and cucumber salad also make for excellent starters.
Village Sushi
Village Sushi might be the coziest sushi restaurant in the city. It’s in a vintage space (formerly the final location of the legendary coffee shop Last Exit) that runs counter to the often austere usual sushi environment. The approach is no less exacting, though, and you can’t go wrong with any of the signature rolls. But you should also order the salmon teriyaki, even though that might sound unintuitive. It’s a surprisingly beautiful, version of the classic Seattle dish that is just as worthy as the pristine sushi.
Morsel
This U District biscuit shop offers the kind of folkloric biscuits that breakfast lovers dream of — warm, pillowy interior, crispy exterior, flaky bite. There’s even a gluten-free version. The “fast break,” Morsel’s primary breakfast sandwich, is a behemoth stack of eggs, fatty bacon, and cheddar cheese on a biscuit of your choice that’s smeared with savory tomato jam. You can also opt to grab a buttermilk biscuit plain with butter and jam on the side; there’s strawberry balsamic jam, chocolate hazelnut spread, and raspberry jam, among others.
Slurp Station Aburasoba
Slurp Station specializes in aburasoba, a type of ramen served without broth. That may sound less satisfying to the uninitiated, but what replaces the broth is a rich and luxuriously fatty sauce seasoned with either soy sauce or salted pork stock. Stir that sauce into the noodles along with a bit of rice vinegar and sesame-chili oil (as is traditional), maybe let some of the yolk from the textbook jammy soft-boiled egg get into the mix, and you won’t miss broth one bit. Slurp station also offers a vegan aburasoba with kale noodles, peas, and corn, and a shrimp and scallop version, in addition to the traditional chashu (pork) or beef. If your diet permits, there’s no reason to stray from chashu — it’s a tender and deeply seasoned pork.
Mark DeJoy
George Coffee and Pastries
Opened in December 2024 in the former University Seafood and Poultry space, George Coffee and Pastries pays homage to its historic location with a striking Streamline Moderne-inspired aesthetic. Pastries are baked onsite and the flaky croissants are the star, available in various flavors like almond, pistachio, and raspberry. The plain croissant does double-duty as the base for a knockout breakfast sandwich, with eggs gently baked into a soufflé-adjacent square (a la Flour Bakery) topped with cheddar cheese and crisp thick-cut bacon. Say yes to having it heated to restore that croissant to its just-baked, crisp yet tender and flaky peak. It’s a contender for one of the best breakfast sandwiches in the city.
Mark DeJoy
Thai Tom
This lively nook on the Ave has been an institution since Tom Suanpirintra founded it in 1994, and his spirit absolutely lives on here. The family of well-trained wok aces forge Bangkok-style classics with as much virtuosity as Suanpirintra did, expertly inciting flash-infernos from stovetops so blazingly hot they seem equipped with fighter jet afterburners. There’s so much flame, spark, and steel in the back that it looks as much like a foundry as it does a kitchen, and the ambience is unparalleled. The eyebrow-searing heat makes all the difference, imbuing each dish with a smoky char you just can’t get with weaker burners; even ubiquitous classics like pad thai and drunken noodles are a little different here. This spot only accepts cash, so come prepared.
Mark DeJoy
Master Bing
Master Bing specializes in jianbing, crepe-like Chinese pancakes that are made to order and rolled with a base filling of scrambled egg, bean paste, scallions, cilantro, pickled mustard greens, chili oil, and crisp strips of fried wonton dough, along with a main ingredient (usually a protein). The spiced lamb jianbing is one of the standouts, with hints of star anise, cinnamon, clove, and fennel adding complexity to the rich shredded meat. The menu is also abundant with other enticing variants: Peking duck jianbing, spicy crawfish jianbing, Chinese donut jianbing, bacon meat floss jianbing, beef sausage jianbing, the list goes on.
Mark DeJoy
Arepa Venezuelan Kitchen
Like its name suggests, Arepa Venezuelan Kitchen serves the style of arepas you’re likely to get in Venezuela: thick corn patties split open and stuffed with a variety of fillings. The menu includes 17 different filling combinations, and you can’t go wrong with any of them. But if you’re struck by tyranny of choice, flip a coin between the pabellón (shredded beef cooked in a tomato-based sauce, with black beans, white cheese, and fried sweet plantain) and reina pepiada (a chicken and avocado salad that translates to “curvy queen”). There are also Venezuelan empanadas, tequeños (fried cheese sticks), patacones, arepitas, as well as combination plates.
Chili’s South Indian Cuisine
Please do not sing the babyback — okay, you’re already doing it. Fine. Yes, Chili’s South Indian Cuisine has a definite SEO problem, so let us say now that what you want at this Chili’s is the dosa. The crepe-like street food made from a fermented rice and white lentil batter is labor-intensive and not easy to find in Seattle proper, but it’s been available here, and at the restaurant’s original location on the corner of 50th Street since 2008. It’s most succulent with curried lamb, but the paneer and spiced potato version is satisfying, too.
Korean Tofu House
Korean Tofu House, as the name would imply, serves the best sundubu-jjigae (spicy soft tofu stew) in the U District, with options for various meats and seafood added in. Beyond the various tofu stews, the kalbi (beef short ribs) and japchae here hit the spot. Rice, hot barley tea, and a variety of banchan is complementary with each meal. Note that there is a Korean Tofu House Express with an abbreviated menu on the Ave — it’s fine in a pinch, but the location on Brooklyn Avenue is the one you want for a more leisurely meal.
Aladdin Gyro-Cery & Deli
There’s no shortage of solid gyro/falafel/shawarma joints on the Ave, but Aladdin Gyro-Cery stands out for turning up the decadence dial. The gyro here is heady with a hit of curry powder, the lamb shawarma wrap is a glorious mashup of meat and plant fats (lamb! sumac olive oil! hummus! tahini!) brightened with pickles, and the plant-based menu items aren’t mere “options,” but stand alone. The Aladdin veggie roll — falafel and fried cauliflower stuffed in a grilled pita, topped with cucumbers, parsley, pickles, tomatoes, and choice of hummus or baba ganoush — might be just the thing for herbivores and carnivores alike. And it’s all available ‘til at least 2 a.m., 2:30 a.m. on weekends.
Shultzy’s Bar & Grill
A U District mainstay since the late 1980s, Shultzy’s is in its second generation of family ownership, and still serving the handmade bratwurst, andouille, and Italian sausages that made it famous (it was originally opened as Shultzy’s Sausage). They’re served in archetypal style on Amoroso rolls, but the bratwurst also makes an appearance as a German brat plate (sliced along with sauerkraut, sauteed purple cabbage, a tangy German style potato salad, and a warm Kaffeklatsch pretzel) that shouldn’t be missed. Elsewhere on the menu, sausage gumbo and a vegan option red beans and rice are satisfying renditions of Creole classics. At the bar, there are nine rotating taps featuring German beer styles, as well as the best spirits selection in the U District.
Lee’s Kitchen Noodle & Rice U Dub
Lee’s Kitchen opened in the former Miss Mike Noodle space in mid-2024, serving a similar (if not quite as extensive) menu of both Taiwanese and southern Chinese dishes. Fried chicken devotees can find textbook yan su ji (often Anglicized as “popcorn chicken”), but there are a number of other plates that are hard to find in Seattle outside of the CID, including an abundant selection of steamed rice noodle rolls, Nanning noodle soups, and pretty much every pig part you can think of. Speaking of abundant, so are the portions, though even humble-sounding dishes hit with nuance: For instance, the minced pork with rice is brightened with verdant Chinese broccoli and pickled mustard greens and the black pepper stir-fried beef noodle is aromatic with five-spice. Pro tip: Don’t miss the self-serve soup to the right of the condiments bar, it comes with every order.
Mark DeJoy
Little Duck
This inconspicuous, seriously underrated spot just north of the University Bridge focuses on the cuisine of northeast China. The cabbage and pork dumplings are tender and juicy, the mapo tofu is balanced and packed with umami, and the chicken fried rice is some of the best in the city. Be sure to order the comically banal-sounding “spicy potato sticks.” Calling them the best fries in Seattle wouldn’t even do them justice.
Matthew Lombardi/Eater Seattle
Voula’s Offshore Cafe
An old-school daytime diner, Voula’s Offshore Cafe spent the first half of its 40 years in business as an iykyk neighborhood hub, and the next half as a nationally famous destination, thanks to being featured on the first season of Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. Regardless of the wax and wane of TV hype, Voula’s is still steadily serving unfussy but carefully prepared classics, like benedicts with sliced house-smoked pork, omelets with house-smoked salmon, and some of the best hash browns in the city.
Mark DeJoy
Saint Bread
Helmed by former London Plane operating partner Yasuaki Saito, this waterfront shrine to carbohydrates has serious credentials and a wide-ranging approach. Both European and Asian baking styles are represented here. The pastry case houses exemplary cream cheese Danishes with seasonal fruit next to spot-on melonpan, tart and tender yuzu polenta cakes, and platonic-ideal chocolate chip cookies. If you get here after the pastries sell out — which happens early — the made-to-order menu includes creative and more substantial items like an egg-and-cheese breakfast sandwich on a Hawaiian bun or melonpan and an okonomiyaki-style frittata. During warmer months, Saint Bread opens Japanese-inspired wood-fired grill Hinoki and cocktail window Heave Ho for dinner hours on its patio from Thursday through Saturday.
Harry Cheadle
