Andrew Lee

I have been looking to visit Persepolis Grill for years but finally visited recently and I regret not visiting sooner. I split an order of tadig with Geymeh Bademjan and the King's Choice platter that had a koobideh kabob, chicken kabob, and barg kabob. Persian food isn't well represented in Seattle, so I'm glad I was able to try some more here because it was delicious. The tadig was wonderfully crispy and the geymeh bedemjan added some nice acidity with the tomato based sauce. I was amazed by how tender and moist all three kabobs were. Most times I have koobideh, it's been dry, but theirs is so tender and flavorful. All kabobs were delicious but I loved the koobideh and the chicken kabobs. What will stick with me the most though was how nice one of the owners was. He really wanted to make sure we enjoyed the food and seemed genuinely pleased they we really loved it. I really appreciated his hospitality and the conversation we had. If I'm on the Eastside I'll also try to visit Bella Balducci's which is the same ownership. Until then, I hope to be back at Persepolis Grill very soon.

Great tasting tacos and friendly people make Tacos El Patron one of the best in the area. I visited during their Taco Tuesday which makes many of their tacos $1.50 a piece which sweetens the deal, but even at their normal prices, the tacos are worth it. I especially enjoyed the tinga, carnitas, and the adobada. I also appreciated that covered dining area with picnic tables and the TV with telenovelas going. I will definitely return if I'm in the area.

Saffron Spice is a wonderful place to go for Indochinese food as well as Goan cuisine. Both of those cuisines aren’t very well represented in this area, so when I learned Saffron Spice has those dishes, I was very interested in visiting. The space is spartan, but I ordered to go and they aren’t allowing in person dining currently. I ordered the Chicken 65, Gobi Manchurian, Chicken Schezwan, and Chicken Xacuti Curry. Everything I had was delicious. Each dish had a combination of spices that felt familiar but definitely different. I really loved the gobi Manchurian with it’s stir fried cauliflower and tasty mix of peppers and spices. I also really enjoyed the Chicken 65. The Chicken Schezwan was also great and was really menacing looking with it’s deep red maroon sauce. It looked like something that would knock your socks of with heat, but the spices were tasty and much more subdued than the color would suggest. Finally, the xacuti curry was the Goan curry that had a very nice flavor as well. I hope to visit again soon and recommend them wholeheartedly.

Tan Dinh is a good place to visit for a very affordable meal. I used to visit when it was a different owner almost a decade ago now probably, but have not been back since the new owners set up shop. I visited on a Friday morning around 9am and was the only customer. Because it was early there was not a lot of hot food to choose from but they did have the packages of rice noodles, spring rolls, and desserts available. I ended up going for the pork banh mi. It’s cheaper than the other Vietnamese delis that I’ve visited at $3.50. The sandwich was pretty good. The bread was pretty decent and the daikon and carrots were nicely acidic. The pork was the best part. It was caramelized in places and had a good balance of salt, sweet, and richness. I would return because I’m interested in seeing what they have to offer in terms of hot food.

I’ll admit, when I visited the ID as a child I always took Cake House for granted. My family didn’t go there very often so I didn’t think much of the place. It’s nondescript like a lot of places in the area, but after trying to find good Chinese bakeries I was led to Cake House. I’ve been to Cake House a few times as an adult and have enjoyed the pastries I got every time. Most recently I visited on a Wednesday morning around 9am. I lucked out and got there as the owner brought out freshly baked ham and egg buns. I ended up buying a ham and egg bun, chicken pie, and sponge bake. I enjoyed everything I bought. The chicken pie was tasty and rich – the chicken tasted like chicken in Chinese lo mai gai but with a Western crust. The sponge cake was nice and fluffy without being too sweet as well. The highlight was the fresh ham and egg bun though. It was amazing. The fluffy bun was wrapped around the ham and egg but what distinguished this one was the egg wash on top. The bun had been baked and had a golden brown almost darker brown color and the egg wash created a sort of thin crust that gave a little resistance when biting into the bun adding a wonderful texture. I’ve had many ham and egg buns in my life and this was the best I’ve ever eaten. I’m glad I found out that their baked goods are legit eventually. I will be back to try more of the pastries.