Skip to content

Food & Drink

Seattle’s 45 Best Global Dishes

Think globally, eat locally: The best spots for world tastes in Seattle

By Chelsea Lin and Naomi Tomky, with additional reporting by Rebecca Ratterman March 15, 2017

0317_globaldiningcover

This article originally appeared in the March 2017 issue of Seattle magazine.

People—readers, friends, random strangers on the street—are always asking us for recommendations on where to eat. Up until recently, the requests were largely for seafood or burger places. Thanks to a growing international population, coupled with our city’s rich Asian history, we’ve finally reached the point of culinary diversity at which the questions are much more encompassing. Where do we go for Chinese food? Mediterranean food? Sorry, but you’ll have to be more specific. Where does one go for Ethiopian kitfo? Japanese strawberry shortcake? Polish pierogi? Thai khao soi? Those are questions we now can enthusiastically answer. Clearly, a whole country’s worth of cuisine can’t be boiled down to a single dish, any more than we can cover a world’s worth of food in 16 pages, so we’ve made some judgment calls and in doing so, had to overlook a few countries (sorry, western Europe). But we’ve pulled together some 50 recommended dishes from 35 countries, from restaurants located in a dozen neighborhoods in and around the Seattle area. So, you’ve got a pretty good place to start. There has perhaps never been a more important time to break bread—and cultural barriers—around the table. Itadakimasu! Bon appétit! You get the idea. 


Seattle’s 45 Best Global Dishes: Chinese

Seattle’s 45 Best Global Dishes: Asian

Seattle’s 45 Best Global Dishes: Middle Eastern

Seattle’s 45 Best Global Dishes: Latin American/Carribean

Seattle’s 45 Best Global Dishes: African

Seattle’s 45 Best Global Dishes: Desserts

Dumplings Around the World

Chicken and Rice and Everything Nice

The Great Hate Debate: Americanized Chinese Food

International Food Fests, Global Etiquette and More

Follow Us

Seattle Pizza Chain Goes National

Seattle Pizza Chain Goes National

Tutta Bella ramps up production after deal with Kroger

Seattle’s Tutta Bella pizza has signed a deal with Kroger and will now serve its Neopolitan-style pies in 1,200 stores in 40 states. Kroger’s first order of 85,000 pizzas generated more than $1 million in sales. “We didn’t set out to become a national food manufacturer — it happened organically, one pizza at a time,”…

Where To Find ‘Authentic’ Mexican Food in Seattle

Where To Find ‘Authentic’ Mexican Food in Seattle

A primer ahead of Cinco de Mayo

With Cinco de Mayo upon us May 5, thoughts turn to Mexican cuisine. What is “authentic” Mexican cuisine, anyways? Gino Garcia, who grew up California’s Central Valley and traces his family roots to Mexico going back more than a century, says it’s a futile exercise to search for “real” Mexican cuisine in Seattle. “I don’t bother much with authenticity,” says Garcia, who is…

Seattle Restaurant Roundup: Tourists, Canadians, Hot Honey, and Cider

Seattle Restaurant Roundup: Tourists, Canadians, Hot Honey, and Cider

Remember when hot honey burst onto the dining scene last year? You’d find it drizzled on pizza, slathered on fried chicken, even as a dipping option for cornbread. But if the temperature has turned down a bit for you on this trendy condiment, let Queen Bee’s Hot Honey — made and served up with Caribbean…

Restaurant Roundup: Take a Bite of the Latest Seattle Food News

Restaurant Roundup: Take a Bite of the Latest Seattle Food News

Here’s what was served up recently in the Emerald City

Seattle is a special place to eat — you know it, we know it — so it’s not exactly a surprise when local culinary talent makes the headlines. Nevertheless, it’s always worth throwing a little more shine to the spotlight — take a peek to find out which star gained some national acclaim this week,…