All anyone wants when it comes to deciding where to eat is an angel to sit on their shoulder and tell them where to go. We’re still working on shoulder-angel technology, but we do have our resident expert, Chelsea Lin, to help readers make those tough choices in crucial times. Need a birthday restaurant recommendation, vegan Mexican food or a new wine bar to try? We’ve got you covered in our weekly Instagram Q&A sessions, rounded up here. 

Have a question for Chelsea? Submit here.

Best restaurant for meat eaters and vegetarians? 
It depends on your ratio here, and how willing the omnivores are to eat vegetarian food. Plum Bistro, for example, is entirely vegan, but it’s so satisfying in a comfort-food kind of way, that even my carnivore husband likes it. Lots of Asian food is great for mixed company like this—I know Ba Bar, for example, has some excellent vegetarian Vietnamese dishes. 

Best spot in West Seattle?
If you’ve been following along, you know I love Ma’Ono, but there are so many great spots there. I love the pastas at Raccolto, Mashiko has excellent sushi, Buddha Ruksa does great Thai take-out. And Il Nido! I still haven’t been, but I’ve heard rave reviews. 

Best birthday date spot? 
Oooh, I love a birthday! In my mind, birthday equals cake, so I’d go to Deep Sea Sugar & Salt and have a coffee and a slice of cake, and buy myself some flowers, and really do it right. But if you want a dinner date type of place, I’d go for a nice tasting menu, some place extra special like Art of the Table or Altura. 

Sushi on the Eastside? 
I know this may be surprising, but newish steakhouse Ascend has some pretty great sushi, particularly if you’re interested in creative interpretations of sushi. I also really like I Love Sushi right on Lake Bellevue.

Best vegan Mexican food? 
Pablo y Pablo has a few interesting, tasty options for vegan tacos and even vegan nachos topped with cashew cheese. El Borracho has probably the best options, for tacos and burritos—I especially like their potato and poblano mix. 

Coffee options in Greenlake?
Revolutions is probably the best option closest to the lake, though I worked at a Peet’s through college and have a special place in my heart for them. If you’re a little outside the Green Lake core, I really like Broadcast on Roosevelt, too. 

Best local breakfast spots for a couple of tourists? 
I’m assuming this means you’re staying downtown, in which case I would send you to Le Pichet, which is just the best, and also Biscuit Bitch, which is also the best, but for entirely different reasons. 

Best place for olive oil cake? 
Referring to Deep Sea again, they have a ricotta olive oil cake occasionally in the rotation, but you’ll have to follow along on social media to find out when that is. Coyle’s Bakeshop makes a really great olive oil bundt cake. If anyone else has any recommendations, send ‘em over! 

Best wine bars? 
Vif and Bottlehouse are the places I generally recommend here, because I love them both. But Bar Ferdinand is excellent, and so is Le Caviste, and I just visited Vinnie’s Raw Bar for the first time, and loved that too (particularly if you’re looking for natural wines).