Jason Wilson, chef and owner of The Lakehouse in Lincoln Square in downtown Bellevue, has been involved in Seattle Restaurant Week since its beginning in 2010. He has seen the dining promotion grow and is now poised for its latest iteration, Oct. 27 through Nov. 9, along with more than 260 other restaurants across the region. 

Jason Wilson of The Lakehouse in Bellevue is ready for Restaurant Week.

Seattle Restaurant Week was born in 2010 when a group of local chefs collectively known as the Seattle Restaurant Cooperative make plans to spur the restaurant business out of the recession sparked by the 2008 financial crisis. Those restaurateurs included Maria Hines, John Howie, Ethan Stowell, Pam Hinckley of Tom Douglas Restaurants, Joseba Jimenez de Jimenez, the late Tamara Murphy, and the late Thierry Rautureau.

In 2017, the effort merged with the Seattle Good Business Network’s “Dine Around Seattle under the same banner of Seattle Restaurant Week. 

This is the first Restaurant Week as owners for José Garzón of Capitol Hill’s Bad Chancla and business partner Stefanie Hieber. Garzón participated as a pop-up restaurant serving at Black Cat in Belltown last year and sold out every day. Garzón said the success of the pop-up buoyed the opening of Bad Chancla. 

“We don’t participate in Restaurant Week to make money,” says Garzón, who has lived or traveled to Mexico, Puerto Rico, Argentina and Colombia as a touring musician. He settled in Seattle to join the Bremerton-based band MxPx. “We use (Restaurant Week) to bring in guests who are not necessarily in the neighborhood. We bring people in and make them customers. We are really focused on that customer connection.” 

José Garzón of Capitol Hill’s Bad Chancla participates in Restaurant Week to connect with new customers.

Wassef Haroun, who runs the Nadi Mama Restaurant Group, wants new guests but also wants to appeal to pre-pandemic regulars. He operates Mamnoon on Capitol Hill, Hanoon in Kirkland’s The Village at Totem Lake, and MBar in South Lake Union. 

“People had lost the habit of dining out, even our most loyal customers,” Haroun says. “Sometimes you need to give them a little bit of an incentive, a call to action.” 

Wassef Haroun of Nadi Mama Restaurant Group aims to reconnect with pre-pandemic regulars and attract new guests.

Mariah DeLeo, program director of Seattle Good Business Network, says this year’s Seattle Restaurant Week is the most diverse, inclusive, and largest ever, including 18 pop-ups. 

“The idea to support emerging businesses is important,” DeLeo says. “Seattle Restaurant Week is firmly rooted in the Good Food Community program. It’s about connecting the local food system. We are about supporting value-based businesses, getting them to buy from local producers, being more sustainable. We want to lift up that model.” 

Some of our favorite Seattle Restaurant Week participants include:

• Nell’s Restaurant on Greenlake, which is offering a three-course dinner menu for $50. 
• Moshi Moshi Sushi & Izakaya in Old Ballard is offering five-course omnivorous or vegetarian menu options for $35. 
• Tom Douglas Restaurants’ Neb (short for the noble ‘Nebbiolo’ grape original to Italy’s Piedmont region) in Belltown is offering its Nebbiolo braised lamb neck for $20 as well as several wine specials. 
• Half Shell, just north of the Pike Place Market — Douglas’ newest place — is offering a general half shell sampler plus entree options for $50. 
• The self-taught Tina Fahnbulleh draws from her experience living in Ghana and Liberia to deliver comforting soul food at the Gold Coast Ghal Kitchen, which is celebrating its first anniversary the first week in November. 
• Autumn chef and owner Brian Clevenger already offers a three-course menu plus a glass of wine for $50 on Tuesdays year-round. For Restaurant Week, he’s elevating the entree options to include Rockfish or pork chops while keeping the price at $50. 
• The Feedme Hospitality and Restaurant Group will feature special menus at its Edmonds locations, including Salt & Iron, Fire & The Feast, Bar Dojo and Sankai. 
• Aqua by El Gaucho offers a surf-and-turf entree option as part of a three-course menu for $65. 
• El Encanto in Carillon Point on Kirkland’s waterfront will offer a three-course dinner for $50. 
• House of Naku in West Seattle is one of a handful of restaurants offering Restaurant Week specials on weekends, albeit to-go or for delivery. 
• Spice Waala will offer dinner for $20 at all three of its locations in Ballard, Capitol Hill and Columbia City. 
• Mashiko in West Seattle will offer a $25 vegan lunch, a $35 combo lunch, and a five-course dinner for $65.