Seattle's International District

[ethnicchower]

I am wondering what your favorite places are in Seattle's International District. I am looking both for restaurant and food store (supermarket or specialty store) recommendations. The more authentic (Chinese, Vietnamese, any asian culture, really), the better. I don't care if the place looks dingy - I am just looking for yummy authentic asian food.

[shaolinLFE]

as for chinese BBQ, one cannot forget about Kau Kau. Avoid their other bbq items but the char siu there is pretty money.

Sub Sand for an "asian subway" sandwich experience. If you eat there they will usually offer you complimentary tea of the day. It's next door to Fuji Bakery which i also highly recommend.

663 Bistro is good for regular Cantonese Chinese food.

Henry's Bento (the original) is great for taiwanese and affordable. their $5 lunchbox is an incredible deal. they are also known for their taiwanese beef noodle.

Thai Simple Curry for lunch is always great, fast, and affordable. They have curry and sauce packets there to make thai food at home as well.

Hue Ky Mi Gia is a mouthful of a name of a restaurant, but a great chinese/vietnamese noodle house that explores what's beyond pho. they are known for their braised duck noodle, and surprisingly their fried chicken wings.

on another note, i hear Bush Garden's lounge has a pretty impressive karaoke bar scene.

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Bush Garden Restaurant
614 Maynard Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104

Fuji Bakery
526 S King St, Seattle, WA 98104

[ethnicchower]

These are all great recommendations - thank you all!
Does anyone know of a good place to have Peking duck?

[divadmas]

you can park at uwajimayas, fuji bakery is around the corner. king bbq up the street. near there is a vegetarian restaurant. haven't tried it but chinese buddist veg can be amazingly close to standard fare. if i go to pho bac saigon deli is across the street.

[FoodDoog]

There are great places in the ID for any kind of Asian food you would want, but it's a tough order to name one or two places. The thing about the ID is, you should ask in terms of what you'd like to eat. For me there's no single Chinese joint, because you'd go to one place for seafood, another for noodles, another for hotpot, and another for home-style Cantonese, etc. This also holds true for other cuisines in the neighborhood. So what are you hungry for or wanting to try?

[DiggyK]

Totally agree with FoodDoog. It really depends on what you want to eat. Some of the things I like at specific places:

1. Roast pork or Soy Sauce duck at King's BBQ. I find the roast duck just ok
2. Paper wrapped cupcakes at Yummy Bakery
3. Banh mi at Saigon Deli. Specifically the bi and xiu mai kind.
4. BBQ pork buns at Duk Li (Lee?)
5. Sesame balls at Dim Sum King
6. Prawn and yellow chive egg rolls at Jade Garden
7. Salt and pepper chicken wings at 663 Bistro

For groceries, I prefer Uwajimaya for the cleanliness but Dong Hing on Jackson and Lam's on King St are not bad.

Also must mention the viennoserie at Fuji Bakery. Some of the best I've had outside of Paris and Payard (before they closed) in NYC.

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Uwajimaya
600 5th Ave S, Seattle, WA

Saigon Deli
1237 S Jackson St Ste E, Seattle, WA 98144

Jade Garden Restaurant
7th S King S, Seattle, WA 98101

Fuji Bakery
526 S King St, Seattle, WA 98104

[PAO]

Forgot to mention King's Barbecue for great Chinese barbecued meat/poultry. Get roast duck or pork or chicken! Basically a take out place, although it may have one or two tables.

[Leper]

Hing Loon should be on your short list. (The interior looks like a 8th grade cafeteria, but overlook that and the memories that come with it.) Order the shrimp won ton soup and the salt & pepper ribs and basque in the glow that this isn't anything like your middle school sloppy Joe's.

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Hing Loon Restaurant
628 S Weller St, Seattle, WA 98104

[HungWeiLo]

For Vietnamese, I'd definitely do Huong Binh and Lemongrass, then walk half a block to Saigon Deli to pick up lunch for the next several days.

Some more places in the ID very much worth going:
Maneki
Red Lantern
Thai Simple Curry
Hong Kong Bistro

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Maneki Restaurant
304 6th Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104

Huong Binh Restaurant
1207 S Jackson St, Seattle, WA 98144

Saigon Deli
1237 S Jackson St Ste E, Seattle, WA 98144

[PAO]

Tsukushinbo for Japanese. Don't bother with the combo plates. Order noodles, sushi, or some of the more unusual things on the menu or on the specials list. Uwajimaya is good for Asian produce and groceries, but NOT for deli food. There are many "warehouse-type" SE Asian groceries in the blocks west and south of 12th and Jackson that offer excellent prices. I second Sea Garden and Green Leaf. At the Panama Hotel, you can get authentic locally made Japanese wagashi.

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Uwajimaya
600 5th Ave S, Seattle, WA

Tsukushinbo
515 S Main St, Seattle, WA 98104

Sea Garden
509 7th Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104

[equinoise]

Probably a duplicative inquiry, but I'll take the bait, while borrowing the MSG 150 original boundaries for the ID (http://msg150.com/2007/11/rules-of-ga...

Sea Garden
Jade Garden
Harbor City
Pho Bac
Green Leaf
Homestyle HK Cuisine
Henry's Taiwan
Mike's Noodle House
Makaewa Bar
Phnom Penh Noodle House

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Phnom Penh Noodle House
660 S King St, Seattle, WA 98104

Mike's Noodle House
418 Maynard Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104

Sea Garden
509 7th Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104

Jade Garden Restaurant
7th S King S, Seattle, WA 98101

[roolala]

I think Homestyle HK cuisine is closed :( I walked by last week and the store name had been changed.

[clearskies0810]

Homestyle HK Cuisine was replaced by Gourmet Noodle Bowl some time ago. Good place for Taiwanese noodles and for hot pot.

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Gourmet Noodle Bowl
707 8th Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104

[pusherman]

I'm confused -- I had HK Homestyle for lunch last month. Are we talking about the place on King (I think at 6th or 7th?) or is there another HK Homestyle? In any case, the HK Homestyle I go to on King is great for congee!

[equinoise]

The space which was formerly inhabited by Homestyle HK Cuisine (615 S King St.) is now home to "Noodle King." This may have been the case for a while, as those "Grand Opening" banners tend hang around longer than one might expect.

Similar to HK Cuisine but perhaps a shorter menu, featuring a multiple-choice style selection sheet for the noodle bowls (e.g. pick a broth, type of noodle, etc.) Quite a substantial portion (like a large pho seving), more so than I remember at the old place, plus there is a self-serve condiment bar with chili paste, peanuts, and other items. Pretty good value, will return to try the more subtle broths ( I went with Szechuan today) and the stone-pot rice.