As UW students, it's easy for us to get into a rut when it comes to food. Believe me, I love crappy ramen noodles as much as the next person but it's time to get out there and enjoy some real food. And as a self appointed food specialist, I'm taking it upon myself to do so. I'm not talking about food on the Ave either, I'm recommending food outside your little bubble. I'm also taking into account that we're college students so I'm not recommending places like Canlis or Daniel's Broiler, your parents would have to own the darn Dallas Cowboys in order to get a grape from there. Before I list each restaurant, I'll try to give you an idea of how much it is, the neighborhood and what it is mainly known for. So stop binge watching the new season of Orange is the New Black and put your bus pass to use, or suck up to your friend with a car, and try some of these restaurants!!
Paseo
Cost: $12
Neighborhood: Fremont
Known for: Pulled pork and caramelized onion sandwich
If you haven’t heard about Paseo yet, you should probably stop living under a rock. Seriously, rocks are dark, damp and gross but Paseo is not. It’s been voted best sandwich place in Seattle, even under new management. It’s also not far, just a hop skip and a jump away in Fremont. Plus, it’s fairly cheap, the only problem is that it is literally packed from open until close.
Beth's Cafe
Cost: $25
Neighborhood: Greenlake
Known For: 24 breakfast food that isn’t plastic (ahemm IHOP)
Nestled in a cozy corner off Aurora is a hip little breakfast shack named Beth’s Café. It's pretty sweet because it’s open 24 hours, has cool drawings on the wall and has the means to allow you to eat yourself into a coma. By that I mean, the 12-egg omelet. This Godzilla dish is served on a large pizza platter and is stacked with lots of different options such as the Santé Fe or the classic omelet. Trust me, you might want to share it with a friend, I personally was immobilized an entire weekend after consuming that monster of a meal.
Gordito's
Cost: $20
Neighborhood: Greenwood
Known For: Enormous Burritos
Not only is the food here good, but its big. Gordito’s prides itself on some of the biggest burritos in Seattle. It’s hilarious yet frightening that they have numerous pictures of their burritos next to newborn babies and without fail, every one of the burritos is larger. Simply put: large burritos = good time. So go.
Unicorn
Cost: $20
Neighborhood: Capitol Hill
Known For: Sweets and booze
If you’re afraid of carnivals or clowns (like me), steer clear, but otherwise this is probably one of the best times in town. Games, alcohol and sugar, what else would a person ever want? Actually though, unicorn is iconic in Capitol Hill and one of the most popular bars in the area.
Wan Sushi and Izakaya
Cost: $30
Neighborhood: Belltown
Known For: Fusion appetizers and happy hour
Not going to lie, I kind of found this place randomly, but was surprised it wasn’t more popular. Its hard finding cheap sushi places because sushi is inherently the most expensive food ever, but I figured out a place that actually has reasonable prices, even though it’s the most expensive place on this list. My recommendation is to go for all day Monday happy hour and order lots of appetizers and sushi. Their specialty rolls are darn good and the service is probably some of the fastest I’ve ever experienced. I truly do not know why this place isn’t more popular.
