Seattle is an up-and-coming dining city and these restaurants are a huge reason why. In this video, join professional chef Aisha Ibrahim on a tour of the best places to grab a bite in Seattle, Washington. Watch as Aisha showcases the comforting Filipino soul food of Kilig, the handmade soba noodles of Kamonegi, the rich and creamy Italian pasta of Spinasse, and her home restaurant of Canlis. Home to delicious cuisines from all over the globe, Seattle is a can’t-miss foodie destination.
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00:00♪♪
00:05Hey, everyone. Welcome to Seattle.
00:06Today, we're gonna be checking out
00:07my five favorite bites in the city.
00:09We have a very vibrant and diverse food scene here.
00:11I can't wait to share all of this with you.
00:13Let's go check it out.
00:14♪♪
00:17First place I'm taking you to is Key League.
00:19It is a Filipino-American restaurant by my friend Mel.
00:23It is a place that specializes in Filipino soul food
00:26and good vibes.
00:27The dish that I love here is what they're known for,
00:30which is bulalo.
00:31Mel has opened up this spot to give access
00:33to something that is just really found at home.
00:35When you don't feel good,
00:37this is the thing that you need from your grandma.
00:39The special part of this dish
00:41is the beautiful piece of bone marrow,
00:43the perfectly braised pieces of beef throughout that,
00:46soft, tender potatoes that have been cooked through,
00:49corn on the cob.
00:50I think it's so delicious.
00:51I'm so, so thankful this has opened up here.
00:53It's just beef bones and water.
00:57Yeah.
00:58And salt.
00:59And I think in the Philippines,
01:00like, so much of our food is so flavorful,
01:03but it's so simple.
01:04♪♪
01:08Oh, my God, it's delicious.
01:10I am not putting any effort into pulling this apart.
01:13It is pork tender, seasoned very well.
01:16I'm not gonna find bulalo
01:18in every Filipino restaurant out there,
01:21especially a modern one.
01:22I think that is what's so special and unique about it.
01:25I hope you guys come and check it out.
01:27We're here at Kambanegi.
01:29I love this place so much.
01:30It's a great soba-focused restaurant
01:32with an amazing sake list.
01:34Can't really ask for anything more
01:35than handmade soba noodles.
01:36Let's check it out.
01:37We are here with Soma-san,
01:39and she is kind enough to let us into the kitchen space
01:42to see the soba-making process.
01:43I don't see, like, any place, like, making noodle by hand.
01:46And dry noodle and fresh noodle is completely different.
01:50So I start learning how to make soba just for me to eat.
01:56Then after I learn soba-making, like,
01:58oh, this is, maybe I should share my experience
02:02and educate people how fresh soba is good.
02:06Style of noodles that she's serving is a dipping style.
02:09It's gonna be served off to the side.
02:12You've got a bowl of just beautiful hot broth
02:14in front of you.
02:15This broth, so rich.
02:16You've got slices of duck breast.
02:18You've got what's referred to as skune.
02:20Minced duck legs that have been made
02:22into almost a type of sausage.
02:24It's something that I think is so exceptional
02:26and makes this restaurant so special.
02:28Cheers.
02:29Cheers.
02:35We're checking out Xi'an Noodles right now.
02:37It is a specialty noodle shop.
02:39Really, really unique.
02:40Hand-pulled noodles done very well.
02:42It's one of my favorite comfort foods in Seattle.
02:44Come with me.
02:45Xi'an Noodle is dedicated to making these by hand.
02:48They make the dough every single day.
02:49They roll it out,
02:51and they stretch it beautifully across this little bench.
02:54And then pull it up,
02:55tear it to the thickness they're looking for.
02:57There's just something very exciting
02:59about the quality of that work.
03:01For some reason, there are a lot of you back here
03:02doing this.
03:03This is the noodle dough.
03:04They're spreading it out and flattening it,
03:08and then stretching it.
03:14And then you tear it, right?
03:16So, one, two, three.
03:21The first year of living here,
03:22my wife and I made a pact to live close enough
03:24to one of these so that we could get delivery
03:26or come swing by one.
03:27You should go out of the way for it, too.
03:29The heat and the chilies on this dish,
03:31it's delicious.
03:33And I love that kind of tingly feeling.
03:35This is the lamb.
03:36It's sort of braised, cross-cut,
03:39shaved very thinly,
03:40and then tossed in with a bunch of these chilies
03:42and spices and this chili oil.
03:44This is so good,
03:45I have to actually physically stop myself.
03:47Next, we'll throw it to Spinace.
03:49Let's go check it out.
03:51Spinace is your quintessential neighborhood restaurant
03:53in Capitol Hill.
03:54One of the things I love about Spinace is the vibe.
03:57When you walk in,
03:58you're kind of walking into this cozy Italian friend's house.
04:01You're met with a glass of wine,
04:03really friendly service.
04:05One of my favorite bites is a pasta dish here
04:07called Tyrene.
04:08It's very simple.
04:09It's just butter, sage, the pasta,
04:12a little bit of Parmesan, salt and pepper.
04:13Watching them make this dish,
04:14you'll see how simple it is.
04:16You're sitting at the counter where I'm sitting right now.
04:18You can see the entire pasta process being made.
04:21Pretty open kitchen, beautiful space, very quaint.
04:24So much about what I love about this dish is just the umami,
04:28the butter and the Parmesan coming together harmoniously.
04:31Like, you've got to eat it while it's hot.
04:33I'm talking a little bit too much right now
04:34because I'm excited about it,
04:35but I love this dish.
04:39Lastly, I'm taking you to Canlis.
04:41This is the restaurant where I'm the executive chef.
04:43The dish we're going to be making
04:44is a dish called Escabeche Florita.
04:47It is a play off of my grandma's last dish
04:49she made me before she passed away.
04:51My grandma was a little bit sassy.
04:53She kind of broke the rules
04:54where we needed to break the rules.
04:55This is my way of connecting with her on a daily basis.
04:58The vibrancy of the sauce, the crispiness of the fish,
05:01the nice crunchy vegetables.
05:03This is my way of getting to honor someone
05:05who has meant so much to me.
05:07This is it.
05:08This is our Escabeche Florita.
05:09This is my most favorite thing
05:11my grandma used to make for me.
05:12And I like to think of it as a very special celebration
05:15of someone I love so much, so.
05:21I really love the use of the apple juice as a souring agent.
05:26It's a way to connect this to the state of Washington,
05:29which is very famous for apples.
05:30The ways in which I'm allowed to story tell
05:33and express creativity and my Filipino roots here,
05:36it's an opportunity of a lifetime
05:38and also a way to honor my ancestors
05:41and the people who have fought very hard
05:43for me to be where I am today.
05:44Seattle's a pretty amazing up and coming dining city.
05:48We hope to see you here
05:49and I look forward to welcoming you.