The Best Seat is at the Bar

For diners who embrace it, “just a seat at the bar” can mean scoring the best seat in the house, offering a front-row view to a busy, exhilarating restaurant show

At some of Seattle’s hottest restaurants, it’s hard to get in the door (even in this economy), let alone score a table without a reservation. Maybe that’s why more and more Seattleites have taken to drop-in dining at the counter. Or it could be the inevitable backlash to all the kumbayah-ing of communal dining (this is notoriously reserved Seattle, after all). Whatever the reason, it turns out that for diners who embrace it, “just a seat at the bar” can mean scoring the best seat in the house, offering a front-row view to a busy, exhilarating restaurant show.

Spinasse
Why we love it: Perfect handmade pastas and rustic Italian wines in a Capitol Hill hideaway. Counter experience: The four seats at the lower counter offer early birds a view of the chefs as they hand-cut the evening’s pasta on the other side of the wide butcher-block counter; the other six seats at the bar also provide a good—though not quite reach-out-and-touch-it—view. And whether you order the whole-menu tasting option or à la carte, you’ll be able to watch every delicious morsel take shape just a fork’s throw away. Good for: Romance, solo dining, foodies. Capitol Hill, 1531 14th Ave.; 206.251.7673; spinasse.com; dinner Wed.–Mon.

Matt’s in the Market
Why we love it: The bustling energy of Pike Place Market spills into Matt’s, where everyone—staff to diners—seems to be having a great day and the simple, delicious, market-fresh seafoods and meats always satisfy. Counter experience: Fun, casual and surprisingly communal (even shy Seattleites are forthcoming when it comes to opinions on what they’ve ordered). Bartender Tom Donnelly has a knack for knowing who’s up for chatting and who’s not. And like the best waiters, he’ll offer his candid opinion about what’s best that night, never resorting to the eye-rolling “everything’s great.” Most importantly: The eight seats at the bar don’t require a reservation made a week (or two) ago, which is what it takes to get a table at Matt’s. Good for: Solo dining, drinks and appetizers, stellar views, spontaneous lunches. Pike Place Market, 94 Pike St., Suite 32; 206.467.7909; mattsinthemarket.com; lunch and dinner Mon.­–Sat.

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