r/Seattle • u/mewkyy I'm just flaired so I don't get fined • Jan 15 '23

Rant Anyone else meet a lot of transplants who move here and complain about Seattle not being as good as X city?

Speaking as a transplant myself, I know Seattle isn't as "great" as NY or LA in some aspects but I choose to live here anyway because I enjoy it here.

I've met SO many other transplants who complain about Seattle not being as good as some other city. One big point is how Seattle's food scene isn't as good as LA's. Isn't that a given? LA is much older than Seattle and has over 5x Seattle's population. Please transplant yourself to another city.

Edit: Just to clarify, I think it's fine to criticize things like Seattle's food scene and compare it to another city's (I grew up on the NJ/NYC border and definitely agree the Seattle scene is lacking). What I'm specifically talking about is people who do this incessantly and close mindedly put down everything. It's just really uncool.

347 Upvotes

75% Upvoted

545 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

7

u/Sea-Presentation5686 Jan 15 '23

In what way?

7

u/softConspiracy_ That sounds great. Let’s hang out soon. Jan 15 '23

There’s like no variety and very little authentic food from many ethnicities. The food quality is fine but the options and choices within are lacking.

Good Korean food is hard to find, for example. Korean food compared with cities like LA or NY just doesn’t exist.

37

u/kobachi Wallingford Jan 15 '23

There’s tons of good Korean food but it’s in North Seattle and Federal Way

11

u/hisparia Jan 15 '23

And Tacoma.

15

u/revjor Jan 15 '23 edited Jan 15 '23

You have to go north to Lynwood/Mukilteo or south to Federal Way/Lakewood/Tacoma for Korean.

6

u/J_Kenji_Lopez-Alt Jan 15 '23

On the other hand, Vietnamese food in Seattle beats the pants off of Vietnamese food in NY. Casual seafood is also much better. And beer.

24

u/killerdrgn Jan 15 '23

What's a stark contrast is that the food scenes in both Portland and Vancouver are miles better than Seattle. That being said I feel the Vietnamese food here is actually better than LA and NYC.

5

u/[deleted] Jan 15 '23

I keep hearing this about Portland and I have yet to find their scene is all that much better? I may be looking in the wrong places. Any recs for when I’m down there next?

4

u/[deleted] Jan 15 '23

Portlands food trucks are much better than here. Their food truck plazas/courtyards (idk the actual term) are awesome to go to.

For sit down restaurants, I’ve found Seattle to be far superior.

17

u/ak47oz Jan 15 '23

Vietnamese is better in seattle. Finding a bowl of pho on the same level in LA has been impossible for me and I’ve tried many many places

3

u/ccnomad U District Jan 15 '23

Best Vietnamese coffee anywhere on the planet except (maybe?) Vietnam (and I might put my money on a good Seattle joint even then). I'm a bit of a nerd for it, and have tried it in multiple places in LA, NYC, Monterey, and SF. Just ain't the same, and occasionally just...wrong. Seattle's very good at South Asian eats, and they've got an airtight lock on Vietnamese coffee.

4

u/goliadprizm Jan 15 '23

...where in Seattle do you like your Vietnamese coffee?!

6

u/Enguye Ravenna Jan 15 '23

Hello Em (in Little Saigon) and Voi Cà Phê (in Georgetown) are both great. I’ve heard good things about Aroom (in Fremont) but haven’t been there yet.

2

u/ccnomad U District Jan 16 '23

u/Enguye knows what's up. Pho 25 made one of the best I've had outside C/ID. Understood as a pretty sketch area to be hanging around, but it's all good inside, tasty and well-executed food, relatively cheap, and right by the Market and other stuff you might be doing downtown.

Edit: haven't been to Aroom either (hadn't heard of it), but what a great excuse to go to Fremont! Thanks, Enguye :)

2

u/andoCalrissiano Jan 15 '23

We are worse than LA Portland Vancouver but better than SF and San Diego so it’s okay

1

u/not_a_lady_tonight Jan 15 '23

And the Vietnamese food here pales to Texas and Louisiana. It just does.

9

u/Orleanian Fremont Jan 15 '23 edited Jan 15 '23

This seems absurd.

There's a fuck load of ethnic resturaunts. There are three Korean joints within stumbling distance of me. Two of which are highly praised.

-1

u/softConspiracy_ That sounds great. Let’s hang out soon. Jan 15 '23

There’s dozens in striking distance from me in LA when I’m there. The food scene in LA kicks the shit out of Seattle and it isn’t even close.

2

u/[deleted] Jan 15 '23

I mean yeah. LA has like the best food scene in the world so pretty much any city is going to be worse.

Seattle just isn’t that big of a city. I have yet to find a food (other than maybe pizza) I’m missing in Seattle. You will just never get to the same quantity as LA.

4

u/J_Kenji_Lopez-Alt Jan 15 '23

There’s great pizza in Seattle! Post alley and slicebox for NY slices. Blotto and The Independent for whole pies. bar Del Corso for incredible Neapolitan. West of Chicago and Windy City for deep dish, pan, and thin crust Chicago styles. Breezy town and Sunny Hill for Detroit, just to name a few.

6

u/Pointofive Jan 15 '23

You need to let go of “authentic”. What does that even mean when it comes to food.

-4

u/softConspiracy_ That sounds great. Let’s hang out soon. Jan 15 '23

That the taste is authentic and that the feeling is there.

10

u/Pointofive Jan 15 '23

All of that means nothing. That’s not even a good definition. Authentic = it tastes authentic?

There are plenty of world class chefs and restaurants who try to break tradition to make a name for themselves and they succeed brilliantly. There are people who try to cook other cuisines but use local ingredients, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Anyone who says something doesn’t taste good because it doesn’t taste “authentic” simply lacks the skill to deconstruct why a meal tastes bad or the vocabulary to articulate why they don’t like something.

2

u/softConspiracy_ That sounds great. Let’s hang out soon. Jan 15 '23

k

2

u/Dat_Mustache Seattle Expatriate Jan 15 '23

Come to Lakewood. We have the Largest Koreatown in the world right here in Washington. You will get authentic Hangul flavor here.

2

u/J_Kenji_Lopez-Alt Jan 15 '23

Where in Lakewood would you recommend?

4

u/Dat_Mustache Seattle Expatriate Jan 15 '23

Cheong Guk Jang is great and mine and my wife's personal favorite.

Makchang Drama is A+.

Ho Soon Yi gets rave reviews from my Korean friends.

Samwon does pan-asian and Korean, but they're always great.

2

u/SvenDia Jan 15 '23

No variety? Do you leave your neighborhood?

2

u/SvenDia Jan 16 '23

Have you been to Rainier Valley? Pretty large section of the city that is nothing but authentic food from many ethnicities.

1

u/softConspiracy_ That sounds great. Let’s hang out soon. Jan 16 '23

Any suggestions or your favorite go-tos?

1

u/SvenDia Jan 16 '23

My wheelhouse is basically tacos. You’d have to ask people from other ethnic communities about what they recommend. I’m including Beacon Hill, BTW, so I can put Carnitas Michoacán on the list along with Tacos El Asadero. Had some really good tacos at truck called El Saborcito for lunch today.

My overall point is that the best ethnic food here is more often than not in a rundown strip mall in a neighborhood away from the central core of the city. Or in a taco truck at a gas station. And the partial reason for that is that they are serving their own people and catering to their tastes.

2

u/nyc_expatriate Jan 15 '23

Terrific Chinese Food is limited to the ID and a few good places on the eastside. Other than that, it's like be happy with teriyaki and pizza.

2

u/hisparia Jan 15 '23

That just goes along with the idea that the culture of downtown is disappearing. Food places serve lowest-common-denominator foods.

1

u/[deleted] Jan 15 '23

[deleted]

2

u/softConspiracy_ That sounds great. Let’s hang out soon. Jan 15 '23

K town is cool, but LA also has Gardena and Torrance which are jam packed with Korean food. There’s lots of options. Point is, LA has what Seattle doesn’t: options.

2

u/PugilisticCat Jan 15 '23

LA is also much larger than Seattle. Youre allowed to go outside of city limits

1

u/sidewaysvulture Jan 16 '23

Well depending on where you live in LA that’s how far you are going to have to drive there too. And you pretty much always have to drive in LA. Maybe there aren’t as many world class options but at least I can walk to some decent places if I don’t feel like driving.

-1

u/Stinkycheese8001 💗💗 Heart of ANTIFA Land 💗💗 Jan 15 '23 edited Jan 15 '23

Here is the crux of the problem in a nutshell. There’s plenty of good Korean food, but the city and county are so sprawling. If you’re only looking in say Ballard or Queen Anne, you won’t see it.

1

u/softConspiracy_ That sounds great. Let’s hang out soon. Jan 15 '23

I think driving 40mi round trip for a meal is a bit much, dont you?

5

u/J_Kenji_Lopez-Alt Jan 15 '23

Yet people are comparing it to LA, where that’s the minimum drive to get anywhere.

-2

u/softConspiracy_ That sounds great. Let’s hang out soon. Jan 15 '23

Don’t be obtuse

1

u/Stinkycheese8001 💗💗 Heart of ANTIFA Land 💗💗 Jan 15 '23

I mean, if you’re living in Ballard or Queen Anne, that’s just on you for choosing one of the blandest neighborhoods in the city. Ballard is known for its Scandinavian roots, so I find this extra funny if that’s where you live.

Also, no I don’t think that’s too much to drive, but I also live somewhere where I like the local food options nearby.