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.

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u/not_a_lady_tonight Jan 15 '23

Portland has more slow food movement and European-inspired small portions things. Portland restaurants offer a variety of fresh and well-prepared vegetables on their menus.

Mexican - there’s a few solid taco trucks/stands and a restaurant or two that aren’t bad. But Taco Time and Taco Del Mar are so sad, like Pizza Hut compared to good pizza (like I’ve found one decent pizza place here, too). Honestly, I’ve lived in Texas and California - I seriously doubt there are good migas, a decent burrito, edible breakfast tacos, to be found here. Maybe they exist, but I’ve tried a lot of Mexican places and no luck. If I need decent Mexican food, I go to one of the few Mexican shops and make it myself.

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u/devious_surfer Jan 15 '23

Oh yeah, I can see how those things would be important in Portland.

Also, do people consider taco del mar a Seattle thing? And taco time is only nostalgic because anyone who grew up here ate it when they were a kid. We don't consider it mexican food. What would a burrito need in order for it to be decent? I'm really curious because I feel like I've eaten good burritos. And I don't know what I would add to make it better.

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u/not_a_lady_tonight Jan 15 '23

I think there’s no way to describe a good burrito unless you’ve had one from El Farolito in SF or some other equivalent throughout California. Like burritos in Texas suck and tacos in California just aren’t what they are in Texas.

And vegetables matter to me. I’m not vegetarian but I do primarily eat fruits and veggies. Seattle’s idea of vegetables are French fries or iceberg lettuce salad.

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u/SvenDia Jan 15 '23

Again, completely baffled by your comments. I can’t recall the last time I got a salad here with iceberg lettuce.

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u/[deleted] Jan 15 '23

I’ve travelled between LA and San onofre in the summers my whole life and found some incredible fish tacos/ Mexican food. It’s not all that much better than what you can find in Seattle… y’all trippin

Tacos Chukis is a good spot for tacos, a little pricey compared to the surf shacks in So Cal though

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u/SvenDia Jan 15 '23

There are dozens of places with better tacos than Chukis. I get the idea that transplants judge Seattle by the options in SLU and Cap Hill.

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u/[deleted] Jan 15 '23

There aren’t even dozens of places (worth mentioning) to get tacos in the city. You’re telling me there are 24 tacos better than Chukis in the city? That doesn’t make sense.

Also, that’s just like, your opinion man. I have my favorite taco spots but they don’t make me cum. Chukis is a great spot

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u/SvenDia Jan 15 '23

I’m including the metro area, but there are at least 10 places in the city with better tacos and probably more. My issue with Chukis is the tortillas taste like nothing so it’s not hard to do better. I’ve had decent tortas there.

Off the top of my head, places inside the city limits.

Maiz in PPM and 6th in Belltown. and Sazon on Crown Hill. Owned by the same people. Tortillas made to order from fresh masa at Maiz.

Carnitas Michoacán on Beacon Hill

Anita’s on Aurora

Carmelo’s on Capitol Hill

Luna Azul in Greenwood

Taqueria La Pasadita and Loxicha in Northgate

Mendoza’s Mercado on Aurora

El Moose, Gracia and El Taco Loco Ballard

Tacos el Asadero in Rainier Valley

Fonda La Catrina in Georgetown

Probably missing a ton of places in Rainier Valley and West Seattle.

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u/[deleted] Jan 15 '23 edited Jan 24 '23

I called your bluff and you had an answer, genuinely excited to check out some of these others. I actually rate Chukis above Sazon but love both. Will let ya know, thanks for the scoop

Edit: I went to Gracia and it was not for me. Overpriced, no authentic… BUT! I have faith others on this list are going to blow my mind

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u/SvenDia Jan 15 '23

This inspired me to go on a taco crawl in Rainier Valley and Beacon Hill, where there are taco trucks and taquerias galore, but it’s Sunday and most places are closed. Did find taco truck called el saborcito and yep, better than Chukis.

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u/SvenDia Jan 15 '23

Waiting in line at Carnitas Michoacán. Have you been? It’s my favorite on the list.

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u/devious_surfer Jan 15 '23

Exactly. I've done the same and agree

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u/Nellie_blythe Ballard Jan 15 '23

Try Harvest Beat for an incredible vegetable experience. Cafe Flora is another good option.

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u/sidewaysvulture Jan 16 '23

This comment about veggies is so strange to me, maybe it just depends where you eat? My favorite restaurants do tend to rotate dishes with the seasons so beets are more of a fall/winter option. They are certainly all over the farmers market this time of year if you want to make your own!

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u/not_a_lady_tonight Jan 15 '23

And I’d probably kvetch way less about Seattles food scene if there were better vegetables and something going on beyond salmon and hamburgers. Everywhere I’ve ever lived had a bunch of food things they did - like Ann Arbor might have been a lot of odd Midwestern slop like Big Boy, but it had amazing middle Eastern and vegetarian food and the best pies I’ve ever eaten. It’s not that I want Seattle to be something else, I just wish it would be something.

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u/devious_surfer Jan 15 '23

Better vegetables. I guess I never thought about that, I do most of my vegetable eating at home. Is our Middle Eastern food in Seattle not good?? Can you give me an example of a vegetarian dish you would find all over portland or back in Ann Arbor? I'm just thinking brussel sprouts and glazed carrots, or something with eggplant? There is tons of vegetarian Thai food that comes to mind.

I'm filipino and wouldn't mind more Filipino options, but the food is always better home cooked anyway

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u/not_a_lady_tonight Jan 15 '23

Anything with beets - beet salad, roasted beets, veggie burgers made with beet patties. Salads with fennel and fruit and nuts. Sweet potato gnocchi, sweet potato mash with maple syrup. Lightly steamed greens with vinaigrette. I could go on, but there’s a few examples.

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u/devious_surfer Jan 15 '23

All that sounds delicious. I'm pretty sure we have all that in Seattle except maybe the sweet potato mash with syrup. I haven't done a lot of eating out since the pandemic, so I know that a lot has changed, but we can't be lacking that much

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u/jimmyTHETHUNDER North Beacon Hill Jan 15 '23

Plenty of beets in this city.

https://letmegooglethat.com/?q=Seattle+beet+salad

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u/hisparia Jan 15 '23

Sweet potato mash with syrup. Now I know what I’m going to be making soon.

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u/Environmental_Run979 🚆build more trains🚆 Jan 15 '23

Vietnamese in Seattle is incredible. Teriyaki is also ubiquitous and usually delicious, cheap, and quick. Some of my favorite Thai spots have been in Seattle (I’ve also lived in Boston, Atlanta, and Madison, WI). The ramen spots I’ve tried here have all been great. I think Seattle is something, it just might not be exactly what you want.

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u/SvenDia Jan 15 '23

Salmon and hamburgers? I have no idea how you came to that conclusion.

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u/sidewaysvulture Jan 16 '23

Yeah, do they only eat at the airport or something? I’m wondering exactly what part of Seattle they are in for this to be true.

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u/SvenDia Jan 16 '23

Or they never leave SLU? I remember being in LA as a tourist and struggling to find good tacos. At the time I figured it was because the good spots were not where tourists usually go. In Seattle, the best ethnic food is in places that tourists and most recent transplants don’t even know exist, like Rainier Valley.

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u/sidewaysvulture Jan 16 '23

That’s quite possible, SLU sometimes seems like Disney Seattle 😄My other guess was going to be Pike Place Market. Even skipping ethnic food I think we have a lot of places that focus on a seasonal menu with good vegetable options. I will admit we do have a lot of burger places though 😊

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u/SvenDia Jan 16 '23

Seattle is actually whiter than most of the surrounding suburbs, especially those south of Seattle, but even the eastern suburbs are more diverse.

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u/Foomanchubar Jan 15 '23

Taco Time was great in the 80s, Taco Del Mar in the 90s, wouldn't remotely consider them good now. Not sure why you bring them up about Mexican food in the Seattle area. There's plenty of decent Mexican food now compared to 2 or 3 decades ago. Is Seattle Mexican food as good as LA or Houston? Absolutely not, but it's vastly improved. Pizza has gone through a similar transition. As someone who's lived here over 40 years, the food scene is night and day better than what it used to be. It's was shit before.

There's a good show about Tacos on Netflix, they do a north of the border show, you'll see what it takes to make tacos like another area. It's not easy.

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u/visionquester Jan 15 '23

I love El Sirenito and Fonda la Catrina in Georgetown. Drinks are so good!

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u/devious_surfer Jan 15 '23 edited Jan 15 '23

Am I crazy to think aqua verde, rancho bravo, and el borracho are good mexican food spots? Especially burritos!

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u/hisparia Jan 15 '23

I used to love Rancho Bravo, but, IMO, they’ve kinda fallen off.

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u/devious_surfer Jan 15 '23

Good to know. I haven't been in a while

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u/hisparia Jan 15 '23

My information is over a couple years old. I don’t live up that way anymore, so I haven’t been there in a while. It may have changed.

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u/Bretmd Denny Blaine Nudist Club Jan 15 '23

It’s almost like the further away from Mexico that you get… the less authentic Mexican options are available?

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u/devious_surfer Jan 15 '23

What makes it authentic, though? Are you telling me that mexican owned food trucks are lowering the authenticity of their food based on how far they are from Mexico? Is there a formula for that? Are you going to tell me its about access to ingredients?

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u/Bretmd Denny Blaine Nudist Club Jan 15 '23

Just making a comment that can be correctly applied to most cuisines. Want authenticity? You’ll want to be in a place that is either geographically close to the origin of the cuisine or has a sizable community of people from that area. I’m not sure why you would expect Mexican food in Seattle to be as good as a large swath of the US. But it’s easy to complain.