Suddenly, we’re in the season of warm air, longer days and later, lovelier sunsets — this is when Seattle-area restaurant patios, decks and rooftops are at their best. Here, Seattle Times food critic Bethany Jean Clement lists her three all-time favorite places that combine the most pleasant outdoor spaces with great food and drinks for the most outdoor-dining fun possible.
Marination Ma Kai
West Seattle
1660 Harbor Ave. S.W., Seattle; 206-328-8226; marinationmobile.com
Marination Ma Kai wins hands-down for the combination of the best food (and drinks), at the best price, with the best view in town from its West Seattle waterfront location. Behold, across gleaming Puget Sound, the downtown skyline looking like a souvenir — a vista that makes everybody feel instantaneously on vacation. Partake of the Hawaiian-Korean fusion food by ordering at the counter, in volume — the kalua pork sliders and kalbi beef tacos (two for $7) are pretty much required, as is the kimchi fried rice ($10.50), Spam musubi ($4.75) and shave ice ($5.75). Then to the patio bar, serving lots of tropical cocktails, frosé, cold beer, Jell-O shots … why not? Bonus: The water taxi adjacent to the main ferry terminal takes you directly here — the best-ever designated driver, it’s another amazing, Seattle-specific sunny-day treat.
Bar Harbor
South Lake Union
400 Fairview Ave. N., Suite 105, Seattle; 206-922-3288; barharborbar.com
On a corner in South Lake Union, Bar Harbor’s huge deck is here to show you the kind of good time you’d have at an epic yet relaxed backyard party. Plenty of boozy slushies, tiki cocktails and beers ranging from Rainier to aficionados’ local favorites help out, while the neighborhood’s plethora of cute dogs do their part, too (welcomed with signage proclaiming the space “Bark Harbor”). Then there’s Bar Harbor’s specialty: Some say it’s the best lobster roll around ($26, or double the lobster for luxury for $40). Owner Ben Hodgetts hails from Maine, but he’s ecumenical enough to let you have it your way, offering them in the styles of his home state, Connecticut or New England, all on custom-made, toasty-golden rolls. The rest of the menu definitely deserves exploration, too — e.g., the Dungeness-and-rock-crab cake served with arugula, citrus, grana padano and a grapefruit vinaigrette ($19). Aside from having a big deck, this place is an underrated Seattle restaurant, great overall.
Terra Plata
Capitol Hill
1501 Melrose Ave., Seattle; 206-325-1501; terraplata.com
Terra Plata’s rooftop deck exists as an uplifting Capitol Hill oasis, with two sides of the triangular aerie all garden-lined. True to chef Tamara Murphy’s local, seasonal ethos, the greenery isn’t just for show; from time to time, someone from the kitchen weaves their way through, snipping parsley, mint, rosemary and/or thyme. The New American menu borrows beautifully from all over the place while celebrating our local farmers, fishers and foragers for more than a decade now. It all tastes arguably even better outdoors, from the blistered shishito peppers ($15) featuring the occasional rogue super-spicy one (a dish Murphy started serving long before its wave of popularity), to the signature roast pig, rich in flavor and luxuriously tender in texture, with chorizo and clams also bathing in the smoked-paprika-and-sofrito-spiked broth. To go with it all, there are thoughtful cocktails and a capacious, largely Old World wine list with lots of bubbles and rosé. And if you’re thinking you probably should get an order of the housemade potato chips, sprinkled in truffled sea salt with pecorino-chive cream dip ($15), you are correct, for they are lacy and amazing and almost lighter than the rooftop deck’s air.
The opinions expressed in reader comments are those of the author only and do not reflect the opinions of The Seattle Times.