The American version of grilled-then-glazed chicken on rice that Toshi Kasahara invented at his Lower Queen Anne counter in 1976. Sugar, soy, char and shredded cabbage.
Where to eat it: 2 restaurants across 1 city.
On 2 March 1976 Toshihiro Kasahara opened a 30-seat shop at 372 Roy Street called Toshi's Teriyaki. His sauce broke with Japanese tradition: he swapped mirin for granulated sugar, basted the marinade on yakitori-style chicken thighs over charcoal, and finished the plate with rice and a pile of shredded iceberg. The Seattle Times credited the move with launching a city-wide format that now numbers more than 200 teriyaki shops, more than any other US city. The dish is the only American food invented in Seattle that the city eats without irony.
Common allergens: Soy, Gluten
Tip from the editors. Charcoal beats gas; the sugar in the sauce only blackens correctly under live fire. If you only have a pan, add a teaspoon of neutral oil and finish under the broiler for 30 seconds.
Maneki in Seattle's International District is the oldest Japanese restaurant on the West Coast: opened in 1904, surviving wartime internment.
Signature: Nigiri set, Geoduck sashimi, Sukiyaki
Order: The geoduck sashimi if it is on the board, otherwise the chef's nigiri set with a tatami room.
Tip: Reserve a tatami room four to six weeks ahead; the bar runs walk-in but the room shapes the meal.
Ba Bar Capitol Hill in Seattle is the city's only proper late-night Vietnamese kitchen: pho until 02:00 weekdays, 03:30 weekends, bahn mi at the counter.
Try: Pho ga at 02:00
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