Chinese Food in Seattle (2025)
While the atmosphere at this dim sum institution—accented by boarded-up windows, small nooks, and a lack of carts rolling around—doesn’t exactly hold a candle to the grand dining room at other spots in town, the lineup of delicious Chinese food is Jade Garden’s main attraction. Here, you don’t need any pomp and circumstance. You just need to order a lot of stuff. From overstuffed potstickers and sweet honey BBQ pork hand pies to smoky seared turnip cakes and rice wrappers plump with pink prawn filling, dim sum at Jade Garden tastes delicious, whether plain or completely drenched in your own custom blend of hot chili sauce and salty soy swirled on the plate. And with excellent walk-in potential, their hours being 9am-7:30pm daily, and electronic ordering, this is one of the best group meal spots in the city, let alone the ID.
Opened in 1935 and still family-owned, Seattle’s oldest Chinese restaurant serves Chinese American classics alongside Cantonese favorites. Featured by local outlets and celebrated for its Bruce Lee booth and enduring place in CID history.
Under this restaurant’s unmistakable red awning in the CID, two neon signs tell you all you need to know: "Congee" and "Noodles." Mike’s Noodle House is a neighborhood mainstay that specializes in those things, and does them very well. Slinky egg noodles are weighed down by husky chunks of tender brisket and bright vegetables. Congee is thick and comforting. And the homey, compact dining room is buzzing with the hum of conversation, quick service from a steam-filled kitchen, and the occasional clink of chopsticks. Just know, this place is cash-only, so make sure you hit the ATM before you get face-deep in a bowl of porridge. Food Rundown Rock Cod Congee Flaky pieces of meaty cod float among the smooth and rich congee. It's nourishing and even better with shakes of white pepper on top. Boneless Chicken Congee The congee itself is still fantastic, but the boneless chicken is sort of flavorless and limp. You can skip it and stick to fish. Chinese Donut Each order comes with a plate of neatly arranged little golden bars that are crackly on the outside, while light on the inside with fluffy air pockets. Each is perfect for dipping into thick rice porridge or just snacking straight off the plate. Chinese Broccoli With Oyster Sauce Bright rows of flash-steamed snappy Chinese broccoli are covered in a thick layer of salty oyster sauce. Nothing fancy here, but it’s delicious. Beef Brisket Noodle With Vegetable There are a lot of components of this dish, like springy al dente egg noodles, tender bok choy, and brisket chunks glazed in a tasty oyster sauce. There’s also a side of umami-packed broth that works for dipping, sipping, or just pouring over everything. It’s great, but a lot—expect to have leftovers.
Tiny, independently run spot known for hand-pinched dumplings, scallion pancakes, and beef noodle soup. A longtime editor favorite on Thrillist and Eater maps for its straightforward, spicy comforts.
Late-night CID staple for made-to-order dim sum, roast meats, stone-pot rice, and mango sago. Noted by The Infatuation for post-midnight eats and listed by Seattle Met for all-day dim sum and HK café favorites.
A CID go-to for late-night Cantonese—dim sum until early evening, then big-plate seafood, wings, and honey walnut prawns past midnight. Endorsed by local critics and favored by restaurant folks after service.
Cantonese and Hong Kong café dishes done with care—XO sauce rice rolls, sizzling stone-pot rice with Chinese sausage, and baked pork-chop spaghetti. Frequently featured on Eater Seattle neighborhood and best-of lists.
Little Ting’s is so far north that it’s barely within Seattle city limits—but worth the long bus route if your location is more southern. The beauty of this place is that you can get any type of potsticker or bao that your heart desires, and they’re really good, especially with lots of black vinegar and chili oil. The long menu can be overwhelming, so stick with a surplus of pan-fried buns, anything involving pickled napa, an order of garlicky green beans, and a scallion pancake that is way puffier and more satisfying than other thin ones around town.
There’s a small Chinese restaurant on Roosevelt Way in the University District that’s packed every night of the week. But when you step inside, all of the guests are relatively silent. It’s not because everybody at Little Duck is a spy or just got broken up with. They’re quiet because the food is so good that people forget to talk to each other while they’re eating it. The dining room looks like a classroom in the ’50s, if classrooms in the ’50s also had baby blue Smeg refrigerators and an abundance of fried rice. There are old-school desk chairs and a chalkboard that lists house specials, like braised ribs and hot and spicy chicken. Steaming plates never stop parading out of the kitchen, so the wisest way to order if it’s your first time here might be to sit back for a moment and see what looks good, rather than picking and choosing from the menu. photo credit: Derrick Koch But if you do consult the menu, you’ll find that it has a ton of Northeastern Chinese dishes listed in both Mandarin and English, divided into appetizer, meat, vegetable, and rice/noodle/pastry sections. From the pickled cabbage dumplings tasty enough that they don’t need a dip, to the double-cooked pork slices coated in a sticky sweet and sour sauce, everything comes out piping hot and intensely flavorful. Especially the vegetables. The string beans here are crisp, garlicky, and even tastier than some of the meat dishes. The corn in a buttery sauce with pine nuts has all of the comfort of creamy soup. And, while Little Duck does serve dessert, the only sweet thing you need is the brown sugar caramelized sweet potatoes, which could really be mistaken as candy. Unless you’re a UW student or are shopping for hand soap at Aesop, chances are you don’t spend too much time in the University District. But Little Duck is a better reason to visit the neighborhood than to see undergrads in their natural habitat or cherry blossoms that make you sneeze. Especially after dealing with the mayhem that is University Village, you’ll be grateful to take a seat at a quiet restaurant that serves some of the best Chinese food in the city. Food Rundown Pickled Napa Cabbage & Pork Dumplings These dumplings often sell out, which tells you just about everything you need to know about them. The filling is so juicy and tart that you won’t need to dip them into any sauce. Sauteed Sweet Corn With Pine Nuts This is a nice combination of corn, peas, carrots, and raw pine nuts in a buttery broth. It’s wholesome and light at the same time. Fried Rice With Eggs This fried rice won’t blow your mind on it’s own, but it’s a perfect pillow for your entrees, and the scrambled eggs add something special to every bite. Order some for the table. Double Cooked Pork Slices We love these sweet and sour crunchy fried pork slices. The ratio of batter to meat is 3:1, which we now believe to be the golden ratio. Stir Fried String Beans There’s nothing to dislike about garlicky sautéed green beans that have a spicy kick. These are excellent, and belong on your table. Hot & Spicy Chicken This chicken is hot and tingly, and every bite is equal parts juicy and crunchy. Just watch out for little bits of bone. Sweet Potato Caramelized With Brown Sugar Whoever popularized the saying the “the icing on the cake” needs to redact it and spread the word about the “sesame seeds on the sweet potato.” Forgo dessert and have a mound of sweet potato hunks instead. The syrupy brown sugar coating quickly hardens, resulting in a crispy, sweet outside and a fluffy inside that we find hard to stop eating. The sesame seeds on top bring it all together in toasty harmony.
Old-school counter for Cantonese roast meats—duck, char siu, and crispy pork—cut to order. Cited by Seattle Met and community advocates as a longstanding, family-run anchor for takeaway lunches and holiday birds.
Budget-friendly, a la carte dim sum from a tiny counter window—egg tarts, har gow, congee, and steamed rice rolls. Regularly included on Eater Seattle dim sum guides and popular with locals for quick bites.
CID hot pot with customizable broths and a serious Sichuan pantry—aprons, coat covers, and an expansive sauce bar show they care. Featured on Eater Seattle’s Sichuan and hot pot roundups for the full mala experience.
