Atoma
Restaurant · Wallingford ·
Seasonal menus paired with wine and craft cocktails
Seasonal menus paired with wine and craft cocktails
"It feels like it has been around a long time: inside an old Craftsman house in sleepy Wallingford, the space has a relaxed, lived-in elegance, yet it’s a 2024 arrival that’s already earned a boatload of praise, from a James Beard nomination to a spot on Eater’s Best New Restaurants in America—and it lives up to the hype and the relatively high price point. The food reads Pacific Northwest meets the Pacific Rim (think XO sauce made from geoduck on beef tartare), with such a focus on seasonality that specific recommendations are tricky. Two anchors remain: the rosette cookie that helped make the restaurant famous—delicate, sandwiching creamy farmer’s cheese and sweet Walla Walla onion jam between layers of savory cookie—so get one per person; and a baked Alaska that changes with the seasons, folding in ideas like parsnip in the ice cream or corn silk in the meringue to create one of the most inventive desserts in all of Seattle. For access, reservations usually open at the beginning of the preceding month (follow Instagram for drop reminders), or try the walk-in-only seats at the bar or in the solarium—an especially good strategy for single diners or couples if you arrive right when doors open at 4:30 or 5 p.m." - Harry Cheadle
"A famous baked Alaska on the menu has been made with parsnips incorporated into the dish, illustrating the use of root vegetables in classic desserts." - Bettina Makalintal
"This sage-walled craftsman feels like an intimate hang at someone’s house—only if the host casually served half-portioned martinis in miniature glasses, or crispy radish cakes topped with paper-thin slices of geoduck. It’s a place that feels thoroughly fine-dining but fun, with Atoma’s creative vegetarian dishes leading the way. Gather some friends, go in on some excellent cocktails, and share savory rosette cookies filled with onion jam and farmer’s cheese, pounded lion’s mane mushrooms fried to resemble katsu, and the f*cking amazing crumpets. Get access to exclusive reservations at this spot with Chase Sapphire Reserve. New cardmembers get $300 in annual dining statement credits." - aimee rizzo
"A Seattle-area restaurant that earned a 2025 James Beard Award nomination in the Best New Restaurant category; the nod was a notable honor but it did not win." - Harry Cheadle
"Hardly anyone bothers to make this old-school dessert, which is ice cream encased in meringue and then set on fire. And no one makes it like Atoma, the acclaimed Wallingford restaurant. Here the team incorporates seasonal vegetables like corn in the summer and parsnip in the fall, and the miracle is that these flavors all come together. Don’t leave the restaurant without getting one for the table." - Harry Cheadle