I’m always on the hunt for Mediterranean food in Seattle because the foods of places like Turkey, Greece, Israel, and Lebanon are my absolute favorite (shh, don’t tell my Italian family!).
But what exactly is Mediterranean food? While incorrect, most Americans categorize Middle Eastern food as Mediterranean, but really Mediterranean food describes the cuisines from countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea. This includes Greece and Turkey, which many Americans would consider “Mediterranean food”, but it also includes Spain and Italy.
This is a really good read on the difference between Mediterranean and Middle Eastern food. And also why categorizing a restaurant as “Mediterranean” helps the livelihood of some restaurant owners.
Therefore, for the sake of this article, I’ve defined Mediterranean food to be any cuisine that’s to the east of Greece and Turkey, including Egypt. I’ve included the specific cuisines of each restaurant, but in general I’m thinking of the cuisines that are heavy on favorites like grilled meats, hummus, eggplant, pita, and rice.
We’re fortunate to have a ton of really yummy Mediterranean food in Seattle. Here’s a roundup of my favorites. Happy eating!
Mediterranean Food in Seattle
Here are what I consider the best Middle Eastern, Persian, and Mediterranean restaurants in Seattle, WA. Pin this for later, as I’ll add more as I find new favorites!
MedMix Jackson
website | 2204 S Jackson St (get directions) | neighborhood: Central District | cuisine: Mediterranean
MedMix is one of my top 3 favorite, casual Mediterranean spots. Every single thing I’ve ever had here is excellent. They even make excellent versions of things I don’t typically eat.
Case in point: dolmas. I hate dolmas, but I actually liked theirs. It didn’t taste as grapeleaf-y, but was rather acidic and a bit floral. Any place that can turn me onto dolmas gets an A+ in my book.
What to get: My go-to order here always includes the juicy lamb-beef gyro, creamy hummus, and smoky baba ghanoush (seriously, they have one of the best babas I’ve had).
They also make excellent Greek fries. This isn’t something I typically gravitate toward, but Dan got them and I couldn’t stop stealing them thanks to great seasoning and a heavy dose of garlic sauce.
Mr. Gyros
website | 5522 20th Ave NW (get directions) and 256 NE 45th St (get directions) | neighborhoods: Ballard and Wallingford | cuisine: Mediterranean
Mr. Gyros is one of my go-to restaurants in Seattle. It was on a list of the top 100 most-loved restaurants in the US when Yelp analyzed their reviews. So that goes to show this place deserves to be one of your go-tos as well.
They offer comforting street food classics like gyros, shawarma, Greek salad, falafel, and hummus. It’s cheap. It’s consistent. And it’s the best.
What to get: The lamb-beef gyro is a must get. They have the best meat off the spit that I’ve found in Seattle, and the way they assemble a gyro hasn’t been beat yet.
I also really enjoy their chicken shawarma. I like to get it as a plate with rice, Greek salad, and hummus. It’s filling, so it’s often a twofer you can eat for lunch the next day.
Homer
website | 3013 Beacon Ave S (get directions) | neighborhood: Beacon Hill | cuisine: Mediterranean/Middle Eastern inspired
Homer is probably the fanciest Mediterranean food in Seattle. It’s a posh spot in South Seattle that doesn’t take reservations for parties fewer than 6, meaning there can sometimes be a wait. But it’s well worth it to get their excellent, chef-y takes on Middle Eastern classics.
What to get: The menu changes regularly with what’s in season, but don’t skip the pita bread and dips. The pitas are huge and fluffy, cooked right in the oven that you can see from the restaurant floor.
You should also save room for their fun, ever-changing soft serve ice cream featuring Middle Eastern flavors like rose, cardamom, pistachio, and the like. They sell it in their casual fried chicken spot down the street called Milk Drunk, too. It’s some of the best ice cream in Seattle!
Hamdi
website | 4012 Leary Ave NW (get directions) | neighborhood: Frelard | cuisine: Turkish/Anatolian
Hamdi is serving some of my favorite Mediterranean food in Seattle right now. I first tried them when they were a roaming popup and was truly impressed at the level of finesse they were able to achieve from under a tent.
It makes sense, considering Turkish chef and owner Berk Guldal hails worked in impressive restaurants like Cafe Boulud in NYC and SingleThread Farms in Sonoma, one of the best Michelin-starred restaurants I’ve been to. His partner, Katrina Schult, also worked at SingleThread Farms and The French Laundry, so you know you’re in good hands with these two.
Guldal’s technique is evident in each dish, but he translates it into comforting flavors that don’t feel too high brow. The restaurant is dark, yet lively with an open kitchen and fun, almost club-like beats. It makes their elevated food feel less fussy while still providing one of the few more upscale Mediterranean restaurants in Seattle.
What to get: The menu changes regularly, but the kebap is deeply memorable. It was SO juicy and went beautifully with the sumac, tomato, and cucumber salad served with thin pita. I literally said later in the afternoon that first time I ate it that I wish I was still eating it. I felt the same when I got it again at their restaurant.
Cafe Turko
website | 750 N 34th St (get directions) | neighborhood: Fremont | cuisine: Turkish
I love Cafe Turko so much. They’re included in my self-guided Fremont food tour. It’s a family-owned spot on the outskirts of downtown Fremont that not nearly enough people talk about. When you walk in the space is colorful and the ceiling is dotted with lanterns like you’re in a souk. Plus the owners are so sweet, and follow through on catering orders (as I used them once).
What to get: My go-to is the rainbow hummus plate and lamb beyti kebab. The hummus plate features regular chickpea hummus alongside beet, spinach, and yam hummus. Not only is it beautiful, but it’s creamy and flavorful.
The beyti kebab is served kind of like a quesadilla. It has meat wrapped in lavash bread alongside mozzarella, feta, and veggies, and then it’s grilled. It’s also served with yogurt and this addictive tomato sauce on the side.
Aviv Hummus Bar
website | 107 15th Ave E (get directions) | neighborhood: Capitol Hill | cuisine: Israeli
Israeli food is probably my favorite cuisine and we don’t have nearly enough of it in Seattle. However, Aviv comes through with their puffy pitas and excellent hummus creations. You can get it plain, but the pro move is to get one of the hummuses topped with different concoctions like meat, mushrooms, and more.
What to get: Out of all the hummus bowls, the hummus basar with ground beef is my favorite. But my other favorite thing to get here is sabich. It’s a pita sandwich stuffed with hummus, fried eggplant, hard boiled egg, and veggies. I also often get falafel added to it.
Falafel Salam
website | 4746 California Ave SW (get directions) | neighborhood: West Seattle | cuisine: Israeli/Middle Eastern
Falafel Salam is one of the best restaurants in West Seattle. They also have one of the best food trucks in Seattle, which is actually where I tried them for the first time. You’ll find street food classics like shawarma, gyro, falafels, and the like.
What to get: I love the hesitator, and I love them for offering it. It has literally all my favorites that I can never choose between: falafel, hummus, shawarma, salad, and lamb gyro. I always end up ordering $500 worth of food getting these items a la carte at other Mediterranean restaurants in Seattle, so I appreciate they make it easy at Falafel Salam.
Taki’s Mad Greek
website | 1471 NW 85th St (get directions) | neighborhood: Crown Hill | cuisine: Greek/Mediterranean
This is the best Mediterranean food in Seattle when you’re craving traditional Greek dishes. You’ll find items like spanakopita, moussaka, and souvlaki authentically prepared.
What to get: Despite having a lot of Greek classics, I always get the lamb-beef gyro. Taki’s is the closest gyro I’ve found to matching my favorite one from Mr. Gyros. The meat is quite good and the combination of tzatziki sauce with salad hits all the flavor profiles you’d expect from this classic sandwich.
Man’oushe Express
website | 13721 Lake City Way NE (get directions) | neighborhood: Lake City | cuisine: Middle Eastern
Man’oushe Express is tucked inside the base of a larger building on a busy section of Lake City Way. This adds to its hole-in-the-wall, hidden gem factor. They’re best known for their mana’eesh flatbreads topped with goodies. But you’ll find all types of Middle Eastern street food specialities here.
What to get: Definitely get a mana’eesh. My favorite is the za’atar and cheese one. I also recommend getting their chicken shawarma. The rice is so buttery. When mixed with the garlic sauce it’s seriously addictive.
Pro tip: They’re cash only.
Mint and Olives
website | 8 W Mercer St (get directions) | neighborhood: Lower Queen Anne / Uptown | cuisine: Mediterranean
Mint and Olives totally surprised me. It’s a hole-in-the-wall spot that looks like any other ho-hum Mediterranean restaurant in Seattle, but the flavors coming out of their kitchen really elevate the classic street food. For example, I always tend to like gyros better than chicken shawarma because the meat is moister, but, despite loving their gyro, I like their shawarma better.
What to get: Definitely the chicken shawarma. It has high quality grilled chicken stuffed inside a roti-style wrap, not your typical pita. It’s also served with this tangy sauce that makes it different than other shawarmas.
They are another place that makes excellent Greek fries thanks to a heavy dose of garlic sauce.
Cafe Suliman
website | 1531 Melrose Ave (get directions) | neighborhood: Capitol Hill | cuisine: Arabic
Cafe Suliman is inspired by the casual cafes in the Levant, Egypt, North Africa, and The Arabian Gulf. You’ll find a lot of pantry staples like aleppo, za’atar, pistachio, dukkah, labneh, hummus, and more represented on their focused menu.
Located inside Melrose Market, Cafe Suliman feels like one of the last remaining secret spots in Cap Hill. The space is quaint with only about 6-ish tables and some bar seating. Because it’s so small you may wait for a table, but it feels like a party where you stand mingling in the market over drinks while you wait. The wine list is well curated since Cafe Suliman shares the space with Cantina Sauvage, a natural wine bar.
What to get: There isn’t a single dish that I’ve ordered that I didn’t like. If it’s available, don’t miss the tuna butter served with crostini, pickled onions, and dill. It reminds me of the Italian baccala fish spread we often make for Christmas. I also LOVE the fenugreek mussel toast, which had a lot of brothy goodness to sop up with the thick-cut bread.
Aladdin Falafel Corner
website | 4541 University Ave NE (get directions) | neighborhood: University District | cuisine: Mediterranean/Middle Eastern
This is another casual Mediterranean restaurant in Seattle serving street food classics like gyros, shawarma, and falafel. I really love this place. They’re up there on my list with Mr. Gyros, MedMix, and Mint and Olive when I want a fast and comforting fix of my Middle Eastern favorites.
What to get: Pretty much everything from the hummus, baba ghanoush, and Greek fries is good. I also love the heavily-spiced chicken shawarma that’s earthy and slathered with garlic sauce.
However, the must-get here is the Aladdin gyro. The meat is almost like a mini meatloaf that’s super juicy, and the best part is it’s slathered with this curried sauce that reminds me of an egg salad.
Ciudad
website | 6118 12th Ave S (get directions) | neighborhood: Georgetown | cuisine: Portuguese/Mediterranean
Ciudad is one of my favorite restaurants in Seattle. It’s in an unassuming building off the main strip of downtown Georgetown. From what you can see at the indoor-outdoor entrance, it looks just a small grab-and-go grill. However, when you walk through the steel door on the back wall, it opens up to a bright and lively restaurant filled with natural light and a funky, colorful mural.
I’ve been coming here for as long as it’s been open and they serve consistently excellent grilled food and small dishes. You’ll find great meats, but I really love how vegetable forward this place is.
What to get: I seriously always over order at Ciudad. I can’t skip the whole-roasted cauliflower sopping with cipollini onions, dried apricot, hazelnuts, and date syrup. It’s so flavorful, particularly because the syrup gets between all the cracks.
I also loved their seared halloumi. It’s served with dates, beets, walnuts, and a beautiful honey blossom burnt honey.
Lastly, don’t miss the smoky baba ganoush. A lot of people lean toward their grilled chicken and steak, but I love how tender and moist these beef and lamb meatballs are. They’re served with an addictive smoked yogurt and shishito peppers that makes for a beautiful as much as tasty dish.
Cafe Munir
website | 2408 NW 80th St (get directions) | neighborhood: Loyal Heights | cuisine: Lebanese/Arabic
Cafe Munir is a neighborhood spot tucked in the quiet Loyal Heights neighborhood north of Ballard. They serve a nice spread of Middle Eastern classics you don’t find at a bunch of other places in Seattle, such as muhamarra roast pepper dip and arayess stuffed pitas. This is also a good spot if you want a bit fancier of a meal.
What to get: While I’ve had a few dishes I didn’t love, the menu changes regularly and I’ve experienced some truly great food here. My go-to that’s usually on the menu is the bisara munir lentil dip. It’s earthy and a lot different than hummus in the best possible way.
Damoori Kitchen
website | 3101 W Jameson St (get directions) | neighborhood: Magnolia | cuisine: Lebanese
Damoori Kitchen is a Lebanese market in a quiet area of Magnolia near Discovery Park, one of the best hikes in Seattle. However, you can also order takeout from their cafe. Plus, they often have special Lebanese meals every so often that you can preorder from their email list.
What to get: I’m a big fan of their baba ghanoush. It’s smoky, creamy, and very eggplant forward.
Caravan Kebab
website | 9711 Firdale Ave (get directions) | neighborhood: Edmonds | cuisine: Pakistani/Mediterranean
I love stopping at Caravan Kebab because it has multiple cuisines under one roof: Mediterranean, Indian, and European. That means you can get a little bit of this and a little bit of that, which is perfect if you’re dining with a group who all crave different things.
In terms of Mediterranean food, you’ll find kebabs, dips like hummus and baba ghanoush, kofta, tagine, and spanakopita. Pakistani Chef Shahzad did a lot of traveling around the area and was tutored by Greek “Yia Yias” (grandmas). His eclectic menu is a collection of those memories.
What to get: I love the kashke bademjan. It’s an Iranian dip with roasted eggplant, yogurt, tahini, mint, and garlic that tastes like a milder baba ghanoush.
Petra
website | 2501 4th Ave (get directions) | neighborhood: Downtown | cuisine: Mediterranean
I was always curious about Petra, a Mediterranean restaurant in downtown Seattle I walked by everyday to work, but never visit. So I finally changed that and was really impressed by some of the dishes I got. I also really appreciated how they had items on the menu that were a bit different than other Seattle Mediterranean restaurants.
What to get: One of the unique dishes you should get is the Petra Royal. It’s a huge portion of buttered rice topped with pine nuts, almonds, garlic sauce, chicken, a vegetable kabob, fried cauliflower, tomato, and onion. I love all the flavors that dance in your mouth, and particularly love the crunch from the nuts.
Sabine
website | 5307 Ballard Ave NW (get directions) | neighborhood: Ballard | cuisine: Mediterranean
Sabine is in the space that Bastille used to be in downtown Ballard. It’s owned by the same restaurant group, who pivoted from a French restaurant into a light and airy cafe with a menu influenced by the Mediterranean. You’ll find some of my favorite Mediterranean dishes on the menu, like shakshuka, Turkish eggs, eggplant, hummus, and falafel.
What to get: Unfortunately the pita fold over with bold flavors that I loved isn’t on the menu anymore, but considering how well they handled that, I’d recommend getting anything that leverages their dips and vegetables.
Almanqual
website | 1712 N 45th St (get directions) | neighborhood: Wallingford | cuisine: Mediterranean
Almanqual is a popular place for Mediterranean food in Seattle. While I personally prefer the hummus and chicken shawarma from other restaurants better, they have some dishes I can really get behind.
For example, their gyro meat is juicy and thinly sliced. It’s also served with a spicy red sauce you don’t find at other places. I also really like their smoky and creamy baba ghanoush and fattoush salad.
What to get: Hands down the falafel. These are my favorite in Seattle. They’re large and fluffy on the inside with a lot of crunch on the outside.
Pro tip: Their shawarma plates surprisingly don’t come with rice, so make sure to get a side order of their fluffy pitas.
More Seattle Mediterranean restaurants to try
Here are some spots on my short list to try or revisit:
- Mawadda Cafe – Middle Eastern restaurant in Hillman City
- Ephesus – Greek restaurant in Pioneer Square
- Phoenecia – Family-owned Mediterranean restaurant in West Seattle
- Gorgeous George’s – Mediterranean restaurant in Greenwood
- Yalla – Arabic restaurant in Capitol Hill with a cult following. I went once and wasn’t wow’ed, but I think it was what I ordered so I plan to go back.
- Nadi Mama – Restaurant group that owns mbar, Mamnoon, etc. I’ve been to most of their locations, but don’t remember the food as much as the vibes.
- Kabul – This is the first Afghan restaurant I ever went to and remember loving it, but I haven’t been in years so I need to go back.
Other cuisines to try in Seattle
Once you make your way through the Mediterranean food in Seattle, check out my guides to other types of cuisine in Seattle.
