It's not just for the tech crowd—spend time discovering all the excellent restaurants this little city has to offer.
Let's just get this part out of the way early—yes, Redmond is home to the Microsoft headquarters. And yes, spending any amount of time here usually means you’ll see lots of lanyards, fancy backpacks, and branded pullovers. But Redmond also has excellent restaurants that deserve just as much attention. They include a true diner with a non-stop flow of hot coffee, a katsu specialist, and great Indian food that make this neighborhood more than a bland corporate hub.
Unrated: This is a restaurant we want to re-visit before rating, or it’s a coffee shop, bar, or dessert shop. We only rate spots where you can eat a full meal.
THE SPOTS
This busy restaurant serves standout North Indian food. It has two huge dining rooms with dark wood and colorful string lights, sizzling skillets of tandoori chicken whizzing by, and a menu longer than War And Peace. We especially like the gobi manchurian that stays sturdy under the weight of a sticky and tangy glaze, plus smoky angara butter chicken and a comforting bhindi masala. Come here for a birthday dinner with a big group, or get dishes to go—Kanishka’s so popular they have an entire separate space next door dedicated to take-out.
Seattle has plenty of breakfast and brunch spots—but not many true diners where your coffee cup is never empty and a server named Sassy quickly becomes your new favorite person at 7am. Village Square Cafe fills that diner void with its warm wood trim, cozy upholstered booths, and a chalkboard urging you to share a plate of specials like citrus-spiked cinnamon rolls (just do it). It’s hard to go wrong with almost anything: buttermilk waffles have the perfect crispy-to-fluffy ratio, and the scrambles are packed with every ingredient you can imagine. Just make sure to arrive around 7am on weekends, or you'll be stuck with a long wait.
This charcoal-painted cottage houses pizza on the Eastside that’s well worth dealing with any rush hour traffic. Spark’s blistered crusts have an impeccable balance between bouncy-puffy edges and crisp bottoms, and their topping repertoire is just as vast as it is reliable. You can eat a very pleasant burrata-topped margherita, or a spicy saag paneer pie—but you're really here for the Detroit-style pizza, which is quite simply the best square around. With only outdoor seating available, prioritize a summer visit—or commit to eating this excellent pizza on the same patio, just zipped up in plastic coverings.
This Japanese spot has unbelievably crackly golden katsu. One whiff of the molten mozzarella pork katsu pockets swimming in tangy umami tomato sauce and all motor skills are lost—though not enough to stop us from ravaging the plate. The laid-back lantern-studded space is great for a solo lunch or dinner at the bar. Unlike its busy Capitol Hill outpost, you won't necessarily need to line up before they open to snag a table, but expect a wait at peak times—the kastu seems to have that effect on people.
Redmond Town Center’s best export is a tiny spot that specializes in Hainanese chicken and rice. It works best for a solo meal, partly because space is limited, but mostly because the combo platter with both the poached and fried chicken means you don’t need an extra person just to try both. Big trays arrive with tender chicken draped over gingery rice, a barely-peppery broth, and little dishes of sauces like sweet chili and a funkier fermented soybean concoction dotted with herbs. And ordering is seamless.
It’s not often that an upscale kaiseki speakeasy counter serving sea snails and A5 waygu gets squished next to a pet store at a strip mall—but that's Towa. Step inside this closet-sized restaurant for an intimate experience with the chef as he expertly slices sashimi, prepares personal-size hot pots, and creates the perfect crust on unagi skewers over a charcoal grill. Reservations are pretty easy to come by at the last minute. Plus, the dining room stays quiet most nights so it's almost like your very own private dining experience.
Between the framed portraits of the royal family and the abundance of UK accents, this slightly musty pub might make you think you’re across the pond. The menu is full of British classics like bangers and mash and fish and chips, all seriously excellent. In fact, those dishes are worth blowing off work for a leisurely lunch followed by high tea. On your way out, hit the market next door that sells English treats.
From the same folks as Kanishka (located in the same strip mall), Chatpata is for more casual, after-hours crowds. Inside this small house, you’ll find Indian street food like kathi rolls, aloo burgers, and delicious pav bahji. While the burgers are just fine, we love the chicken tikka sandwich that reminds us of what you might find at high-tea—crusty grilled bread cut into little triangles and stuffed with meat we could eat on its own. There are just two tables inside, so we wouldn't come here looking to sit down for long—but Chatpata is great for a quick snack or late-night takeout (they’re open until 12am on weekends).
We can usually count on this local Chinese chain with locations all over Washington to scratch our dumpling itch. The Redmond restaurant is much more casual and a lot smaller than the CID or Downtown outposts, but the food is just as great. Fill your table with sweet and sour cucumber spirals, tingly dan dan noodles, and as many q-bao as possible.
206.260.9095
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