Saturday, April 9, 2011

Sunny Teriyaki - Seattle, WA

Chicago has its hot dog.

New York City has its pizza.

Austin has its breakfast taco.

And Seattle has its teriyaki.  

Every bit the phenomenon as these other places, teriyaki is Seattle's own.  Not quite Japanese, not quite fast food, these places dot the map as abundantly as Hello Kitty backpacks in an Osaka elementary school.  I'm actually quite surprised these teriyaki shops aren't out in force elsewhere in the nation, as they are GOOD, and a reasonably healthy alternative to typical fast food.

Headed to Seattle this week, I consulted the only person I know from Seattle on what I had to have while I was up there, and this was it.  No particular shop, just yelp a good one nearby and get either the chicken or the spicy chicken.   I settled on Sunny Teriyaki, kind of up in the Magnolia section of town.


First off, this was the only sunny thing about Seattle the two days I was there.  Stereotypically, it rained the entire time, but I did witness thunder as well, which I understand is rare up there.  Second, the teriyaki.  There are plenty of things on the menu at a teriyaki joint, but I did as instructed and stuck to the second item on the menu, the spicy chicken.


So, as you can see here and as I understand the typical teriyaki to be, we've got a grilled boneless chicken thigh smothered with a sweet and spicy teriyaki sauce, sliced into bites and served with rice.  Very, very good, with decent heat from the sauce, a great char flavor on the chicken, and moist and tender meat.  

When traveling to Seattle, sample its cuisine and put teriyaki on your list.

Summary

Atmosphere:  bland, counter ordering, eight tables, good place for a quick lunch or dinner, but not a place to hang around

Food:  teriyaki

Dog Friendly:  no

When to Go:  lunch

Crowd:  everyone

What to Order for the First Timer:  spicy chicken teriyaki

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