Food trends come and go. So how can you tell which tastes are trending right now?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to analyze which local businesses have been seeing especially high review volumes this month.
To find out who made the list, we looked at Seattle businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increase their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance.
Read on to see which spots have the momentum heading into springtime.
Nana’s Green Tea
Open since November, this cafe and Japanese spot, which offers desserts and more, is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Desserts" on Yelp.
Citywide, dessert spots saw review counts increase by a median of 2.5 percent over the past month, but Nana’s Green Tea saw a 61.2 percent increase, maintaining a strong four-star rating throughout.
Located at 1007 Stewart St., Suite 103 (between Boren and Terry avenues), in Belltown, Nana’s Green Tea offers matcha and flavored teas, coffee, pita wraps, desserts and parfaits.
13 Coins Restaurant
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Pioneer Square's 13 Coins Restaurant, the bar and traditional American and breakfast and brunch spot is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Breakfast & Brunch" on Yelp increased their review count by a median of 1.4 percent over the past month, 13 Coins Restaurant bagged a 7.9 percent increase in reviews within that timeframe, maintaining a mixed three-star rating.
Open at 255 S. King St. (at South Second Avenue) since last January, 13 Coins Restaurant offers over 130 menu options, ranging from eggs Benedict and omelets to filet mignon and salmon.
Sawyer
Ballard's Sawyer is also making waves. Open since August at 5309 22nd Ave. NW (between North Ballard Avenue and Market Street), the New American spot has seen a 9.1 percent bump in reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.5 percent for all businesses tagged "American (New)" on Yelp.
Sawyer offers everything from wood-grilled artichokes, cheesy bread and rock candy prawns to large plates like wood-grilled halibut, Dungeness crab rolls and oxtail nachos.
Over the past month, it's maintained a sound 4.5-star rating among Yelpers.
