Curious where Seattle's insiders are eating and drinking? It's easy to spot lines out the door, but some underlying trends are harder to see.
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to discover which restaurants have been in the limelight 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 increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance.
Read on to see which spots are getting plenty of attention this summer.
Sazon Kitchen
Open since May, this Mexican breakfast and brunch spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Breakfast & Brunch" on Yelp.
Citywide, breakfast and brunch spots saw a median 1.5% increase in new reviews over the past month, but Sazon Kitchen saw a 96.2% increase, maintaining an excellent five-star rating throughout.
It's not the only trending outlier in the breakfast and brunch category: Watson's Counter has seen a 23.6% increase in reviews.
Located at 7301 15th Ave. NW (between 73rd and 75th streets) in Ballard, Sazon Kitchen offers french toast, omelettes, chilaquiles, steak and eggs, avocado toast and more.
Ben Paris
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Pike Market's Ben Paris, the cocktail bar and New American restaurant is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "American (New)" on Yelp saw a median 1.3% increase in new reviews over the past month, Ben Paris bagged a 41.5% increase in new reviews within that timeframe, maintaining a superior 4.5-star rating.
Open at 130 Pike St. (between News Lane and First Avenue) since March, Ben Paris offers poutine, fried chicken, burgers, salads and more.
Fiasco
Wallingford's Fiasco is also making waves. Open since March at 3400 Stone Way North (between 35th and 34th streets), the wine bar and Italian spot, which offers pizza and more, has seen a 34.5% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 2.6% for all businesses tagged "Italian" on Yelp. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis Fiasco's review count increased by more than 140%.
Fiasco offers bruschetta, calamari, ciabatta sandwiches, pizza, fried chicken parmesan, lasagna and more. Over the past month, it's maintained a solid four-star rating among Yelpers.
Old Stove Brewing
Pike Market's Old Stove Brewing is the city's buzziest seafood spot by the numbers.
The brew pub, which offers seafood, burgers and more and opened at 1901 Western Ave., Suite A (between Pike Place and Virginia Street) in January, increased its new review count by 14.3% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 1.5% for the Yelp category "Seafood."
Old Stove Brewing offers fish and chips, paella, mussels, clams, salmon and more, paired with beer made in house ranging from sours, pilsners, stouts, porters and more.
Matcha Café Maiko
Central Business District's well-established Matcha Café Maiko is currently on the upswing in the coffee and tea category on Yelp.
While businesses categorized as "Coffee & Tea" on Yelp saw a median 2.8% increase in new reviews over the past month, this spot to score ice cream, frozen yogurt, coffee and tea and shaved ice increased its new reviews by 60.7% — with its Yelp rating improving from four stars to 4.5 stars.
Open for business at 400 Pine St., Suite 324 (between Fourth Avenue and Westlake Avenue) since May, the business offers matcha tea, Hojicha tea, lattes, frappes and more.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
