More about: Seattle Food Tours
Seattle is a city with a huge variety of things to see and do. It's modern, futuristic, full of museums, history, culture and of course, extraordinary food. The unique dishes, the taste of local produce and the culinary variety is something you'll fall in love with.
You can visit the famous Pike Place Market, visit the most exclusive wineries in the city and even live a unique experience in Woodinville Wine Country, Snoqualmie Falls and Bainbridge Island. Here's a little more about the best food tours in Seattle.
1. A classic tour of Pike Place Market
Pike Place Market is one of Seattle's most famous, popular and visited landmarks. Here you'll find the perfect blend of good food, culture and history.
With the experience of an expert guide, this tour will allow you to walk through each of its emblematic points, tasting the widest variety of regional delicacies. You will be spoilt for choice from fresh produce and pastries to meats and delicious dishes.
Along the tour, you will have some stops included so that you can stimulate your palate with drinks and delicious food from some of the local restaurants and shops.
In addition, on this tour you will be able to learn particular facts and curious stories from the guide and the locals that will make the tour more entertaining and fun. This is one of the big advantages that makes the difference, and that you won't have if you decide to tour Pike Place Market on your own.
You'll meet the farmers, butchers, bakers, winemakers and other professionals who fill the market every day. You'll also find one of the largest craft markets in the country, with an enormous amount of 100% handmade products made from local raw materials.
You'll find that Pike Place Market is home to more than 225 small independent businesses and restaurants, so you'll not only get a taste of the most delicious local foods, but also shopping tips, cooking ideas and market know-how.
Where to eat at Pike Place Market
While your guide will make sure you'll tour the market's main shops, sharing the history and sampling the most typical foods, the place is huge and you'll inevitably have a few things left to try.
So, if you want to complete the experience and get the most out of your visit to Pike Place Market, I recommend a few places to visit on your own.
- Beecher's Handmade Cheese: Here you'll find the best Mac and Cheese in Seattle, no exaggeration. Cheese is the star ingredient at this place, located in the heart of Pike Place Market, and you'll fall in love with it.
- Britt's Pickles: Seattle's most popular pickles are here. You'll find the most original versions of Britt's pickles: spicy, hot and sour, half sour and ginger and pepper.
- Ellenos: the most delicious Greek yoghurt you'll ever taste is also available at Seattle's legendary Pike Place Market.
- Le Panier: one of the most exclusive bakeries in the area also has its place in this exclusive market. It is the perfect place for you to try delicious croissants, breads and all kinds of sweet and savoury delicacies.
- Pike Place Chowder: Clam chowders are a Seattle classic and this restaurant probably serves the best. It has different versions and varieties that I recommend you try.
- The Pink Door: is an exclusive Italian restaurant where you can enjoy the best dishes in a very pleasant place, a must in Pike Place Market!
- Market Grill: here you will find the most typical American dishes with the most characteristic seafood of Seattle. It is a must-visit restaurant to taste the most local flavours of the city.
- Three Girls Bakery: famous for its exclusive pastries and the best variety of sandwiches. This shop has a history going back more than 100 years and is a must-visit in Pike Place Market. Highly recommended!
Tour details
- Duration: Guided tours of Pike Place Market last approximately 2 hours.
- Approximate Price: From €55
- What's included: All these tours include an expert guide to allow you to learn more about Pike Place Market and stops inside the market to sample various local produce.
2. Spend a full day at Woodinville Wine accompanied by the best local flavours.
Woodinville Wine Country is only about 30 minutes from downtown Seattle in western Washington in the beautiful Sammamish River Valley.
This stunning attraction is located around the town of Woodinville and is without a doubt the epicentre of wine, home to more than 100 wineries and tasting rooms. You'll arrive in a comfortable coach van and be accompanied by a professional naturalist guide for a unique day out.
This type of tour, besides tasting many regional products and enjoying a lunch with fresh, organic, seasonal and delicious ingredients, will allow you to get to know one of the best views and relax in the middle of nature and fresh air.
Here you will be able to get to know the most varied wine offer in the area and taste the best wines from family-run boutique wineries.
On this tour you'll be able to visit three of the area's most exclusive wineries, including Lauren Ashton Cellars and Kestrel Vintners, and taste some of Washington's finest wines. Tickets to William Grassie Wine Estates - Events Only and Patterson Cellars - Hollywood Hill are usually included and you will learn a lot about the history and traditions of the area.
Tour Details
- Duration: 8 hours.
- Price: You can enjoy this experience from €197 per person.
- Time: Usually starts at 10 a.m.
- What's included: This is not just any tour, but the most exclusive and complete of them all. You'll have lunch, wine tastings included and entry to unique sites. You'll tour Woodinville Wine Country and Sonqualmie Falls on the same tour.
3. A tour of Bainbridge Island's finest flavours and luxury wineries
Bainbridge Island is just a ferry ride away from Seattle and is a different kind of day out, with beautiful views and a variety of unique flavours.
This tour includes a historical tour of the most emblematic places of this northwestern island, the company of an expert guide who will tell you all about the place, gourmet lunch options , wine tasting in exclusive wineries and tasting of local delicacies, and the best landscapes you can imagine.
This experience will allow you to enjoy the best panoramic views of the city from the picturesque ferry, see the beautiful Bloedel Preserve full of trees and fresh air and the Japanese American Exclusion Memorial, an exhibit commemorating the internment of Japanese Americans from Bainbridge Island in Washington State.
As for culinary delights, you'll have a variety of gourmet dining options with exclusive fresh and seasonal produce and the most delicious wines from the island's best wineries to sample. You can even tailor the experience to suit you, choosing between lunch at a renowned local restaurant or a gourmet picnic.
Tour details
- Duration: 9 hours.
- Price: You can enjoy this experience from €290 per person.
- Time: Starts at 9 a.m.
- What's included: You will have lunch, wine tasting included and a guided tour of the Bloedel Reserve.
4. Combine exclusive local wineries with the breathtaking Snoqualmie Falls.
This food tour will give you the option to enjoy one of the best views in the city, as it combines Seattle's best wineries with Snoqualmie Falls which is considered a popular destination due to its proximity to the city and its stunning natural views.
You will taste delicious wines at Chateau Ste. Michelle, known as the oldest winery in Washington and one of the most popular, as well as other well-known wineries in the area.
This tour also includes a visit to Boehms Candies, a quaint candy factory built like a Swiss house, where you can indulge in the best candy, you'll love it!
Tour details
- Duration: 6 hours.
- Price: You can enjoy this experience from €85 per person.
- Time: Starts at 10:30 in the morning.
- What's included: Tastings at at least two local wineries and a walk around the stunning Snoqualmie Falls.
How to book a food tour in Seattle
You will have the option to purchase the tour pass that suits you best directly from the website and get your digital ticket.
When you make your purchase online, you will receive an immediate confirmation of your booking. Just as you read, it's simple, convenient and fast.
Keep in mind that you will have to choose an exact date for the tour and in case you have any regrets or your plans change for any reason, don't worry, you can cancel the tour for free.
Duration of food tours in Seattle
Depending on what you prefer to do and how long you plan to be in Seattle, you can choose from short food tours of approximately 2 hours or longer ones lasting 8-9 hours.
This should be taken into account when organising your visit to the city. If you plan to spend only a short time in Seattle, you may want to take a short food tour and combine it with another tour of Seattle to get to know the city better.
Similarly, if you have more time, you can combine some of the food tours with other tour options from Seattle and get to know the city and its surroundings.
How much does a food tour of Seattle cost?
You will have a wide range of prices to choose the Seattle dining experience that best suits your budget, with the cheapest being around €60 and the most expensive starting at €190.
You should bear in mind that prices are related to the duration, the route, the number of passengers with whom you share the tour and the services included. For this reason, I recommend that in order to choose the one that suits you best, you should analyse the complete experience offered by each one of them.
Seattle's gastronomic classics
Seattle is a city with a very particular appeal and a variety of delicious flavours of its own that are worth trying if you're visiting. I can assure you that you won't get tired of tasting the local delicacies and drinking good wine.
Here's a list of the must-try foods in Seattle so you can imagine what you'll find on any food tour you choose to take.
- Oysters: as you might expect, due to its proximity to the sea, I can assure you that in Seattle you will taste the most delicious seafood. And in particular, oysters. You will find them in various forms, raw, fried and however you can imagine them.
- Clam Chowder: another classic of the city is the delicious clam chowder and at Pike Place Market you will find, without a doubt, the best you can try.
- Seattle Dogs: the local version of the classic hot dog. In Seattle you will discover this strange but exquisite way of eating them with two additional ingredients: cream cheese and sautéed onion. You can't miss them!
- Chocolate: if you are a chocolate lover like me, Seattle will be your new favourite destination. You will find several varieties of chocolates in all possible forms, from truffles to cocktails. I recommend two places where you will find the best chocolates in town: Fran's, a classic since 1982 and Intrigue Chocolate Co. Fran's, where you will taste the best truffles.
- Pho: Due to the large Vietnamese community that has been living in Seattle for years, this is one of the best dishes you can try in the city. It is based on a classic noodle soup and is served in a bowl with rice noodles in a beef broth with small elongated chunks of meat.
- Coffee: not a dish, but a good after-dinner accompaniment or just to have on the go. Seattle is the home of good coffee - the city is even known as the international centre of coffee roasting - and it's definitely the place to try it.
Tips for a gastronomic tour of Seattle
The first thing I'd like to recommend is to wear comfortable clothes and shoes for the weather, as some tours will be on foot and others may take several hours walking around the city and its surroundings, and you don't want to be uncomfortable and have a bad time.
Also, if you have any dietary restrictions, I advise you to check the itinerary of each tour so that you can choose the one that suits you best in relation to it and not be disappointed when you go on the tour.
Seattle food tours, are they good or not?
If you want to tour Seattle in a different way, tasting the most popular local products and foods and getting to know the main charms of the local gastronomy, I recommend that you DO take one of these tours.
They will be a unique experience that will allow you to walk through the history, culture and traditions of the city, including local, fresh, artisanal, homemade and seasonal delicacies.
Now, I do NOT recommend that you take a food tour of Seattle if you have little time to explore the city. You'll have a wide variety of attractions to see and history to learn about, so you probably won't have much time left for a food tour.
If you're a foodie, though, you might be able to set aside a few hours of your trip for one of the shorter tours. As you'll see, this will depend on the type of traveller you are and what you prioritise on your visit to Seattle.