Eastern Cafe -International District

Eastern Cafe

Description on  Eastern Cafe’s website : Coffee, Loose leaf teas, beer, wine, cocktails, sandwiches, crepes, pastries

Neighborhood:  International Districut

Address:510 Maynard Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104

What we ate/drank: Macchiato

Comments: I’ve always known about Eastern Cafe, located in the International District, but never went there for a few reasons. One, it’s in the International District(ID), which is not close to my work. Second, I don’t mind traveling a little further to check out coffee shops if they open early, but they open at 7:30am, which means I’d have to come in late to work. I can handle 7:00am or earlier. Third, the International District is known for its tea places, not its coffee, so I wasn’t expecting much from any coffee place in the ID.

On one particular Sunday morning, our family had lunch at Dough Zone, which is a few blocks away from Eastern Cafe. I was dragging for a coffee, so while my wife went to Uwajimaya to grab some groceries, my daughter accompanied me to Eastern Cafe for a quick Macchiato.

The storefront looks like any other in the ID, but once entering it feels like you’re in Capitol Hill. First thing that came to mind was that Eastern Cafe looks like a rustic Capitol Coffee Works. Both have second floor lofts looking down on the baristas, the high ceilings and a first floor main seating area. The main difference is that Capitol Coffee Works is updated and Eastern Cafe has a weathered feel to it with it’s paint stripped walls and creaky floors, which makes it quintessential ID.

They use Lighthouse Roasters beans, which is always a sure bet. They have both savory and sweet crepes. I noticed they also have six drafts for beer and appear to have mixed drinks too. Like most spaces with the long narrow configuration, there’s a lot of light near the front, but the second floor loft area is situated in the back so it’s dark. I still enjoyed being able to sit up there and people watch and look down at the barista making the drinks. There’s both bigger community tables both in the first floor and second floor. The natural wood table in the loft area is especially beautiful. The rest of the cafe is rounded out by multiple tables and chairs for parties of two or solo.

I wouldn’t go out of my way to come here, but it’s really the only place to come for good coffee in the neighborhood and considering it’s the only choice, the quality is surprisingly good.

Ratings(1-5)

Favorite Thing:  Having a viable coffee option in the ID.  A coffee oasis for this neighborhood.

Atmosphere: 4.50

Service: 4.50

Food Options: 4.75

Overall: 4.55

Eavedropping  Convo:  None

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