Taku - Japanese restaurant in Seattle - 706 E Pike St, USA

There aren’t many restaurants serving good food late at night on Capitol Hill—especially on a Sunday like my first visit tonight—so I was happy to discover Taku. They are known for their chicken, which was decent, but the stars of the night were their macaroni salad (creamy with a nice texture), fried chili tofu (great seasoning!), and my favorite, the charred edamame (much tastier than the standard—and served over a delicious creamy sauce). The service was warm and welcoming; we’ll be back! :)

We’ve been to Taku several times over the years and the food is always exceptional! We went around 10pm on a Thursday night and while they were indeed busy, we were able to sit right away. The staff is so friendly and knowledgeable. They bring such a welcoming, warm vibe to the whole place. You can also order takeout! This time we got the potato mochi with cheese and the curry cauliflower hummus to start. That curry cauliflower dish was hands down one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. For the non-shareables, I had the spicy chicken sando and my husband had the spicy thicc nugs with fries. They offer so many sauces, you should really try them all! The chicken itself is spicy, crispy and sweet with a sticky, delicious crunch. We also enjoyed a Shiso Mule and the Pikachu-Hi cocktails. The Pikachu cocktail comes with a Pokémon card! How fun! The cocktails themselves were delicious and well balanced and I would absolutely have them again! Pro tip! Don’t miss out on the vending machine in back where you can score yourself some fun treats and Pokémon cards!

Interesting little place with great food!! The chicken was marinated really well and fried rice was grand. Only downside was that the service wasn’t the best, but since I went on a Saturday evening I reckoned they were a bit busy.

21+, so get take out with kids. If you're a Top Chef fan you might meet Chef Shota here. He's out chatting with people when he's there and is just as chill and friendly as his on screen persona. And if you're into Shota, you might also want to go to his pizza place next door, Kobo Pizza. The chicken is the reason to come. I prefer the bonito seasoning which is dry, but the teriyaki also looked delicious on the chicken burger. We got a couple of the fry sauces for fun and all were great. The fries were good too, but pretty standard bar fare. I got the seasonal hot toddy and it was the best I've had in a while. Food took a while to come out, but drinks were pretty fast. It's a you scan menu with the QR code. Staff were friendly and we got to watch their operation from the bar. I think we did lose some warmth from not having a specific server. We didn't get our fry sauces for a while after we got our food. It's a good place for a date night. Atmosphere is a little punk 90s with MxPx playing and graffiti on the walls. There's not a ton of seating so it feels a little tight, but it wasn't too loud for conversation. It's definitely hitting the mark for being exactly what it's trying to be. We've gone back a few times when we're in Seattle and it's consistently worth it. Parking is harder to get. I'd recommend parking at the QFC parking garage close by. The evening parking lot flat rates are like $25, so find a reasonable garage, it's worth it. This restaurant is all on one level so should be wheelchair accessible.

The chicken and the fries are decent and they make good sauces, but the food was nothing to spectacular. Having watched Top Chef and really wanting to visit Shota’s restaurant, was a little disappointed to find some of the dishes like the cauliflower being too salty and that was really the main issue with a lot of the dishes. Glad I’ve tried it but probably won’t revisit again.

Great late night snacks or a hanging out spot!! Large selection for drinks but the menu was small. The fried chicken was not bad, but they used the firm tofu to fry that was a little disappointing. Overall, it’s such a cool place and they sat and serve supersonic!!

TLDR: a late night bar with above average greasy food, loud music, and good service Charred edamame: 10/10 - if you get anything, definitely try these! If you like edamame and light smokey flavor, then this is the perfect snack to try. Edamame is charred, smokey, and piping hot! Comes with a tzatziki-like sauce. Furikake fries: 8/10 - very seaweedy, salty, thin and crispier fries Chicken karaage nugs (bonito & soy): 4/10 - these were just meh… I’d say for the size and price, the chicken was drier than expected. If you order chicken here, I’d recommend trying one with a sauce. Service: everyone here was really kind, prompt, and tables were cleaned and maintained well!

Amazing spot. Had been eyeing this place for some time, got hyped for it and it did not disappoint! Our food and drinks came out extremely fast after placing the order online, and it was all delicious. The staff was very friendly and the ambiance was amazing!