Sometimes it’s the little things that make a kid’s day: an afterschool trip to the park, a weekend matinee, or going out for pancakes for dinner. When only breakfast foods will do, head to one of these places in or around Seattle serving breakfast from dawn to dark. Move over brunch… it’s time for brinner!
photo: Chelsea Lin
Geo’s Cuban and Creole
This may not be the most obvious choice, but it makes our list for that exact reason: rather than a full breakfast, Geo’s offers all-day breakfast sandwiches for as little as $5 that are big enough to satisfy toddler and teenage appetites alike. The tiny, casual Cuban joint lies just north of Ray’s and Anthony’s in Ballard, meaning you can take your dinner order to-go and enjoy the Olympic Mountain view just steps away.
What to order: Sure, there’s a kids’ menu featuring the requisite chicken strips or grilled cheese (each $6 with black beans and rice), but the Five Bucks breakfast sandwich—fluffy, buttery scrambled eggs, melted cheddar, hickory smoked ham, and mayo on a toasted bun—is simply perfect for any meal.
6301 Seaview Ave. N.W.
Seattle, Wa 98107
206-706-3117
Online: geoscuban.com or on Facebook
Hours: Mon.-Thu., 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Fri.,10 a.m.- 8 p.m.; Sat.-Sun., 8 a.m.- 8 p.m.
photo: Beth’s Cafe Facebook page
Beth’s Cafe
We’ve seen burritos the size of newborns, but a 7-pound omelet? Only at Beth’s Cafe near Green Lake, where the 12-egg omelets and all-you-can-eat hash browns have become a symbolic rite of passage for Seattle foodies. A dozen eggs may be more than you normally cook in a week’s worth of pre-school breakfasts, but hear us out, because the experience is worth the gluttony: it’s open 24 hours for those painfully early mornings (and late nights), your toddler can leave behind his art to add to the wall collages, and it’s frequently so loud that no one will notice a fussy baby.
What to order: Breakfast is what you do here, whatever time of day. Smaller bellies have the option of ordering from the mini breakfast menu: a single egg with hash browns and toast or a pancake and bacon. Extra plates for the pizza-pan omelets are $1.50 each—you could probably feed a full family of four with one of those beasts.
7311 Aurora Ave. N.
Seattle, Wa 98103
206-782-5588
Online: bethscafe.com or on Facebook
Hours: Daily, 24/7
photo: Skillet Street Food Facebook page
Skillet Diner
This slightly upscale greasy spoon has come a long way since it started as an Airstream trailer. And while the bright, spacious Ballard location (busier at brunch than dinner, thank goodness) serves the legendary burger that put Skillet on the map, you’ll also find breakfast served at all hours—plus cocktails for Mom and Dad and milkshakes for the smaller set.
What to order: Skillet’s menu for kids ages 7 and under has perhaps the best grilled cheese you or your little foodie will ever eat, but when pancakes for dinner are in order, try the griddle cakes with homemade brown sugar syrup and seasonal fruit. If you’re really living it up, order the made-to-order doughnut holes to share as well—they’re excellent.
2034 N.W. 56th St.
Seattle, Wa 98107
206-922-7981
Online: skilletstreetfood.com or on Facebook
Hours: Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-10 p.m.; Sat.-Sun., 8 a.m.-10 p.m.
photo: Bruce M. via Yelp
Woodinville Cafe
Attention all you parents of little train fanatics: this restaurant tucked in a Woodinville strip mall is modeled to look like an old railcar, complete with rolling hills painted on the walls as if you’re rolling through the countryside. The retro booths are the perfect place to enjoy piles of buttery hash browns, biscuits and gravy, cereal-crusted French toast, and more, whether it’s 7 a.m. or 7 p.m.
What to order: There’s plenty to choose from on the kids’ menu, but if your kid is old enough to read, there’s no way she’ll make it past the whipped-cream-topped M&M pancakes—a popular order you’ll see in front of wide-eyed lucky kids all over the restaurant.
14170 N.E. Woodinville Duvall Rd.
Woodinville, Wa 98072
425.489.1403
Online: woodinville.cafesinc.com
Hours: Mon.-Sat., 6 a.m.-9 p.m.; Sun., 7 a.m.-9 p.m.
photo: Lisa A. via Yelp
Geraldine’s Counter
Bacon and biscuits—not to mention the strawberry jam on the table—are where it’s at for any meal at this colorful corner Columbia City hangout. Everything can be ordered as sides, so you can mix-and-match your own meal of eggs, pancake, avocado, sausage gravy, etc. Just don’t forget the fluffy cream biscuit or Bavarian Meats bacon.
What to order: There are two breakfast options on the all-day kids’ menu, and they’re each just $4.50: a plate with eggs, hash browns, and toast, or a short stack of pancakes with pure maple syrup. You’ll find steel-cut oatmeal and granola with yogurt, but this isn’t about a healthy dinner decision anyway, is it?
4872 Rainier Ave. S.
Seattle, Wa 98118
206-723-2080
Online: geraldinescounter.com or on Facebook
Hours: Tue.-Fri., 7 a.m.-9 p.m.; Sat.-Sun., 8 a.m.-3 p.m.; closed Mon.
photo: Ken L. via Yelp
Din Tai Fung
Dumplings are perhaps the best brunch food—a fact that adults and kids can both agree on. And though this Bellevue outpost of a popular Taiwanese chain doesn’t serve the kind of lukewarm dim sum from a cart that your local Chinese joint might, what it serves is better: delicate little dumplings called xiao long bao filled with soup and meatball. This place loves kids, too, and kids love watching the expert dumpling folders hard at work through the window in front.
What to order: Obviously, at least one order of XLB should make it to your table, as should an assortment of the other delicious steamed dumplings: shrimp and pork, vegetable, chicken, and even pot stickers. The pork buns, too, are a dim sum staple that are perfect for tiny hands.
700 Bellevue Way N.E.
Bellevue, Wa 98004
425-698-1095
Online: dintaifungusa.com
Hours: Mon.-Fri., 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; Sat.-Sun., 10 a.m.-10 p.m.
photo: Allison Holm
Original Pancake House
This national franchise has locations all over the Pacific Northwest (and the country, for that matter), but the Maple Valley, Puyallup, and Tacoma spots are among the only ones open for dinner. The lines can be long—though mostly for brunch—and the interiors aren’t anything to write home about, but the plates are large, the service is friendly enough, and it’s a good place for families large and small.
What to order: The signature dish is a platter-sized baked soufflé-like pancake called a Dutch Baby served with lemon and powdered sugar. It takes extra time, but you can order strawberries with whipped cream for hangry little ones as a side to snack as you wait.
16116 Meridian E.
Puyallup, Wa 98375
253-604-0791
26830 Maple Valley Black Diamond Rd. S.E.
Maple Valley, Wa 98038
425-433-8144
601 Pine St.
Tacoma, Wa
253-212-0580
Online: ophnw.com
Hours: Daily, 6 a.m.- 8 p.m.
Do you prefer your breakfast in the a.m. or p.m.? Tell us in the Comments, and share your favorite place to find it!
—Chelsea Lin
