J. Kenji López-Alt’s quest to eat at every teriyaki restaurant in Seattle

J. Kenji López-Alt is a busy guy. He’s writing another cookbook (his first, The Food Lab, just sold its millionth copy). He’s a columnist for The New York Times. And from his houseboat in Seattle, he records and posts videos to millions of followers on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok.

But amid his many projects, he’s also on a quest: A journey to eat at every teriyaki shop in Seattle.

“Pizza is to New York what teriyaki is to Seattle,” López-Alt, a New York City native, said. “It's a ubiquitous food. It's all over. It's a very democratic food.”

While a tray of tender sliced chicken thigh, rice molded into almost perfect spheres and sticky-sweet teriyaki sauce is a well-respected staple, there are better and worse ways to prepare it, as well as many restaurants that put their own spin on the classic.

López-Alt discussed his favorite finds so far with Seattle Times food writer Tan Vinh on the most recent episode of the Seattle Eats podcast.

A uniquely Seattle food

While chicken teriyaki is ubiquitous across Western Washington, it’s far from common in other parts of the country. The dish was created in Seattle in the early 1970s, and the region is still the “epicenter of chicken teriyaki,” López-Alt said.

“We should encourage chefs to really name it Seattle-style teriyaki, because that is what it is. It's not Japanese. It's not from anywhere else in the U.S. It's really a uniquely Seattle thing.”

The dish is an invention of Japanese-American chef Toshi Kasahara. He immigrated to the United States to attend school and (wrestle competitively) when he was 18 years old.

Kasahara opened his first restaurant, Toshi’s, in Lower Queen Anne in 1976. The chicken teriyaki plate was $1.85.

Now in his 70s, Kasahara is still serving up chicken teriyaki and gyoza at his restaurant in Mill Creek with the same name.

While Kasahara's Seattle-style teriyaki takes inspiration from Japanese cooking, it’s distinct from those roots. In the States, the dish’s signature component is the sauce that gives chicken (or other protein) a sticky, sweet coating.

López-Alt explained that in Japanese cuisine, teriyaki is not about a flavor profile but a cooking process.

“It literally translates to ‘shiny grilled,’” López-Alt said. “You marinate [meat], and then as it's cooking, you're going to be brushing it with a sauce that gives it this shiny sheen to it."

What makes great chicken teriyaki

Properly marinating chicken thigh is key to getting a good texture and flavor in the dish.

“What you want is chicken that's marinated, but not over marinated to the point that it tastes kind of cured or it's sort of hammy,” López-Alt said. A few hours in a soy-sauce-based marinade leaves chicken flavorful, but also tenderizes the meat.

“It'll actually break down some of the proteins in the chicken so that as they cook, they don't seize up as much, they don't squeeze out as much moisture. So a properly marinated chicken thigh is going to be juicier,” López-Alt said.

After it’s marinated, great teriyaki chicken is lightly charred to impart a smoky, slightly bitter flavor that contrasts with the sweet teriyaki sauce. This step also adds texture.

“I really want to feel that contrast between the crispy charred bits and the juicy center of the chicken,” López-Alt said.

Then there's the sauce. Some restaurants use store-bought teriyaki sauce, or concoctions with corn syrup or cornstarch to achieve a thicker, sweeter dressing. But López-Alt says the best sauces will be homemade with soy sauce, sake and mirin, a Japanese rice wine used in cooking.

A pro tip: Many restaurants store extra supplies out in the open, lending insight to how their kitchen works.

“Sometimes you can look on those shelves and see: all right, are they making their own teriyaki sauce? Or are they buying the commercial one?” López-Alt said.

López-Alt’s favorites (so far)

While López-Alt isn’t ranking the restaurants he visits, he does call out particular favorites. One that he’s gone back to again and again is Rainier Teriyaki in Columbia City.

“They really nail that char and that juiciness,” López-Alt said. In his video review of Rainier Teriyaki’s gyoza plate, he returned to the counter inside the restaurant to compliment the store’s owner on the food.

Another top contender: Grillbird in West Seattle.

“It's a more modern, Hawaiian-influenced take on teriyaki. They're a little bit fancier looking than the other places,” López-Alt said. He also called out the restaurant’s unique side options. “They are typical Hawaiian box lunch sides, so things like macaroni salad.”

Still, teriyaki isn’t typically a special occasion meal. López-Alt says the best teriyaki for you is likely the one that’s closest to you.

“Most of the time it's not worth traveling out of your neighborhood,” López-Alt said. “You don't have to hop in the car to get teriyaki. You just walk down the street, right? That's the point of teriyaki.”

López-Alt has reviewed 25 teriyaki joints so far. He estimates he has another 60 or so to go, but he's in no rush to get to the finish line.

"It feels like I'm playing a video game. Like I'm playing Zelda, you know? Where at the beginning, you just kind of wander around and see what you can see," López-Alt said. For now, he's grabbing lunch in the U District or dinner when he's out on an errand.

But at some point, he says, he'll be digging around for hidden gems he missed.

"I'll be peeking into manholes for hidden teriyaki joints," he said.