Tamari Bar

Tamari Baris a bar and restaurant onSeattle'sCapitol Hill, in theU.S. stateof Washington.Chef and owner Makoto Kimoto opened theizakayain February 2018, servingJapanese cuisinesuch asbaozi,dandan noodles,onsen tamago,ramen,sushiandsashimi, andwagyu. The bar also serves cocktails and other drinks, as well assoft serve. Since 2022, the sibling establishment Baiten has also operated in Tamari, serving fruit sandwiches, floats,sundaesand other desserts with ice cream. Tamari has garnered a positive reception and became a vendor atT-Mobile Parkin 2024.
The Asian-ownedizakayaTamari Bar operates onPine Street, on Seattle'sCapitol Hill. The restaurant serves "Japanese-based global cuisine inspired by years of cooking, eating and traveling", according toKOMO-TV.AJ Rathbun ofSeattle Magazinewrote: "Tamari Bar isn't huge, and falls into the almost-industrial vibe – open duct work and pipes hanging from a high ceiling, brick walls, clean lines, large street-side windows. Enough individual touches provide personality, like a clock made from chopsticks, a stretch of brick where Japanese TV and movies are projected on to, and scattered shelves in various spots with Sriracha bottles, Cup O'Noodle soups, Japanese whiskey, glass jars of food and spices, and other curiosities."Tamari has a Suntory Toki highball machine.
Tamari servesJapanese cuisine.Food options includesushiandsashimi, vegetable chips with Japanese honey mustard andsrirachadipping sauces, and a dish called My Nira-Tama, which has Chinese chives,onsen tamago(soft-boiled egg), andchili oil.The Bento Box features nine different starters; Tamari only makes eighteen boxes per night.The Asian Poutine has ground pork, nori, parmesan cheese, and chili oil, and thewagyubeef is served with garlic andwasabi.
The Buta Dumplings are porkdumplingswith chili andgarlic oil, and the Crazy Journey is chickenkaraage. Among sushi rolls are the Aburi (misoaioli,jalapeno, and roe) and the Hama Cheese (yellowtail and parmesan). Tamari also servesdandan noodles,matchacheesecake,fried chickenbaozi, cilantro pestoramen, andsoft serve. The ice cream flight includes Snoqualmie Ice Cream with six types of syrup: black sesame,hojicha, matcha, yuzu, and two rotating flavors. Among other unique toppings is Japanese whiskey caramel syrup.Some of Tamari's soft serve options come from Baiten, which has been described as a sibling establishment.
Cocktail options at Tamari include: the Hola!! Geisha, described as a "lime-and-ginger tequila drink with a Pacific rim of matcha salt";the Hot Toki Toddy with Suntory Toki whiskey, honey, lemon, and Japanese plum wine; as well as the Yuzu Fashioned, a version of anOld fashionedwith bourbon,bitters, and yuzu syrup that is garnished with rum-marinated cherries and mint. Tamari also serves beer,sake, and wine.
Makoto Kimoto is the chef and owner of Tamari,which opened on February 14 (Valentine's Day), 2018, with Nobu Watanabe as a chef and Kan Terao as the general manager.It operates in the space that previously housed World of Beers and 500 East: A Social Club.Tamari participated in Seattle Restaurant Week in 2018.
In 2020, during theCOVID-19 pandemic, Tamari sold cocktail kits to make highballs, a Moscow mule, and a yuzu mimosa.The business became a vendor atT-Mobile Parkin 2024.
In addition to Baiten, Rondo and (now defunct) Suika have also been described as sibling establishments of Tamari.
The Asian-ownedbakeryBaiten,which began operating within Tamari on January 27, 2022, has been described as a collaboration withFuji Bakeryand Sugimoto Tea Company.Baiten serves fruit sandwiches ("sandos"),iced hoji latte floats,and other desserts such as ice cream cookies.
One sando has banana andchocolate chips, and another with mixed fruit has grape, kiwi,mandarin orange, pineapple, and strawberry.Among soft serve options is asundaewith cookie,Pocky, andwaffletoppings. Flavors include black sesame, matcha, soy sauce, and yuzu.The Toki highball soft serve has vanilla ice cream and Japanese whiskey caramel syrup.
In 2018, food critic forThe Seattle TimesProvidence Cicero included Tamari in an annual "Critic's Choice" list of the city's best new restaurants.Meg van Huygen and Sophie Grossman included Tamari Bar inEater Seattle's2024 list of fifteen "sensational" sushi restaurants in the metropolitan area.Aimee Rizzo and Kayla Sager-Riley included Baiten inThe Infatuation's2024 overview of Seattle's best soft serve.