• CAFE RACER • University District: For all of us who've been awaiting the reopening with love in our hearts and spending money in our pockets, Cafe Racer is back. Owner Kurt Geissel says: "No one needs to be reminded of what happened at Cafe Racer on May 30, 2012. Each day, the grief of losing our loved ones lessens, but not our love for them or the love they brought into our lives. Drew, Joe, Kim, Don, and Gloria were people who gave more of themselves than they ever received. This is why the community was so devastated by their loss. This is also why that community of which they were a part of will carry on. The outpouring of love and support from this community was astounding to me... This is the main reason that I've decided to keep the cafe open, to forge ahead with the vision that is Cafe Racer by providing a place for diverse people and groups to come together and have a loving, safe place to gather. There may be some physical changes to the cafe, but the main ingredient that makes Cafe Racer unique will remain the same: Love." (5828 Roosevelt Way NE, 523-5282, www.caferacerseattle.com, $)
• THE SQUARE KNOT DINER • Georgetown: The Square Knot, sister and neighbor of Georgetown dive bar 9 Lb. Hammer (and Loretta's in South Park), provides traditional American diner food 24 hours every damn day. It's veg friendly, and our friend Sterling says it's great for pie and shakes. (6015 Airport Way, 915-5244, www.facebook.com/thesquareknot, $–$$)
• 95 SLIDE • Capitol Hill: 95 Slide is the sports bar where HG Lodge/the War Room used to be, serving all the sports-bar hits—nachos, sandwiches, burgers—made with organic, locally sourced meats and ingredients, so that's nice. Also: lots of sporting events on lots of TVs, and if you get bored and want to stare at the walls, there's Derek Erdman's neat portraits of Seattle sports stars—Kasey Keller, Sue Bird, the Kingdome. The name comes from an incident in which Ken Griffey Jr. made a home run at the 11th hour to win some series in 1995 for the Mariners, but then the Mariners didn't, um, "go to the show" or whatever anyway, so "95 slide" is kind of a good-on-a-sliding-scale type of thing. M's fans gotta take what they can get. (722 E Pike St, 328-7666, www.95slide.com, $$)
• ELLIOTT'S SEAFOOD CAFE • on the waterfront: The more casual part of fresh-fish standby Elliott's Oyster House is less expensive and has outdoor seating. Also: a sidewalk oyster bar, should you want to eat oysters while watching the tourists go by. (1201 Alaskan Way, Pier 56, 623-4340, www.elliottsoysterhouse.com, $$)
• SWEET MICKEY'S • Ballard: Sweet Mickey's is a cutely nostalgic Ballard candy store with an extensive selection, including local chocolates, Bluebird ice cream (in sundae, milk shake, or malt form, if you like), and hard-to-find sweets. (2230 NW 57th St, 992-2933, $)
• THE NARWHAL • Capitol Hill: The Unicorn, with its absurd name, rampant stripes, salvaged carousel panels, and menagerie of taxidermy, is insane. The bar serves Jell-O shots, and the place gets concomitantly wild. The food is carnival-style deep-fry—including various corn-dog configurations, unicorn balls (clearly further endangering the unicorn population), and elephant ears—as well as good, inexpensive burgers made with Painted Hills beef and your choice of crazy toppings. And now there's the Narwhal, the sprawling downstairs that is just as crazy-carnival-gorgeous as the ground floor (with the bonus of old arcade games and a stage for live music, too). (1118 E Pike St, 325-6492, www.unicornseattle.com, $–$$)
• THE PATIO • Capitol Hill: In that house next to the Canterbury on 15th Avenue where a Thai restaurant used to be, it's another Thai restaurant (from the owner of Sea Thai in Wallingford, according to Capitol Hill Seattle Blog). (524 15th Ave E, 328-2406, $)
• KALBI GRILL EXPRESS • Greenwood • Two weeks after it opened, an SUV crashed into this Korean place; Phinneywood.com has crashy photos. No one was hurt, there was no structural damage, and the food is reportedly quite good. (8202 Greenwood Ave N, 457-5930, $$)
ALSO: • COFFEE AND... • Pike Place Market: The "and..." here is a gluten-free bakery. (1500 Western Ave, 375-5296, www.coffeeandpikeplace.com, $) • CHOPSTIX • on the road: An Asian-fusion bistro on wheels. (Traveling, 425-610-7388, www.chopstixmobile.com, $) • EL PORTAL COFFEE ROASTERS • Central District: "Enjoy a taste of Mexico in a cup of coffee." (2310 E Madison St, 860-6923, www.elportalcoffeeroasters.com, $) • FAR EATS • Belltown: An Indian place where Amore Infused Italian used to be. (2301 Fifth Ave, 770-6007, $–$$) • VIENTIAN ASIAN GROCERY • Rainier Valley: Buy ingredients for your Lao cooking or try salads, hot dishes, and so forth at the mini cafe. (6059 Martin Luther King Jr. Way S, 723-3160, $)
REOPENED: KANGAROO & KIWI, now at the beautiful Carnegie Library in Ballard • THE PARK PUBLIC HOUSE, formerly the Park Pub in Phinney Ridge
NEW LOCATIONS OF EXISTING PLACES: CUPCAKE ROYALE BAKESHOP AND ICE CREAMERY near the Pike Place Market • CHERRY STREET COFFEE HOUSE on 12th Ave near Seattle University • KUKURUZA GOURMET POPCORN in Ballard • LOS AGAVES in Pike Place Market • MENCHIE'S in Magnolia • MOD PIZZA at the Armory (aka the Center House) • RED MANGO at Rainier Square and near the Market • SARDUCCI'S SPECIALTY SUB on Capitol Hill • SKILLET COUNTER at the Armory