364 Roy St (Lower Queen Anne), 282-6616. Daily 11 am-10 pm. $$.

Just one street north of Seattle Center, on a lot adorned with bamboo shoots, lies Bamboo Garden. The friendly staff and comfortable, unassuming atmosphere make this restaurant a must-eat for vegetarians and vegans, and an entirely worthwhile change of pace for the curious. Inside, punked-out high school vegans and kosher-conscious octogenarian anarchists enjoy plates of "chicken" and "pork" prepared with fresh vegetables or fried taro root. The focus is on your health: All "meat" items on the extensive menu are soy or vegetable protein substitutes; many dishes are "heart-friendly"; and brown rice is always available. Significantly less healthy--but much, much higher in alcohol content--is Bamboo Garden's sake, guaranteed to have you and your dining companion downright giddy about having to walk back to the bus stop in the cold rain without an umbrella. JASON PAGANO

La Cabaña Restaurante

2532 Beacon Ave S (Beacon Hill), 322-9643. Daily 11 am-9:30 pm. $.

If you're fed up with the blandness of Seattle's yuppie pseudo-Mexican restaurants, La Cabaña's strangely comforting mariachi music, dark wood paneling, carved wooden chairs, taxidermied deer, and hideously gaudy paintings of cowpokes and Aztec warriors will remind you that you're in a "genuine" Mexican American restaurant.

La Cabaña offers the usual combination platters of tacos, enchiladas, tostadas, etc. ($6.95-$8.25), as well as a good selection of beef, pork, shrimp, chicken, and egg dishes. The "Especialidades de la Casa" come with rice, beans, and flour or corn tortillas, and you can be assured of getting plenty of chips--the usual variety with two kinds of salsa, plus large ones doused with cinnamon for dessert. The more adventurous could try the Menudo ($7.95), a "traditional Mexican soup" featuring beef tripe and pig's feet, or just stick with the tried-and-true Chicken Fajitas ($9.95) or the Picadillo ($9.95)--shredded flank steak in a yummy red sauce. Wash it all down with a glass of sangria ($2.95) or a trusty Mexican beer, and you can hardly go wrong. MELODY MOSS

Maruta Shoten

1024 S Bailey St (South Seattle), 767-5002. Mon-Sat 9:30 am-6:30 pm, Sun 10 am-6 pm. $

If late-summer excursions take you south for a hike on Mt. Rainier or further afield via the airport, a stop at Maruta Shoten will get you a better box lunch than anything you'll find in Auburn or on an airplane. Maruta Shoten is a Japanese grocery in Georgetown, just off the I-5 Corson Street exit. They make up terrific bento boxes ($4.75-$4.95) with real sushi, not that pseudo-sushi sold at the supermarket. If sushi is not for you, grilled saba (mackerel), grilled salmon, traditional teriyaki, and good old-fashioned kara-age (fried chicken) are usually available as well. With a bottle of cold sake, you can have a perfect picnic in a mountain meadow--though I usually have mine in Maruta's parking lot! The sign above the refrigerated case reads "Maruta Obento," adding the honorific "O" to the word. This bento certainly deserves the honor. CHARLES ROSENBERG

Banadir

5212 Rainier Ave S (Rainier Valley), 721-9162. Daily 8 am-midnight. $

Banadir throbs yellow and slightly rumpled at the edge of cutesy downtown Columbia City. On a hot day, it is reminiscent of Somalia, plants and posters proliferating in the sweltering heat; thankfully, mango and Safari Isbarmuto drinks ($1 each) provide relief. Breakfast is served until noon, featuring dishes such as Liver, Chicken or Beef Stew, and Foule with injera for around five or six bucks. Lunch and dinner are served with seasoned rice, spaghetti, chapati, or muufo. I thoroughly enjoyed both the Hilib Ari ($8), marinated goat meat with onions, green peppers, and Somali spices; and Beef Steak ($7), sliced thin, with onions, tomatoes, and green peppers in a spicy sauce. I noticed King Fish ($7) and a T-Bone Steak ($8) that, had I not been so full, would have piqued my interest. I really wanted to order a steak sandwich for dessert, for these reasons, in order of importance: (1) the "Steak Sandwich" neon sign buzzing in the window, (2) the price, $3. My inability to order this desired steak sandwich indicates how fully Banadir sated my appetite. RACHEL KESSLER

Two Dagos from Texas

2600 First Ave (Belltown), 441-7714. Sun and Mon 3 pm-midnight, Sat 5 pm-2 am. Full Bar. $$.

Things at Two Dagos seem to mimic the enormous girth of the Lone Star State. The menu boasts 14 pages of choices (portions tend to be expansive), from Tex-Mex to Italian to you-name-it. For more variety, simply graze through a couple of their generous appetizers: The Mud Bugs special ($7.25) is a messy, hands-on delight--a plateful of crawfish swimming in a Cajun wine sauce, simple and not too spicy. Equally satisfying are the Grilled Korean Spare Ribs ($8.75), short-cut racks of juicy, marinated beef ribs grilled with a roasted garlic sauce and served with a side of cool marinated cucumber slices that sneak up on you with a spicy finish. But beware! With so many ample and enticing dishes, regular visits to this informal restaurant might result in one other Texas-sized item: your ass. SCOTT McGEATH