Restaurant in Seattle, United States
Seattle's most credible bowl, no reservation needed.
Pike Place Chowder has ranked on Opinionated About Dining's Cheap Eats in North America list three consecutive years and holds a 4.6 Google rating across more than 7,000 reviews. No reservation needed — it is a walk-in counter in Post Alley, best visited on a weekday morning before the market crowd builds. For a quick, well-executed bowl of clam chowder in Seattle, this is the credible choice.
Yes — if you are in Seattle and want a bowl of clam chowder, Pike Place Chowder at 1530 Post Alley is the most credible answer to that question. It has ranked on Opinionated About Dining's Cheap Eats in North America list three consecutive years — #383 in 2024, #401 in 2025, and Recommended in 2023 , which puts it in verifiable company with casual spots that regularly outperform their price point. With a Google rating of 4.6 across 7,348 reviews, the consensus is unusually stable for a walk-up counter in a tourist-heavy corridor.
Lunchtime is the honest answer for most visitors. The Post Alley location feeds off foot traffic from Pike Place Market, which means the energy peaks between 11 AM and 2 PM on weekdays , the room is loud, the line moves fast, and the chowder arrives in the format it was designed for: a quick, warm, filling meal. The atmosphere is counter-service casual, closer to a covered market stall than a sit-down restaurant, and that framing is important before you arrive.
If your goal is a quieter, more relaxed bowl, aim for a late-morning weekday visit , before the market crowd fully builds. Weekend afternoons push the noise level and wait times higher without adding much to the experience. There is no meaningful dinner service transformation here: Pike Place Chowder does not shift into a different register after 5 PM the way a full-service restaurant might. The draw is the product, not the atmosphere, and that is clearer at lunch when the market context makes sense of the whole visit.
For a special occasion or date, this works leading as a starting point rather than a destination on its own , pair it with a broader Pike Place Market visit, or use it as a casual pre-dinner stop before moving to a full-service restaurant elsewhere in the city. The format is too informal for a standalone celebration meal, but as part of a well-planned afternoon in the market district, it delivers clearly on its category.
The ambient feel at Pike Place Chowder is energetic and functional rather than intimate. Post Alley is a covered pedestrian corridor, so sound carries and the space is compact. Expect counter ordering, a short wait during peak hours, and seating that ranges from standing room to small tables depending on timing. Dress code is nonexistent , this is a market counter, and anything from rain gear to business casual fits in equally well.
Under chef Larry Mellum, the kitchen's focus is narrow and deliberate: clam chowder as the main event, with additional chowder varieties rounding out the menu. The OAD Cheap Eats recognition signals consistent execution rather than occasional brilliance , the kind of kitchen that shows up reliably rather than performing for critics. For visitors who want to eat well without committing to a long reservation process or a significant bill, that reliability has real value.
| Detail | Pike Place Chowder | Walrus & Carpenter | Canlis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cuisine | Clam Chowder | New American Seafood | New American |
| Booking Difficulty | Easy (walk-in) | Moderate | Hard |
| Price Tier | Cheap Eats | Mid-range | Splurge |
| Format | Counter service | Full service | Full service |
| Leading For | Quick, quality lunch | Oyster-focused seafood | Special occasion dining |
| Google Rating | 4.6 (7,348) | , | , |
No reservation is needed. Pike Place Chowder operates as a walk-in counter. Booking difficulty is rated easy , show up, join the line, order at the counter. For the shortest wait, arrive before 11 AM or after 2 PM on weekdays. Weekend visits will involve more patience regardless of timing.
Seattle's restaurant scene spans everything from the market counter to the destination tasting menu. For context on the full range, see our full Seattle restaurants guide, our full Seattle hotels guide, our full Seattle bars guide, our full Seattle wineries guide, and our full Seattle experiences guide. If you are building a longer trip around serious food, the city also connects to acclaimed restaurants across the West Coast, including Lazy Bear in San Francisco and Single Thread Farm in Healdsburg for those extending a Pacific itinerary. For destination-level fine dining at the national tier, Le Bernardin in New York City, The French Laundry in Napa, and Atomix in New York City represent the comparison set. Pike Place Chowder is not competing in that tier , it is competing in the Cheap Eats category, and winning it three years running.
The clam chowder is the reason to visit , it is the kitchen's core product and the basis of all three OAD Cheap Eats recognitions. Beyond that, the menu includes additional chowder varieties, but specific dish details are not confirmed in our data. Order what sounds right from the board and expect the clam chowder to be the most consistent choice.
You do not need to book at all. Pike Place Chowder is a walk-in counter with no reservation system. The practical question is timing rather than advance planning: weekday mornings before 11 AM or mid-afternoons will have shorter lines than weekend middays. For a special occasion meal that requires a reservation, consider Canlis, which books weeks out, or Kamonegi for something more intimate.
Anything. This is a market counter in a covered pedestrian alley. There is no dress expectation. Rain jacket, casual clothes, or whatever you are already wearing to explore Pike Place Market is appropriate. Save the dressier options for Canlis or Joule, where presentation matters more to the room.
Not as a standalone meal. The format , counter service, casual seating, market-corridor atmosphere , does not lend itself to a celebration dinner. It works well as part of a broader Pike Place Market visit or as an afternoon stop before a proper dinner reservation. For a genuine special occasion in Seattle, Canlis is the clearest answer in the city, with Walrus & Carpenter a strong option for a seafood-focused evening that feels more considered without reaching Canlis price levels.
For seafood at a step up in formality and price, Walrus & Carpenter is the most direct peer , oyster-focused, full service, and still accessible without weeks of advance planning. For something in a completely different register, Joule offers New Asian cooking with more ambition and a full reservation experience. Maneki is Seattle's oldest Japanese restaurant and worth knowing if you want a meal with more history attached to it. And Kamonegi is the right call for hand-made soba at a small-counter format that shares some of Pike Place Chowder's focused, specialty-driven logic , just in a very different cuisine category.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Booking Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pike Place Chowder | Clam Chowder | Easy | |
| Canlis | New American | Unknown | |
| Joule | New Asian | Unknown | |
| Kamonegi | Soba | Unknown | |
| Maneki | Japanese | Unknown | |
| Walrus & Carpenter | New American - Seafood | Unknown |
What to weigh when choosing between Pike Place Chowder and alternatives.
Clam chowder is the reason to come — that is the entire point of the venue and the basis for its Opinionated About Dining Cheap Eats ranking in 2024 and 2025. If they offer a sampler with multiple chowder styles, that is the practical way to benchmark the menu. Skip anything that distracts from the chowder; this is a single-focus counter and it performs best when treated like one.
No booking required — Pike Place Chowder is a walk-in counter at 1530 Post Alley. Show up, join the line, and order at the counter. The line moves, but lunchtime during peak market hours is the busiest window, so arriving before noon or after 2pm keeps the wait shorter.
Whatever you are wearing to Pike Place Market is fine. Post Alley is a covered pedestrian corridor and Pike Place Chowder is a casual counter operation — there is no dress expectation beyond basic comfort. This is not a sit-down restaurant.
Not in the traditional sense. The format is counter service in a busy pedestrian alley — there is no table service, intimate setting, or occasion framing. For a Seattle special-occasion dinner, Canlis or Walrus & Carpenter are more appropriate. Pike Place Chowder is the right call for a casual, high-quality midday stop, not a celebration meal.
For a step up in formality and a broader seafood focus, Walrus & Carpenter in Ballard is the peer-level comparison worth making. For a full sit-down meal, Maneki (Japanese, historic Capitol Hill) and Kamonegi (soba and izakaya) offer distinct value at the casual-to-mid end. Canlis and Joule operate in a different tier entirely — destination dining rather than market counter eating.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
