Alki Spud Fish & Chips — Restaurant in Seattle

Ivar’s is probably Seattle’s most famous Fish 'n Chips spot, but Spud is the best. Ironically, Ivar’s owns Spud, but this smaller local chain operates independently and the Alki Spud is my favorite of all their locations. Spud’s fish is wonderful. The breading is always crisp, never oily, and delicious. They serve cod, halibut, and salmon as well as clams, shrimp, scallops, calamari, and chicken strips. They also have very good chowder and cole slaw, and a proper selction of three vinegars for your seafood. And of course, their fries are solid.

The best thing going for this place though, after the fish of course, is the location. Located directly across the street from Alki beach, Spud is the perfect summer fish shack. They have lots of indoor seating as well as a few picnic tables outside, but when the weather is good, locals know to take their catch over to the beach where you can dine on the sand, a bulkhead, or a patch of grass. Just don’t feed the seagulls or you’ll be doing a Tippi Hedren impersonation.

This location also has parking for customers in back, which is a huge perk during nice weather when Alki draws thousands of cars and pedestrians. Street parking will go fast but if you drop in to take your fish to go, you've got easy free parking during your meal.

Spud is a Seattle institution that's well worth a visit. You can vist them on the eastside in Juanita or on Green Lake in Seattle, but Alki is special....

Dear Alki Spud’s Team,

I’m writing to share some disappointing experiences I’ve had recently at your restaurant, which has long been one of my daughter’s favorite spots for dinner. She especially loves your prawns, and we’ve made a point of coming to Alki Spud’s for them many times.

However, on my last two visits — including my most recent visit around 7:00 PM — I was told that the prawns were not available. I understand that certain items may run out during peak times, and I can accept that. What made the experience frustrating was the way the cashier handled the situation.

Both times, the cashier simply told me, “We don’t have any right now,” in a very dismissive and indifferent manner, without offering an explanation, apology, or suggesting an alternative. His attitude made me feel unwelcome and as if I was an inconvenience rather than a valued customer. It even left me feeling like I should have had a back-up plan for dinner, which really took away from what should have been a positive experience for me and my daughters when making the trip to Alki.

We’ve always loved coming to Alki Spud’s, and I hope this feedback helps to improve the service going forward. A more helpful and professional approach from staff — even when items are unavailable — would make a big difference.

Thank you for taking the time to read my feedback, and I hope to hear...

Fantastic fresh fish, large portions and a great view from the top!

What's not to like? Well I'll tell you. I was digging in to a juicy crispy piece of fish when I decided to dunk it in some tartar sauce. I had doused the giant piece of fish in some vinegar in preparation for eating and this small act set in motion events which would lead to an extreme culinary inconvenience. Unknown to me the vinegar had compromised the structural integrity of the golden brown breading. As the fish dunked into the viscous tartar sauce a critical structural failure occurred in the main support breading. I watched in horror as a large chunk of fish sloughed off into the tartar sauce. I knew i had only moments to act. I quickly grabbed a rescue fry which was warm and crispy and went to work saving my wayward fish chunk. It took a few dunks to fish the fish out of the sauce but in the end I retrieved my fish chunk and ate it. After all this excitement ended I realized that I had gotten tartar sauce on my fingers and I had to walk all the way across the dining area to get a napkin.

I don't think I can handle this much adventure in one afternoon. I may just abandon my plans to go to a rave later tonight and instead stay home watching public broadcast fundraisers and...