Market House Meats — Restaurant in Seattle

This is one of the best lunches you'll get anywhere in the city. I'd been trying to go here for a bit around lunchtime, since that's really the only time when they're open, and I'm definitely glad I made it here

I got the 1/2 Reuben Sandwich here, which also came with pastrami split pea soup, potato salad, and an oreo-like cookie To preface this, I haven't tried a Reuben in New York, so I'm not some kind of expert or anything. However, this blows every other one I've had so far out of the water

Even the half sandwich is massive - it practically takes up the entire large section of the to-go box I got. I don't even want to think about what a full sandwich will entail. What impressed me the most, was amusingly enough, the bread. This marbled rye bread was both visually breathtaking and tasted incredible. It was so unbelievably soft on the inside that taking a bit of it was like no other sandwich I've had before. I think this is the best sandwich bread I've ever had

The next layer is an extremely generous helping of Thousand Island dressing, spread on both the top & bottom of the bread. This helps tremendously with the moisture - so that the sandwich doesn't feel dry and instead maintains that perfect textural balance The Swiss cheese is melted perfectly - and is the right amount that it adds flavor without overwhelming with a cheesy taste Even the sauerkraut was really good!

Of course, we have to talk about the meat. It's piled high in layers in this sandwich, and even spilling out into the rest of the box. It's salted well, and has a good bite to it. I do have a couple small issues here, though. For one, I found it to be very lean - not a lot of fat at all. I know that a Reuben is a leaner cut, but it felt like it was missing that flavor. Secondly, the beef was a bit dry. There should be some juice to this sandwich, but there was pretty much none at all. These two factors combined keeping this sandwich from all-time great status for me

There were also a couple sides to this meal. First, the pastrami pea soup was decent enough, although a little bland for my tastes What I did really enjoy though, was the potato salad. It was very mustard-forward, and used real potato chunks, rather than the instant mashed potatoes used by some places. It was very nice I'm not sure why a cookie was included here, but I didn't mind it

For the price of around $16, this is a metric ton of food - even the 1/2 sandwich plus the sides will leave you incredibly full by the end. Excellent value

Overall, this has to be one of the best sandwiches in this city - and an amazing lunch...

Market House Meats, Denny Triangle, Seattle, Wa If anywhere can truly be called a hole in the wall eatery, this place checks most of the boxes. Well-priced, locally owned, community-centered and a lone hold out in a neighborhood surrounded by shiny new construction you find yourself in a throwback to a different era.  This classic, no-frills spot has been making its own brined Corned Beef onsite since way back in 1948.  Housed in the same one story building that once boasted Seattle's famous Re-Bar, Market House holds its own, but for how long who knows. And that is why you need to go NOW! From the outside and when you glance through the windows ‘iffy’ is what jumps to mind, but once you get a whiff of what cooking on a large central grill and see the offerings on the single sheet printed menu, anticipation takes over. Opening at 8am (M-F) Market House offers a selection of breakfast sandwiches that range from a Single with Egg, and choice of Bacon, Pastrami, Sausage or Corned Beef to Quad which is Egg, Bacon, Pastrami, Sausage and hash brown all in one. In addition there are others with lesser meat combinations plus a breakfast platter and veggie option. On the day we visited they also had a special breakfast burrito that was almost the size of a presto log in which half went home and became dinner.  Aside from breakfast, their big business is lunch in which it quickly becomes obvious that they are keeping the local construction crews well fed and happy (they come in waves almost on the hour).  Items such as Market House Grilles Reuben which features hot corned beef piled high (understatement) on rye bread & covered with Swiss cheese, sauerkraut & Thousand Island dressing & hot horseradish on the side, or the Pastrami with loads of thinly sliced pastrami on rye bread with Swiss cheese with lettuce, tomato, onions, mustard, mayo, and hot horseradish on the side.  Other options include a Pastrami Dip, Philly Steak, BBQ Beef Brisket, Pulled Pork and a huge Club sandwich plus others. All sandwiches are served with pickle slices, a scoop of deliciously creamy traditional potato salad (without the usual commercially made extra junk) and a small cookie. Of note are the two soups that are usually on offer, which are a homemade Split Pea (yummy) and Smoked Pastrami. Harking back to the days when Market House was truly a butcher/deli, you can still buy the in house brined brisket for your own cooking pleasure in addition to sliced meat and real corned beef hash by the pound. Open Mo-Fr...

Time & Place: Mid morning . Downtown Seattle. Light slanting through the windows, bouncing off glass towers. The traffic hums buses wheeze, brakes squeal. You’re sitting in a no-frills corner with a plastic fork, a stack of napkins, and a clamshell box still letting off steam.

The Meal: Reuben sandwich, hot enough that smoke curls upward like incense. The rye is dark, crust sharp. Inside: a mess of corned beef and sauerkraut, tangled together, salty, tangy, unapologetic. It collapses in your hands, juices soaking into the cardboard. This is not food for careful eaters. This is food for the hungry.

Potato salad old-school, chunky, mayonnaise heavy. It tastes like picnics and church basements. Comfort on the side of chaos. A pickle spear, acidic, there to reset your palate before you dive back in. A thimble of dressing no one needs but everyone appreciates. And then the Oreo. A wink. A reminder that a working man’s lunch doesn’t need a pastry chef’s signature.

Atmosphere: Nothing fancy. Fluorescent lights. A window seat over 8th Avenue. The kind of place that’s not trying to impress anyone. Just feeding the city, one hot sandwich at a time. There’s honesty in that.

Verdict: In a city full of polished cafes and meticulously plated small plates, Market House Meats feels like a stubborn holdout. No frills, no apologies, just meat, bread, and history. You leave heavy, maybe even a little greasy, but absolutely satisfied.

Margin note: 8/10. Would eat again tomorrow. With...