Clay Pot Cafe

After moving away from Boston for 6+ years, I had a mental list of things I must eat when visiting again. This was HIGH on the list and I'm so glad that they're still operating. A few changes:- They're also no longer cash only, which is such a relief. - It seems that they've repainted a few spots--not sure if it's a huge improvement but... sure ;)- They offer larger sizes of clay pot rice and some sichuan food options now?? (Medium is good for 2 people.) I have yet found a clay pot rice place in Seattle that's comparable to this place. I love the flavor, the freshness, and most importantly, the consistency over the years. It's never too greasy or salty and the crispy texture of the rice at the bottom is always fantastic. Seattle folks, let me know if there's a good clay pot rice place in town!

Excellent quality food.The menu can be intimidating if you don't eat authentic Chinese food very often. We had a chicken and pineapple fried rice that was quite nice. We also had some stir fried beef with garlic shoots. They were both amazing quality. The beef was tender and perfectly spiced. Garlic shoots were also delicious. Service was very good and attentive.The space is very small so I recommend going off peak hours if you're in the area!

This small family owned restaurant really packs a punch of flavor and goodness. Very unassuming place where everything is focused on the food specializing in clay pot rice. Offering a variety of toppings from chick, pork pasty, duck and Chinese sausage. You'll on find one that suits your taste. The rice is slightly firm and the crust on the bottom well cooked but not too hard. Flavored just right with an additional sprinkle of soy sauce prepared specifically for the rice. Each bite is so flavorful and just satisfying especially on a nice fall day. Service was fast and friendly. We got out in a little over an hour. Prices are very reasonable, the medium will easily feed 2.

It's rare to find a restaurant that serves claypot rice, but this hidden gem specializes in it. Every bite brings back childhood memories. You've got to try the frog and yellow eel claypot rice--it's incredible. For something more traditional, the spare ribs or chicken and mushroom claypot rice are also fantastic. We also ordered a side of duck, which was marinated beautifully. All are truly delicious!

Clay Pot Cafe has been around for what seems like forever but their food is consistent as ever. I have never had a bad meal here and always come for their yellow eel clay pot rice. They give the perfect amount of eel to rice ratio, and the crispy rice is the best part! Please consider visiting to try their clay pot rices, you won't be disappointed.

Small, hidden gem in Chinatown. Staff was extremely accommodating and nice. Got the Chinese sausage and bacon clay pot rice. Took about 15-20 minutes to come out but it was delicious. Definitely recommend checking this place out. Will definitely be coming back in the future!

Solid eats. Come for the authentic Chinese food especially the clay pot, but the noodles and vegetables were good too. Small place as others have noted but service was friendly and efficient. You might have to share a table if there's just a couple of you and you're seated at one of the larger tables. We had the chicken and Chinese sausage clay pot, the pepper beef noodles, and some gai lan. Everything was very good. Would have tried the chow fun but they were out. You sit and order from your phone, food comes out, and you pay directly afterwards. They take credit card now.

A hole in the wall place that is at the edge of Chinatown but easy to miss. I passed by this place so many times but finally got to try it. It's a small place inside with a pretty long menu. We ordered the next size up of a clay pot and it was enough for two people. It was easy to order as the menu and everything is online. Food came pretty quickly too!

Small homestyle restaurant that is always packed to the brim and insanely busy. And guess what? It is all for good reason. The food is quite good.ATMOSPHERE/ARCHITECTURE: 9/10The rating here is an interesting one. This is not a fancy restaurant that anyone is coming into here for the ambience or the experience. It is a tiny restaurant that might be able to seat 15 people on a good day and it is crammed at that. It definitely is a mom/pop restaurant vibe through and through and it gives off old good memories of small restaurants I'd visit when I was younger. You come here for the food.SERVICE: 8/10Service was fine. Order via a QR code which was shocking to me for a small place like this! Food comes out quickly.FOOD: 9/10We ordered a variety of clay pot rice dishes including pork, seafood and tofu platters. All of the dishes were delicious and we were fighting to get more bites of each, down to the last piece of crispy rice. The style of clay pot rice was fantastic and not a common offering you could get just anywhere.VALUE: 7/10Prices skirted a little towards the high end being around $20 for each clay pot, which was not unreasonable.PROBABILITY OF RETURN: 9/10TO EAT OR NOT TO EAT: Definitely an eat.OVERALL: 8/10

This tiny, and cluttered, cafe offers a limited dining space. We tried the eel and preserved meat clay pot rice, stir-fried vegetables, lemon tea, and milk tea. The clay pot rice lacked the rich, authentic flavor we were hoping for, and the sausage was disappointingly dry. It wasn't bad, but it fell short of the deep, savory essence of traditional clay pot rice. The milk tea was watery, though the lemon tea fared better, albeit a bit too sweet for our taste. The stir-fried Chinese cauliflower, unfortunately, had a bug leg in the stems, which was off-putting. Additionally, the restaurant was uncomfortably hot. Overall, the experience was not terrible, but there's significant room for improvement, particularly in enhancing the flavors and quality of the ingredients.