It’s a nerve-wracking time to start a restaurant, especially in Seattle, with the convergence of food-price inflation and one of the nation’s highest minimum wages.

But many restaurateurs still see the dining scene as a glass half full. Among the big-name projects coming to the Seattle food scene next year: three businesses from one James Beard award-winning chef, two notable pizzerias, a renowned New York City cocktail chain and a new fusion cafe from the man behind Saint Bread, named one of the best bakeries in America by The New York Times on Christmas Eve.

Maybe next year won’t be so bleak after all. These are the 15 most exciting restaurant and bar openings of 2025.

Shanghai Dumpling King

2245 140th Ave., Bellevue; instagram.com/shanghai_dumpling_king  

In soft-opening phase

The young, hip Asian set on the Eastside can’t stop talking about this opening, another dumpling house from Vancouver, B.C. It’s just the latest restaurant from the neighboring north to expand to Bellevue, following Sun Sui Wah and others. This strip mall cafe, currently in soft-opening mode, has already garnered buzz for its wontons and fried pot stickers. Just don’t expect a warm setting. This is a no-frills, cramped space that’s designed for efficiency, with the reception area doubling as a dumpling-making station.

My Friend Derek’s

2108 N. 55th St., Seattle; myfrienddereks.com

Scheduled to open Jan. 15

This may just be the most-anticipated Seattle restaurant opening of 2025, if the epic wait lists for the hush-hush My Friend Derek’s pop-ups were any indication. Derek Reiff, who does Detroit-style pizzas, will run a 40-seat pizzeria near Green Lake in the old MKT. space. Takeout pizzas will likely be the focus, especially for Reiff’s two top sellers: the white pizza with sausage, red onion jam, Calabrian chili peppers and ricotta cheese; and his briny pizza with pepperoni cups and Castelvetrano olives. You might want to wait a month after opening before you try to score a pizza here. The lines will be long when Reiff puts up the “open” sign.

Jiang Nan

11111 N.E. Eighth St., Suite 120, Bellevue; jiangnanny.com

Scheduled to open in mid-February

Jiang Nan of New York City, a behemoth in the high-end Chinese banquet scene, will open a 250-seat restaurant at The Bravern, showcasing classic and contemporary Sichuan and Cantonese dishes. Jiang Nan is noted for its Peking duck and soup dumplings and modern takes such as coffee sauce chicken and Osmanthus sweet-and-sour pork.

Rosette

9262 57th Ave. S., Seattle (Rainier Beach)

Scheduled to open in February

Nonalcoholic drinks now command prime real estate on most bar menus, so it was inevitable that a bar would devote an entire menu to the concept. Rosette will feature 16 NA and low-alcohol mixed drinks along with noshes such as oysters and small plates. This shoebox-sized nook — only 350 square feet — doubles as a bottle shop to showcase natural and biodynamic wines. The project comes from the Jude’s Old Town team, headed by Mark Paschal. Like Jude’s, Rosette will be a co-op model, with employees earning ownership of the bar.

The Wayland Mill

3800 Latona Ave. N.E., Seattle (Wallingford); thewaylandmill.com 

Scheduled to open in the spring

If you love Yasuaki Saito’s Saint Bread, which was named one of the 22 best bakeries in the United States by The New York Times just before Christmas, you’ll want a seat at the table for his encore. The Wayland Mill follows that same East-meets-West ethos, with Saito’s fusion spins on American comfort food: Think biscuits and chasu-miso gravy for breakfast and chicken and mochi dumplings for dinner. Look for takes on trendy and regional classics like the Saint Paul Sando with egg foo yong on Japanese shokupan bread.

Triumph Valley

15323 Westminster Way N., Shoreline; instagram.com/triumphvalley_shoreline   

Scheduled to open in the spring

One of the big players in the local dim sum scene, Renton standby Triumph Valley will bring its 60-item dumpling-and-noodles-and-more menu to the North End with a second outpost in Shoreline. The signature crispy shrimp rice roll and the large selection of fried and steamed shrimp dumplings are reasons why this Hong Kong-style cafe remains one of the busiest weekend brunch spots around the Sound.

Outsider BBQ 

4010 Leary Way N.W., Seattle (Frelard); outsiderbbq.com  

Scheduled to open in the spring

This roaming barbecue pop-up will be easier to find now that Onur Gulbay, a self-taught pitmaster from Austin, Texas, has found a dining room, complete with a beer garden for a front yard. In addition to his usuals (Central Texas-style smoked brisket, pulled pork, spare ribs and jalapeño cheddar sausage), expect smoked burgers, barbacoa sandwiches and more sausage options on his new sit-down menu.

T&T Supermarket

6218 196th St. S.W., Lynnwood; tntsupermarket.us/eng

Scheduled to open in the summer

This Richmond, B.C., grocery chain has such a cult following that, in December, fans lined up at 4:30 a.m. for T&T’s U.S. debut in Bellevue. An estimated 2,000 fans waited two hours just to get into the store. The big draw is the food court, with hundreds of items, including the popular fan tuan sticky rice roll, the fried spatchcocked chicken and the 16-layer Napoleon Portuguese egg tarts. This Lynnwood T&T opening in 2025 will be a welcome relief for Bellevue residents who have already complained about parking and traffic congestions around Factoria since T&T debuted. The Lynnwood expansion should shorten the lines as fans around Western Washington spread out.

Lowlander Brewery, Un Po Tipsy Pizzeria and My Oh My

419 Occidental Ave., Seattle (Pioneer Square)

Scheduled to open by November

Business owners, civic leaders and realtors alike will be keeping their eyes on the ambitious RailSpur development in Pioneer Square, with hopes that star Seattle chef Renee Erickson can help revitalize a still-struggling neighborhood with her grand three-project gastro-hub. Erickson will have her own miniature food hall, with a 100-seat brewery, a 30-seat pizza shop and a European-inspired seafood bistro similar to her critically acclaimed Ballard restaurant, The Walrus and the Carpenter.

Death & Co.

419 Occidental Ave., Seattle (Pioneer Square)

Scheduled to open by November

Another boldface name will open in the same complex: Death & Co., one of the biggest brands in the craft cocktail world. The chain has repeatedly made lists of the best bars in the world. This famed, East Village-based speakeasy would have slayed the Seattle bar scene during the apex of the cocktail renaissance in 2010s. But, better late than never, Death & Co. should still draw attention with cocktail geeks and the “in” crowd when the sleek bar debuts next fall, around the same time as Erickson’s three projects. The Seattle bar staff has not been assembled yet, but you can expect a drink list of 24 to 36 original cocktails, management said.

Stevie’s Famous

Location and opening date TBA

This much-loved pizzeria, with locations in Burien and on Beacon Hill, is a trek for those who live in North Seattle and beyond. Well, co-owner Shane Abbott must have heard the noise, because he’s scouting real estate to expand to the “North End of Seattle” in 2025. He remains mum on the details until Stevie’s Famous has a fresh lease. His New York-style slice was named Seattle’s best pizza in a taste test by The Seattle Times and also finished first in our readers’ poll last summer.

Raising Cane’s

4345 University Way N.E., Seattle (University District); 250 Rainier Ave. S., Renton

Opening dates TBA

This Louisiana-based fried chicken chain, popular in the South and Midwest, is eyeing its debut in the Puget Sound market, with a 6,000-square-foot restaurant planned for the corner of University Way Northeast and Northeast 45th Street in the University District, and an expansion planned for Renton, too. The chain, known for its chicken fingers, plans to expand to Lynnwood as early as 2026.