14 Iconic Foods From Washington State You Need To Try

Though I'm from a little bit of everywhere, Washington is home. It's the only spot I lived before the age of 17 where we stayed long enough to plant and harvest a garden. It's also where I learned to cook, so it's shaped my palate the most. When I cook as an adult, whether that be when I was a chef, undergoing culinary art training, or just making dinner, I draw on Washington flavors.

The saltwater fjords, Nordic climate, and pine-studded coast of Western Washington provide a gorgeous collection of fish, berries, crustaceans, greens, root vegetables, and mushrooms. Meanwhile, the mountains, dry climate, and plains of Eastern Washington offer ideal conditions for stone fruit, tubers, grains, apples, melons, and wine. Additionally, the Washington State culture is a melting pot of Scandinavian, Asia Pacific, Latinx, and Slavic traditions. The result is a beautiful tablescape of farm-and-sea-to-table, pickled, herbaceous, seasonal eating. Washington may not be the most well-known food scene, but in my opinion, it's by far the best.

So, while the options are endless, here are 14 iconic foods from Washington State that you need to try immediately.

Salmon is a key shaper of Washington's unique marine nutrient-fed landscape. I, like most Washingtonians, grew up reenacting the salmon run in school, going on field trips to spawning grounds, visiting tribal and community-led salmon barbecues, and having the fish in my family's fridge at all times. Salmon is the backbone of Washington and the lifestyle of those who call it home.

Locals eat salmon in all kinds of ways, but smoked salmon is perhaps the most traditional. Indigenous people have long utilized this preservation and flavoring method. The intense taste, meatiness, and woodsy notes reflect the fierce contrast in Washington's dark winters and seemingly nightless summers, the resilience needed to survive the wet corners of the state, and the dominance of cedar trees. Smoked salmon makes me feel close to it all, and I love that this tradition is still preserved by Indigenous community members.

There are so many ways to enjoy smoked salmon. In my family, smoked salmon dip made with fish from Seabear Smokehouse, a sustainable purveyor located on my home island, was always in the fridge. When my partner and I host, we serve it as-is with local fruits and pickled vegetables. There's really no wrong way to go.

If you asked a Washingtonian at random about their favorite pie, they'd probably tell you what I'd tell you: marionberry. Invented in the Pacific Northwest, this blackberry hybrid is tart and sweet. Locals adore it mixed into ice cream, coffee cake, and coffee drinks. Eating marionberries is considered a rite of passage for new residents, and it's a staple for long-time Washingtonians. At the time of writing, my partner and I actually have a jar of marionberry jam, a box of marionberry muffins, and a bottle of marionberry syrup waiting for us in the kitchen — it's the fruit that keeps giving. So, despite the marionberry's birthplace being Oregon, I dare you to find a Washingtonian who isn't completely obsessed.

While marionberries are fantastic as-is, they're unbeatable when nestled into a sticky pie with a buttery crust. They're the stars of the pie-eating contests that I grew up competing in with my siblings, and you can't throw a stone in Washington without hitting a bakery that serves it (bonus points if it comes with Tillamook's marionberry pie ice cream). Though it's impossible to make a bad one, I've yet to try a better marionberry pie than that of Whidbey Pies, a regional favorite based on Whidbey Island. If you're ever anywhere near Puget Sound, run, don't walk, to grab a slice.

Though this dish is specifically from and named after Seattle, you'll find these hot dogs all across the state. Served on a grilled bun and smothered in cream cheese and grilled onions, it's often also topped with jalapeños, sauerkraut, and crunchy onions. Invented by a bagel vendor in the late 1980s and popularized in the 1990s, the Seattle dog is now a fixture at every major sports game, popular street cart, and backyard barbecue.

I love so many things about the Seattle dog. The dog's smokiness is contrasted with bright, umami, creamy, and crunchy toppings. It has everything you could want in a whole meal, but on a bun. On top of cream cheese and grilled onions, I love my Seattle dog with a plant-based frank and peach relish, pickled onions, fresh jalapeños, sauerkraut, crunchy onions, furikake seasoning (a Seattle staple), and huckleberry hot sauce. And that's what's beautiful: as long as it has onions and cream cheese, a Seattle dog can be tweaked to reflect the eater.

If you know how to pronounce this massive burrowing clam, that's a sure sign that you're a local (for the record, it's "goo-ee-duck"). Plentiful in Puget Sound, this delicacy has a home on the menus of any seafood restaurant worth its salt in Washington. It's often eaten just steamed with butter and white wine, but in sashimi, seafood cocktails, and chowder are other popular ways to enjoy this classic Washingtonian food.

Now, I'm not going to lie. The geoduck's name isn't the only tough thing about it. If you didn't grow up eating it, the crunchy yet chewy texture can be hard to get past. However, if prepared properly, it can be very tender, sweet, and only slightly briny. My advice is to go somewhere that knows what it's doing, like Taylor Shellfish Farms in Seattle, and try it in a chowder first. If you enjoy it, try it sautéed or steamed before moving on to sashimi. Regardless of preparation method, geoduck is such an iconic Washington food that it's definitely worth a try.

Due to the Nordic climate in Western Washington, there are a lot of Scandinavian foods that are super popular in Washington, and rhubarb desserts are one of them. In fact, much of the rhubarb in the United States comes from Washington because it grows so plentifully. Like many from my state, I grew up picking this resilient stalk from our family garden, and Washington towns hold rhubarb-centric claims to fame (like Sumner, the "Rhubarb Pie Capital of the World").

So, while many rhubarb recipes are great options for using up this thriving crop, a tangy-yet-sweet rhubarb crisp is the perfect vessel. Topped with cinnamon and brown sugar granola, it's up there with marionberry pie for many who call the Evergreen State home. Every family seems to have their own rendition of this, whether that's going heavy on the granola, making their own topping, or adding Scandinavian spices like cardamom to the mix. It's the ultimate Washington treat and my favorite dessert in the world when paired with local wildflower honey and lavender ice cream from Sequim, the state's "Lavender Capital of North America."

Often served in a West Coast bread bowl, salmon chowder is the epitome of Washington cuisine. It's hearty, smoky, drowned in herbs, and chock-full of seafood. It's perfect for dinners outside during the 10 p.m. sunset season, when a big bowl of chowder is excellent fuel for summer swims. And, it's just as ideal for dark winter evenings when you need to hunker down and warm up from the rain. It's one of those dishes that, like the locals, is adaptable and leans into a sea-meets-herb-filled-forests landscape.

I grew up eating buckets of this regularly, and it was the first dish I ordered when I moved back to Washington in 2024 after years away. You can make your own or pay a visit to one of the many amazing chowderies in Seattle, where salmon is king. I know the line is long, but I recommend Pike Place Chowder to everyone I know. The smoked salmon chowder brings to mind that Soup Nazi episode of "Seinfeld:" it's so good, you have to sit down.

There are numerous kinds of pizza that are specific to Washington, such as shrimp, mushroom, and pesto pizza. But potato pizza might be the most iconic in the state. This popular pie always seems to remind me of the state's tuber-loving Scandinavian heritage. But this also reflects Washington's behemoth potato industry, as the state ranks as the number two potato producer in the country.

Though some Washingtonians pile theirs high with classic Cascadian ingredients like chanterelles and huckleberries, minimalism is the general theme. If you want something simple and outstanding, try the potato pizza from Serious Pie, one of the best pizza restaurants in Seattle. It's where I took my Virginia-born-and-raised partner to try his first Washington slice, knowing that the perfect portion of rosemary would impress. In the east, get it at Spokane's The Flying Goat for Pettett, a decadent potato pizza with mushrooms, green onions, heavy cream, cheese, roasted garlic, and, of course, roasted potatoes.

Washington is known for its specialty candies. Huckleberry taffy seems to be available at every gift shop, Maeve (formerly known as Seattle Chocolate) has long and very famously made cocoa treats that go perfectly with the state's iconic coffee, and Almond Roca remains a popular goody even a century after its invention in Tacoma (it was the first candy I learned how to make in my middle school cooking class). Any one of these could be on a list of iconic Washingtonian foods. But Aplets & Cotlets are unique in their reflection of the state's iconic orchards.

Similar to Turkish Delight, these apple and apricot sweets have walnuts inside and powdered sugar on top. They were invented by Liberty Orchards in Cashmere, so they are literally a bite of Central Washington's rugged, orchard-filled region. I love that it uses apples and apricots, since the state is the number one American producer of apples and the number two apricot purveyor. Though it's delicious to enjoy the fruits by themselves, Aplets & Cotlets offer a fun and more sugary alternative.

Those wanting to get a taste of Washington's famous Dungeness crab are in luck, as the seafood is the star of many regional dishes. Growing up next door to an Alaskan fisherman, my family and I frequently gorged on giant pots of steamed crab, dunked generously in melted local butter — it doesn't take much for Dungeness crab to be great. However, Crab Louie offers a twist.

The salad consists of a ginormous heap of crab atop lettuce leaves, hard-boiled eggs, tomatoes, lemons, asparagus, radishes, and dill. Though the origins are contested, Seattle and Spokane institutions (the Olympic Club and The Davenport Hotel, respectively) are among the potential inventors. It's now a major player in the Washington food scene, particularly in the world of high-end, waterfront dining. I love the mix of fresh seafood and the delicate produce that make the state's palate so great, such as tender asparagus, peppery radish, and a green blizzard of dill. If you want an original way to gorge on Washingtonian crab, you've got to try this.

The Pacific Northwest is all about dairy, and with Tillamook to the south and Beecher's smack dab in the middle of Seattle, Washington has a lot of access. Meanwhile, sourdough is an art form throughout the state. Entire communities bond over it in the cities, and tiny towns like Edison make a name for themselves thanks to their baking chops. For this reason, grilled cheese on sourdough is among the most iconic Washingtonian dishes.

The cheese varieties vary, but goat, mozzarella, and Jack cheeses are super popular. Beecher's, home to some of the best grilled cheese in the United States, uses the latter. Popular regional add-ins include kimchi, huckleberry jam, crab, heirloom tomatoes, pesto, and apples. My favorite rendition involves Breadfarm bread, a loaf so good it's considered a local legend — seriously, Washingtonians search everywhere for stores that stock this in-state bakery's slices. My family would literally venture onto the mainland from Fidalgo Island, just to get it fresh from the award-winning Edison business. My perfect Washingtonian grilled cheese also involves local jam (huckleberry or marionberry, of course), Washington basil, and a sprinkling of Sequim lavender in a variation that stays true to my state's floral and fruity flavors.

Perhaps salmon burgers are predictable, but they're a classic fixture in Washington. I remember having these all the time for school lunches, and you'll likely find salmon burgers as the main offering at backyard barbecues. They're meaty, juicy, and perfect for chilly nights on the beach. And, if you catch it in a restaurant, it's probably served with famous Walla Walla onion rings, another iconic Washington food. Like marionberry products, salmon patties are always stocked in my own kitchen. They're seriously staples.

Everyone serves their salmon burger differently, but they're generally topped with tons of lettuce, heirloom tomato slices, and a thick slathering of either aioli, tartar sauce, or teriyaki sauce, a classic Seattle concoction. I love mine made with a ton of dill, and served on a toasted wheat bun with mayonnaise, lingonberry jam, pickled red onions, cucumbers, pickled carrots, dill pickles, sauerkraut, crunchy onions, grilled peach slices, caramelized onions and red cabbage, and spicy peppers. If you're thinking that's a lot of pickled goods, think again. I don't know if it's my Scandinavian heritage or my identity as a Pacific Northwesterner — a population that famously pickles everything (as hilariously captured in the "we can pickle that" sequence from "Portlandia"), but I and many Washingtonians fully believe in using at least three kinds of pickles on everything. Salmon burgers are no exception, and if you want a bright contrast to the rich seafood, make like a Cascadian and pass the pickles.

Washington is known for its cherries. The Evergreen State is the top sweet cherry producer in the country, and as you might have guessed, Rainier cherries are named after Washington's famous mountain since they were developed in the state. The fruit is a regional symbol, and you know it's summertime when cherry stands pepper roadsides and gas station parking lots. And fans of "Twin Peaks," an iconic show shot in Washington, will know that cherry pie, Agent Cooper's favorite, is a super popular way that Washingtonians enjoy the fruit.

Now, usually when out-of-staters think of cherry pie, they picture overly sweet, canned "cherry pie filling" stuffed inside dry crust. Let me be clear: this is not what we're eating here. In Washington, only fresh cherries will do, whether that means picked fresh and put inside a buttery crust or picked and frozen for when a winter hankering for summertime fruit hits. Washingtonian cherry pie is tangy, gently sweet, and, when made with Rainier cherries, perfect with a sugared crust. Regardless of cherry variety, like most Washington desserts, the state's pie is best served with honey lavender ice cream.

Clams and mussels are a way of life in Washington, particularly in the west. Puget Sound is prime for them, and I, like many Washingtonians, spent summers clamming. My mukluk-wearing family would spread out on the beach and dig until we'd collected bucketfuls. We'd steam and bathe the shellfish in tons of butter, white wine, and handfuls of fresh herbs from the garden for dinner. I have so many memories of piling around the fragrant pan with my four siblings on the deck, each of us ready with our Breadfarm sourdough to sop up the delicious juices. It always tasted like a day in the sunlight with my family, and it's still among the most comforting meals to me when I'm missing home.

This pastime is ritualistic in Washington. A big pan of lemony clams or mussels is the centerpiece of the state's summertime get-togethers, from fancy dinner parties to beach cookouts. It's the true unifier, because there aren't any pretences — everyone knows where these mollusks came from, and everyone has access to them. Anyone, not just experts or wealthy people, can get a license, bucket, and shovel, and head to a muddy beach. If I were to pick a meal that's a true symbol of Washington, I'd pick this dish. It offers communion with the landscape if you dig up the ingredients yourself or forage for the herbs. And, when served, it fosters togetherness, because a big pan of steamed mussels and clam varieties begs for company.

Unfortunately, most non-Cascadians haven't heard of salmonberries. Native to the Pacific Northwest, these magical fruits match their namesake color. They're tart, delicate, and uncultivated, so you have to forage for them. At the time of writing, it's currently salmonberry season, so my partner and I've been going to the forest down the block and picking bowlfuls. I love how vibrant they look in the sea of dark green ferns and earthy cedars — even first-time foragers can't miss them.

These striking berries are perfect as-is. Indigenous communities would gather the leaves for tea and eat the shoots like asparagus. In Coast Salish traditions, it's said that, being the first berries of the season, they tell of a good salmon run and harvest. Many locals also love eating them as jam. I just made a fresh batch of it, and let me just say, it's life-changingly good and such a gorgeous color. And, the floral and tangy flavors go so well with rye bread, eggs, and smoked salmon.

Salmonberries, regardless of how they're eaten, are a critical part of Washington's culture, informing the First Peoples of the bounty to come and decorating the modern woods like holiday ornaments. They're among the most important foods to try in the Pacific Northwest to understand what it means to live here among the pines, bears, fjords, and berry-blanketed mountains.