This Friday the MLK Business Association kicks off Plate of Nations, its signature dine-around event, now in its sixth year.
From March 25 through April 10, you’re invited to explore international cuisine at 14 restaurants in Rainier Valley, one of the most culturally diverse communities in the country. Participating restaurants along Martin Luther King Jr. Way will offer $15 and $25 menus designed to be shared – come hungry and bring your family and friends.
Up for a Challenge?
Visit all 14 restaurants (or at least eight of them), collecting Plate of Nations passport stamps as you go, and enter to win these great prizes:
- Grand Prize (12+ stamps): Private cooking class for four with Farah and Amina Ismail and family, owners of Bananas Grill. Learn and taste your way throughMediterranean and Northeast African Halal specialties.
- First Prize (10+ stamps, 2 winners): Kindle Fire HD
- Second Prize (8+ stamps, 5 winners): Hello Othello tote bags + bonus swag
Additional prizes, including gift cards from participating restaurants, will be announced throughout the event on the Plate of Nations Facebook page. Learn more about the Plate of Nations Passport and contests here.
Grand Prize: private cooking class for four with Bananas Grill owner Farah Ismail and family
Where to Go
Participating restaurants are within walking distance of the Mount Baker, Columbia City, and Othello light rail stations.
Here’s where to go and an idea of what you might eat:
- Bananas Grill – savory chicken shawarma
- Cafe Ibex – Shiro, a traditional Ethiopian stew
- Bún bò Huế Hoang Lan – Central Vietnamese specialty noodle soup, Bún bò Huế
- Foo Lam – Mandarin Chinese beef in black bean sauce
- Huarachitos Cocina Mexicana – Kahlua bread pudding with agave caramel
- Huong Duong Sunflower – Northern Vietnamese lotus, mango, and papaya salad
- Jazera – Somali Halal roasted goat
- Joy Palace Restaurant – Cantonese honey garlic pork spareribs
- Momona Cafe – Eritrean lamb and fish tibs
- Olympic Express Halal Restaurant – Asian-style lamb curry
- Othello Wok Teriyaki – General Tso’s chicken
- Rainier Restaurant & BBQ – traditional Vietnamese twice-cooked pork and egg in clay pot
- Thai Savon – Lao papaya salad with Blue Crab
- The Original Philly’s – East Coast-style Field Roast vegetarian sub
About Plate of Nations
Plate of Nations was launched in 2011 by the MLK Business Association to create a festive showcase of the diverse menus and cultural traditions of Rainier Valley’s many independently owned eateries.
Last year, Plate of Nations drew diners from 37 Seattle neighborhoods, 25 Washington cities, and 5 states, selling thousands of specials and bringing tens of thousands of dollars in additional revenue into Rainier Valley.
Plate of Nations 2016 is sponsored by the MLK Business Association, City of Seattle’s Office of Economic Development, Vulcan, Rainier Valley Community Development Fund, HomeSight, The Stranger, Northwest Polite Society, and Penniless Projects.
