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Original Starbucks, Seattle, WA

Photo: John Anderson, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

Eat & DrinkIconicFoodie Favorite

Original Starbucks

1912 Pike Place · Seattle, WA

Why you should go…

This small Pike Place Market shop is known as the Original Starbucks. The company opened in 1971 at 2000 Western Avenue and moved here in 1976, and the store has kept its early appearance under design guidelines tied to its historic significance. It still sells whole bean coffee, tea and spices alongside drinks. Lines are common, and the market lists an option to reserve a visit up to two weeks ahead.

  • #coffee shop
  • #pike place market
  • #starbucks
  • #historic store

Good to know

General eat & drink guidance

Habits that pay off across this whole category, not rules for this one venue. Always check the official site for the specifics.

  • Go early or go late

    The simplest way around a wait at a popular room is to sit down before the rush or after it.

  • Reservations open on a schedule

    Where bookings are taken, tables tend to be released a set number of days in advance, often at a fixed hour.

  • Menus move with the season

    Treat any dish you read about online as a maybe, not a promise, especially anything local and seasonal.

  • Ask what the place is known for

    Staff will point you at the thing worth ordering faster than any list will.

What's around here?

The closest stops to Original Starbucks, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Sightseeing
    Iconic

    Pike Place Market

    Free

    The country's oldest continuously operated public market, famous for flying fish and fresh flowers.

    Right next doorSwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Eat & Drink
    Foodie Favorite

    Pike Place Chowder

    Under $25

    Grab a bread bowl of clam chowder or a lobster roll and eat under the rotunda like generations of visitors before you.

    Right next doorMore like this

  • Sightseeing
    Quirky Fun

    Gum Wall

    Free

    Walk down Post Alley below Pike Place Market past brick walls coated inches thick in colorful chewed gum.

    Steps awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Attractions
    Family Favorite

    Seattle Great Wheel

    Under $25

    A 175-foot Ferris wheel over Elliott Bay with enclosed, climate-controlled gondolas.

    Steps awaySwitch it up: Attractions

  • Eat & Drink
    Local Gem

    The Madison Diner

    Under $25

    Classic diner in a historic 1948 stainless-steel railcar serving all-day breakfast on Bainbridge Island.

    8.4 mi awayMore like this

  • Eat & Drink
    Local Gem

    Bainbridge Organic Distillers

    Free

    Washington's first organic distillery, with tours and free tastings of its vodka, gin, and whiskey.

    8.9 mi awayMore like this