Editor’s note: Originally published September 17, 2019. Republished June 2, 2022.

We got a hot tip via email about a new place that I missed by a few days as it went into Everett's Coolest Strip Mall. Gracie's Cuisine, the first all-Filipino restaurant in Everett, is now open! I hadn't had much Filipino food before and was excited to try it, so I asked my husband to grab take-out the next day. Thankfully he called it in ahead of time, as everything is cooked to order and they needed 30 minutes to make our food.

This is fantastic family-style dining, assuming your family likes bold, complex flavors. We spent the entire evening saying, "I can't believe how good this is!" between bites, and there were enough leftovers for another full dinner for both of us, plus a lunch I hid away in the freezer. We had bricol express (pork belly in ginger, shrimp paste, coconut milk and chili) plus beef calderata, a hearty beef stew with potato chunks that are somehow firm on the outside but creamy inside. You get lots of lumpia (deep-fried spring rolls) in your order, and they're crispy and full of flavor.

It's worth mentioning that the lumpia are oily in a good way and the bricol and caldereta use deliciously fatty cuts of meat. For something leaner, try their most popular dish, the tapsilog sizzling plate.

Gracie herself recommended it when I returned on my own for lunch the following week.

Eating at the restaurant is definitely worth the trip. The cast iron plate crisps up the rice as you eat. You'll never finish it all, so try to eat from the bottom to get the best bits.

Although I went alone, I ended up chatting with the women at the table next to me, and it turns out one of them was Ginn, the hot tipper who emailed Live in Everett the previous week! She and Jean had gotten there earlier, were already stuffed, and told me to try a bite of each of their dishes. Ginn's sinigang was brothy and subtly sour, and Jean's pork belly adobo berry was a concentrated, fatty flavor bomb. 

Ginn confirmed my suspicion that I shouldn't leave without trying the halo-halo, a signature Filipino dessert. It's got a base of crushed ice and sweetened condensed milk, plus any number of toppings like sweetened beans, corn, sweetened seaweed gelatin and ice cream. It's a big pile of surprises but not super heavy, refreshing and fun after a rich meal.

Gracie's Cuisine is a worthy addition to the food options at 607 Marketplace, many thanks to Ginn for letting us know about it! If you know a new spot or a great one we haven't covered yet, email contact@liveineverett.com so we can check it out.

Gracie’s Cuisine
607 SE Everett Mall Way
Everett, WA 98208
(425) 740-9888

Christopher Bragg works from home in Everett and loves walking, swimming, and cats. You can find him all over town, but only if you keep weird hours and avoid crowds like he does.