Head-to-Head · Seattle

Cascina Spinasse vs Maneki

Spinasse is Capitol Hill's Piedmontese pasta room; Maneki is America's oldest Japanese restaurant. Book Spinasse for a date, text Maneki for value.

Cascina Spinasse

Capitol Hill · Piedmontese Italian · Food 8 / Room 7 / Value 7

Cascina Spinasse full review →

Maneki

International District · Japanese izakaya · Food 8 / Room 7 / Value 9

Maneki full review →

The Verdict

Cascina Spinasse opened on 14th Avenue in 2008 and rewired how Seattle thinks about Italian food. Chef Stuart Lane now runs a kitchen built around the cooking of Piedmont, and the dish that made the room is the tajarin: hand-cut egg pasta rolled near to transparency, dressed simply with butter and sage or with a long-cooked meat ragù. The room seats about forty, the lighting is low, and the open pass lets you watch the pasta cut. Reckon on roughly 60 to 90 dollars a head before wine. It scores 8 for food, 7 for the room and 7 for value, and it is the date table.

Maneki has run in Seattle's Japantown since 1904, which makes it the oldest Japanese restaurant in the United States. Jean Nakayama owns it now, the James Beard Foundation gave it an America's Classics award in 2008, and the dish to order is the black cod collar, broiled with miso until the edges caramelise and the fat turns to silk. There is a sushi counter at the front and six private tatami rooms behind shoji screens at the back. Dinner runs about 30 to 50 dollars a head. It scores 8 for food, 7 for the room and 9 for value.

The split is occasion against value. Spinasse wins the candlelit two-top and the pasta-led celebration; Maneki wins on price, history and the solo counter seat. One is where you take a date in Capitol Hill, the other is where you eat well for half the money in the International District.

Scores, Side by Side

Score	Cascina Spinasse	Maneki
Food	8 / 10	8 / 10
Atmosphere	7 / 10	7 / 10
Value	7 / 10	9 / 10

Which One for Which Occasion

Occasion	Editorial Pick
A romantic date night	Cascina SpinasseA low-lit forty-seat room and a plate of tajarin with butter and sage make Spinasse the Capitol Hill date.
Best value	ManekiAn izakaya dinner of 30 to 50 dollars at America's oldest Japanese restaurant is some of the best value in Seattle.
Solo dining at the counter	ManekiThe front sushi counter is walk-in friendly and the right seat for a solo diner who wants to watch the room work.
A pasta-led celebration	Cascina SpinasseThe family-style Piedmontese format, from tajarin to braises, carries a small celebration better than a counter.
History and occasion	ManekiSince 1904, with a James Beard America's Classics award, Maneki is the dinner with a story attached.

Price and How to Book

Spinasse takes reservations and books out well ahead for weekend two-tops, so plan a week or two in advance and aim for an earlier seating if you want the quieter room; the full picture sits in the Cascina Spinasse review. Maneki is the easier same-day table: the six tatami rooms book a week or two out for weekends, but the sushi counter takes walk-ins, and reservations are confirmed by text rather than an app. The detail is in the Maneki review. Both anchor our Seattle dining guide.

For cuisine context, weigh Spinasse against the best Italian restaurants worldwide and Maneki against the world's finest Japanese kitchens. For occasion fit, see our picks for a first date and for solo dining. More Seattle match-ups sit on the compare index, and the city's toughest seats are in the hardest Seattle reservations guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better, Cascina Spinasse or Maneki?

It depends on the night. Cascina Spinasse is the occasion table, a forty-seat Capitol Hill room where Stuart Lane's tajarin with butter and sage is one of the city's great plates. Maneki is the better value and the better story, America's oldest Japanese restaurant, running in Japantown since 1904 with a black cod collar worth the trip. Both sit in our Seattle dining guide.

How much do Cascina Spinasse and Maneki cost?

Cascina Spinasse runs roughly 60 to 90 dollars a head for Piedmontese pasta and braises before wine, the bigger night of the two. Maneki is the value play at about 30 to 50 dollars a head for izakaya cooking, sushi and the famous miso black cod collar. Treat Spinasse as the splurge and Maneki as the everyday luxury in the Seattle rotation.

Do you need a reservation at Cascina Spinasse or Maneki?

For Cascina Spinasse, book a week or two ahead for a weekend two-top, since the small Capitol Hill room fills fast. Maneki is easier: the six tatami rooms book a week or two out, but the sushi counter takes walk-ins, and you reserve a tatami room by text rather than a booking app. The hardest Seattle reservations guide has more.

What should I order at Cascina Spinasse and Maneki?

At Cascina Spinasse, order the tajarin, first with butter and sage to understand the pasta, then with the meat ragù, and add a seasonal braise. At Maneki, lead with the miso black cod collar, then the chirashi, handmade pork gyoza, beef sukiyaki and a pour from one of the oldest sake lists in the country. One is a Piedmontese pasta meal, the other a century-old izakaya spread.