Ocho Reviews

Instead of going to Ocho, here's my advice: take about $80 or $100 in paper money -- it doesn't matter in what denominations -- and burn them in your sink or your backyard or just out on the sidewalk. If you're not the kind of person who thinks burning cash is a good idea, then you probably are the kind of person who shouldn't go to Ocho. Yes, it's small and it's sort of New York-ish, if you like that sort of thing. It is also one of the loudest places I have ever been outside of a Rammstein concert, and I'm talking about a Wednesday early evening when not even all of the tables were full. It is deafening in there. As you can imagine, however, what really galls me about Ocho are the prices. I was actually doing reasonably well until we got to the deviled eggs. They sell one half of one small deviled egg for $2.50. Let me repeat: one half of an egg. A small egg. $2.50. The signature cocktails are interesting or perhaps I should say "interesting." They are definitely for people who think things like rosemary and beets belong in booze. I do not happen to be one of those people. I am especially not one of those people when the cost of said cocktail is $10 ($2 less if you go during happy hour). I am most assuredly not one of those people if I have to sit next to some Steve Bannon-looking gentleman complaining about how the "help" is screwing up the remodeling of one of his several houses. But that's who they're looking for here. The prices are meant to keep ordinary people out and give people with cash to flaunt a place to flaunt it, not because the proprietor cares about providing a pleasant experience. So, well done Ocho, you've kept us out, and we won't be back.

Food was unexpectedly fresh, well seasoned, with interesting variations on the traditional Spanish tapas. Great drink/wine selection and wait service. Trendy and quaint ambiance, highly recommend this place.

Bad service at the end left a sour taste, which was a shame because the food was very good. There were three staff members serving and only one seemed to be working so that when it came time to pay she was too busy to provide the level of service she had initially provided, (while two other staff stood behind the bar doing zip!)

Ocho is a cozy welcoming bar with a well-thought out menu and incredible drinks. The $10 margarita is well worth it alone, but is complimented by cheap snacks like a $6 plate of chorizo, potato served with a fried egg on top. Delicious. I highly recommend this new place in Ballard.

This bar has the right mix of everything, and when I mean everything, I mean the essential things for a bar...people, atmosphere, size, location, offerings, etc. When I moved to Ballard, the only bar that I thought had its own sense of charisma was Kings Hardware, but even at a first glance, Ocho supersedes it by leaps. I accredit much to its size, since you are forced to interact with other people but view this as a friendly, organic force. The candles around the bar, tables, and bottle-wall help with the tex-mex theme, but the dont overload you with pomp and flare. I feel like there is a delicate balance between light, tastes, and size, and here, they balance them all well. The food is good, and the fact it's arranged around drinking appeases your tummy, but the heart of the place is the people...genuinely jolly. A review of this place would be void, if there were no mention of the music, which to ocho's credit is well thought out. You'll hear peter bjorn and john, belle & seb., mia, magnetic fields, and of course others. All my friends enjoy this place, and I am happy to say as a ballard-man that I enjoy this place as well.

great little spot. Ballard is a better place because of it. Everything is reasonable and I walk out full of drink and tapa for around 20 bucks.... tough to beat.

After vacationing in Barcelona, my family is just crazy about authentic Spanish food so I decided to surprise them by visiting Ocho. We drove from the Eastside to Ballard (I hate Ballard because of the parking mess) After 20 minutes we finally found a parking spot right in front of Ocho, only to realize they have the NO MINORS sign at the entrance. My boys are 9 and 6 and they really wanted their patatas bravas and jamón.

A lot of tapas restaurants make the mistake of creating an ambience that's too Spanish: Flamenco music, gaudy art from Spain, the mandotory flag of Spain, etc. I once went to a tapas place in Barcelona away from the tourist spots. It was a small, a little hole-in-the-wallish, and no piped-in music. Instead, a street musician with a guitar played American rock classics outside the restaurant. But this place had great food. That's what Ocho reminds me of everytime I go. The space is tiny and crowded with no visible decor to let you know you've just walked into a tapas bar. The first time I went, Tom Petty was the background music. And the food is delicious and very-well priced as tapas go. We tried 8-10 dishes, drank beer and sangria, and the bill was less than $40. And our bellies were full. Ocho is across the street from La Isla (Puerto Rican) and down the street from Minotaur (Mexican). I call this area the Ballard's Latin triangle of restuarants (I'm purposely ignoring the chain restuarant Azteca next to Ocho).

Super cool little place serving tapas. Now with outdoor seating!

Ocho is one of my favorite spots in Seattle-for its food and drinks. Need I go on? Okay... They serve authentic tapas dishes, which is great if you want a lot of little things instead of a big entree. The broquetas are amazing, so start with that. The sangria is mixed well and they use really good liquor. Other than that-the place is very charming and has a glowing ambiance. The only real downside is the size, which is quaint...however not great if it's packed. Overall highly recommend!

We found this place to be just...OK. The drinks were pretty good, but the tapas, we tried three types, did not have much flavor to them and were not that reasonably priced (we were not there for Happy Hour. Service was nothing to write home about.

A group of us had a great time picking and enjoying over a dozen different items from the tapas menu. The prices are a little high, but the quality of what you get is excellent, and it was on par with what we enjoyed in Barcelona. The jamon on tomato bread was particularly tasty, along with the Champinones dish. The drinks were very strong but well mixed. The server was a little over worked, there are about 10 tables (outdoor seating was open) and only one person serving tables, so they were backed up. She was very warm, friendly, and helpful at making suggestions and getting us seated.

Took my son and friends to Ocho to celebrate his birthday. Great selection of appetizers, good wine and good company. Ocho is good value and an intimate setting for a date or a party.

A cozy bar located on the corner of Market and 24th in Ballard right next to Hotel Albatross. Tapas and cocktails, two things done exceptionally well here. We’d consider this a great place to grab a drink and bite before a night out on the ave. I highly recommend the Dark & Stormy, a delicious rum cocktail. Also a great assortment of craft beer.

I have a special place in my heart for tapas. I always like the option of trying numerous small plates when visiting a new place. This spot didn't disappoint. My group split a bottle of lovely sangria. The bottle allowed 2 glasses each for four people. We ordered a round of croquets, some sherried mushroom toast points, and some sort of exotic mushroom I can't pronounce. Its a cute place with outdoor seating. Its also located next to a Korean fusion eatery so if your party desires something a bit more hardy, you can meander next door!

Thus small venue hides a very authentic tapas bar with excellent food. It is reasonably priced and between the four of us who were there for an early evening meal I think we sampled more or less the whole menu. Everything was good and it’s hard to pick a favorite. Highly recommend!

We’ve been to Ocho a few times now and every single time, we’ve enjoyed our experience. The food is amazing. The atmosphere is intimate and cozy. The staff are friendly. It’s a tiny restaurant in Ballard, so on busy nights it can be a bit hard to find a table. For 2, it’s fairly easy to accommodate but a party of 4 is a bit cumbersome. Everything we’ve tried on the menu has been outstanding-our personal favorites are the fried goat cheese and the patatas bravas. Also, the sangria is very booze forward.

We came in from the cold to have a couple of cocktails. We ordered the El Picador with vodka. Very good drink. Make sure to stir the beet around in the maraschino to give the drink it’s normal rosey hazy appearance. Didn’t get food as we had dinner plans. Food across the place looked good though!

After some time empty and a depressing period as a hotdog stand, the corner of 24th and Market Street in Ballard is back to life with a cozy and all-together excellent tapas bar called Ocho. Although the wood and stone exterior has been made substantially more appealing with a comtemporary dark gray paint and black trim for the previously red woodwork, the interior transformation has been doubly dramatic. With a rich color palate and warm lighting, the space is very inviting, especially with the large windows facing Market Street. There is a bar immediately upon entering and a handful of wood tables with attractively thick and organically-shaped tops. In true tapas-bar fashion the daily dishes are listed on a chalkboard. There is a small but smart Spanish wine list, a short list of Spanish-inspired cocktails, and Estrella Damm by the bottle. The only thing we missed was the cured meat hanging from the walls that is ubuquitous in Spanish tapas places. Maybe soon ... The great thing about Ocho though is that the owners didn't necessarily feel like they needed to create a theme restaurant. It has great tapas and Spanish wine and beer but it remains at its heart a neighborhood bar. From the Rod Stewart tunes to the window looking out on the Pacific Fishermen Shipyard and the fishermen talking shop at the bar over drinks, the place fits Ballard. The menu on night we were there consisted of maybe 10-15 items. We had chorizo de la mancha (a dish of fried finely diced potatoes, chorizo, and an egg); chorizo asturias (chorizo in a stew of apples and cider, as well as an unidentified blue cheese I think), patatas bravas (fried potatoes with aoli and spicy tomato brava sauce), pan amb tomaquet (toasted baguette slices rubbed with tomato and topped with melted manchego), tortilla (a Spanish omelet with potatoes) and another toast with jamon. No dish on the menu was more than about 5-6 dollars. The dishes we had were all sized as raciones not pinxos. They are not just a bite or two. The service was very welcoming and pretty quick given how crowded they were and the fact it was their first night. All in all the restaurant highly exceeded my expectations and is a place I be visiting again soon. Ocho will be open daily and will have late night hours (to 2am with the kitchen open until midnight).

This is a wonderful restaurant - the tapas are inventive and flavorful, the atmosphere and staff are pleasant, and they play great music. Do go!

We were just in Seattle for three nights and we had dinner at Ocho on two of those nights! Oh my gosh I love this restaurant! It was so great that we almost ate there on the third night too....tried to show a little restraint. Our son lives in the Ballard area and he dines here regularly. Every dish we ordered was excellent and the staff was great. I can't wait to return to Seattle to have dinner at Ocho. And of course to see our son. :) Did I mention great wine?!! Apparently it was "parents weekend" as the chef and our servers parents were also in town. Such a fun time!

We came in on a Saturday around 11 for brunch. They don't have many tables but we got one and had coffee and food. The atmosphere is vey nice and we enjoyed sitting and visiting. With only 1 waiter/bartender and I'm assuming 1 cook, things move fairly slowly so I wouldn't recommend if you're in a hurry. The food we ordered was very tasty, the portions are pretty small. A lot of their menu is tapas style so I knew those would be smaller, but even our brunch items felt small. However, it was all good and I did leave satisfied. Now that we've tried this place for brunch, I'm interested in coming back to check out it the late night scene and food options.

All the small plates and the one entree, which the chef was kind enough to adjust a couple of veggies in it to accommodate a Ketogenic diet, were very tasty. Rich flavors and good presentation. In the small dining booth area with tiny tables to push together for couples, the music played too loudly above us to thoroughly enjoy conversation. But overall it seems to be a cool and intimate spot to meet friends.

Love this place. We've lived in the neighborhood for 4 years and go here almost monthly. It's easy to pass by, their sign is hardly visible. It's a tiny corner restaurant with great ambience, great assortment of tapas, friendly barstaff, and good drinks. There is some outdoor seating but I don't see it used very often. it's a busy corner to be out on the sidewalk. I like their taste in music although at times it gets a bit loud (makes me feel old to say that, but in a small space full of customers the sound and energy is already big) My favorite--curry mushroom toast, croquetas borrachas, seared peppers, and scallops. Their white sangria is nice, too.

Returning from the Crittendam Locks we tried to find someplace we could get into in this very in neighborhood. We both like to do tastes of things so small plates places are a favorite. Ocho was lively, jumping, a bit noisy and very tasty. We had mean margaritas and some yummy little plates. FUN!

Great Tapas, potent sangria and a great relaxed atmosphere. Dont miss the stuffed dates with blue cheese or the mushrooms - cool little spot....

The place is small, but the drinks and tapas are good. Went there on a weeknight around 6pm and there were a couple of tables available.

Cute & cozy place... Great food and drinks... Try the desert!!

so sad that this place has gone so far downhill. I loved it when it first opened and continued to go frequently throughout the years. the last two years however I'd say it's gotten progressively worse as I've trickled in. their food is no longer fresh- i've been served two different dishes cold on two different occasions implying it's pre made and stored in a fridge. their menu needs a revamp and the quality of the food needs to be severely looked at before being served. such a bummer.

Wonderful find in cool Ballard area. This place has great tapas that reminded us of Barcelona, with craft beer from the American north west!

You can get food here, and it's perfectly decent, but the real reason to come is for the drinks. The best margarita in the Pacific Northwest -- you can trust me, I've tried them ALL.

I was looking for happy hour food on a jaunt through Ballard and found Ocho. The prices were decent and the atmosphere fun. Still seeing American modifications like hot tortilla and the alioli was embellished. However, I enjoyed the anchovies, dates, wine selection, and variation of prices. I sat at the bar, which allowed strangers to view the food and discuss it. Very friendly. The bartender was very attentive. I would love to come back.

First visit, will return. Met friends at 5, Corner spot in Ballard, happy hour has $2 bites that 4 of us enjoyed by running through that menu and the regular menu. Scrambled duck egg with truffle oil on crostini, fried goat cheese, spicy shrimp, etc., etc... really enjoyed as a start to the evening. Busy place, yet staff finds a way to serve all. A repeat.

With the promise of tapas like delicacies, raved about in recent Travel & leisure magazine we set out for Ballard. For us, about 60 minute drive. I can say it was worth the drive. Every dish we ordered was absolutely delicious, unique and worth repeating. Some times literally because a serving was typically only a few bites. Case in point, the 3 blue cheese filled dates wrapped in prosciutto. Exceptional blend of sweet and salty. Between the 4 of us we tried almost everything on the menu at least once. The sausage & white beans dish, baby artichokes, asparagus with pesto, croquettes, were my favorites. One of the signature dishes was mushroom toast with greens. Chef insisted we try and I'm so glad we did. We caught part of happy hour which helped save on the cost (food, 6 drinks came to $123 before tax & tip). Only downside is the place has very limited seating. Seating at the bar or primarily 2 person tables. Only one spot designated 4 top, but seriously it better suited only a few dishes and drinks at any one time. We arrived at 5:30, and had the place to ourselves until almost 6:30 on a Tuesday evening, however it was full when we left at 7:30. They do not accept reservations. In warmer weather there are some tables on the sidewalk out front. I've been to Spain twice and think these menu items rivaled some of the best taste bites I can remember, Travel & Leisure steered me to a great place in my own state.

We enjoyed a variety of excellent tapas with sangria at this small restaurant. I suspect this place fills up quickly, but we had no problems as we arrived on the early side. We will definitely go again when in Seattle.

I stumbled upon this place while in Ballard, and it was such a nice little surprise! Having recently visited Spain, I was excited to have some of the tapas which I so enjoyed while I was there. The olives are a great mixture... and good. There's a lot of them, so you definitely get your money's worth on this menu item. I would recommend sharing this with someone - I couldn't eat them all! The tortilla espanola and the croquettas borachas were both good, and paired nicely with an Albarino they had available. Service was great, the place was clean... I think this would be a great place to visit at happy hour or in the evenings with friends!

I have gone to Spain each summer since 2007. I love Madrid so I was excited to find this sweet little place on a corner in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle. I sat at the bar by myself and ordered the Spanish tortilla which is the traditional dish of layers of potatoes and the goat cheese croquettas. The bartender was charming, the waitresses cool, and the food miniscule. Granted I spent only $7.50 but the food was so small, nothing great, and certainly not worth the money. Unfortunately it was not like the dishes I had in Spain. I will not be back.

A neighborhood bar that made us feel like we were locals. Creative tapas that were soooo delicious that now I actually like Brussels sprouts. And you gotta try the Dealers Choice cocktail - just tell the bartender what booze you like and he'll invent a cocktail for you. My wife & I both asked for bourbon - he made two totally different, completely amazing drinks for us. We ordered two more and he made another pair of different bourbon concoctions.

Ocho has become a must visit whenever I am in Seattle. Once again, great tapas and a good time. The blue cheese stuffed dates wrapped in pancetta were excellent, but we did not have a bad pick. We went with 4 persons and ordered 6 tapas plates, and a carafe of their wonderful sangria. It was a bit noisy this visit, but we had a great time.

Good amount of choices on the menu. Food was great and worth the price. Service was good. Tables are very small so you will run out of space if you have more than two items. They have no parking so give yourself time to drive around.

Really enjoy this place after being there three times. Pretty much everything on the menu is well prepped and although not traditional Espana-style these creative tapas stay true to their roots and delight with new twists on classic like Tortilla Espanola and Croquettes. Great service even with a packed house. One reco: drop by, leave your cell # and head to Balmar for a drink then back for food once they ring you. Enjoy!

Is your cooking in the doldrums? Come to Ocho and get inspired!! Enjoy roasted peppers with melted quezo blanco, sherried mushroom bruschetta, bright crisp salads, wonderfully sauced meat dishes (can't describe them perfectly cause I'm a veg), tarragon potatoes, world famous broccoli, dark chocolate toast - and oh so many more. I got great ideas to brighten up my home cooking. Also a great bar with many unusual concoctions and a good wine list. In the heart of trendy Ballard.

Looking for a lunch spot in the are we stumbled into Ocho. The place is small and cute, yet has a lot of character. I ordered the patatas bravas and the huevos endemoniados. Unfortunately the eggs were not spicy enough for my taste and the patatas should have been served in a bowl, not a plate. The idea is to mix things up... The food was OK, but not memorable. Service was friendly. Too far from my place to visit again.

I wanted to visit this place so badly and we did it for our 15th anniversary. The place is so nice. Atmosphere is cozy, tapas were excellent. We ordered lots of tapas and our sangria. The service was great.

Love it, great food, fun combinations and great prices. Arrive early or be ready to wait a while for a table. The music is often too loud, so don't go if you are looking for a place to do a lot of talking.

Ocho is a nice tapas restaurant in Ballard. Is great in summer because you can eat outside. If you go, you have to order the baguette with burrata. Is amazing!!

So this is what real Mexican food tastes like! Fresh and interesting flavors and great salsa bar. Worth waiting in line for.

My wife and I stopped in for Happy Hour. There is a very limited Happy Hour menu, $2 items, such things as a single (small) mussel. Wow. The wine menu is very limited with very cheap wine selling for $7 to $11 per glass. We had a special salad of arugula and squash, etc. It was almost acceptable. Everything else, smoked mussels, lamb and pork meatballs (2), a strange egg and potato tortilla, were barely edible. Not anything like good tapas bars we've been to prior. We didn't have any hard drinks so can't comment, but generally, I would say stay away.

I have always wanted to eat here but either they were too crowded or I couldn't get to Ballard because of traffic. Last night was perfect. Since they do not take reservations as it is a small place and hard to find, we were able to secure their last table for two. The selection of tapas was fantastic. We had the clams, asparagus, halibut, pancake, white anchovies and more. I thought I was in Basqe country. We drank two glasses of red Spanish wine and the meal for all of that was less tha $90. The only fault is the noise. We put up with it because the food was do tasty.

This was a very pleasant surprise. First time I went with a friend on a Saturday and the place was packed so we had to sit by at the bar but still we were comfortable. The place has a very nice atmosphere, it feels like a neighborhood bar mixed with a real tapas place somewhere in Spain...It's a very inviting place and even the music was excellent! Of all the tapas we had my least favorite was the "Gambas al ajillo" shrimp with garlic, they were ok but not excellent, maybe they could have used a little more flavor/spices. We had "Setas al Jerez" mushrooms with sherry wine, they were amazing, very interesting mix of sweet with garlic and the flavor of the mushroom. We also had "Patatas Bravas" potatoes served with aioli and spicy sauce, they were excellent, the aioli is outstanding and the spicy sauce is very good as well. The "Pan tomat" bread served with tomato and cheese was also good, everything was fresh. On a second visit we had a steak which was small but excellent, fried green tomatoes, they were not my favorite (a little flavorless), and we also had dates stuffed with cheese and wrapped with prosciutto, they had a very interesting flavor combination, the mix of the flavors is very exciting! Service is great, everybody has a very good attitude and you don't have to wait too much for your food. I am planning to go back soon, excellent food and cozy atmosphere!

Went here with our adult son after seeing it on an Anthony Bourdain show. About 20 minutes outside Seattle in Ballard. Small corner place. Full bar. AMAZING food. Just go and enjoy.

Good Spanish food in Seattle. I would venture back here. Funky, eclectic, just a touch of Seattle with your Spanish food. If you are looking for authentic Spanish food, this is not it. But this is good.

This is our go to place in Seattle/ Ballard small place don't plan on more then 4 people. Great small plates with big flavor. Friendly staff and knowledgeable. Great bartender I always do bartenders choice and am never disappointed.

A delightful tapas bar, with a creative menu of seasonal small plates with echoes of traditional Spanish flavor and Arab influences -- familiar favorites such as tortillas with eggs and potatoes, grilled shrimp with garlic and herbs, tasty morsels of grilled bacon-wrapped dates, squash blossoms filled with salmon mousse -- accompanied by a nice selection of cava bruts, wines, and beers. We enjoyed an outside table under a not-too-hot heater on a delightfully cool September evening. The food, service, and ambience were all excellent.

Great little spot. Presentation and taste on the drinks was top notch. Went there for breakfast. Tiny dining space but it creates the atmosphere. Definitely plan on a round two soon.

This is a great place to sit at the bar and snack on all of the small plate specials they have while sampling the cocktails. They make many ingredients in house and have very knowledgeable bar staff.

We love Ocho. But tonight they wouldn't answer the phone and when we arrived they were done cooking 20 mins or more before closing even though we just wanted to take out

Finally - decent tapas in Seattle!

This is a fun, small, noisy spot specializing in tapas. I went with a friend and we shared four dishes: Shrimps with garlic (VERY good, but quite small - just four shrimp and one teeny piece of toast); tortilla (the Spanish kind, not the Mexican kind; it was good but small, kind of like a slice of quiche rather than the disc that I expected); the patatas bravas (delicious and a HUGE portion, with two great sauces to dip them in); and a broccoli dish with pine nuts, also big. (To be fair, the first two were described as small tapas and the second two were "tapas mas grandes," so there was no deception there.) I had a cocktail called Sergio Leone, bourbon and lemon and ginger, very good, and a glass of rosé, also good. Our server was smart and friendly

This restaurant is amazing ! I travel to Seattle about every 7 weeks and it's part of my must do list. Tapas are beyond great - so many options for vegan GF vegetarian etc. Don't plan on a rushed meal everything is cooked to order - today was especially good on Sundays they include extra items for brunch . Enjoy a glass of sangria with your meal .

I felt like I was in Spain! THe food was excellent and it's a very fun atmosphere. Be prepared to wait though, the restaurant is quite small.

This place is cozy and has a great atmosphere for a date or a small group. It's small and a bit crowded and can be hard to get a table at a busy time, but the drinks are all very good. We've been here a few times and have never been disappointed with food or drinks, but sometimes there's a bit of a wait and the service is a little hit or miss. A few of the dishes seem to be overpriced and the portions are small, but all in all it's worth stopping by.

We stopped here for a drink late one night. I had the #1 best drink of my several weeks in Seattle, a San Miguel cocktail made with Gin, St. Germain, Lemon, and Rhubarb bitters.

Small, but packed with awesome food and great service. Not an easy place to park so you may want to use Uber. Everything we had was great.

We were not impressed with this place. It was definitely kind of dirty, and expensive. For $2.50 I expected at least an entire deviled egg, instead of just a half. But then...I guess it turned out to be a good thing that we didn't too much since my husband and I both got sick from the food (and yes, we ate the same things, and experienced the same symptoms at the same time). The bathroom was really gross. We will never go back.

The two times we've been there it has been too early to test the bar, but food is great. (other patrons seem to enjoy the mixed drinks, however, even at noon on a Sunday). Mushrooms in sherry one of finest "crostinis" I've had. Ever! Fried goat cheese balls were creamy and decadent. Everything was worth having again. Service is friendly and attentive, but wonder how it might be on a busy weekend night when folks are jammed in the place.

Looking for a fun and tasty experience in Ballard, try this place out! Poking your head n the door you will find a cozy and eclectic bar full of interesting folks. The list of tapas fills a chalk board on the wall next to the bar and looks like it changes often. We enjoyed two nicely crafted cocktails and three tapas that had us swearing to come back for more! All for $57 including tip, great value!

Excellent tapas here! My sister ordered an amazing dish with a chestnut and pancetta. We also had the spanish tortilla. All very good and nice happy hour for a Friday night.

Nice little bar. Good music. Some tapas very good, some not so authentic... nice late hours.

We stopped into Ocho for dinner on our first evening in Seattle – we were staying in the Ballard area and it was a quick walk from our AirBnB. There was a good selection of regular and special offerings. While it did not rate as well as our favorite tapas restaurant back home, it was good and the service (at the bar) was pretty good as well.

Their Spanish tapas are sublime. They are ok with customers only buying food (you don’t have to be a boozer to savor their small plates) but you must be at least 21.