New Restaurants in Ballard Fall 2026: What's Open and Coming

Koshari started out serving at local markets. In September 2024 it moved into a counter inside Salt & Sugar on 24th Avenue NW. This August it gave up that counter with nowhere lined up to go next. In September, owners Ayman Almasri and Amani Abouammo announced they were taking over 5604 17th Ave NW. My Ballard reported that the space will give the Egyptian and Lebanese eatery its own kitchen, dining room and storefront, and room to stay open longer.

That corner has changed hands a lot. Crooked Nail Pub closed there in 2018. The Corner Spot lasted three years, Little Prague Bakery about two, and Kahlo & Loyal five months in 2025. Koshari's owners told their followers they "had our eyes—and our hearts—set on one very particular spot," according to the same My Ballard story. They started a GoFundMe with a $30,000 goal to pay for permits, kitchen equipment, plumbing, electrical work and signage. As of September 21 it had raised $5,490, and no opening date had been set.

Koshari is the clearest example of something happening across Ballard this fall. Most of the storefronts that came open over the past year are going to small operators who were already working out of a smaller setup. A shared counter, a catering kitchen, half a storefront or a cramped bakery each held back what these businesses could make, and each new room lets them make more.

Who Moved Into Ballard's Vacant Storefronts This Fall

This is the status of each changeover as of the second week of October 2026.

Two of those rows used to be Starbucks. The Market Street cafe at 22nd Avenue NW closed in September 2025 during one round of the chain's closures. The Leary Way store closed this fall during the next round, which covers 250 stores nationally and three in Seattle. It had opened only in February. My Ballard noted that the Leary site was a Jack in the Box and a 7-Eleven until a 2023 fire collapsed the roof. Nobody has announced plans for that space.

A Bakery Moves In Because It Wants to Bake Bread

Petit Pierre Bakery already has shops in Magnolia and on Phinney Ridge. Its plans for the old Market Street Starbucks are mostly about room. "We were looking for a larger space," co-owner Joanna Chau told My Ballard. "We wanted to expand and do breads."

Chau said the Ballard shop is expected to bake sourdough loaves, baguettes and other breads that the current locations have no space to produce. It will also sell the usual pastries, desserts and lunch items, and the owners are considering longer hours. She told My Ballard that customers have been asking about Ballard for a while: "After Besalu closed, there weren't as many options for French pastries."

The bakery is aiming for early 2027. That date is a plan from the early stages, so it could still move.

A Catering Business Opens Its First Restaurant

Cairo opened at 5 p.m. on Saturday, October 3, at 5465 Leary Ave NW. It is the first restaurant from Om Eldonia, an Egyptian catering business that already served the Seattle area. My Ballard's opening report describes a menu that goes well past a catering tray. Hawawshi is flatbread or pita stuffed with spiced minced meat. Feteer is a layered pastry that the restaurant bakes in a baladi oven. Molokhia is a green stew made from molokhia leaves, garlic and coriander.

The oven is what the new space adds. Catering can cover koshari, macaroni béchamel, grilled kofta and stuffed grape leaves. Feteer pulled straight from a baladi oven needs a dining room.

With Koshari headed for 17th Avenue, Ballard will have two separate businesses cooking Egyptian food within a few blocks of each other.

A Wine Shop Takes the Store Next Door

September, a clothing store at 5410 22nd Ave NW, closed on July 30 after ten years. Owner Gillian Palmer also co-owns Petite Wine + Bottle Shop with Nick Bentley, and the plan was for Petite to expand into the empty store. By October 8, The Infatuation was listing the bigger Petite with tables and chairs. The owners have described the plan as a full-service wine bar.

That makes three businesses that needed a bigger room to change what they offer. Petite went from a bottle shop to a wine bar, Petit Pierre is adding bread to pastry, and Cairo went from catering to a sit-down restaurant.

The Same Move From Outside Ballard

Some of the operators coming in already run a business somewhere else in the region.

• Sam Yan took over the former Nua Thai at 5410 17th Ave NW. Owner Tippawan Wongkaew co-founded Sabaijai Thai in Everett. In September, Seattle Met reported that the space was registered under the new name. The restaurant's website now lists Thai noodles, crispy pork, curries and street-food classics, and it takes pickup orders. No opening date or regular hours had been published.
• Yoka Tea is building a second location at 5335 Ballard Ave NW. Its first is in Madrona, where co-owners Marcellus Beza and Amy Park run a specialty cafe with Korean and Filipino influences. As of October 7, renovation was still going and no opening date had been set.
• Country Roads is the Market Street bar going into the former Shingletown Saloon. It comes from Bradley Howe, who owns Kangaroo & Kiwi, and plans line dancing, live music and bar snacks. In July My Ballard reported it was expected to open in October. The bar's own site still says "Opening Fall 2026," and no opening had been announced as of this writing.

The Openings Since July That Started From Scratch

Not every opening since July came from a smaller setup or replaced an earlier tenant. Of the ones below, GoodMart is the largest.

Chef Victor Steinbrueck opened GoodMart, a seafood market, deli and 40-seat cafe at 5130 Ballard Ave NW, on Thursday, September 24, according to KIRO 7. The Seattle Times said it would have an oyster bar and serve lunch and dinner. On October 3, Secret Seattle reported that GoodMart was in a soft opening, serving Thursday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The menu has fish trays with salad, rice and pickles in several versions, including grilled sockeye, lingcod katsu, steamed rockfish and smoked black cod. It also has spicy salmon tartare on crispy rice, poke bowls and smoked salmon dip. Those hours were for the soft opening and may change.

Three other openings, two from the summer and one from this month, round out the list:

1. The Crown opened August 12 at 8000 15th Ave NW. Co-owners Bob and Christine Hougland pour craft beer, wine and liquor from about a dozen taps and serve hot sandwiches and pub food.
2. Barn Owl Vintage A to Z opened July 10 at 5209 Ballard Ave NW, bringing owner Josh Dand's vintage shop back to Ballard. It focuses on Filson and other workwear and has added vintage outdoor gear and pieces from Seattle's workwear history.
3. We Fix Old Stuff is a repair workshop at 4818 14th Ave NW, founded by Ashley Zaworska and David Nebert. It was scheduled to open October 2 and restores lamps and other household objects. Its website lists hours for the Ballard shop.

GoodMart and Barn Owl both sit on Ballard Avenue, and the street's summer openings came up in our earlier post on Ballard Avenue's worst corner.

What to Check Before You Go

Several of these businesses are still in soft openings or haven't opened yet, so a few details are likely to change in the coming weeks. GoodMart's Thursday-to-Sunday lunch hours were reported for its soft opening. Sam Yan is taking orders but hasn't published regular hours. Country Roads, Yoka Tea and Koshari had no confirmed opening dates as of October 11. Petit Pierre is planning for early 2027.

Cairo opened on a set date and posted a menu. It is the one new restaurant on this list where you can plan dinner today and know what you'll be ordering.

Samie Bryan keeps track of these changes across Ballard. If you're thinking about how what's opening near your street fits into a decision about your home, Let's Connect.