Eight Great Octopus Dishes

Pacific Octopus Crudo at Madison Park Conservatory

If you haven't already guessed, we are pretty excited about our self-proclaimed Octopus Day here at Seattlest. However our ranks are divided as to the deliciousness of these intelligent creatures. Lucky for those of us who relish a good octopus dish, a plethora chefs around town side with Team Tasty Octopus, plating up a variety of lovely, tender renditions. We've rounded up our current favorite eight dishes in the city featuring our favorite eight-armed delicacy.

1) Cafe Juanita- James Beard award winner Holly Smith's signature grilled octopus with fennel, green sauce and chickpea puree is a favorite among diners and critics alike.

2) Lola- Tom's Big Breakfast, the hallmark of Lola's brunch menu also known as the octopus hash without a doubt is one of the best breakfast dishes in Seattle. Served with seasonal vegetables on a bed of tangy Greek yogurt, grilled bread topped with a sunnyside egg. Fans and octopus lovers flock for this savory twist on breakfast. Octopus in the morning is certainly a good thing.

3) Madison Park Conservatory- Pacific octopus crudo pays homage to the owners' "Tako Truk" roots with an elevated preparation of their infamous sauteed octopus taco with lemon and yogurt. The crudo is highlighted with preserved lemon and aleppo pepper.

4) Lecosho- Tender charred octopus served with chickpeas, salsa brava and mama lil's vinaigrette is certainly destined to be a staple of the otherwise pork heavy menu. Despite the infancy of the Matt Janke's newest venture, this version of grilled octopus is certainly food we like, just ask Nancy Leson.

5) La Bete- Spotted on La Bete's current menu, the octopus salad with crunch bites of endive and hints of dill was perhaps one of our favorite renditions recently.

6) Harvest Vine- - Galacian style "Pulpo" grilled with pimenton olive oil and chickpea puree perhaps might be the gold standard for octopus in our city. Seattle Met declared whole miniature octopus to be one of the 30 restaurant experiences to have in Seattle before you die.

7) Emmer & Rye- - Keeping with the trend of the charred octopus- Seth Caswell adds fennel, smoked ham and citrus to his creation. Adhering to his locavore roots, Caswell uses seasonal and Northwest ingredients to highlight the sweet succulent octopus.

8) Ethan Stowell Restaurants- While octopus isn't currently spotted on his menus online, it doesn't mean that any of his restaurants on a given day will plate a pitch perfect rendition of octopus. Noted in the Fearless Critic Seattle for the thin sliced octopus with grilled Brussels sprouts and pesto at Anchovies & Olives.

Obviously this is a sampling nowhere near representing the breath of what our culinary forces are creating with the octopus. Noted in the past for exemplary versions are the teams at Joule, Restaurant Zoe and Betty. For the record, we are thrilled to eat octopus in all its forms, be it grilled, braised, sauteed or served sashimi style.