First Look: Local 360 Mercantile
At Belltown’s new food hall, the restaurant is up and running, but still to come is an artisanal minimarket.
Unlike the oft-compared Melrose Market, Local 360 will not house multiple vendors, nor do the restaurant on First Avenue and the mercantile—once the private dining room of Flying Fish—share an open-air space. Instead, each one has its own entrance; the doorway to the right of the window here is on Bell Street. “We wanted to expose as much of the original as possible,” says Charles of the building hailing from the early twentieth century.
View Slideshow » Illustration:A wall separates the entry pictured before and the baker’s quarters, supplied with a hefty mixer straight out of Nana’s kitchen. And yes, these cookies did smell divine.
View Slideshow » Illustration:The mercantile’s butcher will also tend to the needs of the restaurant. Pictured here is Ben Frey. (Check out that tat!)
The idea is not to fill the role of full-on grocer, rather a one-stop-shop for an evening’s worth of noshing, says Charles. One example: ready-to-go BBQ kits in summer.
View Slideshow » Illustration:Lining the walls will be a variety of Local 360–branded products produced in house, such as pickles, dressings, and condiments, like ketchup and mayo, and old-timey tchotchkes and antiques.
View Slideshow » Illustration:“The possibilities with the mercantile are endless,” noted flack Kerri Harrop, hinting at bake-at-home meals and restaurant-prepared to-go items. Harrop guesses the mercantile will start carrying these goods come spring. Harrop and Charles envision produce lining the beds behind her, and mentioned sourcing from Full Circle Farms.
View Slideshow » Illustration:In addition to butchered meats, look for cheeses sourced from creameries such as Golden Glen and Samish Bay.
View Slideshow » Illustration:A hang-all-day type of place, the restaurant portion of Local 360 is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and on weekends, for brunch and late-night until 1am. Charles, a Belltown believer involved with the bar JuJu and the Crocodile, thinks this drop-in-whenever atmosphere could help invigorate the neighborhood.
View Slideshow » Illustration:Chef Mikey Robertshaw, a Boston transplant who has lived in Seattle for about seven years, says Harrop. His resume includes stints at several Seattle notables including Union, Restaurant Zoe, and La Bete.
View Slideshow » Illustration:If you stop in for coffee, order a PB&J bonbon to go with it. “People are going nuts over those,” Harrop said.
View Slideshow » Illustration:Since debuting early in the new year, Local 360, the ambitious multiscoped venture situated on First and Bell, has steadily rolled out a menu heavy on comfort food and even heavier on sustainability: ninety percent of raw ingredients are sourced within 360 miles of Seattle.
A lofty restaurant anchoring the front of the house encourages all-day lazing, while a backroom mercantile, set to open in late February or early March, will cater to a grab-and-go clientele. Managing partner Marcus Charles likens the space to an “oversized pantry” where shoppers will find wine and beer, dry goods, fresh produce, and cheeses, plus a full-time butcher.
To learn what the 360 folks have in store and to peep the mercantile, click through the slideshow.
Tags: New Seattle Restaurants, Seattle Restaurant Openings, Belltown, Pantries and Mercantiles



So glad you covered this. I’m really looking forward to having this place be opened!
Great photos!
Love the photos! love the vibe at 360 – it’s cool to see how they’ve taken the old Flying Fish space and totally reinvented it. go Kerri and team!