• HOURS: 4-7 daily (Cap Hill) 4-6 daily (Bellevue), 10-close Fri & Sat
• PRICES: $1 off beer and sakes, $3.75 well drinks, $3.50 sapporo sake bombs
$3-$7 small plates

I have these two “friends” here at Seattle Metropolitan that make fun of me because I like Boom Noodle. They know who they are, they are jerks.

Yes, jerks, I’ve heard how you said eating at Boom Noodle makes you feel a bit like dining in one of those display living room sets at Ikea. Very clever. And yes, I am aware that there are a gazillion amazing Asian restaurants in the ID that don’t have that slight whiff of created-in-a-corporate-office that wafts through Boom. I know these things. I can smell the whiff. But I live on the Hill, and I’m lazy. And ebi katsu is something I have to eat often, if I don’t want my whole universe falling out of alignment. And Boom Noodle fries up some seriously delicious ebi ($4 during happy hour, which lasts from 4-7pm daily on Capitol Hill—it only goes until 6pm at Bellevue location; 10-closing on Friday and Saturday). In fact, I’ve liked everything I’ve ever eaten here. Plus they stock Kung Fu Girl riesling, which is a nice wine for when you’re snacking away on crunchy shrimp treats. And frankly, I think the jade green/bamboo-osh décor is pretty. And it doesn’t remind me of Ikea. It reminds me of Canada. So there.

Also, the Boom (that’s what we regulars call it for short) staff are always nice. Always! And the happy hour is good: $1 off beer and sakes; $3.75 well drinks; $3.50 sapporo sake bombs and snacks that cost between $3-$7. So listen, fellow Boom Noodle likers, there’s no shame in loving the place, even if it isn’t a holeinthewalldivebar. And if one of your snarky coworkers, upon hearing the news that Boom Noodle opened a second location in Bellevue, says: “I bet [your name] is in love with Bellevue now,” ignore them. I mean, what does that even mean? Anyway, more ebi for you.

Another sign that the people at Boom Noodle are awesome: On tax day (April 15), they are offering 15 percent off of your bill all day long (alcohol excluded), and $2.50 Sapporos. Nice. Blue C Sushi is doing the same thing.