Compared to Seattle’s other famous buildings, Canlis looks more like a midcentury modern house than a business. But that’s exactly what made it revolutionary: Rather than replicate the “ornate hotel dining rooms” typical of the era, Canlis’s founder hired Roland Terry, a rising star in residential architecture at the time, to design his fine dining establishment. 

In other words, Canlis was built to “feel like a home,” current owner Mark Canlis told Architectural Digest after the restaurant won the James Beard Foundation’s 2019 Design Icon award. And this is one of the homes Canlis feels like. 

Like Canlis, its floor-to-ceiling windows frame an iconic Seattle view. Like Canlis, it emerges like a natural feature from the hill. And, like Canlis, “when you walk into a room, it just feels right,” says listing agent David Pannen. Having been built by Roland Terry in 1948, just two years before he designed the restaurant, the North Capitol Hill residence may have even been “a warm-up project to something bigger,” Pannen says.

An early example of modern architecture in Seattle, the home shattered expectations with its “excitingly different” design, according to a 1948 Seattle Times article. Tucked into the hill to maximize space and “built high to catch [a] lovely vista,” a broad line of sight extends from its show-stealing interior courtyard to the lake and mountains beyond. It’s a quintessential example of Terry’s knack for creating effortless flow between a building and its natural surroundings.

Terry’s trailblazing and distinctly Pacific Northwest take on modern design earned him a spot in the architectural canon over the twentieth century: In addition to Canlis, Terry designed the original Nordstrom flagship and countless residences for local luminaries. Built just two years after Terry formed his first firm alongside his University of Washington classmates, this house predates his fame. 

It's also significantly more affordable than his later projects. One Seattle home from the same era has received thoroughly modern upgrades and a $6.2 million price tag to match. Another recently listed Bellevue residence—complete with a Japanese infinity pool and 86 feet of Lake Washington waterfront—pushed eight figures.

“They're much different homes,” Pannen says. “They're big beasts. And this one is way more manageable.” It’s also closer to the action, a glassy angular anomaly amid North Capitol Hill’s more obviously historic properties.

While many older homes have faced piecemeal renovation over the decades, this one is a true original—the type a particularly clever restorer would revel in. “It’s in a very raw form,” Pannen says, with certain midcentury quirks that haven’t aged as well as others. The layout tends to be closed-off, with small bedrooms and fully separate water closets. Some of the original parquet flooring looks worse for wear. “I think when people see it, they're like, Okay, this is a bigger project,” Pannen says. But that's what these things kind of deserve.”

Listing Fast Facts

1353 E Boston St Seattle, WA 98102
Size: 5 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms (square footage pending appraisal)
List price: $1,700,000
List date: 5/14/2025
Listing agent: David Pannen, Compass Real Estate