The 5 Spot serves up regional American cuisine with a menu that changes quarterly.

Chow Foods recreates its winning formula of down-home comfort food in the midst of bustling University Village.

This charming café lives up to its name  there are generous amounts of blue cheese and green onions in the Blue Onion's mac & cheese. If you can sort out these two strong flavors, you'll love it.

Coastal has a fine menu, friendly service and a dining room boisterous enough to handle a rowdy pack of young 'uns — and the food's downright good.

Crave is as good as its word. This small, airy cafe serves up everything from baked beans and curried lamb to shiitake mac 'n' cheese.

eats market café, in the Westwood Village in West Seattle, serves up fabulous baked goods, Bubbie's chicken soup and some of the best pot roast you'll ever encounter.

It's spacious and retro, but you don't feel like you're eating in a theme park, and the food is comfortably in between decent and stellar.

At Geraldine's Counter in Columbia City, expect quality ingredients, careful cooking and friendly service. The diner offers breakfast and lunch, from bacon and eggs to chicken pot pie.

Equal parts American diner and hipster bar, Hattie's is the place to go for comfort food like meatloaf, mashed potatoes, pork chops or a tasty BLT.

The Hi-Life's cozy, brick-lined décor, a kitchen and waitstaff that's well battle tested and its daily brunches make this spot a winner.

The kitchen, under the direction of executive chef Nick Musser, still turns out things like Velveeta-enriched macaroni and cheese, meatloaf and pot pie, a bill of fare described as "aroused Americana."

Luxurious, decadent and ultra-tasty nouvelle Southern delights await you here, and scores of local mac 'n' cheese aficionados hail the Kingfish version as best they've tried.

Pair is a delicious little bistro in Ravenna that offers a small-plates menu and complementary wine list. Try the halibut, herb-scented chicken and a Fontina-dressed pasta that may be the best mac 'n' cheese you've ever sample.

Though the restaurant lacks flourish and even proves difficult to find, it welcomes loyal followers searching for soul, which comes in the form of pan-fried cornbread, chicken and dumplings, macaroni and cheese, braised oxtails and sugary yams.

At breakfast, Volunteer Park Cafe makes French toast with caramelized bananas and vanilla ricotta filling. For dinner, there's cassoulet, bouillabaisse, meatloaf and slow-braised lamb shank, among other comfort-food favorites.

Here, you'll find the classic cocktails and the comfort food your grandparents enjoyed before the age of fad diets and bodily self-loathing. The macaroni and cheese is excellent.

Wild Mountain Cafe serves up an eclectic mix of comfort-food favorites among its oft-changing menu.