Seattle, WA
Happy Food Is Very Quietly One of the CID’s Best New Restaurants
She goes by Chef Ye to her regulars, but her full name is Aifang Ye, the “Ai” being the Chinese character meaning “love.” Love is what Ye and her new restaurant Happy Food exude despite challenging circumstances: Her English is limited and she works mostly alone, operating Happy Food on a corner of the Chinatown-International District that — like many corners of downtown Seattle — struggles with visible signs of poverty and drug use.
Like Tanya Nguyen at nearby Chu Minh Tofu, Ye sometimes helps feed her unhoused neighbors. Volunteers who help with Nguyen’s food giveaways acted as translators so Eater Seattle could interview Ye in Mandarin.
The Happy Food owner hails from Taizhou, a coastal town in Zhejiang Province, about 200 miles south of Shanghai. She first learned cooking from her mother (who she describes as just an average cook), and by age 10 she had mastered the complexity of making zongzi (sticky rice dumplings wrapped with bamboo leaves). She upped her cooking game upon getting married and needing to cook for family, then brought that passion to bidding for the business to run a buffet-style cafeteria in a factory setting serving nearly 200 workers.
In 2019, Ye followed her husband and son to Las Vegas where they easily found construction work, while she became a pui yuet, or confinement nanny — someone who prepares meals and herbal medicines for new mothers, who in the Chinese tradition stay at home to recuperate 30 days after giving birth. She continued that work when she moved with her family to Bellevue in 2021 for a nicer environment with cooler weather. But soon, with desire to be independent and entrepreneurial, she jumped on an affordable opportunity to lease a less-than-desirable spot at the corner of 12th Avenue and Jackson to open Happy Food at the end of 2023.
Save for occasional moments when her husband comes to help, Happy Food is a one-woman show: Ye greets customers with an exuberant smile, beckons them to sit, takes orders, cooks, serves, and cleans — all with little more English than “Thank you very much.”
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Happy Food’s menu is simple and understated (think “potato chips salad” and “braised chicken leg”), making it hard for diners who don’t know Chinese characters to anticipate the dishes and to know what to order. And while Zhejiang cuisine is considered one of the eight traditional cuisines of China, that’s not the restaurant theme. Ye says that her food reflects a variety of dishes she ate in Taizhou, prepared with her own spin.
What diners can count on is that the food is delicious. The stir-fried green beans pack the punch of ya cai (a type of preserved mustard green). Fish filets float in a sauce of fragrant house-made scallion oil that finds people reaching for another portion of the self-service rice. Cabbage comes rustically stir-fried in large pieces, available “plain” or spiked with vinegar. Especially popular with Asian clientele are the braised pork intestines, cut large for extra chewiness and mixed with meaty and tender King oyster mushrooms, cooked to the desired level of spiciness.
There’s more — not all of it on the menu. Ye will enthusiastically show other dishes she can make, many doughy delights like pumpkin mantou and dumplings made with mugwort in the wrappers and zesty pork and vegetables in the filling.
People are still learning about the place, perhaps skeptical of the location, but the regulars happily return. On a recent visit, a table of diners delighted in the food, saying that whether from Taiwan or different parts of China like Hong Kong and Shanghai, they feel at home when eating at Happy Food. The restaurant truly has a home-style vibe, the food reasonably priced and served with a warm smile.
Ye wouldn’t let Eater Seattle take a photo of her. She declined to talk about the homelessness and drug use endemic to the area. What’s most important, Ye says, is that “Anyone can come in and really enjoy the food. Having people enjoy it brings me happiness. I have passion for it.”
SEATTLE – A strong atmospheric river remains over the Pacific Northwest, bringing heavy rain, record level flooding and dangerous conditions. Winds continue through this evening, but will ease into Thursday morning. Landslide risks remain high through the end of the week with very saturated soil.
A strong atmospheric river remains over the Pacific Northwest, bringing heavy rain, record level flooding and dangerous conditions.
A rare Flash Flood Watch is in effect for parts of western Skagit and northwestern Snohomish County through Friday night due to a possible threat of levee or dike failure. Heavy rain is creating extreme flooding forecasts, which could break the current levee or dike structure below Sedro-Woolley. This could cause inundation in areas like Burlington and Mount Vernon, then along to Skagit Bay. This is an alert to “Get Ready,” because if the levees break, they will release a sudden torrent of water.
A rare Flash Flood Watch is in effect for parts of western Skagit and northwestern Snohomish County through Friday night due to a possible threat of levee or dike failure.
Rain totals reached one to over two inches for parts of Western Washington as steady rain fell through this evening.
Rain totals reached one to two inches for parts of Western Washington as steady rain fell through this evening.
Heavy rain will fall through early Thursday, but the atmospheric river will slowly sag southward throughout the day. Showers will still be around Thursday, but will not be as heavy as the past several days. We could also see snowfall at the higher mountain passes and peaks, mainly above Stevens Pass.
Heavy rain will fall through early Thursday, but the atmospheric river will slowly sag southward throughout the day.
Major river flooding is expected to continue through Friday afternoon, and we will continue to watch the latest conditions very closely. Linger showers continue Friday with drier skies by Saturday. A few showers are possible Sunday, with another round of showers into next week.
Major river flooding is expected to continue through Friday afternoon, and we will continue to watch the latest conditions very closely.
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The Source: Information in this story came from FOX 13 Seattle Meteorologists Claire Anderson and Ilona McCauley, and the National Weather Service.
11:23 PM: Beware if you’ll be heading westbound on the West Seattle Bridge any time soon – that two-car crash is right in the middle of the westbound lanes near midspan. No serious injuries reported.
11:56 PM: Not cleared yet; SDOT crews are in place east of the collision scene, to warn traffic to go around it by using the outside westbound lane.
12:35 AM: They’ve just reopened all westbound lanes.
Seattle, WA
Seattle officials probe food safety violations at Indian restaurant after illness outbreak
SEATTLE — An outbreak of gastrointestinal illness linked to Thanksgiving meals from Kanishka Cuisine of India in Seattle has affected 35 people, prompting a public health investigation.
The illnesses, which began between Nov. 28 and Nov. 29, 2025, are associated with the restaurant’s “Fusion Thanksgiving Feast,” prepared for customer pickup or delivery. Although no specific food or drink has been identified as the cause, the symptoms align with those caused by bacterial toxins, which can develop when food is improperly stored at room temperature.
SEE ALSO | Multiple unpermitted Seattle food vendors shut down over health violations
Public Health officials have conducted interviews with 16 affected people to gather information on their symptoms and food consumption. Symptoms reported include diarrhea, stomach pains, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, headache, and body aches. Fortunately, no hospitalizations or deaths have been reported, and no restaurant workers have shown signs of illness.
During a Dec. 2 inspection, several food safety violations were identified at Kanishka Cuisine of India, including inadequate equipment and space for safely preparing the large volume of food required for the feast, improper cooling methods, and failure to maintain safe food temperatures.
Despite educational efforts and a follow-up visit on Dec. 4, the restaurant continued to exhibit unsafe food handling practices, leading to its temporary closure. The establishment is now discarding unsafe food and retraining staff on proper food safety protocols.
Laboratory tests on four people affected by the outbreak returned negative for common gastrointestinal pathogens such as norovirus, Salmonella, and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli. However, these tests do not detect bacteria that produce toxins, such as Bacillus cereus and Clostridium perfringens, which are known to cause rapid-onset foodborne illness.
Public Health advises the public to report any suspected foodborne illnesses and to file complaints about food safety violations.
For those who may have consumed food from Kanishka Cuisine of India and are experiencing symptoms, contact Public Health at 206-296-4774 or toll-free at 1-800-325-6165, ext. 6-4774, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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