Seattle has numerous claims to fame, some good, others not so good. The best and worst of those (depending on spin and not necesarily all true) are The Space Needle, The Experience Music Project, polite citizens, environmental consciousness, gourmet coffee, lush vegetation, beautiful scenery, lots of rain, the World Trade Organization riots, Boeing, Microsoft, Starbucks, grunge music, slacker mentality, roadside wood carvers, the socks with sandals obsession, and Sir-Mix-a-lot, amongst many others. Yet given this plethora of famous and infamous notorioty an outsider might be surprised to learn that Seattle's REAL claim to fame isn't Bill Gates, Paul Allen, or a plethora of microbreweries, but rather, chicken teriyaki. That's right, no matter if you're a latte sucking liberal yuppie, a pony-tail sportin' MMORPG computer programmer, or a blue collar shipper/receiver, whatever you're doing in Seattle unquestionably you've been touched in some way by the teriyaki phenomenon. It's just that damn prevalent!

It's true: travel anywhere in Seattle and you will find at least one teriyaki restaurant per square mile of commercial action. They're EVERYWHERE! Running the gamut from roadside shacks with a handful of items to full-size sit down experiences, in Seattle, everybody knows, Teriyaki is King.

A cross between Japanese, Hawaiian and just about any other type of Asian or Asian/American fare the proprietors feel like cooking, these teriyaki shops are a Seattle-only affair that define the culinary landscape. Some serve sushi as part of their menus, others short rib, many have big noodle soups, while still others stick with plain old chicken teriyaki and chicken katsu and that's about it. But what they all have in common is speedy service, decent prices (anywhere from 5 to 8 bucks), and a penchant for finding their way into every neighborhood in town, socio-economic scales be damned. And despite the haphazard menu, every single teriyaki restaurant you will ever set foot in will have the exact same item listed as #1 on their menu: chicken teriyaki.

Chicken teriyaki is to teriyaki huts as the hamburger is to fast food in general: it defines the experience. Consisting of grilled strips of white meat chicken laid over a bed of rice, drizzled with teriyaki sauce, and accompanied by ranch covered iceberg lettuce this is what Seattleites crave and can find on every other street corner. It may not be glamourous, sophisticated, or even terribly innovative, but it is ours, and as a burgeoning Seattleite in my own right, I couldn't be prouder. As Big Ralphie likes to say,"if you like it, it's good," and damn, do I ever!

So I say to you, dearest teriyaki peddlers, "Long live teriyaki, KING OF SEATTLE!!!"

Publisher''s Note: Can't get enough teriyaki? Check out our brand new teriyaki rankings!!! That's right, over the next year or more we'll be scouring The Emerald City chronicling our teriyaki escapades. Viva el teriyaki!