📆 Friday, March 21st – Sunday, April 6th
💰 Free to attend
📍 Locations concentrated around The Ave and in the U District
The cherry blossom trees at the University of Washington are now reaching 90 years old, but this year marks only the fourth year since the U District Cherry Blossom Festival has taken over the Ave and other stretches of the U District.
From March 21st to April 6th, coffee shops, restaurants, bars, and other businesses will be rolling out floral window displays and pink, sakura- and cherry-themed specials in honor of the peak bloom season, aka when those cotton-candy colored blooms are in all their ephemeral glory. Throngs of people file their way onto the UW Quad to see it. And while it can be a definite crush, depending on when you go, there’s no arguing that the cherry blossom viewing hails spring in Seattle. This year, peak bloom is projected to be around the third week of March.
Over 80 businesses are participating in the festival this year. Among the specials that caught my eye are sakura charms from Al’s Music & Games, cherry blossom incense from University Psychic, and a Blossom Hunter Fruited Sour from Ladd & Lass Brewing.
You can find the full list here, along with details on how to get them, but below are some more highlights:
🌸 Cherry Sweet Frybread at Off the Rez
🌸 Cherry Blossom Jianbing at Master Bing
🌸 Sakura Shrimp Ramen at Samurai Noodle
🌸 Cherry Blossom Fried Rice at Kai’s Thai Street Food & Bar
🌸 Sakura Berry Matcha Latte or Sakura Cloudy Coffee at Sunright Tea Studio
🌸 Cherry Mango Lassi at Cedars Seattle
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