The Story of Lowell’s

Lowell's began as the flagship location of Manning's Cafeteria inside the newly opened Pike Place Market in 1908. Edward and William Manning created what is essentially Seattle's first coffee empire which spawned dozens of restaurants and coffee shops throughout the west coast. 

From early on, Manning's was a coffee roaster, a peanut roaster, and a cafeteria serving the many shoppers who flocked to Pike Place Market for fresh produce, seafood, and dairy products. 

By the mid-1950s, the Manning family chose to divest a handful of properties—including the Seattle flagship store. Restaurateur Reid Lowell purchased the Pike Place location of Manning's and renamed it Lowell's Restaurant & Bar in 1957. Lowell kept the basic cafeteria-style service model but updated the interior, added the bar component, and leaned into the panoramic waterfront views that were already a unique asset of the multi-level space.

As the years passed, Lowell's became a kind community hub within the market and played a notable role to save the Pike Place Market from demolition in the 1960s. In September 1964, architect Victor Steinbrueck and other preservation advocates hosted a champagne breakfast at Lowell’s to rally support against redevelopment plans that would have replaced much of the market with parking garages and office towers.

Today, Lowell's is thriving after having served the public for well over a century. The space still occupies the original footprint of Market Stall #1519 and continues to offer three levels of seating, a beloved bar, expansive views of Elliott Bay and The Olympic Mountains, and a close-up view of the hustle and bustle of one of the last great American public markets. Join us at Lowell’s!