2023 Update: I can’t believe it has been over four years since I wrote this Ascend Prime review shortly after their grand opening. Having been back a handful of times since that initial visit, I feel like everything in my original review holds up to this day. I’ll add that the happy hour is a great way to soak in the views and ambience without the high prices of the full menu. The only drawback is if you arrive with a really big appetite, the happy hour menu items are delectable but more bite sized.
There have also been some losses (Ruth’s Chris) and additions (STK Steakhouse) to the Bellevue steakhouse scene since I wrote the original review. So with the changes I’ll update my Bellevue steakhouse rankings. With this updated list I’m moving Ascend Prime to my #1 spot as the best Bellevue steakhouse. My 2023 top Bellevue steakhouse rankings: 1) Ascend Prime 2) John Howie 3) Daniel’s Broiler 4) STK Steakhouse 5) El Gaucho.
The review:
I love eating out and trying new places. This post is the first restaurant review I’ve written but it won’t be the last so stay tuned for more! Recently for my birthday my husband and I were fortunate enough to try Bellevue’s hottest new restaurant: Ascend Prime Steak & Sushi. We’ve had the opportunity to try most steak houses on the Eastisde and up until this point my favorites in order of most favorite to least were: John Howie Steak, Daniel’s Broiler, Prime Steakhouse, El Gaucho, Ruth’s Chris. I’ll update this list at the end of my review so you can see where Ascend falls in my opinion.
Let’s start off with the view. Ascend really can’t be beat here with the restaurant occupying the entire 31st floor of the Lincoln Square South Tower. This gives spectacular 360 degree views of Downtown Bellevue, Downtown Seattle, Lake Washington, the Cascades, the Olympics, Rainier, etc. Until Ascend opened your best view option was Daniel’s Broiler on the 21st floor of the Bank of America building in Bellevue Place. I can say 10 floors higher makes a difference . The staff is very attentive about playing “musical blinds” as the sun is heading towards the horizon so you always have a good view but you don’t feel like you need to put on sunglasses inside. On the way to our table we were shown the steak and sushi preparation areas plus a a transparent wall showing what looks like hundreds of bottles of wine. You are encouraged to walk around, take in the view, and take pictures.
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Next up was appetizers. Recommended for starting courses was the appetizer, sushi, and raw/crudo selections. Here we opted for a hot dish of pork belly and a delicious selection of nigiri. I’ll note here this restaurant is super expensive so you might want to pay attention to the prices to avoid sticker shock later. Our server recommended the O-toro nigiri which is bluefin belly meat. Most of the nigiri with rice was in the $3-$7 range which is expected. The O-toro was $18 per bite! Fortunately my husband said this was the most amazing fish he had ever had. Salmon and geoduck nigiri were next. These were excellent but this is Seattle so it is certainly possible to find equal or better tasting sushi somewhere like Sushi Kashiba. The hot Kurobuta pork belly appetizer was also delicious. More like melt in your mouth delicious because that is exactly what it did!



Feel free to drop a comment on any hot spots in Seattle or the Eastside that I should try next!
-Jennifer
One thought on “Ascend Prime Review”
This review was EXCELLENT. All of my senses were ignited while reading! I cannot wait to see more reviews from you, lady! ❤️