Be intentional and maintain your new year’s resolutions with the help of these Seattle small businesses.
For those looking to get more exercise, be more environmentally friendly, eat healthier, or spend more time with loved ones, here are some recommendations for small businesses that can help you sustain your new year’s resolutions:
Resolution: Get more physical exercise.
Columbia City Fitness Center #BlackOwned #WomanOwned
Columbia City Fitness Center owners Flozzell and Andrew “Bull” Stewart believe in a holistic approach to wellbeing. With locations in Columbia City and the Central District, the gym works to support physical, mental, and spiritual health through a variety of classes along with personal and small group training.
Bodytonic Pilates #LatinoOwned #WomanOwned
Pilates can be a refreshing alternative to a typical gym workout, and Bodytonic Pilates is the perfect place to start. Established in 2005 by Nadia Rodriguez, the Downtown Seattle pilates studio designs challenging workouts that emphasize blending strength, mobility, and flexibility training. Bodytonic also creates individualized exercise programs as well as provides post-rehabilitation for anyone recovering from injury and needing pain management. With over 30 years of professional experience in the movement field, Nadia and her team have created a positive and encouraging environment that makes exercise fun.
Arcaro Boxing #LGBTQOwned #WomanOwned
Pick up a new hobby, work on yourself, and get some exercise at Arcaro Boxing. Owner Tricia Arcaro Turton has a community-first attitude and describes her boxing gym as a place where people can work on themselves, face the uncomfortable, and go back into the world as better versions of themselves. Arcaro Boxing offers fitness boxing, recreational sparring, youth boxing, and more.
Resolution: Be more environmentally friendly.
The Cura Co. #AsianOwned #WomanOwned
You can decorate your home, find gifts, and update your closet sustainably and ethically at The Cura Co. At the Central District shop, you’ll find fashion, beauty, and home products that are women-made, sustainable, ethical, and beautifully designed. Owner Kiko Eisner-Waters’ ultimate goal is to use commerce as a solution to dismantle systemic exploitation, patriarchy, and colonialism inherent in marketing and consumerism. The Cura Co. is committed to cultivating more socially conscious consumers and connecting people through the origin stories of its merchandise.
Footprint Wine Tap #BlackOwned
The key to maintaining your new year’s resolutions is by taking it one step at a time — why not start with what you drink? Owned by Kenneth Dillon, Footprint Wine Tap is Seattle’s first and only sustainable keg wine on-tap bar. They specialize in biodynamic and organic wines and source their fine wines from the Pacific Northwest. From wine production and transport to the furnishings in their space, Footprint Wine Tap aims to reduce their carbon footprint on all fronts.
Resolution: Eat healthier.
Cafe Flora #LGBTQOwned
Since it opened in 1991, vegetarian restaurant Cafe Flora has been a pioneer of Seattle’s local, organic, and sustainable foods movements. In 2008, then general manager, Nat Stratton-Clarke, took over the restaurant and has maintained its community-oriented spirit ever since.
You can also check out The Flora Bakehouse in Beacon Hill and Floret at the SeaTac Airport for more vegetarian options!
Terra Plata #LGBTQ-owned #WomanOwned
For food that’s good for you and for the planet, be sure to check out Terra Plata where owners Tamara Murphy and Linda Di Lello Morton are passionate about earth-to-plate dining. Inspired by seasonal and locally produced food, the Capitol Hill restaurant focuses on using organic, sustainable ingredients while cultivating relationships with the farmers who grew them.
Ba Bar Green #AsianOwned #WomanOwned
Eating healthier doesn’t mean you have to limit your takeout or dining out options. Eric Banh, Teresa Nguyen, and Chef Chris Michel bring you delicious vegan food through the lens of East Asian cuisine at their walk-up window, Ba Bar Green, located next to Ba Bar South Lake Union. Though all the food is 100% plant based, vegans, vegetarians, and flexitarians alike can enjoy something off their grab-and-go menu — soyrizo bánh mì, miso eggplant, and kabocha and sweet potato laksa are just some of the creative dishes Ba Bar Green has to offer.
Resolution: Spend more time with loved ones.
Off the Rez Cafe #NativeOwned #AsianOwned #WomanOwned
Spend an afternoon perusing the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture with your friends and family, and then pop over to Off the Rez Cafe for some fry bread tacos. In 2019, Mark McConnell and Cecilia Rikard opened Off The Rez Cafe at the Burke Museum, building on the success of Seattle’s first Native food truck, serving delicious traditional Blackfeet fry bread, tacos, and other creations inspired by Mark’s family recipes. Mark grew up eating his mom’s cooking at family gatherings and powwows on the Blackfeet Rez in Browning, Montana. I
Communion #BlackOwned #WomanOwned
There’s no better way to gather with your loved ones than over a shared meal, and Communion is the perfect space to connect. In December 2020, Chef Kristi Brown and her son Damon Bomar opened Communion Restaurant & Bar in the Central District in the historic Liberty Bank Building. You’ll find Southern-inspired dishes with Seattle-area influences on Communion’s menu, like their Fried Catfish Po’Mi (a glorious cross between a fried catfish po’boy and Vietnamese banh mi), Slow Burn black-eyed pea hummus with Ethiopian spices, and BBQ shrimp and grits.
Marination Ma Kai #LGBTQOwned #WomanOwned #AsianOwned
Bring the whole family to Marination Ma Kai in West Seattle for expansive Alki Beach waterfront views on a covered patio. Since 2009, owners Kamala Saxton and Roz Edison have been serving their Hawaiian-Korean fusion cuisine with the motto “Everyday Aloha.” At Marination Ma zAi, enjoy classic Hawaiʻian plates and Pacific Northwest staples with the hospitality, generosity, and aloha spirit you’d find on the islands. Crowd favorites are the kimchi fried rice, tacos, and pork katsu sandwich.
Are your favorite Seattle small businesses helping you maintain your new year’s resolutions? Let us know if we need to add them to Intentionalist!