Donna Moodie has been recognized as one of the most consequential shapers of Seattle’s celebrated restaurant culture – for her innovation, advocacy and community outreach, as well as her pioneering influence as one of the city’s most prominent and successful Black woman small business owners.

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Born in Jamaica and raised in Chicago, Donna moved to Seattle in 1993 and opened her first restaurant, Marco’s Supper Club, in partnership with her then-husband, in 1994. Three years later the pair opened Lush Life a few blocks away, offering regional Italian cuisine in a romantic setting. Together these restaurants created a sensation, bucking tradition, inspiring trends and helping to revitalize the city’s Belltown neighborhood.

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In 2003, Donna transformed Lush Life into Marjorie, marking her first solo venture and named in tribute to her mother’s lifelong inspiration. The restaurant’s growing popularity propelled Marjorie from Belltown to Capitol Hill in 2010, and in 2024 Donna relaunched Marjorie at its current Central District location in Midtown Square. 

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Donna accepted the position of Director of the Capitol Hill EcoDistrict in 2020. When the EcoDistrict migrated to the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle, Moodie left Community Roots Housing (where she also served as Executive Vice President) and joined ULMS as Chief Impact Officer, continuing to serve as the Executive Director of the EcoDistrict.

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Donna is also an avid paddleboarder and proud Mom to her son, Max.

What do you like to listen to pre-service?:

It varies. Usually jazz (classic), classical, some opera, old school R&B, hip hop, rap…starting to sound like the Marjorie playlist? See where I’m going with this one?

Favorite food/hospitality related book?:

I recently read and devoured “Unreasonable Hospitality”. If you took away the over-the-top things they did (and could afford to do), it reminded me of my sense of hospitality.

Local hero:

Rick Simonson - the rock star of the publishing world. A little selfishly, I appreciate that he brings any author he can into Marjorie. What makes it special is he always introduces me as someone who reads, shares simple stories that highlight how authors love to eat at Marjorie, and makes it seem as though I’m the rock star of the restaurant world. That’s the selfish part. The heroism? Rick has a story about everyone. He is well respected by authors far and wide, and many people cozy up to him for help with their first publication. With all that, he’s approachable, kind and supportive. Talking with him is like reading a history book.

I always show up for:

Art, inspiration, my friends and an adventure - preferably to a foreign land.

Classic/favorite Marjorie memory:

Marjorie is a hub - in the sense that gathering around a table can bring people together, I have always wanted to create a restaurant that felt like being invited to my home for a dinner party, where so many details were carefully curated, and somehow, it happened. Connecting people in a place that is warm, nurturing and fun.