Comments on: The "little gems" of Seattle.

Question: The "little gems" of Seattle.

bamassippi — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 21:20:00 -0800

The "little gems" of Seattle.

So I've been in Seattle 6 amazing months now (seriously, thanks for helping me make the right decision) but I'm still slowly finding out about the places that everybody seems to know about but me. Places like Scarecrow Video or Cupcake Royale.

What are some places of interest that I might be overlooking? Food, shopping, etc, etc, etc.

By: j.edwards

j.edwards — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 21:36:37 -0800

A few of my favorite spots:
The Stumbling Monk for Belgian ales
Bauhaus for coffee
Maximilien for an expensive French restaurant (but check out that Happy Hour)
The 25 for 25 is going on right now (25 restaurants with a $25 prix fixe -- go to Campagne while it's cheap)
I'm a bit of a film buff, and that time is spent mostly at The Northwest Film Forum, the Grand Illusion, and the Central Cinema ($5 movies! Cheap pizza and beer on Wed/Thu/Sun!).
Also check out the Big Picture cinema/bar.

By: Steven C. Den Beste

Steven C. Den Beste — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 21:37:45 -0800

Archie McPhee!!! The tackiest store on the planet!!! Well worth a Saturday afternoon, and you'll go back.

By: toxic

toxic — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 21:43:52 -0800

I have a pinball addiction. Every town I visit or live in, I manage to find at least one place to play decently maintained vintage machines, preferably with a cheap beer in my hand.

Naturally, I love Shorty's in Belltown.

By: ilsa

ilsa — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 21:50:31 -0800

Like Asian stuff? Asian supermarket superstores come in 3 flavors: China-centric (99 Ranch); Japan-centric (Uwajimaya); and Korea-centric (Pal-Do World). Housewares are available at each, although I like the little Japanese place next to 99 Ranch. You should also really check out Daiso, a 99 Yen shop in Alderwood Mall next to Sears.

I assume you've visited Fremont and Pike Place Market? Ballard?

By: Good Brain

Good Brain — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 21:53:16 -0800

The Ballard Locks

By: DawnSimulator

DawnSimulator — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 21:59:29 -0800

$1 Somalian chai at Dur Dur (on Cherry, just west of 23rd, north side of the street).

By: |n$eCur3

|n$eCur3 — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 22:13:16 -0800

I just moved here too. Email is in the profile if you would want to try one or more of these gems with a random guy you met on the internets.

By: xiojason

xiojason — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 22:21:29 -0800

Daiso also just opened a store in Westlake Mall downtown.

By: Ryvar

Ryvar — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 22:24:22 -0800

Dunno what it's like today, but 3-4 years ago when I was in Seattle the Bamboo Garden served excellent all-vegetarian Chinese dishes. It is the ONLY time I have had fake meat (particularly chicken, in this case) that was nearly indistinguishable from the real thing.

Worth checking out, and if you've got a vegetarian/vegan friend it is an absolute must.

By: jclovebrew

jclovebrew — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 22:30:25 -0800

Bottleworks is worth a mention.

By: xil

xil — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 22:33:16 -0800

The Friends of the Library used book sale is one of those things that's ridiculously popular that you could easily miss. Definitely worth going once just to gawk at a hangar full of people pawing through books, all going for cheap cheap cheap.

By: palmcorder_yajna

palmcorder_yajna — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 23:13:41 -0800

Food:

Top Pot Donuts
Tamarind Tree
Portage Bay Cafe

Arts:
Degenerate Art Ensemble
Clarion West readings
Seattle International Film Festival (A gem, but by no means small)
Live Girls Theater
Kultur Shock
The Bad Things
The Moisture Festival

Shopping:
Le Frock (Especially for guys)
DiLaurenti's

And second everything J.Edwards said.

By: palmcorder_yajna

palmcorder_yajna — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 23:14:13 -0800

(Sorry about all the extra space.)

By: ottereroticist

ottereroticist — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 23:28:46 -0800

Ravenna Ravine!

By: Steven C. Den Beste

Steven C. Den Beste — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 23:32:30 -0800

If you like shellfish (I don't), I'm told that the thing to do in season is to go down to the waterfront. There are little stands there which will sell you a cardboard bucket full of freshly steamed butter clams that I'm told are superb. (I guess, if you like that kind of thing.)

Apparently it's a local variety not really found anywhere else.

By: dw

dw — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 23:37:12 -0800

Lots of good suggestions.

I like taking a wander through Dusty Strings to admire the instruments I can't afford.

No mention of chocolate? Fran's? Theo? Dilettante? A bunch more I'm forgetting? Seriously, when Dilettante is considered "average," there's a lot of good chocolate to be had.

This town is lacking for good BBQ, but OK Corral in Greenwood is pretty good.

By: vito90

vito90 — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 00:11:07 -0800

I love an afternoon pint at the Virginia Inn, great people watching. Lighthouse Roasters in Fremont does brilliant coffee. Red Mill Burgers in Magnolia and Phinney Ridge for burgers. Ebbet's Field Flannels on Occidental for Old Timey Baseball. Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park for used and bargain coffee table books. The Gob Shoppe in Ballard for your paraphanelia needs. Schultzy's in the U-District for sausage. Maritime Pacific Brewery (and Jolly Roger Taproom) for lunch deals with good beer.

Time for a meetup, eh?

By: Good Brain

Good Brain — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 00:22:34 -0800

I'm trying to think of things I can recommend without disadvantaging myself with even longer lines at my favorite places:
Baguette Box in Fremont and Capitol Hill, good, unusual sandwiches and fantastic french fries, especially when you pay extra for truffle oil.
University Farmer's Market
Carkeek and Discovery Park. The shore at Golden Gardens.

By: Clay201

Clay201 — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 00:51:50 -0800

I live in Alabama and have never been west of El Paso, but I'll be in the Seattle area in a few months to see some friends. I expect to spend some time at The Wet Spot, which advertises itself as "The Seattle Sex Positive Community Center." It is, I'm told, a central meeting point for bdsm people, the transgendered, and others who find themselves outside the sexual mainstream. Perhaps not your cup of tea, but I thought I'd mention it.

By: BlackLeotardFront

BlackLeotardFront — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 01:24:39 -0800

I hang out on Capitol Hill mostly, and when I do I'm usually at Bauhaus, Caffe Vita, or JoeBar.
Good bars around there are 611 Supreme, the Hideout, and Linda's when it's not packed.

Out in the U District, Magus is a great bookstore and the cafe next to it is nice too. Half Price Books, Ave or Hill is excellent.

Out in Ballard the People's Pub is nice and the Sunset often has cool shows, keep an eye on their listings (along with Neumo's and the Showbox).

I don't know much about anywhere else, but I can say that the best Pho in Seattle is at Pho So 1 at 12th and Jackson. That's a personal guarantee (if you love msg like me). Good teriyaki is Teriyaki Madness on 15th or Teriyaki Bowl on Madison. Via Tribunali is supposed to have incredible pizza, but despite going there all the time I've never had it (go early or call ahead, it's mad usually at dinner time). I'm no connoiseur, but I like the Indian food at Chutney's. Olympia Pizza across the street is fantastic too. For Thai, Sabai Sabai by Greenlake is excellent, but it's pretty good other places too.

It's fun to go on the Marsh Trail (by the Museum of History and Industry) or walk in the Arboretum (just park and start walking). Greenlake is great to go around when it's nice out. Course since it's winter ATM I usually just get some coffee somewhere and read :).

By: scalefree

scalefree — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 02:47:05 -0800

I was going to say Coffee Messiah but it looks like they've closed so I'll have to find something else. How about clubs? There's Contour, Aristocrat's, Bad Juju & the Baltic Room & even Vogue if you're into that sort of thing. My favorite was always Contour, which stayed open after hours & if you had enough energy you could actually witness them reopening the bar at 8AM.

By: Rubber Soul

Rubber Soul — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 07:12:08 -0800

Red Mill Burgers is great. And when Spring really settles in, don't forget to check out the Arboretum! It's free (except the Japanese Garden) and the rhodies and azaleas and other spring blooms are stunning.

By: Schismatic

Schismatic — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 07:31:16 -0800

If you like small, loud places filled with vigorous cooking, try Thai Tom. It's awful for a group, but go alone and you'll wind up at the counter and can watch all some delicious Thai food get made at a dizzying rate.

Also, there may not be much to do once you get there, but check out the Wedgewood erratic. It's just a big rock, but it's the best big rock in the city.

By: ASM

ASM — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 08:10:52 -0800

I've been to the Comedy Underground once or twice, it's worth a look.

For sushi check out Rain in Wallingford.

I noticed that you're a photographer. You may want to check out Snoqualmie Falls on the East Side.

Don't forget to check out Beth's Cafe on 99 - famous for their 12 egg omelet. It's a great dive and open late.

Not sure if you've had a chance to explore Ballard but there's tons out there. Make sure you grab a sandwich at the Other Coast Cafe, among other places. While we're talking about Ballard, The Matador (also in Tacoma and West Seattle) has an amazing happy hour from 10PM to midnight.

If you're looking for amazing cocktails (the martinis kick ass), good food and great service check out the Zig Zag Cafe behind Pike's Place. The owner was named best bartender in Washington not long ago.

By: ASM

ASM — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 08:12:13 -0800

Woops, the Matador's happy hour is from 10PM to 1AM, not midnight.

By: The corpse in the library

The corpse in the library — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 09:11:07 -0800

The sandwiches at Grinder's are ohmygodfantastic. My ten-month-old baby demands their meatballs, and I'm craving the shrimp po' boy as I write this. Yeah, it's Shoreline, not Seattle, but it's not that bad up here in the Puget Sound Convergence Zone...

By: sevenless

sevenless — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 11:39:59 -0800

Cupcake Royale? What is with people and that place? The few cupcakes I've had there have been dry and gross.

I'll second OK Corral for bbq, though as others have said, eating in is like visiting a David Lynch movie. Smokin' Pete's in Ballard is pretty good. And, there's a new place on Stone Way and about 39th--Rowdy Cowgirl. It's also not bad, but they put hard boiled eggs in the potato salad (blasphemy.) A friend of mine swears by the Frontier Room in Belltown, but I've never been.

Also you don't have to go to Shoreline. There's the Other Coast Cafe as has been suggested in Ballard and the Brooklyn Grinder (no relation I think) in the U-district. (It's on University Way now. They had to move from Brooklyn Ave.) It's approximately due east of Scarecrow Video.

Since there are so many other Ballard suggestions. I'd check out the Sunday Market (on Ballard Ave.) It's mostly farmers and is better than the Fremont one I think, but that one's not bad either. Also the U-District farmer's market on Saturdays is really good.

By: Prawn

Prawn — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 11:57:06 -0800

The Center for Wooden Boats on Lake Union. Of course Lake Union itself is a gem, though not so little.

By: Skwirl

Skwirl — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 11:59:49 -0800

Maekawa Bar and Pink Godzilla are carefully tucked away in an unassuming building. Farestart is a good place to eat a yummy lunch and feel good about it. The Seattle Museum of the Mysteries is a fun find if you can manage to keep a straight face in light of the earnest staff. Boeing Surplus has a geek following, but Re-PC was pretty awesome and has a free makeshift computer museum. Vashon Island might make a good daytrip and their earth day is coming up, which is hippy-a-rific!

Also, Twice Sold Tales is full of books and kitties. Awesome.

By: timelord

timelord — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 12:13:01 -0800

Maybe this is too obvious, but if you haven't been already, Salumi is definitely worth a visit. During the lunch rush there's a crazy-long line out the door, but at other times you won't have to wait so long.

Theo, has already been mentioned. They actually make their own chocolate and they do daily tours for $5 (well worth it, check their site for hours).

I'm a fan of Frites by Neumo's. They do belgian-style frites and make a variety of sauces. It's great for late-night food, but you could almost make a meal out of the medium.

By: macinchik

macinchik — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 12:21:42 -0800

A not so little gem if you're into antiques: Seattle Pacific Galleries.

Not just auctions: an enormous, factory-sized building crammed to the gills with *stuff,* open regular hours throughout the week. If you don't want to dispute prices, the people who tend the floor can sell you things from any booth immediately. Bliss!

By: timelord

timelord — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 12:22:32 -0800

To be clear, Frites is adjacent to Neumo's. I don't think they're actually owned by the same people.

If you're lucky, someday they might decide to screen 2001 again in the Cinerama. It's a cool theater anyways, wikipedia has more.

By: evilangela

evilangela — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 13:31:11 -0800

A minor update to scalefree's comment... the Vogue closed as of New Year's, and has now been replaced by Blacklight at the Capitol Hill Arts Center...

And I'm a huge fan of Cedar's on Brooklyn for Indian food - the bottomless chai is wonderful, and I and up consuming enough every time that I'm extremely wired when I leave from all the caffeine.

By: Danelope

Danelope — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 22:22:53 -0800

Queen Sheba, an Ethiopian restaurant on Capitol Hill introduced to me by MetaFilter's Own mwhybark. Freaking. Awesome.