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1 AAA Destination Guide: Official AAA maps, travel information and top picks AAA Destination Guide: Seattle includes trip-planning information covering AAA recommended attractions and restaurants, exclusive member discounts, maps and more. Seattle is so scenically blessed it’s almost laughable. Just try to picture it: The snowcapped Olympic Mountains frame the western sky, while 14,410-foot Mount Rainier, although some 90 miles from the city, is a majestic presence on the southern horizon. Puget Sound is sculpted with an intricate network of bays and inlets and speckled with islands large and small, resembling nothing so much as polished emeralds flung onto the surface of an intense blue soup. The shore of long, skinny Lake Washington is beautified by an almost continuous series of sylvan parks and greenbelts. And Seattle sits right in the middle of it all. The vistas are, in a word, awesome. If you don’t spend all day gawking at nature’s splendor, myriad activities await. This is a city chock full of distinctive neighborhoods—from hip, socially diverse Capitol Hill to the elegant homes of Queen Anne to salty, Scandinavian-flavored Ballard, a reminder of Seattle’s maritime heritage. So come on. Explore the Pioneer Square Historic District. Visit the attractions at Seattle Center. Watch fish being flung at Pike Place Market. Zip to the top of the Space Needle. Above all, drink plenty of coffee— you’re going to be busy. Essentials Every Seattle sojourn should begin with a stop at Pike Place Market. Take an invigorating morning walk on the paved path around Green Lake, which is popular with legions of strolling, jogging and cycling Seattleites. The fishmongers’ salmon-tossing antics alone are worth a visit, which makes the gorgeous array of produce, delectable baked goods and myriad craft stalls simply icing on the cake. For a crash course in local history, go on the Underground Tour Admire the view from Kerry Park on Queen Anne Hill, which unveils a quintessential Seattle panorama: bristling downtown skyline, Elliott Bay waterfront and Mount Rainier as a backdrop. of the Pioneer Square Historic District. It’s fun and educational, and yes—parts of it are subterranean. Despite its rainy reputation, Seattle does enjoy plenty of summer sunshine. Seafair, While away some time in Fremont, the self-styled “center of the universe.†This eclectic neighborhood of shops and eateries is graced with such delightful examples of public art as “Waiting for the Interurban†and the “Fremont Troll.†held from early July to early August, is the city’s big, exuberant warm-weather festival, complete with hydroplane races, a Blue Angels air show, visiting naval ships, the Miss Seafair pageant and a downtown Torchlight Parade. Hop aboard the Bremerton Ferry and marvel as the boat navigates a spectacular passage through the channel approaching Bremerton. Destination Guide: Seattle 2 Visit the Lake Washington Ship Canal, Essentials Map Get maps and turn-by-turn directions using TripTik Travel Planner on AAA.com used by all types and sizes of vessels to negotiate a chain of freshwater lakes en route to saltwater Puget Sound, and watch salmon and trout swimming upstream to their Cascade Mountains spawning grounds via a fish ladder. Curl up with a good tome at the Elliott Bay Book Company, Seattle’s premier independent bookstore and a local institution. Although it now has a worldwide presence, Starbucks began in Seattle. Indulge in your favorite coffee concoction at Pike Place Market—where the chain’s very first outlet opened in 1971—or downtown at 4th Avenue and Pine Street, a great people-watching spot in the heart of the shopping district. Essentials Details - Get additional information on AAA.com - GEM Attraction offers a Great Experience for Members 1.Pike Place Market 85 Pike St Seattle, WA 98101 Phone: (206) 682-7453 2. Underground Tour 608 1st Ave Seattle, WA 98104 Phone: (206) 682-4646 3. Seafair 911 Pine St Seattle, WA 98101 Phone: (206) 728-0123 4. Bremerton Chamber of Commerce 286 4th St Bremerton, WA 98337 Phone: (360) 479-3579 5.Lake Washington Ship Canal 3015 NW 54th St Seattle, WA 98107 Phone: (206) 783-7059 Seattle in 3 Days Three days is barely enough time to get to know any major destination. But AAA travel editors suggest these activities to make the most of your time in Seattle. Day 1: Morning Spend the morning at Pike Place Market Have breakfast at the Sound View Café (south end of the Main Arcade). Snag a window table, because the view over Elliott Bay to the distant (trust us; you’ll want to spend the day). This venerable market celebrated its centennial in 2007, and it’s quite likely to be around another 100 years from now. It’s the best place in Seattle to meet a friend (the traditional spot is under the market’s neon sign where Rachel the bronze piggybank stands) and then wander around looking, smelling, tasting and buying. Arrive early (before 8 a.m.) so you can banter with the vendors as they set up; if you’re lucky you may get some inside information on hot purchases, not to mention first pick at the flower stalls and produce stands. Destination Guide: Seattle 3 Olympic Mountains is wonderful. The menu is standard—omelets, pancakes, sandwiches, soups, chowders—but you can watch seagulls wheel and ferries cruise the water while you eat. Now you’re ready to explore. Fruits, vegetables and flowers are market mainstays, and the artful arrangements and jewel-like colors of farm- grown Northwest products are a joy to behold. Pike Place vendors are no-nonsense, and their displays are likely to include hand-lettered signs with friendly reminders like “pleeza no squeeza.†The whole fish, spidery- looking crabs and jumbo shrimp at the seafood stands are all glisteningly fresh, and the boisterous antics of the fishmongers—flinging critters while cracking wise—always draw a crowd. Follow your nose to the bakeries and unsuccessfully resist the urge to pick up some gooey-good cinnamon buns, sugar-glazed apple fritters, nutty almond cookies or rich cheesecake brownies to go. Pike Place Bakery (1501 Pike Place) and Three Girls Bakery (1514 Pike Place) are particularly mouthwatering. This market is just chock-full of specialty food vendors. Beecher’s Handmade Cheese (1600 Pike Place) makes a yummy grilled cheese panini with tomato and basil; Uli’s Famous Sausage (1511 Pike Place), a classic bratwurst slathered with mustard. Non-culinary vendors offer aromatic homemade soaps, handcrafted belt buckles, souvenir trinkets and just about everything else. One important tip: Restrooms are down the stairs at the south end of the Main Arcade (look for the sign). Many of the surrounding businesses don’t permit you to use the restroom unless you’re a paying customer. Afternoon If you still can’t tear yourself away from the market (and it’s hard), have lunch here, too. Cafe Campagne From the main market entrance at the corner of Pike Street and 1st Avenue, turn right and walk down 1st Avenue two blocks to the (1600 Post Alley) is the casual downstairs counterpart of the more formal restaurant upstairs. Indulge in a bacon and onion tart or bucherondin de chèvre, the baked cheese and croutons served atop arugula and frisée (free-ZEY) greens dressed in a scallion vinaigrette. Afterward, pick up your favorite beverage to go at Starbucks (1912 Pike Place); this is the global coffee purveyor’s original location. Seattle Art Museum Downtown. TASTE Restaurant (it’s in the museum but also has a separate entrance on 1st Avenue) is a dimly lit, intimate place at night, but in the afternoon it’s a bustling and bright. Stop for carrot cake or a bowl of house-made ice cream and discuss Albert Bierstadt’s 1870 landscape masterpiece “Puget Sound on the Pacific Coast†or the very cool installation “Inopportune: Stage One,†automobiles suspended from the ceiling amid a profusion of multi-channeled light tubes. The 48-foot-tall “Hammering Man,†a black steel sculpture, stands guard outside the entrance, his arm raising and lowering four times a minute. SAM’s galleries exhibit art from every corner of the world, often mixing media, concepts, centuries and artists in the same room. If you don’t feel like walking through the entire collection, the main staircase in the museum’s free visitor area, called the Art Ladder, features three public installations incorporating optical illusions into their design. Continue down 1st Avenue to Madison Street and then walk up three blocks to the Seattle Central Library. The utilitarian name certainly doesn’t allude to its strikingly futuristic look, which gives off the impression of glass wrapped in a very large net. The design by Dutch architect Rem Koolhass is anything but stuffy, from illuminated escalators to fourth-floor hallways painted an exceedingly bright shade of red. Even if you don’t take one of the guided public architectural tours it’s a fascinating place to walk around. There are views of neighboring skyscrapers and Elliott Bay from the reading room on level 10. Walk down Madison back to 1st Avenue, turn left and head toward Pioneer Square. The Pioneer Square Historic District covers a 30-block area. This was Seattle’s first downtown, before an 1889 fire demolished the mostly wooden buildings. Rich with history, for a time decrepit but for the most part charmingly refurbished, it’s a prime tourist destination. Relax on one of the benches in small, tree-shaded Pioneer Park. The Destination Guide: Seattle 4 park’s totem is a replica of one carved by Tlingit Indians in the late 19th century. If it’s a clear day, take the elevator to the top of the Smith Tower Evening Regulars swear by for a view of the city below. This was Seattle’s first skyscraper, although it’s now relatively dwarfed by a number of taller structures. Seattle in 3 Days – Day 1 Map Get maps and turn-by-turn directions using TripTik Travel Planner on AAA.com Il Terrazzo Carmine Day 1 Details - Get additional information on . This Pioneer Square favorite is old-school Italian all the way, from the background music to the decadent dessert tray. The food is reliably delicious and also reliably pricey; if you AAA.com; AAA Diamond Rating information available on AAA.com/Diamonds - GEM Attraction offers a Great Experience for Members - Exclusive AAA member discounts available 1.Pike Place Market 85 Pike St Seattle, WA 98101 Phone: (206) 682-7453 2. Cafe Campagne 1600 Post Alley at Pine St Seattle, WA 98101 Phone: (206) 728-2233 3. Seattle Art Museum Downtown 1300 1st Ave Seattle, WA 98101 Phone: (206) 654-3137 4. Pioneer Square Historic District 118 S. Main St Seattle, WA 98104 5. Smith Tower 506 2nd Ave Seattle, WA 98104 Phone: (206) 622-4004 6. Il Terrazzo Carmine 411 1st Ave S Seattle, WA 98104 Phone: (206) 467-7797 don’t feel like stuffing yourself—or emptying your wallet—order the risotto of the day or caesar salad, which tastes as lovely as it looks. Reservations are advised. If it’s not too late, enjoy a stroll along Pioneer Square’s brick building- lined streets. The nighttime entertainment choices are many, from cozy taverns to comedy to raucous live music joints. Local rock bands play most nights at The Central Saloon (207 1st Ave.), while at the New Orleans Creole Restaurant (114 1st Ave.) the music is blues, jazz and Dixieland. These two venues participate in Joint Cover, which provides entry to several different clubs for one cover charge ($5 Sun.-Thurs., $10 Fri.-Sat.). Destination Guide: Seattle 5 Note: The Pioneer Square area can get pretty rowdy at night, and it also attracts loiterers and the homeless. Enjoy yourself, but stay alert and keep common sense safety precautions in mind Day 2: Morning Grab breakfast at the Pioneer Square branch of the Grand Central Baking Company (214 1st Ave. in the Grand Central Arcade). In warm weather sit on the cobblestone patio and enjoy a freshly made pastry with your espresso; if it’s chilly sit inside by the fireplace. Then take the Underground Tour Browse to your heart’s content at the Elliott Bay Book Co. (101 S. Main St. at 1st Avenue). The books are stocked on cedar shelves in a meandering series of nook-and-cranny rooms. Then take your treasures downstairs to The Elliott Bay Café and have a cup of organic java. The brick walls of yore are cream colored now, and blond wood tables and chairs give the cafe a sunny feel. Sandwiches are terrific; try the Moroccan steak sandwich, stuffed into a pita with mint-flavored yogurt and feta, or a pan bagne—garlicky mashed chickpeas, grilled veggies and goat cheese on semolina bread. and bone up on Pioneer Square history. You’ll learn all kinds of fascinating stuff about opium dens, bootleg operations and Seattle’s once-primitive sewer system on this above- and below-ground jaunt. Schedule some time to explore the International District Fast Metro Transit and Sound Transit bus service takes advantage of the 1.3-mile Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel, which connects the International District with four downtown stations. Sound Transit’s Central Link light-rail service also uses the tunnel. Metro Transit buses and trolleys (electric buses) operate on surface streets; those serving the International District converge at the intersection of 5th Avenue S. and S. Jackson Street. The fare is $1.75 ($2 during peak hours—Mon.-Fri. 6-9 a.m. and 3-6 p.m.). Exact cash fare is required. Bus service is free daily from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. within the Ride Free Area, bounded by Battery Street on the north, 6th Avenue on the east, Jackson Street on the south and the waterfront on the west. (also called Chinatown and known locally as “the IDâ€), which lies east of the Pioneer Square Historic District. A true melting pot of Asian cultures, this area is home to Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Filipino, Korean and Cambodian residents, so even though it continues to gentrify the ID maintains a distinctive identity. Cultural and historical roots were honored with the grand opening of the Historic Chinatown Gate in February 2008. Painted vibrant shades of red and gold, with an orb perched atop the roofline (to keep away bad luck), the 45-foot archway straddles S. King Street at 5th Avenue S. The structure, a symbolic welcoming, is similar to those marking Chinese communities in San Francisco, Portland, Vancouver and Washington, D.C. Uwajimaya, 600 5th Ave. S., is a big Asian grocery store that anchors Uwajimaya Village, a complex of shops and restaurants. The Uwajimaya food court is a great place to have lunch. Golden-brown ducks hang by their necks in roasting ovens and the aroma of curry fills the air. Try banh mi, a Vietnamese sandwich with beef, onions, pickled peppers and cilantro on a crusty baguette. Dip salad rolls—translucent rice paper wrapped around shrimp, veggies and thin noodles—in peanut sauce. Slurp up pho, the traditional Vietnamese noodle soup. Dessert should be a piece of light, sweet strawberry cake from the Yummy House, a local bakery. It’s fast food, but filling, good and inexpensive fast food. Afternoon From the International District head to Capitol Hill, an ethnically and socially diverse neighborhood that lies astride a ridge between downtown’s skyscrapers and Lake Washington. While away some time at Volunteer Park, Seattle’s most elegant greensward. It’s a lovely expanse of old cedars and spruces, manicured lawns, formal gardens and glass- surfaced ponds, surrounded by the mansions of old-money Seattle families. Walk through the park’s Victorian-style, steel and cast-iron Conservatory, filled with a riot of orchids, tropical plants and huge cactuses. Destination Guide: Seattle 6 Seattle in 3 Days – Day 2 Map Get maps and turn-by-turn directions using TripTik Travel Planner on AAA.com The park also contains the Seattle Asian Art Museum, Day 2 Details - Get additional information on downtown SAM’s sister gallery. The exhibits at SAAM focus on Chinese, South Asian and Southeast Asian art. Gaze upon urns, exquisite porcelain bowls, a bronze depiction of Guanyin—a multi-armed, multi-headed female figure considered by followers of Buddhism to be the personification of compassion and kindness—and of course, statues of Buddah himself. Then have a soothing cup of jasmine tea at the museum’s TASTE Café. AAA.com - Exclusive AAA member discounts available 1. Underground Tour 608 1st Ave Seattle, WA 98104 Phone: (206) 682-4646 2. International District 700 5th Ave Seattle, WA 98104 3. Volunteer Park 1400 E. Galer St Seattle, WA 98112 Phone: (206) 684-4743 4. Seattle Asian Art Museum 1400 E. Prospect St Seattle, WA 98112 Phone: (206) 654-3100 Evening The 10 or so blocks of north-south Broadway between E. Pine and E. Roy streets are the heart of Capitol Hill, a haven for alternative culture, the center of Seattle’s gay community and a hangout for punk rock kids. Neon hair, outré clothing, multiple piercings and full-body tattoos are par for the course, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be ostracized for looking, well, boring—anything goes here. Broadway shops cater to youth culture, so if you’re looking for vintage clothing, funky jewelry, unusual art or totally cool stuff like Ethiopian wands or little Mexican calaveras (skeletons) decked out in wacky costumes, you’ve come to the right place. Window shop until you find a place that strikes your fancy. Broadway Market (401 E. Broadway at E. Harrison Street) is the neighborhood “mallâ€â€”a big QFC food store, Hot Topic, Urban Outfitters, Blooms on Broadway and a handful of local businesses under one roof. Destination Guide: Seattle 7 Broadway also is lined with restaurants, so you have plenty of choices for dinner. Siam on Broadway (616 E. Broadway) serves solid renditions of Thai standards, from pad Thai with fried tofu squares to curry beef. You can watch the chefs whip everything together while you wait. Pizza Pagliacci (426 E. Broadway) is casual and lively; you order cafeteria style from the delivery stations (good, freshly made pizza by the slice or by the pie, calzones, pasta and green salads), pay and take your little feast to a table and enjoy. If you just want to chill at a movie afterward the Harvard Exit Theatre, 807 E. Roy St. at Harvard Avenue (north end of Broadway), shows current independent and foreign films. Originally a women’s clubhouse, this was one of Seattle’s first art-house theaters, and it still has a large and elegant lobby complete with grand piano and chandelier. Note: A parking space is usually easier to find on one of the residential side streets a block or so off than along Broadway, but check signs to make sure you’re not parked in a restricted area before leaving your car for the evening. Day 3: Morning Seattle Center, with its museums, park-like grounds and year-round special events, is the best place in the city to take kids. If time is short, just go to the top of the Space Needle; you don’t need a timed ticket and lines usually aren’t that long. The glass-enclosed, walk-around observation deck provides a panoramic view in every direction. The only caveat is the weather; don’t bother if it’s overcast or foggy. Instead, explore the exhibits at the Pacific Science Center. Devoted fans of visionary guitar hero Jimi Hendrix won’t want to miss the exhibit devoted to the Seattle native at the Experience Music Project (EMP). The Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame From the Space Needle, walk down Broad Street to Pier 70 on the waterfront and check out is a must for sci-fi buffs with its collections of movie spaceships, weapons and space wear. A single admission gets you into both museums. Olympic Sculpture Park. Afternoon Seattle and seafood go together like yin and yang, so walk south along the waterfront to Pier 54 and have lunch at The outdoor art installations are interspersed among plantings of trees, shrubs and flowers native to the Pacific Northwest. This is a prime downtown location; the view overlooking Elliott Bay west to the Olympics is inspiring. After tracing the zigzagging pathways and stopping to admire the bold “Father and Son†fountain that stands at the head of Pier 70, pick up an espresso from the cafe inside the PACCAR Pavilion and relax on the veranda. Ivar’s Acres of Clams. Grab your pith helmet and take Aurora Avenue (SR 99) north across the Lake Washington Ship Canal to Woodland Park and the Consult the daily fresh sheet to see what looks good, but you sure can’t go wrong with the Dungeness crab salad, fish and chips or the deservedly popular Puget Sound clam chowder, brimming with clams, potatoes and bits of bacon. If it’s nice outside, order from the Fish Bar walk-up window and sit at one of the picnic tables. Then pop into Ye Olde Curiosity Shop, a waterfront institution also at Pier 54. It’s a quintessential souvenir stop and quasi museum with lots of antiquities, including the requisite shrunken heads. Woodland Park Zoo. The animals live in a variety of themed habitats like the Tropical Rain Forest, home to gorillas, colobus monkeys, jaguars and other jungle denizens. Then spend a relaxing half hour breathing in the fragrance at the gorgeous Woodland Park Rose Garden. An alternate agenda is a jaunt to the Ballard neighborhood (get there by accessing east-west Market Street) and the The roses are at their splendiferous peak from June through August, but due to Seattle’s mild climate they’re still in bloom well into October. Hiram M. Chittenden Locks. Watching vessels of all sizes pass through the navigation locks is fascinating. The Fish Ladder helps salmon swim at a gradual incline to their upstream spawning grounds; you can observe them go by through porthole windows. There’s another garden here, the Carl S. English Jr. Botanical Garden. The trees and shrubs are a mix of exotic and indigenous species, and plantings vary according to the season. On a warm summer day it’s a lovely stroll. Destination Guide: Seattle 8 Seattle in 3 Days – Day 3 Map Get maps and turn-by-turn directions using TripTik Travel Planner on AAA.com Day 3 Details - Get additional information on AAA.com - GEM Attraction offers a Great Experience for Members - Exclusive AAA member discounts available 1. Seattle Center 305 Harrison St Seattle, WA 98109 Phone: (206) 684-7200 2. Space Needle 219 4th Ave N Seattle, WA 98109 Phone: (206) 905-2100 3. Pacific Science Center 200 2nd Ave N Seattle, WA 98109 Phone: (206) 443-2001 4. Experience Music Project (EMP) 325 5th Ave. N. Seattle, WA 98121 Phone: (877) 454-7836 5. Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame 325 5th Ave. N. Seattle, WA 98109 Phone: (206) 770-2702 6.Olympic Sculpture Park 2901 Western Ave. Seattle, WA 98101 Phone: (206) 654-3100 7. Ivar's Acres of Clams 1001 Alaskan Way Seattle, WA 98104 Phone: (206) 624-6852 8. Woodland Park Zoo 5500 Phinney Ave N Seattle, WA 98103 Phone: (206) 548-2599 9. Woodland Park Rose Garden 5500 Phinney Ave N Seattle, WA 98103 Phone: (206) 684-4863 10. Hiram M. Chittenden Locks 4 mi. w. of I-5 exit 169 Seattle, WA 98107 Phone: (206) 783-7059 11. Fish Ladder 4 mi. w. of I-5 exit 169 Seattle, WA 98107 12. Carl S. English Jr. Botanical Garden 3015 NW 54th St Seattle, WA 98107 Phone: (206) 783-7059 13. Ponti Seafood Grill 3014 3rd Ave N Seattle, WA 98109 Phone: (206) 284-3000 Destination Guide: Seattle 9 Evening Fremont is a delightfully idiosyncratic neighborhood that bills itself—with tongue only slightly in cheek—as “the center of the universe.†Locals will tell you that the only correct way to enter Fremont is across the Fremont drawbridge, but if you do you’ll miss the Fremont Troll, a crouching 18- foot-tall statue hiding under the north end of the Aurora Bridge (at N. 36th Street), a block east. Fremont, in fact, is known for its quirky sidewalk art: the six people that constitute “Waiting for the Interurban†and a 16-foot bronze sculpture of communist revolutionary Vladimir Lenin are two well- known examples. Fuel up at Peet’s Coffee & Tea (3401 Fremont Ave. N.) before browsing Fremont’s variety of offbeat shops. Frank and Dunya (3418 Fremont Ave. N.) supports Northwest artists by selling their arts, crafts and jewelry. The Dusty Strings Acoustic Music Shop (3406 Fremont Ave. N.) has an array of dulcimers, mandolins, banjos and other stringed instruments. Collectors favor Sonic Boom Records (3414 Fremont Ave. N.) for really obscure stuff on vinyl, but they also have new releases and used CDs. A Sonic Boom T-shirt makes an in-the-know souvenir. Have dinner at Costas Opa Restaurant (3400 Fremont Ave. N.). Start with a classic Greek salad and then go for a specialty like chicken souvlaki or keftethes (Greek-style meatballs with rice and vegetables). Or if you still have a hankering for seafood, try Ponti Seafood Grill; Restaurants the waterside patios overlook the Fremont Bridge and the ship canal. Grilled marinated calamari is a superb appetizer; follow it up with Washington king salmon or Thai curry penne with scallops and crab. Finish with a ginger peach tart and vanilla ice cream and you’ll feel like you are at the center of the universe. Our favorites include some of this destination’s best restaurants—from fine dining to simple fare. Seattle is a city that definitely has hip foodie credentials, with a number of downtown restaurants that attract loyal regulars as well as visitors up for a good meal in stylish surroundings. A discriminating clientele frequents the Wild Ginger Asian Restaurant & Satay Bar, Carnivores can’t go wrong at the but the good news is that aside from the dress-to-be-seen element, Wild Ginger’s food, an eclectic potpourri of ethnic influences, is excellent. Start with one of the grilled satays—say chicken skewers or lightly grilled sea scallops—served with pickled cucumbers and an aromatic dipping sauce. Duck spiced with cinnamon and star anise is a house specialty, and the kitchen’s skill shows in dishes like wok-fried prawns in a barbecue sauce spiked with garlic, hoisin, peanuts, scallions and dried chilies. The Triple Door lounge beneath the restaurant has a nightly menu of live music. Metropolitan Grill. As good as the Metropolitan for steaks is The dining room’s high ceilings, mahogany tables and dark green, brass-accented booths exude Old World charm, making it a popular after-work destination for downtown suits as well as the theater crowd on big event nights. The “Met†focuses on classic cuts like filet mignon, delmonico and porterhouse, carved tableside. California ranch-raised, Kobe-style Wagyu beef will up the tab considerably, but you can order the less expensive Wagyu burger, a hefty 20 ounces that comes with Gruyère cheese, caramelized onions and a trio of condiments. Accompany your choice with a robust pile of onion rings and one of the wine cellar’s many fine reds. Local “best steakhouse†articles usually have this one on their list. The Brooklyn Seafood, Steak & Oyster House, across from the Seattle Art Museum Downtown. Go all out with steak Oscar—filet mignon, Dungeness crab and asparagus with rich béarnaise sauce, accompanied by a tower of cheddar potatoes and celeraic-fennel gratineé. Oysters are the seafood specialty, with as many as a dozen different varieties to entice adventurous palates. The servers even give you background information about the harvesting of these cold- water mollusks, as well as tips on how to consume them. The king salmon, cooked on an alder plank, is a classic Northwest dish. The Brooklyn also offers crab cakes, Penn Cove mussels, seafood cannelloni and other items as reasonably priced small plates. Destination Guide: Seattle 10 The museum also joins the downtown culinary crowd with its TASTE Restaurant. At lunchtime this is a bustling place full of art lovers, families and business types, with floor-to-ceiling windows bathing the room in light (as well as providing outstanding people-watching). Although it somewhat resembles a high-tech cafeteria, the food here is seriously good. Chef Christopher Conville relies on local, organically grown ingredients whenever possible and the freshness shows, whether it’s a salad niçoise with grilled salmon or spring pea soup flavored with sorrel purée. For dessert have a plate of warm cookies—snickerdoodles and oatmeal chocolate cherry chunk are two of the delightful varieties—that come with a little milk for dunking. If the weather’s nice and you’d rather eat outside, the restaurant makes yummy sandwiches to go, like turkey and havarti with butter lettuce and herbed, oven-dried tomatoes on eight-grain bread. It’s a given that Seattle is a seafood kind of city, and a couple of restaurants on the downtown waterfront fill the maritime bill nicely. Another given? The oyster bar is a big draw at Elliott’s Oyster House, Not far away is another landmark, a noisy, energetic place that sits right on Elliott Bay at Pier 56. But Northwest Dungeness crab is a tradition here, and you can get it steamed with butter, chilled with three dipping sauces or marinated in spices and grilled. Dungeness crab cakes, smoked Alaskan king salmon and sesame-seared ahi tuna can be ordered as small plates. For lunch try grilled Yukon River salmon basted with a bourbon barbecue sauce and topped with fresh tomatillo salsa. The pastry chef whips up delights like Granny Smith apple fritters and white chocolate coconut cake with raspberry sauce. Take advantage of the outside deck in summer. Ivar’s Acres of Clams, Pick a sunny day for lunch or dinner and then snag an outdoor table at which has served the waterfront area since 1938. If you’re having dinner, go for the “acres of clamsâ€â€”two pounds of Manila clams simmered with red potatoes in a garlic and white wine butter sauce. It’s truly finger lickin’ good. But all of Ivar’s seafood satisfies, from grilled salmon with sauteed mustard greens, smoked bacon and cannellini beans to classic fried fish and chips. Their outdoor walk-up service counter does a brisk business in chowders (New England-style clam and Dungeness crab and sweet corn), and there are picnic tables where you can enjoy your soothing cup or bowl with a view. Ray’s Cafe, the casual, convivial upstairs sibling to Ray’s Boathouse in Ballard. Manila clams steamed in beer and dill butter or oysters on the half shell are worthy appetizers. For a main dish you can’t go wrong with grilled Alaskan king salmon or Ray’s bountiful seafood cioppino in a saffron-tomato broth. An open-face roasted vegetable sandwich on grilled hominy bread is savory vegetarian fare. The seafood goes well with one of the 20 microbrews on tap. Share a dessert—perhaps apple crisp with sour cherries and a brown sugar cinnamon oat topping—and linger over the vista of Shilshoe Bay and the distant Olympic Mountains. Now this is good food with a great view. Pioneer Square Historic District is a fun gathering place, and locals in search of classic Italian fare have been coming to Il Terrazzo Carmine As terrific as (at the district’s southern end in the Merrill Place Building) for more than two decades. There’s a reason owner Carmine Smeraldo has such a loyal clientele—dishes like pork tenderloin medallions with prosciutto and glazed parmigiano cheese or fettuccine tossed with pesto and prawns are prepared the old-fashioned way and are full of flavor. You won’t dine cheaply, but you will dine well. In balmy weather the courtyard at the back of the restaurant is a delightful place to linger. Pike Place Market is to shop for your own food, it also has some good restaurants. Cafe Campagne Located literally under the market, (yes, it’s spelled correctly), just above the market in Post Alley, is a little sister to the same-named but more formal dining room upstairs. What with the alley cobblestones outside and the draperied windows inside, this quaint little hideaway does a respectable job of replicating a Parisian cafe. Settle in for a simple bistro-style lunch—say a ham and Gruyère cheese sandwich or quiche and a green salad—and any cares you have will melt away, at least for the afternoon. Il Bistro is considered by Seattleites to be something of a local secret since it’s rather hard to find, at least the
