Seattle Mag
First Warm Weather of the Year Freakout: It’s Gonna Hit 70! What Will You Do?
Every year, when the first 70 degree day hits, Seattleites go completely bonkers. Swimming, boating and water skiing on Lake Washington, playing beach volleyball on the shores of Alki Beach in skimpy shorts and tank tops, and sunning themselves in patches of ardent green near Green Lake–it’s all about to go down. If you’re new…
Get Atop the Space Needle for Just $1
Just announced on the Space Needle’s Facebook page: Our 50th anniversary is this Saturday, April 21 we’re going retro in more ways than our Galaxy Gold roof. We’re opening the doors early (7:30 a.m.) and offering $1 admission, the original price in ‘62, while supplies last. Tickets will be good for a 1-hr time block….
Le Gourmand Will Put Off Closing
After announcing in February that it would be closing up shop on June 2nd, Ballard’s beloved bastion of fine French-Northwest dining is going to be with us a short while longer. According to an anonymous-yet-reliable source I met in a dark underground garage (ok, that last part isn’t true), the restaurant has been so flooded…
Manhattan Drugs is More Style Than Substance
The power couple of Seattle's nightlife score a rare miss with Capitol Hill's Manhattan Drugs.
With a half-dozen stylish boîtes under their belts—Po Dog, serving luxe hot dogs in the $7 range; Grim’s, a bar; and The Social, a nightclub; along with a Ballard project in the works—it’s clear that Laura Olson and Chris Pardo’s collection of edgy hot spots attract the young and hip like bees to a hive….
Café Parco: Warm and Comforting Italian
Madison Park's new Cafe Parco is like visiting your Italian grandma.
In the tidy, snug dining room where Madison Park Café lived for 30 years, Café Parco now thrives (all those displaced Sostanza fans needed somewhere to go for the saucy Italian food they love). Parco’s chef and owner, Celinda Norton, is a pro; she’s owned eight restaurants, so she knows well the flavors—garlic, butter, meats…
U:Don Noodle Shop
A fresh, brilliant new noodle shop in the U-District.
At chef Tak Kurachi’s bright U:Don noodle shop in the University District, you’ll wind your way through the clean, spare restaurant, grab a tray and order one of the eight udon (Japanese rice noodle) dishes. On a warm day, try the zaru udon, the thick noodles with soy dipping sauce, ginger and scallions. (There’s also…
Naches Heights’ Distinctive Terroir
Dispatches from Washington state's newest wine region.
Wilridge Winery and Vineyard’s 80-acre estate on Naches Heights near Yakima is most likely the only vineyard site in the state—maybe even the world—that shares a border with a popular rock-climbing cliff. “We usually suggest people get their rock climbing in before they visit our tasting room,” jokes Wilridge’s Paul Beveridge, who bought the former…
Don’t Miss Little Water Cantina
Tucked into the ground floor of a nondescript apartment building, it’s easy to miss this gem.
Sotol, Tequila and MezcalLittle Water Cantina’s big wooden bar is hefty and backed by an impressive array of bottles, an instant hint that cocktails take center stage here. The menu proves it, with libations that feature a trinity of Mexican spirits: tequila, mezcal and sotol. A spirit made in Mexico from the desert spoon plant,…
M.I.A Gallery Gives a Voice to International Artists
A new downtown gallery owner is on an artful mission.
Before opening contemporary art space M.I.A Gallery in Seattle last January, Mariane Lenhardt was working with a much older group of artists—ancient artists, in fact: the anonymous creators of Neolithic rock paintings in Somaliland. Lenhardt (who is of Somali descent) was struck by both the beauty of these 5,000-year-old paintings (cows, giraffes, dogs, many wearing…
Dangers Await Upstream for Local Salmon
With damns coming down and the battle over “Frankenfish” heating up, what lies ahead for local salmo
Trolling with a guide off Malcolm Island near the northern end of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, we watch the rod tip, hoping for a strike. It’s 6:30 a.m., and the sky over the Coast Mountains looks like the underbelly of a salmon. The rod tip dips sharply, and I let out the line, trying to…
Seattle’s Biggest Heroes Get Shrunk
Barista action figures and Edgar bobbleheads don’t begin to cover the selection of Seattle icon doll
Action figures seem to be everywhere. On a shelf at home, Sigmund Freud, cigar in hand, is often in a death struggle with his counterpart, C.G. Jung. (My wife is a psychotherapist.) I’m amused at how these playthings get incorporated into my granddaughters’ games when they visit—there’s an absence of Barbies at our place. The…
Spring Hill is Now Ma‘ono Fried Chicken & Whisky
The fried chicken here is such a big deal, you have to pre-order it before your visit.
Long the Monday night special, Spring Hill’s fried chicken has generated a feverish following—and spurred a concept rejigging and a name change: Spring Hill became Ma‘ono in February. Now you’ll reserve a table and your fried chicken dinner (just 30 orders nightly!) at the same time, or opt for the ever-famous burger. On the new…