A Seattle restaurant most out of towners miss… Betty Restaurant and Bar has not only a unpretentious posh, comfortable interior… but also dominates with the menu, the chef, the service, all OF that… Betty does have the quiet, simple feeling that you might expect from a neighborhood restaurant… and that’s a good thing, especially when the neighborhood is swanky Upper Queen Anne (well, swanky by Seattle standards).

Oh how could I forget… they have happy hour (kinda quiet) from 5pm – 6:30pm everyday. Keep it up Betty!

Some advice .. you can sit at one of the tables in the dining room…. or sit at the kitchen bar (but don’t sit directly in front of the cook… too hot) OR walk all the way back where a few tables are hidden near the bar.  I’ll be at the bar.
Upper Queen Anne Avenue… Queen Anne Ave & Galer Street (metro bus #2 or #13 from 3rd & pike). EASY not even a mile or maybe 1.5 miles from DT.

Popularity: 10% [?]

If you’ve come to our city to spend in exce$$ and contribute heavily to our local economy.. we thank you. Read below for what you should focus on. Oh – a word of advice to the financially substantial: leave the stretch limos and Hummers for LA or Las Vegas. This city is a town car/ cab / bus / light rail kind of town. If I see you running around in a stretch Hummer, well lets just not let that happen. Look for my post under transportation for an excellent town car service to get you around.

Fairmont Olympic Hotel. Old school delux lovely. High Tea. If you prefer your sleep to happen within close proximity to Gucci, Louis Vuitton and your other precious Couture… this is the place for you. Ladies, well shall I say moneyed ladies, you’ll want to check out Jeri Rice and Luly Yang immediately after dropping off your bags.

The brand new Four Seasons Hotel @ the Pike Place Market – forget the Ritz Carlton – the Four Seasons brand is THE leader in luxury (and we got one!). The infinity pool looking over the Puget Sound is saWeeet! If you venture outside this comfy bubble of prosperity, cross 1st Avenue on Union to the SAM (Seattle Art Museum) and one of my favorite restaurants, UNION. 1st & Union, get it? The Pike Place Market is steps away as well as the Seattle waterfront – which you can reach by using the hotel’s matching stairs. Toodles!

The Sorrento Hotel. Charming, distanced just far enough from downtown and with a boutique feel (even though their website is cheese). Downtown adjacent I like to call it. This is the place for people who know how to spend their money smart and like a little grit with their lux. Let the new and old money lay their coifed heads downtown…… this place is our happy little secret.

Popularity: 22% [?]

Downtown Seattle has no shortage of Starbucks Coffee, Seattle’s Best, Tully’s, etc etc… so if that’s what you’re looking for, well, they’re around every corner so no problem there.

I’ve got a list of a few local coffee shops in the downtown & belltown area.  None are hard to find – just plug the name into your google maps and you’ll be there in minutes.

Downtown:
Caffe Ladro * 1st & Union, near SAM AND Pine & 8th, in the strange round apartment building near the Paramount Theatre.

Caffe D’arte * 2nd Avenue & Pine – THIS is serious coffee, Italian traditional – the real thing.

Dilettante Coffee * in Westlake Mall, Pine & 4th – sweet mochas… there’s also one at SeaTac Airport

Cafe Campagne * this is the ultimate charming market experience.. quaint, great coffee, great food, cozy and French! Sit at the bar and read the paper, or sit on the patio and people watch. I go in all the time and just order coffee… looks expensive but it’s not! Located in Pike Place Market.

Belltown:
Dahlia Bakery * 4th Avenue & Virginia – hard core bakers working here..

Top Pot Doughnuts * 5th Avenue & Blanchard – right behind the Cinerama…. plenty of seating inside and out… and there’s donuts!

Uptown Espresso * 4th Ave & Wall – there’s one on Lower Queen Anne too.

Popularity: 10% [?]

Quick! Get the hell outta downtown (approx a mile or two) and experience my favorite Seattle neighborhood, Queen Anne. On the cheap – bus it: from the 3rd & Pike bus stop, grab the #2, #13, #3 or #4 and just ignore the smelly locals and confused tourist headed to the Seattle Center (which you’ll pass by… wave!). You – stay on the bus and keep going up the hill and get off somewhere, anywhere on top.

First head to El Diablo Coffee on Queen Anne Avenue, grab a cup to go and pop in next door to Queen Anne Books to pick up your copy of the Queen Anne Steps MAP to enhance your neighborhood walk. Next, walk north towards downtown to Highland Drive (yes you will be walking a little bit back down the hill – it’s exercise!) – turn right – here you can get your photo op at Kerry Park that everyone at home is expecting. Most people stop there and turn back – but YOU will not – YOU will continue walking along W. Highland Drive till you reach Marshall Park with a great, quiet view of the Puget Sound. Continue even further along to the right where Highland turns to 7th Avenue W. you can see a bit more of how Seattle’s well financed folks choose to live. Just keep going this way all the way and you’ll wrap back up around to Queen Anne Avenue… don’t worry – look for the joggers or the dog walkers or the nannies and you’ll catch the scent of QA AVE.

McGraw Street will take you to the very northern tip of QA AVE and if it’s after 5pm stop in How to Cook A Wolf and have some dinner. It ain’t cheap but hey you took the bus! BTW… if you need to grab the bus back to DT.. take the 13 right across the street from HTCW…

Popularity: 15% [?]

Greenlake sits on the North end of Seattle, maybe 5 miles from downtown – easily reached via our lovely metro bus.    This is a THE nature trip in the city where you can play role of the jogger (approx 3 miles around lake), the spectator, the coffee drinker lounging in a comfy sofa, the kayaker, the sunbathing swimmer, the skateboarder, and many many more.    PLENty of good restaurants, bars and bike shops around and near the lake as well.

Bring your dog or your baby stroller and you’ll feel right at home.

From downtown on 3rd (and Pike) be on the east side of street (near the McDonalds) and you’ll pick up the #26 (goes thru Fremont) or #16 (goes thru Wallingford) metro bus… easy stuff.     On the #16 you don’t necessarily SEE the lake, so just let the bus driver know your destination.

Get your jog on!

Greenlake, Seattle

Popularity: 4% [?]

First, let me get you to this shiny block on a gritty end of 2nd Avenue.  Walk down 2nd Avenue heading North (you know, towards the Space Needle).. eventually you’ll find yourself between Bell and Battery Streets.     Lots to choose from and lots of good food.

From downtown, you’ll hit Wasabi Bistro first…. has a nice outdoor patio, but can’t guarantee you won’t get begged upon.     Modern Japanese is what they call it.  I say sushi & sake.

Wasabi Restaurant, Seattle

Next is Kushibar…. another outdoor patio but this one is somewhat protected from the street “peeps”.   Japanese street food on the menu.

One more door down is the Tavolata … one word… yum.    Italian wines and housemade pasta.

Tavolata Restaurant, Seattle

Buckley’s is at the end of the block with it’s fancy pub food and tv sports action found inside.

Then finally as you cross Battery – you’ll see Shiro’s, which many say is the best sushi in town… Master Chef Shiro resides here, trained in Tokyo on Ginza.   Seattle can thank Shiro for it’s first sushi restaurant back when he started up Nikkos in the late 60’s.     If you’re a sushi lovER.. this is your place.

Popularity: 8% [?]

The Can Can – beneath the Pike Place Market:   it’s hot!   it’s tiny!    live shows!    eye candy!  Don’t bring your grand-mother-in-law unless she likes to drink the Absinthe.  Yes, one of the few bars in Seattle that serves Absinthe and puts pretty things dancing around in front of you to enjoy it with. 

Eye Candy, drinks, food (so so, but cheap) and an intimate, lively, elbow to elbow crowd…   definitely an unexpected experience if you’re visiting from say, Lubbock TX.      Enjoy!

The Castaways are their resident troupe.    The shows sell out fast, and the place is tiny so get there early and treat yourself to dinner and drinks.   If  you’re claustrophobic then you may want to rethink your decision, or take your pills before you go.   

To get there:   Walk to 1st & Pike, look to your right – see  the anarchist bookstore, LeftBankBooks?  The Can Can is right underneath.

Popularity: 8% [?]

If you’re in the mood for the beach to begin your weekend Seattle visit, Madison Beach is probably one of the easiest and quickest city beaches to get to.  Here’s how:   on Seattle’s Metro from downtown along Pike Street heading east (between 3rd & 4th), look for the #11 Madison Park.  Stay on the bus till the last stop – you can’t miss it they practically drive you up to the sand.    

Might take you 20 minutes from downtown, passing thru the east end of downtown, convention center, Capitol Hill and all it’s glory…… the bus turns onto Madison Street and you’re on that till the end.

While you’re there, check out the Madison Park neighborhood and pick out a place for dinner or drinks later tonight.   Spf yourself!

Popularity: 1% [?]

If you’re coming to Seattle this summer you should know that since it’s the best weather of the year, EVERYONE coming to Seattle chooses summer.    The weather is like San Diego and the scenery is like San Francisco.    

In summer, hotels shoot up their prices like OPEC during conflict and so for this post – a SMART hotel choice:  The Ace Hotel.    I describe it to my friends as a grown up hostel – modern, fun, progressive and design focused AND inexpensive.     Maybe $99 for a room without a private bath.. and then $195 for a room with a private bath.   If you’re young (minded) take the $99 option if it’s available… although the room is without a bathroom, the PRIVATE shared bathrooms are usually just outside your door and are clean nice and have great bath products.      

The Belltown location is great if you’re into restaurants, bars, clubs and shopping (Kuhlman is attached!)….. it can get loud at night on the weekends from the neighborhood messiness (of the fratboy persuasion)… so you may as well just go out and join them.    Oh yeah – it’s also a quick walk to the SAM Olympic Sculpture Park, the Pike Place Market and it’s adjacent to the downtown core.

Popularity: 1% [?]

It’s a pretty safe bet any night you’re in Seattle that there will be some smoky Jazz spilling onto 2nd Avenue thru Tula’s doors in Belltown.  Sure, Tula’s might not be pretty and it might not have fancy stems, but it definitely has the talent.  

Combine that with the cool weather creeping through the downtown streets of Seattle and you’ve got yourself some cozy Jazz action.

Popularity: 14% [?]