A Couple of Seattle Questions

As a diversion from white bark pines and El Nino, I have a couple of questions for Seattleites.  My brother is flying into Seattle and I'm going to meet him for the weekend. I'll be coming up from Southwest Washington and haven't spent a whole lot of time in Seattle.  We're staying near the Market, catching a concert and generally doing the tourist thing.  Any recommendations on places to eat and drink within walking distance?  Any must see attractions beside the usual suspects?  Any good used gear stores worth checking out?

I don't get downtown too often, but here are places that I recommend:

* Cafe Campange
* Le Panier
* Dahlia Lounge
* Lola
* Amber

off the beaten path:

The arboretum, discovery park, and the water tower in volunteer park. Those are the places in seattle I like the most anyway.

If you stop by the flagship REI store and need coffee the cafe across the street is really good (Vivace?) and it's worth walking a block to Feathered Friends if you are used to the limited selection of outdoor gear that I am. Second Ascent might be worth a visit too if you are looking for gear while you're in town.

Other than that I don't have much in the way of recommendations for Seattle, I avoid it as much as I can and it takes a pretty face or a need for gear that I can't get up here to change my mind.

As a Seattle "local" here are a few suggestions

Food/Drink
near downtown:
* Contour on the downtown edge of Pioneer Square has an excellent happy hour menu and happy hour runs until 9pm on Saturdays: www.clubcontour.com/happyhour.html
* Taphouse Bar & Grill has more taps in one room than you can count: taphousegrill.com/
* Belltown Pizza serves-up great PNW-styled pies and cheap pints to wash it down: belltownpizza.net/
* The 5 Point Cafe is a favorite of mine, esp. for late night eats. It's cheap, the drinks are strong and they serve breakfast all day. Plus, it's a block from the Seattle Center: the5pointcafe.com/
* Seattle's International District has a plethora of Japanese, Chinese, and Korean restaurants. Kings BBQ House is a personal favorite and the Yummy House Bakery next door gets their BBQ pork from Kings for their rolls. If you're still reeling from the night before, there are a dozen or more places that offer dim sum and Mike's Noodle House makes an excellent congee. If you're really adventurous you can shop at Uwajimaya for imported beverages, candy and other things from the Far East (plus, they validate your parking if you make a purchase!): www.uwajimaya.com/index.html , www.thestranger.com/gyrobase/LocationSea...k&neighborhood=23619

further out:
* Brauwer's Cafe in Fremont has a dizzying selection of beers both on tap and in bottles plus the best frites in the city: brouwerscafe.blogspot.com/
* Gorditos in the Greenwood neighborhood serves up burritos the size of a baby for $10: www.gorditoshealthymexicanfood.com/
* Old Ballard hosts a number of great restaurants and pubs: the High Life, King's Hardware, Matador, La Isla and Hattie's Hat to name a few: www.thestranger.com/gyrobase/LocationSea...=Staff%20Pick&page=1
* Dick's Hamburgers operate a number of "drive-in" burger restaurants in the area. They're cash-only but you can't beat them when you just want a simple (cheese)burger, fries and a shake: www.ddir.com/
* Woodsky's sits in an otherwise unremarkable red metal "barn" in Fremont. But inside you'll find skiing and snowboarding equipment that will take you back decades: www.facebook.com/pages/Woodskys/113917318678705


Attractions
* The Seattle Center. Yes, aside from the Market it's the most touristy place in the city. But there's a reason for that - it's a neat place that offers a lot, even if you just walk around there for a bit.
* SAM. Even if you don't like art you'll find something interesting at the art museum.
* Seattle Pinball Museum. Many long-standing locals don't even know about this place, but since the forecast for this weekend's looking damp, go check it out: www.facebook.com/pages/Seattle-Pinball-Museum/131237786915560


Places
* Alki Beach / West Seattle in general. You can take the King County Water Taxi over to West Seattle for < $5 from the ferry terminal downtown and then use the free water taxi shuttle to head to Alki Beach, Alaska Junction and other points of interest on the other side of Elliot Bay. There are tons of places in West Seattle that rent sea kayaks and stand-up paddleboards: www.kingcounty.gov/transportation/kcdot/WaterTaxi.aspx
* University of Washington. Shameless plug for my alma mater, but the campus is incredible. It's blend of gothic and modern architecture are incredible as is the landscaping, gardens, etc. The Ave in the U-District is a good place to grab a cheap and quick meal with lots of options from all corners of the world: www.thestranger.com/gyrobase/LocationSea...k&neighborhood=23631
* Washington Park Arboretum. The website says it all: depts.washington.edu/uwbg/gardens/wpa.shtml
* Golden Gardens. This park's a bitch to get to if you don't drive, but the view is well worth it if the Olympics are out. A very popular place to watch the sunset and have a bonfire within city limits: www.seattle.gov/parks/park_detail.asp?ID=243


Shopping
* The flagship REI store. Strangely enough, they always seem to be sold out of what I'm looking for... but it's a neat store, has a climbing wall and if you're an REI member then you can peruse the piles and piles of returned items / used rental gear for incredible deals in the store's gear garage: www.rei.com/stores/seattle.html
* Feathered Friends is a cool store offering products stuffed with down and more. It's just down the block from REI: www.featheredfriends.com/
* Second Ascent in Ballard is another great outdoors equipment store. If you're heading-out to Golden Gardens, check 'em out: secondascent.com/
* If you're a bike nerd, stop by Recycled Cycles in the U-District and be amazed at the sheer amount of used parts available to us two-wheel commuters: www.recycledcycles.com/
* If you're a board/card game nerd, check-out Card Kingdom in Ballard. They have one of the best selections of board, card and tabletop games in the city plus a cafe attached to them which has a copy of every game the store sells where you can sit and play before you pay: www.cardkingdom.com/


Nightlife
* Downtown sucks at night. Head north into Belltown or east up Capitol Hill.
* In Belltown there are lots of options along 1st and 2nd avenues: Amber, Shorty's, Ohana, Spitfire and Belltown Billiards to name a few: www.thestranger.com/gyrobase/LocationSea...k&neighborhood=23610
* Capitol Hill's nightlife is centered around the Pike/Pine street corridor between Harvard Ave and 12th Ave. Notable spots include Linda's Tavern, Moe Bar / Neumos / Barboza, Chop Suey, Havana, The Baltic Room, The Comet Tavern and Cha Cha's. A few lesser-known, less-crowded spots are Auto Battery, The Hideout and the Six Arms: www.thestranger.com/gyrobase/LocationSea...k&neighborhood=23611

and with that, I'm going to get back to work. Apologies in advance if I blew-out anyone's favorite spot(s).

Yes on Dalia Lounge.   The bar in the Arctic Hotel - 700 Third Avenue, and ask to go see the Dome Room - amazing architecture.

Japonessa - awesome sushi fusion - 1st and Union.

If you can catch a cab to Ballard visit Second Ascent for used and new gear - great folks there.   Then you can stroll the variety of pubs and restaurants around there including the Walrus and Carpenter, hands down the best oyster place in the PNW - 4743 Ballard Avenue NW