Seattle Recs
Hiking Trails
< 1 hour from Seattle Rattlesnake ledge (no parking pass required), Twin Falls, Snoqualmie Falls 1-2 hours from Seattle Lake 22, Heather Lake, Mt Pilchuck (hard), Wallace Falls, Bridal Veil Falls Mount Rainier National Park Tolmie Peak, Skyline Loop, Burroughs Mountain Loop, Summit Lake (not technically in the park, but our favorite hike with Rainier views!) Olympic National Park Mt Storm King, Spruce Railroad Trail, Hoh Rainforest North Cascades National Park Maple Pass Loop, Diablo Lake, Blanca Lake
Parks and Activities
Lake Union - Kayak or paddle board along South Lake Union (we rent from Northwest Outdoor Center because they have triple kayaks). There are also hot tub boats (up to 6 people) if you'd rather chill along the lake instead! Seward Park - Paved trail with views of Rainier Discovery Park - Several (mostly unpaved) walking trails, and on a clear day has a view of Rainier. Fun fact - this is 5 minutes from where we live now! Kerry Park - Great at sunset for a skyline view with Rainier in the back! Walk to Molly Moon's for ice cream or take a stroll down Highland Drive towards Marshall Park to the west to see the Puget Sound and Olympic Mountains Green Lake Park - 3 mile paved loop around the lake; great for pick-up pickleball! Bainbridge Island - For a day trip, take a ferry across the Puget Sound and explore this quaint town. Must stop by Proper Fish for fish & chips!
Food Recommendations
Our go-tos: Isarn Thai Soul Kitchen (Queen Anne) - Our fave! Kin Len Thai Night Bites (Fremont) - No reservations for <6 people, and can be a long wait for dinner/weekends Bangrak Market (Belltown) - Great for HH and drinks (4-6pm daily) Hong Kong Bistro (Chinatown) - All day dim sum; we usually go for late lunch to avoid the rush. If you have room after, stop by Hood Famous Cafe for their buko pandan cheesecake! Bamboo Sushi (UVillage) - Highly recommend the Big Island roll Kudedon Chirashi Bowl (Downtown) - Alyssa's go to work lunch FOB Sushi Bar (Belltown) - Sushi by the pound, great value sushi! Fancy Foods: Eden Hill Restaurant (Queen Anne) - New American small plates or tasting menu Shiro's (Belletown) - $85-140 Nigiri Omakase Cafes/Dessert: Aroom (Fremont/Wallingford) - Recommend their black sesame latte/matcha latte Nana's Green Tea (SLU/Bellevue) - For matcha/hojicha parfaits and dessert! Fuji Bakery (Interbay/Chinatown) - Asian bakery Hui Lau Shan (Bellevue) - Mango dessert
Pike Place Market
Rachel's Ginger Beer - Some of our favorite flavors are cucumber and caramelized pineapple Le Panier - French bakery with excellent chouquettes - a must-have for Arlene when she visits Piroshky Piroshky - Alyssa's favorite is the smoked salmon pate! Hellenika - Cross between gelato and greek yogurt! Alyssa likes the earl grey and biscoff flavors Fran's - Our (and Obama's) favorite smoked caramel chocolates Metsker Maps - Map store charting the PNW and beyond. Jonathan loves maps and some of our wall art comes from here!