chadum

I tried NY Cupcakes in Westlake Park a few months ago. It was not a great cupcake and looked much better than it tasted. I tried their signature cupcake: NY Black & White. The frosting tasted midling and the texture was gritty as if the sugar had not been creamed with the fat long enough. The cake itself was low on flavor with an mediocre texture. It's quite poor for being focused on just the cupcakes. I'm not sure if they were working through kings; I haven't been back since.

I like panettone this time of the year from local bakeries. I've tried Macrina and Grand Central with Grand Central being my current favorite. What sources have other folks found for this seasonal goodness?

The cannoli is not traditional. It's like a cross between cannoli and a churro. Very good, just not traditional.

Excellent! I really want more dessert cafes/lounges in Seattle. She is certainly the chef to do it in this city. I think that space, across from the Harvard Exit theater is probably a good location. Not as close to my home in Belltown as I would like, though I recently went to Room 4 Dessert in New York City and I was very impressed by the concept and execution.

Mercado Latino (near Mr. D's gyros place) at Pike Place has had it. Not sure if it's seasonal, though.

Torero's Mexican in Belltown has papered up the windows and put out a closed sign. It's the former location of Fandango. It's a great space. I hope it's not cursed.

Also: Macrina makes excelent cakes. These are cakes created to eat not just to look at. You will need to order in advance to pick one up: http://www.macrinabakery.com/Cakes.htm

One block north (up the hill) is a Dilettante shop. It sells the chocolates. There are also several Dilettante cafes that server hot chocolate and cakes in addition to the chocolates. These are sprinkled through downtown and one on Capito Hill. The most central one is in Westlake Mall downtown.

That sounds exactly like what I want this time of the year. Well, maybe with a little truffle oil. Truly, I don't expect Pagliacci to do that let alone on budget.

Rama is usually at the Wedensday Pike Place Market Organic Day. They are by far my favorite peach vendor. Last week I was told, by Rick Lynn, that they had reached the end of the Red Havens and would be bringing in later varieties soon.

Vivanda at the Market had a for lease sign in the window today.

My wife and I are going to be enjoying our anniversary in Vancouver this year. We're staying at the Wedgewood. I think I've found plenty of lunch & dinner recommendations by searching past topics. I haven't seen anything particular about brunch. We are very big fans of breakfast/brunch. Are there recommendations for weekend brunch places? We like small, cafe settings that really care about this particular meal. We also tend to prefer the sweet side with waffles & pancakes and do venture towards the occasional omelet ;-> . We live in Seattle and the brunch at Macrina Bakery is an excellent example of this. thanks

If you are referring to the 'provolone picante' then that is imported. The mozzarella is made in-house.

They'll use the baguette if you ask and they have enough. I think the round, soft bread is from La Panzanella bakery. The bread does serve well to soak up the olive oil-based dressings they use. I like the bread although I do think it is too much and offsets the bread/meat ratio. I simply pick things apart as I eat.

My wife and I have found that lemon verbena is very easy to grow around here. We're growing it in a mid-size pot on our condo deck. It goes dormant in the winter and starts back up in early spring. It's a wonderful plant just for the lemon-drop smell and makes an excellent, excellent sorbet.