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Excuse me? Pike Place Market (Seattle) has many views of Elliott Bay. Some from inside restaurants, some not.

Spearmint is what they have, organically grown, in the local co-op. Peppermint is good for tea and dessert, not so good for savories, IMHO. I was too slow, but Rent's Due, a local herb and vegetable start supplier had some "culinary mint" for sale recently. I want some of that - whatever it is. They also had peppermint, spearmint, orange mint, and lemon mint. I have growing peppermint, apple mint - fuzzy leaves, and chocolate mint - great to steam in milk. Problem is that these die back in the winter, no leaves. Oregano is in the mint family and will take over a garden as well. Basil is too tender.

Lark has been very good - early, at the bar. But I want to try more choices, so eating alone is actually a bit limiting. Though I don't have to share, which is good. Troiani's bar is also good - they have a nice bar menu, as well as all those pastas and appetizers. Most bars will make non-alcohol versions of drinks if you want to sit at the bar and feel comfortable. Zoe and Marjorie have a nice menu of these drinks. Cascadia's bar would be good as well. Personally, I'm not wild about Chez Shea or the lounge. Never been to Rover's. That would be a stretch for dining alone. Felt the same way about Le Gourmand - but tried the attached SamBar - it was fun, but not terribly enticing. The best way to be treated well - be a regular - as Sleepy Dragon suggests.

Treated very well at Matt's, Zoe, Brasa - at the bar, eating dinner, with book or not. Yup, that's me. And any neighborhood place, ethnic type place, or lunch spot I can think of. Any type of place or location you are especially interested in?

This stuff is called "Brightwater" and it is from New Zealand. Not exactly drinking locally, when you buy this in Seattle! Worth looking for.

No. Why, does it cover cheesecake? Not that I know of - just me, going off topic, again. Moderator's note: I have merged a preexisting thread on "New York Cheesecake" with this new thread because the topics are substantially similar.

Both Earth and Ocean and Cascadia offer tasting menus for vegetarians. Marjorie has a few nice entree/appitizer options and has a nice romantic feeling about it. Zoe and Brasa both have tasty veg friendly options. Just stay out of the steak houses and you should be okay. Chefs are also pretty good about accommodating vegetarians, even though they may grumble. You could do well at Lark or Harvest Vine too. Matt's in the Market, with a very short menu, typically has at least one veg offering, and they are well executed.

I heard Ed talking with Tom Douglas on local radio a couple of weekends ago - all about researching this article. Thanks for bringing it to light. I heard that Mark Bittman is also doing (did?) an article on Seattle dining. Have you seen it?

At the high end - EL Gaucho, Waterfront (ooh the view!), and Troiani all have private dining rooms. Flying Fish does too. Sazerac as well. I believe Harvest Vine rents out the lower floor, but wine-beer only? Many small restaurants will close for a private party, including Matt's in the Market (again, no cocktails.) Brasa curtains off part of the upper floor. Lots of places have private dining rooms. Marjorie (in Belltown) would have a great vibe with a outdoor area as well, if you get lucky weather-wise. Do you have a favorite restaurant? Discuss it with them. Your hours are early enough that they can reopen for dinner at 7:30 or 8, so this might make them very happy, especially if it isn't Friday or Saturday night. Places vary as to whether they charge for the room, or a minimum. Menu or pre-order. For mine, some time ago, I arranged a sit down dinner with no-host bar at Sea Garden for a dozen or so - pre-ordered, pre-determined the price. Not a pretty setting, but otherwise quite enjoyable. And congratulations on your graduation - from where and in what?

Welcome ejebud - and Happy Birthday - soon. I know nothing about the cookware or the restaurant question, but it's really swell that your dishwasher (DW) is buying you a gift. Oh, maybe that stands for delightful wife?

I can't remember the brand, but Trader Joe's carries tonic that is much less sweet, and well priced. Seasonal, but saw it a couple of weeks ago.

Not to mention - "seared" fish - typically albacore or salmon. Especially Copper River.

VIP tickets appear to be sold out, in case you were thinking about it.

I know, I know! Now, Big John's

More info please. I slow roast tomatoes until they are not quite dry and puree them - is this similar to the jam or is it more like real jam? Anything persimmon, yes please. Lemons - like tomatoes? Any spice, other additions? Lovage - okay, the plant is back up - already 3 feet tall - what do I do with it?

You must hang out at Matt's. I know you are in the right town.

That's a long haul through some fairly dull landscape on a high speed highway (with tolls). Spend a couple of nights in Lisboa or Sintra. I think it would be most lovely to stroll Sintra after a leisurely dinner. Very romantic.

I stayed in Coimbra (at the fancy deco hotel across the street from the river - still, quite reasonable last year - with a lovely marble bathroom), took the bus to Bussaco and back in one afternoon (passed through Mealhada twice with no stops!) with time to quickly traverse the forest. If you have a car, it is easy to have dinner in Mealhada. Eat for me too! I believe the Palace has a restaurant as well - might be good for a drink if you go all the way there. I highly recommend visiting the forest (as I've mentioned before.) In the opposite direction from Coimbra, there is a very nice indoor/outdoor exhibit of on-site Roman ruins. I didn't make it to this other site - there is also a well regarded early Jewish site? It sounded fascinating.

1. No way would I touch that noodle pudding - and I like a good noodle pudding. 2. I inherited my interest (!) in food from my Mom. She learned to cook after her wedding - at 23+. 3. A friend and I promised cheesecake to a class in college. By the time we were shopping at 2 am, and after picking up all the scratch ingredients, we looked at each other and bought 2 Jello cheesecake packages - doctored one with lemon in the filling, the other with cinnamon in the crust. Fellow students declared them to be excellent. We never fessed up. And never used boxed mixes again.

I keep going back. And I'm not the only one - the place appears to be doing a decent business. Still haven't eaten beef. I liked the simple tomato sauced spaghetti. And a plate of scallops. The arugula salad was kind of flat - very lightly dressed (at all?). Lunch chicken under brick was quite good, even for white meat. Oh, got lucky with a special of bacalhau. Gratis - even better!

In case you are having 25/25 withdrawal, the regular $25 tasting menu at Cascadia (with a $12.50 add-on for matched half-glasses of wine) for April looks pretty good. Set menu Bonus - the staff won't be so hassled.

Coco Tree Cafe at 2224 2nd Ave (same block as Mama's Mexican) opened yesterday. Flyers distributed for half priced entrees through tomorrow - April 3. On the menu - jerks, stews, and grills. Goat, yes, goat. Jamaican and Caribbean.

Troiani? At 3rd and Madison. See this week's Stranger, of all the weird places. Or thread in PNW & A.

I took advantage of 25/12.50 at lunch yesterday at 727 Pine. It was nice, but nothing spectacular. No Kobe. Duck confit salad - okay, alot of red cabbage, all pushed into a tuna can formed style of presentation. Crispy chicken with baby vegetables in a tasty sauce - demiglace? Rich chocolate mousse atop a chocolate wafer with a pool of blood orange soup. That was pretty good. Place was pretty quiet. Did notice the bar menu has a few infusions (Vodka with assorted herbs/fruits/spices/vegetables) that are offered at happy hour for reduced prices as well. Sadly, their pizza ovens have been converted to gas. Did they ever serve pizza - or just flatbread?

I don't see them on Mutual Fish's list, but thought I'd add this link - they FedEx and have lots of recipes. Actually, they list Penn Cove Select - is this the same oyster? Big Fish (I didn't get oysters at my Union meal - steak tartare...) edit to add - not the same, but close - nice info on the Penn Cove site!