Best eating neighborhoods ...

[OnlyTheBest]

Well gang ..I have now been living here in the area for about 2 weeks nd I can already see that when my lease comes up for renewal in November I am gonna have to move out of Gig Harbor and into a neighborhood that has more access to better stuff.

As I just read Abra's post about the Malay Satay Hut I realized that I would have to plan to drive up to Seattle just to get there even once. I couldn't just drop in.

SO it got me to thinking..... where do you think is the best place to live to give fairly easy access to great Vietnamese...Chinese and the like...great coffee like Lighthouse Roasters and Vivace...great bread from places like Tallgrass and Dalhaia(sp) and a great farmers market or two...AND... great dounuts like TopPot !

I don't mind driving 15 to 20 minutes to get somewhere but when I see how much traffice I have to fight to get from Gig harbor it is not worth it.

I rented my apartment on the net and I like it...but I need a better location for dropping in to the interesting little joints that sell great food...be they Asian or otherwise.

I love the little asian neighborhood on 38th st in Tacoma but I am looking for more access to others.

So if you can....please give me your eating neighborhood ideas and what they might be close to because I am going to start looking at areas now.

Thanks so much for your help

[tighe]

I think the most obvious answer to your question would be the Central District in Seattle. Easy access to the International District, Rainier Valley, Capitol Hill and Downtown.

A lot depends on how much you want to spend on rent and what neighborhood attributes (other than access to food) that you value most. The CD has generally been less expensive (although that is changing quickly), but also less desireable in some ways than adjacent neighborhoods. I lived in the CD for about 5 years and loved it.

Edited June 12, 2004 by tighe (log)

[laurel]

Well, I live in Capitol Hill, which might not be the best eating neighborhood, but it's central to everything in the city.

12th and Jackson (Malay Satay, Vietnamese, 7 Stars Peppers, Lo Sichuan) is a 10 minute drive, 20 minute bus ride, or 30 minute walk. (depending on where exactly in Capitol Hill, of course).

The main International District (dim sum, retro american-chinese, noodle joints, japanese) is a little farther than that.

Pike Place Market (Campagne, Matt's, etc..) is a 30 minute walk, 15 minute bus ride, and is annoying to drive to, but only takes 15 minutes if you are not cheap about parking.

All of the fancy places Downtown and Belltown are also in long walk/short bus ride range.

And of course Top Pot and Vivace are in Capitol Hill, as are a few of my favorites, including Lark (actually more FIrst Hill, but still pretty close), Crave, Than Brothers Pho, Annapurna, Galerias,

There is no Capitol Hill farmer's market. There was one planned, but they couldn't find a location this year, maybe next year. Pike Place Market gets annoyingly full of tourists and empty of farmers (today, only Frank's and Sosio's had local strawberries..) in the summer, but Wednesday and Sunday are more farmers-market-y because they close off the street and have farmers there.

Capitol Hill real estate is mostly "old world charm", and might be on the expensive side because you're paying for the location. If you want newer and more expensive, there's Belltown. If you want newer and less expensive, try Ballard. It's not as easy to get to places, but Ballard itself is getting to be a pretty good eating neighborhood.

If you really like the I-D, try the apartments above Uwajimaya. I know a few people who live there and like it a lot.

[tsquare]

Malay Satay Hut

Vietnamese...Chinese

Lighthouse Roasters

Vivace

Tallgrass

Dahlia (corrected)

great farmers market

TopPot

SE of Downtown/Edge of International District and First Hill

International District

Upper Fremont

Capitol Hill (yes?)

Ballard

Downtown

all around - the best (?) in the University District though West Seattle looks pretty good and Ballard runs year round

Capitol Hill or Belltown

That spans a big part of the city. If you have a car - and can score parking (not easy on Capitol Hill - or most places), none of this is more than 20 minutes away from anywhere else (West Seattle pushes that, especially if there is traffic.)

Street parking is a big problem in any of these areas, except maybe Ballard. Tighe is right (you can quote that) in suggesting considering other attributes - such as type of housing, noise, freeway access, bus availability (if interested), recreational attributes, shopping...do you want to walk to a movie, run off street, stumble home from the bars? Quality of life - it's a city - you don't have to always rely on a car, if you choose wisely.

[kiliki]

There are a lot of good neighborhoods for eating in the city, so I think that you should spend some afternoons exploring these places. Something else to keep in mind besides restaurants and coffee is access to a really good grocery and/or a farmer's market (if that's important to you-it is to me, since I shop every day). You could spend an afternoon walking and driving around Ballard and Fremont, Wallingford/Phinney Ridge/Greenlake, Belltown/Lower Queen Anne/Queen Anne Hill, and Capitol Hill/Central District/International District. Oh, and West Seattle, too. Maybe check out the farmer's markets in each place (they are all on different days-I put a link below). Each neighborhood has a different vibe, and you should be able to identify a place that really suits you and has good food. And though some places are definitely more expensive than others, I've been a renter in this city long enough to know that there are bargains in all neighborhoods.

Seattle Markets

Ballard and Fremont Markets

And if you REALLY want to do neighborhood research before you head out, most of them have their own chambers of commerce (do a web search) or you can look at this PI guide, which includes restaurant reviews in their neighborhood links.

Neighborhoods online

Edited June 12, 2004 by kiliki (log)

[Abra]

Gig Harbor is a challenge. I live on Bainbridge, myself, and I like the distance from town, but we too have to plan a day of eating in Seattle. I echo the thoughts of other poosters - it really depends on what sort of lifestyle you want. We're married, want to be in a small, close, well-educated community but within easy reach of the amenities of a cool town, plus good health care, since my husband is a cancer patient. We love Bainbridge because it meets all of those qualifications, and the food here is decent. Mainly, though, I cook, and we go to Seattle for food adventures a couple of times a month.

[OnlyTheBest]

I do have a car and I do like the idea of driving to places. Farmers markets and great shopping for artisan foods like bread, coffee and various necessities is a big part of my life I use to shop everyday but I can't really do that here in Gig becauses there are no great places to go....unless I went accross the bridge to Metropolitan. That's not possible given the bridge traffic later in the day. I work online so I can live anywhere.

I am not rich so yes I am looking for a good deal if it shows up. I call good quality of life having access to great shopping and a maybe some place near the water. I gave up the shopping to get that here in Gig.....but I think I might have made the wrong choice as it does get anoying not being able to shop everyday when I need something.

SO... I do appreciate your input. Thanks so much for your help.