Saturday was Becca's 24th birthday. She asked for the day off work, and we spent the day together doing all of her favorite things- which means going to Pike's Place Market in Seattle. Pike's Place is an iconic Seattle attraction: it is a combination farmer's market/flea market with great flowers, food and funky artsy craftsy stores. It sits on the side of a steep hill overlooking the waterfront. It has lots of restaurants, one of which was featured in the movie "Sleepless in Seattle". The scene where Rob Reiner and Tom Hanks are sitting at the lunch counter discussing Tiramisu. The market is also featured in the scene when the two are walking down hill discussing whether or not Tom Hanks has a "cute butt". They are walking toward the market and it can be clearly seen in the background.
The market is such a favorite of Becca's that when ever a special outing is called for, that is her preferred destination. We have favorite places that we always go to in the market, and then each visit we seem to discover one or two new places that we've never been before that are worth a return visit.
There is a wonderful French Crepe restaurant that is usually our breakfast destination, but on this day as we were walking towards the market we came across another French restaurant "La Champagne" that was open for breakfast and we thought we would give it a try. We loved it!. It started out with the best cup of hot chocolate ever!! Served with homemade crème fraiche instead of whipping cream. As the crème fraiche melted in the hot chocolate, it foamed. It was delightful. We both had the brioche French toast.
Our next stop was to return to a favorite store "Sur La Table". We love to cruise through on our way downhill to the market to see the latest kitchen gadgets, linens and baking supplies.
As we made our way into the market itself, we were enveloped by stall after stall of tulips- my favorite flower. The varieties and colors are astounding. It lifts your mood just to be in their midst.
Right next to the flower stalls are the fruit and vegetable stands, with the best produce in the city. You are guaranteed to see one or two things you have never seen before. Below are pictures of mini purple artichokes and fiddle leaf fern heads. We asked how you prepare the fern heads and were told to slightly blanch them to reduce their bitterness then stir fry. Right next to them, just out of the picture were greens called "ramps". I didn't know what those were either. They are wild onions that grow in the woods. There are lots of wild foraged foods available at the market- what a resource!
Another store that was a new find this trip was the "Market Spice" store, which had an amazing selection of herbal teas. The back wall of the store was lined with gallon sized glass jars with screw on lids. Becca and I spent an inordinate amount of time smelling teas, and ending up bringing home three different kinds of loose leaf herbals.
Becca requested dinner at Jhan Jays in Wallingford (Seattle) a vegetarian Thai food restaurant with the whole family. Then dessert at Molly Moons Ice cream shop right down the street. We completed her birthday adventure by seeing Jurassic Park in 3D.
It was a wonderful day to celebrate a wonderful young woman!
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