finally at the pacific!

Hello!  Tonight I write to you from the coziest place I think we could have chosen to stay.  As I lay here on the couch reflecting upon our day, I can’t help but feel that Seattle might be a Top 5 Favorite Place contender.  Although so far, there has not been a single hub that I haven’t liked, Seattle is definitely taking the lead (don’t worry, Minneapolis, you’re up there too!)

We woke up this morning in Spokane, Washington.  When we arrived there last night, I was not very impressed, and fairly certain that it would not be a town I would want to visit again.  Once we let the sunshine hit Spokane, however, I started to see a slightly different side.  After sleeping in too long/rushing to leave our hotel, we decided upon a cozy little breakfast spot that took us through some nice areas of town.  Frank’s Diner was exactly what you would want and expect from an old school diner.  Situated not far from Riverside Park, this train-car-turned-diner boasted not only breakfast foods of epic proportions in a very cool environment, but also the world’s greatest server, Gage.  Gage is perhaps one of my favorite strangers from this trip (there have been many favorites, but she takes the cake).  She has been with the diner for over 20 years and is exactly what you would expect in a career-server working in this kind of place.  Attentive, knowledgeable and friendly, she made our experience all the more authentic.

On to the food.  Oh my, the food.  Let me just start by saying that on the menu next to almost every item, there is the “lighter option.”  Now, if we had been thinking properly, we would have asked what this meant, and how big the normal portions were.  We lacked foresight, however, and hastily ordered our meals.  I could not believe how much food arrived at our table (nor could I believe how fast the service was, or the fact that Gage remembered I wanted lemons and wasn’t stingy with them).  I ordered the meatloaf benedict with hash browns and Joellen ordered the veggie and cheese omelet with hash browns.  I believe that Joellen liked hers, and I liked mine as well, but by the end I sort of left wishing that I had gotten something else.  The meatloaf was pretty good, but all of it was so covered with gravy that it was hard to taste anything else.  I think it is a great concept, but perhaps needs some fine-tuning.  Or not, since the place has been open for longer than I’ve been alive.  The shining star of my meal was the buttermilk biscuit, which was buttery and delicious and fluffy and just yum.  I could have easily gotten eggs and a biscuit and been happy, but I wanted a new experience, and I’m glad I got it.

We then hit the road for the easy drive across Washington to Seattle.  The scenery was absolutely breathtaking and varied from farm land to barren hills to rocky mountains to rivers and lakes to lush forests.  Washington really has a lot to offer and I am so glad that we were able to see so much of it.  We arrived in Seattle just in time for rush hour, but made it to our hotel in a fairly decent amount of time.  Seahurst Garden Studio is an incredible bed and breakfast that Joellen came across during her hours of research for this trip, and by far my favorite overnight venue.  When we got here, we were beyond thrilled with the amenities.  Situated on a hill, this one-room b&b is attached to a main house where owners Alice and Jane live.  The entrance is through the back yard, which is absolutely gorgeous.  Jane and Alice have taken such care of their property and it really shows.  There is a vegetable garden, flowers, a gorgeous willow tree and fruit-bearing plants all over.  The room is cozy, clean and well stocked.  We could not be happier.

After sitting under the grape vines for a while (I KNOW, RIGHT?), I got cleaned up and we drove in to town for an absolutely wonderful meal.  Annapurna Cafe was just what we needed.  Although we both asserted that we would never eat again after brunch, we started to get hungry right around sunset and agreed that enough time had passed and we were allowed another meal.  Now, I am a fan of all foods, and Joellen is too, for the most part.  But we just could not do one more gastro pub.  So traditional Nepalese, Tibetan and Indian food sounded perfect.  This restaurant was such an incredible find.  Most of the food is what you would expect to find in a traditional Indian place-curries, rice and naan.  But there were a few dishes that were not common and we were very excited to try them.  We started with the Spinach Momo, a traditional Tibetan-style steamed dumpling filled with spinach.  It came with a sesame chutney, peanut chutney and spicy tomato chutney, all of which were awesome, and were perfect compliments to the Momo.  We shared some samosas, which were great, the palak paneer, which is my personal favorite, and the Himalayan Curry.  This dish was all at once comforting, fresh and flavorful.  Unlike many traditional curries, the vegetables were perfectly cooked and the flavors of tomato and garlic really shone through.  I am a huge fan of all Indian food, and love everything about the creamy sauces, but this dish having none of that was such a pleasant surprise.  If you are ever in the area and want to try something different, you need to go to this restaurant.

Tomorrow we are off to explore and see all of the sights that Seattle has to offer.  Can’t wait to report back on the Emerald City.

❤ Amy