The next day was more of the same, starting with an early morning gym session. We got up fairly late and didn’t finish up until about 11:30. At this point, we were quite hungry and were in the mood for some Vietnamese, so we went to this place called Vinason for pho. I had the combo pho with brisket and steak in a beef broth, while my girlfriend chose the chicken pho in chicken broth. It hit the spot, and was extremely reasonable. After this, we decided to walk around the area. One building named The Sphere caught our eye. The Sphere is a conservatory set in three modern glass orbs. We were disappointed to learn, however, that it was actually a corporate office and only had 2 visiting days per month. Oh, well. We then went to get a coffee from Joe and the Juice, which was actually quite good. After sitting and talking for an hour, we thought it would be fun to go to Pike Place one last time. After perusing the various markets, we went to Pirohsky Piroshsky for two pastries. Given that it is a Russian bakery, I was curious to see how it was doing given the rejection of anything Russian in the United States. Clearly, business wasn’t affected as the wait was out the door. After a short wait, we ordered a rhubard pastry as well as an apple tart. They were both solid, especially the tart, but not worth the 13 dollars spent on two pastries. After this, we went to the gum wall. The entire area smelled like fruit, which I suppose isn’t the worst thing. The dripping, fresh gum was a bit unsettling, though.
Delicious pho
Piroshky Piroshky
Yuck!
Once we were satisfied with the gum wall, we went to the pier. The pier is actually a very happening place, with many popular restaurants and bars. We debated doing a boat tour of Elliot Bay, but decided that 80 a person (with taxes) would be better spent at a restaurant instead of an hour tour of the area by boat. After getting our fix of the waterfront, we decided to walk a mile to the South to see a different part of the city. It was quite interesting how quickly the scene changed once we got out of the downtown area. Glass skyscrapers turned into old brick buildings and we found ourselves in an entirely new scene. Honestly, getting out of the bustling downtown area was refreshing, and we relished the 30 minutes in a new setting.
Elliot Bay
Seattle Art Museum
Seattle Convention Center
Around 3 o’clock we returned to the hotel. We had made a reservation at Umi Sake House at 4:45 for their happy hour, which didn’t leave us too much time in the room. Around 4:30, we set off for the short 15 minute walk.
Umi Sake House is a really nice place to grab a drink and a light bite. We both ordered a Sapporo Draft, as well as the miso soup, short ribs, and two items from the sushi bar. The fish was fresh, although my tuna was a bit mushy. The happy hour here is a fantastic deal, with quite a bit of food only coming in around $45.
One of my good friends from college wanted to grab dinner with us and recommended Ristorante Machivelli, an italian joint only a five minute walk from the hotel. He met us in the hotel room around 6:30, and at 6:50 we headed to the restaurant. The hostess quoted us for a 30 minute wait time, but after a stroll around a few blocks, we returned and were given a table immediately. It’s a real small dining room, but the atmosphere was quintessentially italian—something I liked. I started off with the pear martini which was delicious, as well as the mixed green salad with anchovies. My friend and girlfriend chose the Ceasar. After this, my girlfriend ordered the pesto pizza, my friend the sausage sphagetti, and myself the shells with sausage. My girlfriend and I also split a half carafe of the house red which was decent, but acceptable for the low price of $14. The food was solid, but paled in comparison to the meal we enjoyed at the Pink Door two nights prior. My friend had told me it was the best restaurant in the city, which was clearly incorrect. It was a fine meal. To be fair, though, I grew up on Dominick’s in the Bronx, so it takes some phenomenal italian cuisine to impress me.
Pear Martini
Salads to start
Upside down pasta w/ sausage
Meh house wine
After this, my friend suggested we go to the University District, which is where the University of Washington is. It was nice to be able to see a different part of the city, considering we made it our mission to spend as little as possible on Ubers—a decision that certainly saved us money but drastically limited the places we could go to. He took us to UW’s main street, which had a nice selection of bars. We were anticipated a happening scene, but considering it was only 9pm on a Monday, we were let down. The first bar Flowers was extremely cheap, with a mojito only clocking in at 5 dollars. My friend and girlfriend ordered this, while I got an Elysian IPA. I thought my beer was quite good, but my companion’s thought their mojitos were awful. Oh, well. Can’t go wrong with an IPA.
After spending 45 minutes at Flowers, we went to another bar down the street named Finn McCool’s. This was a much different scene, which was expected given it was an Irish Pub. I tried to order an Irish Coffee, but to my dismay, they didn’t have Bailey’s nor a coffee maker. Sigh. I settled on a Guinness (I got it from my Irish grandfather), but they were out of this as well. Saddened, I settled on a Seattle IPA. I must say, I was extremely impressed by the quality of beers Seattle had to offer—they were delicious. My girlfriend got a Dirty Shirley, albeit without Grenadine (they were really having a tough night), while my friend had a tequilla sunrise (with Pineapple juice because they were out of OJ!).
I didn't take enough photos of this part, and I apologize for that. After a nice chat with the bartender and another patron, we decided to call it a night. My friend drove back to his house, while we took the 10 minute Uber to the hotel. After attempting to watch a comedy movie, we again succumbed to melatonin and hit the hay.