Heading to Seattle, and I can't wait!!

[ScottD]

Unfortunately we won't have a ton of free time,,, but there's one place that I have to get to... and fortunately it's only a couple of blocks from where I'll be working during the days I'm out there....

http://www.salumicuredmeats.com

I've heard it's something like ordering at the Soup Nazi from the "old" Seinfeld storylines. Any pointers from someone with experience would be appreciated!

[Jenise]

Scott, I've tried so hard to eat at this place, but every time I show up he's closed. The first time I got there on a wrong day, another time he closed for a family emergency...can't get lucky. But I'd kill to eat there and I've heard nothing but great things from those who have. Oh, and I've seen a bunch of his meats. Nothing short of amazing.

[MtBakerDave]

When I worked at Amazon (ancient history there!) I used to eat at Salumi sometimes. They're great there, or at least as much as possible for a place the size of a closet that's mobbed every moment they're open. Just be ready when you get to the front of the line, so you're not holding up everyone behind you. The sandwiches are truly divine. Only reason I didn't eat there more often is that there's NEVER any place to sit down, and it's not the most inviting neighborhood to find a place to eat a picnic lunch ...

Dave

[Chris]

That "Coming Soon - San Juan Lamb" sounds intriguing. And I see they have a "Dario" salami - wonder if that was named after Dario Cecchini? I have yet to get to his butcher shop in Panzano on my Italian travels. Ann Reavis, an ex-patriate who gave my husband and me a great tour of Florence last year, wrote a "Traveler's Tale" about Dario for the Tuscany edition several years ago entitled "At the Butcher".

[Jenise]

and it's not the most inviting neighborhood to find a place to eat a picnic lunch ...

Hey come on, Pioneer Square's only a block or so away. Lots of, er, colorful people to share your meal with.

[ScottD]

...it's not the most inviting neighborhood to find a place to eat a picnic lunch ...

Dave

You know, that's the hardest part about going to a city you've never been to before... where to be, um, cautious maybe. Is it that kind of neighborhood or just colorful, as Jenise hinted at...

[MtBakerDave]

Is it that kind of neighborhood or just colorful, as Jenise hinted at...

Seattle doesn't have many truly dangerous neighborhoods, and the ones that ARE dangerous are not where tourists are likely to be. That said, I would think about avoiding Chinatown (also known as the International District) and Pioneer Square after dark. Jenise is right - Pioneer Square is nearby, but there are usually a lot of homeless people hanging around to watch you eat. If I were a tourist, I might get something at Salumi, then wander down to the waterfront and walk on to the Bremerton ferry. That'll give you a 45-minute ride - time for a good picnic, then turn around and take the ferry back.

Dave

[Jenise]

Yes, in daylight hours, Pioneer Square is a place where the worst that might happen is that you feel guilty for feeding yourself so well in front of a few people. But close by--maybe two blocks north on 1st?--is Elliott Bay Books, one of the finest independent book sellers around. If you're a reader, this would be an excellent way to walk off your sammie.

[ScottD]

Scott, I've tried so hard to eat at this place, but every time I show up he's closed. The first time I got there on a wrong day, another time he closed for a family emergency...can't get lucky. But I'd kill to eat there and I've heard nothing but great things from those who have. Oh, and I've seen a bunch of his meats. Nothing short of amazing.

Well, Jenise, I know the feeling. We tried last week but the line was out the door around the corner, so I didn't get to try it. My travelling companion and I did cover our bases though, we ate at Etta's, and had a cured meat platter as a starter. Very good. And I brought home a couple of links from DeLaurenti--what a great store, so it wasn't a total shutout.

We also had a very, very pleasant dinner at Wild Ginger. And I had the best corned beef hash I've ever eaten at Lowell's.

'twas a good trip.

[Jenise]

Scott, glad you had a good trip. I've only snacked at Etta's, but I liked it. And I've been wild about Wild Ginger since it's early days in another location. I was living in Alaska then, and we'd fly into Seattle for doctor's visits and spend our first lunch at Wild Ginger ordering seafood and white wines, then dinner with curried meats and red wines. It sometimes took a third visit to get the place out of our systems, and perhaps we never did--when I look back on those days, I can't remember a single other restaurant we ate it. None impressed. But I can tell you exactly what food and even what wines we had with them at the Ginger.

Fortunately for me we have a local guy who sells Armandino's salumi, so I get a great cured meat fix every now and then. In fact, I think I have some of his mole salami in the fridge that I forgot about--lunch!!

Thanks for the report.

[Christina Georgina]

Speaking of Seattle... I am attending a meeting next weekend at the Salish Lodge and Spa. Anyone know any particulars about the place/it's food ? I am very unlikely to have any free time to get out to anywhere else.

Thanks

[Jenise]

Christina, do you remember Mark Kieras? He posts here sometimes, though I haven't seen him since the move (he was definitely invited). Anyway, he's the sommelier there. He would probably be quite flattered if you contacted him directly.