I have a bucket list, and I try to complete one item from the list each year.  But the pandemic messed that up recently.  And I am still not comfortable getting on an airplane.  So I decided to work on the items on the list from Seattle on Memorial Day weekend.  Many of these items came from the The Second Meanest Man in the World book.  There was a list of places to visit with suggested items to consume.  This book came out in 2017 and many of the places have gone out of business sadly.  Many came from the seattlepi.com article: These 16 historic Seattle restaurants are still open.  This list was from 2021 so are still open this year.  And then there were random entries from different sources including facebook site like Seattle Vintage and I Miss Retro Seattle.  Some are not historic sites but most are.  (Warning:  there are lots of photos.)

We headed to Seattle Friday morning. We checked into our hotel described as having a Lake Union view.  You can sort of see the lake behind the buildings.

The first stop for lunch was Market House Meats .

They are supposed to have the best corned beef and I confirmed that it is true.  I had it on a Reuben sandwich.  FYI the accompanying horseradish is incredibly strong.

Here are some of the incredibly friendly staff.

We then took the Monorail to the Seattle Center.

I love the Monorail still.  It is just fun to ride.

We walked through Seattle Center (with the Folk Life Festival going on) and headed toward the Queen Anne Dick’s.  Across the street they were showing Downton Abbey but unfortunately I didn’t have the time to watch it.  Soon!

We were planning on attending an event at Dick’s but it wasn’t starting yet.  So we headed down the road to the Mecca Cafe, which is on the list.

It was described as a dive bar and certainly was.  The bartender was initially not very accommodating, but things improved as she made me a kamikaze. To be fair she was at the end of her shift which probably started at 6 AM.

Then the event was getting ready to go.  It was the Seattle Basketball Legends Celebration.

We did have some Dick’s fries and drink.

Then Coach George Carl arrived!  He was swamped with fans, but Tom was able to get this photo with him.

They had a podcast interview with the creators of the Sonicsgate movie, true heroes of mine.

Then Shawn Kemp arrived!

He was then swamped by a Fox News team, outside of the tent.

Then Gary Payton arrived!

And then Kevin Calabro arrived!

Tom was able to get a selfie with Kevin too.

We then headed across town (partially with the Monorail) as we had tickets to the Mariners game against Houston.  This is our first game since the pandemic.  They now have canned cocktails.  So I had a gin and tonic.

They actually won, beating the Houston Astro and Verlander.  As we headed out of the ballpark I noticed how much Smith’s Tower is dwarfed by modern buildings.

We went to the 13 Coins restaurant.  Per the Second Meanest list we were supposed to have a late dinner which we certainly did.  I had a chicken parmesan (which is Tom’s favorite at this restaurant).  He used to like to go to these restaurants for lunch when he was working in the area.

On Saturday, we headed out to the Jules Mae Saloon.  This is the oldest bar in Seattle.

Per the second meanest list, I was supposed to have pork chops.  But they are not on the menu  so I had stroganoff instead.  It was yummy.

Then we headed to see Hat and Boots at Oxbow park.

Then we headed to the Duwamish Longhouse and Cultural Center.  They had somewhat limited hours, but I figured this should be part of any tour of historic Seattle.

It is a small museum but had plenty of artifacts that fascinated me.  They had a display of some of the fiber arts used by the tribe.

They had a ladle made from a Bighorn sheep horn.

They had a bentwood box.

There were examples of preserved native foods including Camas which I am trying to grow here.  (Our property had traditionally been a Camas field for the local Samish tribe).

There was a cedar cooking basket.

But best of all, for me anyway, was a basket that belonged to Princess Angeline,

and a shawl that belonged to her.

Another was an original letter written by Doc Maynard to his son in 1858.

The Duwamish are still not recognized as a tribe. I would ask you to support them in these efforts.

We headed back past the Duwamish River with jets on its banks.  This Waterway was declared a Superfund site. The contaminants include PCBs, PAHs, mercury, phthalates, fecal coliform caused by sewage overflow, and especially petroleum.

Next we headed to the corner of Martin Luther King Jr Way and Rainier Avenue South.

This was to start something I have wanted to do for a long time, drive the Posse on Broadway route.  Here is the original video.

Here are our videos (not nearly as cool but I still had a great time doing this).

 

We then headed to the Lake View Cemetery.  There we found the gravestone for Princess Angeline.  I have recently finished the book Chief Seattle and the Town That Took His Name: The Change of Worlds for the Native People and Settlers on Puget Sound.   She had  large funeral, but it was attended by all white people except her son.  

And here is the grave of Henry Yesler.

Then we headed to the headstones of Bruce and Brandon Lee.  I had never been.  There had been a huge group of people visiting it, and they left some burning incense which was nice.

We then headed to the infamous Comet Tavern.  This was on the Second Meanest list and I was supposed to have Olympia beer and hot nuts.

But they had neither, despite the sign in the window.  So I had a Rainier beer.

Then we drove to Alki.  Here’s the view of Seattle from there.

Spud’s Fish and Chips was on the list, but we chose not to eat there this time.

We saw the Statue of Liberty.

Then we went to the old house that had belonged to Doc Maynard.

Then we headed to the Luna Park Cafe for dinner.

I thought this place would have some artifacts from this old boardwalk amusement park.  It didn’t but it had photos of the park as well as lots of other fun items to look at. 

I had meatloaf dinner, and Tom had chicken fried steak.

I thought this clown was spooky, but there appears to be a photo of the famous carousel that was at the park.

They even had a J.P. Patches jacket there!

We headed back to Seattle on the detour route needed with the closure of the West Seattle Bridge.

On Sunday we headed to Northlake tavern and pizza house.

They have fun cartoons by David Horsey on the walls.

Per the Second Meanest list we were supposed to have Logger Special and a pint of Hale’s. So we have the pizza but omitted the olives and green  peppers on Tom’s half.  Hale’s is not made anymore (as of April of this year).  The pizza is really good, but the two of us couldn’t finish a small one.

Then we headed to the infamous Blue Moon Tavern.

Per the Second Meanest list we were supposed to visit the Hammered Man.  But his whereabouts are unknown.  This is what he looked like:

Here is what the Comet looks like currently.

They have a drawing/coloring book for the patrons.  We added to it.

Then we headed to Fremont.  We had to visit the Troll again,

and the Center of the Universe guidepost,

and the Lenin statue. He still has his bloody hand but now also is splashed with the colors of the Ukrainian flag.

Then we went to this innocuous building.

Inside was the Backdoor.  It definitely had a speakeasy vibe.

The bars of Fremont were particularly decimated by recent events so many that were on the Second Meanest list are no more.  But next was the George and Dragon.

Per the Second Meanest list I was supposed to have Shepherd’s Pie and Kronenberg.  Neither was on the menu, but I had a cottage pie and a Scotch egg.  Tom had fish and chips.

Then we had to visit JP and Gertrude again, Tom reluctantly.

When we got back to our hotel room, here is what the weather looked like.  This was actually much better than it had been.

On Monday, the weather improved.  So we went to the Ballard Locks.  Per Second meanest we were supposed to have a Sunday picnic there.  That did not happen.  I have been to the locks many times, but Tom had never been.

Here are some boats leaving the locks.

And a gate closing then the water leaving the lock.

Here is the water spillage over the dam there.

And the fish ladder.

I do not remember seeing fish here much in the past, but Herschel was here for part of this time.  The ladder was first constructed in 1917 and then rehabilitated in 1976.  I am thinking it is due again.

Then this fish processing boat came into the locks from Lake Union.  It had a houseboat attached to it.  Tom was fascinated.

We did see the Lockspot Cafe which was on the list, but we had other lunch plans.

We walked to Ray’s and arrived right when they were opening up the upstairs cafe.

So we got the best seat in the house.

We met an old co-worker of Tom’s and his wife there.  I was adventurous (for me) and had NW Cioppino.  It was really good.  Per the Second Meanest list I was supposed to have an Old Fashioned at happy hour.  It wasn’t happy hour, but I did have one.  This lunch was so perfect with the company, views, food and drink.  It was a very happy moment for me.

And there was a sea lion hanging out by us.  So that was fun too.  The sign above him said “No trespassing or loitering”.  I think she/he was doing both.

Then our friends brought us to the Great Blue Heron nesting spot by the locks.  And it was impressive.  There were many nest and many herons.  It was harder to see the chicks, but you could spot them between the leaves.  It was magical.

We left our friends and headed to Hattie’s Hat.  Per the S.M. list I was supposed to have an Old Fashioned, yet again.  Bryan Johnston, the author, apparently had a taste for them.  This one was actually really good though with lots of angostura and orange bitters.

We had some time before our next bucket list destination opened.  So we walked around Ballard a little and found this seemingly old establishment.

For some reason, I enjoyed this print in the bathroom.

The place we were waiting for was the Walrus and Carpenter.  Per the S.M. list I was supposed to have a highball there.  But even though we got there close to opening, it was an hour wait so we left.

We then went under the Ballard Bridge,

and headed to Mike’s Chili Parlor which was unfortunately closed.

Next we headed to the Edith Wilson Macefield House.

We headed back downtown and went to the Merchant’s Cafe, he oldest standing restaurant in Seattle.  Unfortunately they were having an emergency and the cook had to clean the AirBNB rooms for the boss.  So no dinner there for us.  But I did ahve a highball.

So we walked around Pioneer Square, noticing this interesting scene,

and then found McCoy’s Firehouse. It is in an older Pioneer Square building so filled in nicely.

As the weather had finally improved, we rented a Lime scooter and bike to get back to our hotel.  That was a lot of fun.

On Tuesday, we had coffee in our room and then checked out.

We drove by the Giant Red Twin Popsicle,

and headed to the 5 Point Cafe.  There had recently been a facebook post that more-or-less said that you are not a Seattleite if you hadn’t eaten here.  I hadn’t but Tom had when he worked downtown.

Per the S.M.list I was supposed to have a Chicken Fried Steak and Bloody Mary which I did.  I ate less than 1/3 of it.

Then we headed to Kemp’s Cannabis.

There were lots of photos and memorabilia there but this was my favorite.  Apparently he stops by a couple of times a week, usually later in the week and in the afternoons.  He lives nearby.

We then walked toward the Sculpture garden and then rented bike and roads along the water.  It was so much fun.  The ECHO by Jaume Plensa was on the list.  We saw it but didn’t take a photo.

I did get a nice view of the P.I. globe though.

We then headed to the Virginia Inn.

I was thirsty and had a Ginger Spritz.

Interestingly, the same day this photo of the Inn was posted on facebook.

We then headed to the Purple Store.  I have long wanted to go to this store in Ballard but found out they had one near the market so decided to go there instead.  But they were closed!!!  So I will have to try again sometime.

Then we headed to Lowell’s in the Pike Place Market.

I had a Cucumber Gin Cooler which was excellent.  The views were iconic as well.

We then headed to the Three Girls Bakery and bought goodies to take home.

We headed to Metsker Maps next.  Although it wasn’t on the bucket list, I always like going here and Tom bought a map for an upcoming trip.

Because they were on the list we went to the World Famous Giant Shoe Museum, (but we didn’t have any quarters to peak)

and the Gum Wall.

There was emergency sewer work occurring at the Market though.

We did look out onto all of the waterfront/viaduct construction work going on.

For dinner we went to The Athenian.

We both had fish, and the views were amazing.

That was the end of what we could accomplish with my bucket list.  Tom had bought tickets to see Mike Campbell and The Dirty Knobs at the Crocodile Cafe on Tuesday evening.  The show was amazing, but it was incredibly hot inside.

We got home after midnight that night.  We had a great trip.  I was able to see most (but not all) of the things on my list.  There is a map I created of the sites if you want to try it yourself.  There is a lot of developmental, workforce and pandemic pressures on these businesses to stay open.  So I wanted to support them as well as see them while they are still open.  Tom said his favorite spot was the locks.  Mine was Ray’s, but the herons were up there too.