The Ultimate Seattle Holiday Gift Guide 2017

Finding the perfect holiday gift isn't easy. Fortunately, we can help.

BY: NIA MARTIN & MARIANNE HALE | FROM THE PRINT EDITION | DECEMBER 2017 
 SEATTLEMAG.COM

Image Credit: Hayley Young

The right gifts for outdoor enthusiasts, artsy urbanites and everyone in between.

It’s that time of year again when we pause to write cards and wrap special somethings for special someones in sparkly paper and ribbons. There are a million gifts out there to choose from and, sure, it’s the thought that counts, but taking the time to select the right gift for the right person is truly thoughtful.

Without further ado, here’s our 2017 picks to guide you through the shopping bustle.

What a Card
Holiday selections from Seattle stationery shops we love

1. Paper Delights. Two locations, including Wallingford, 2205 N 45th St.; 206.547.1002.

2. Paper Hammer. Downtown, 1400 Second Ave.; 206.682.3820.

3. Pike Street Press. Downtown, 1510 Alaskan Way; 206.971.0120.

4. Farewell Paperie. Georgetown, 5628 Airport Way S, Suite 170; 360.930.9858.

5. Dahlia Press. Eastlake, 2917 Fuhrman Ave. E; 206.552.9447.

Out & About
For the outdoorsy types

1. Perfect for work or weekends away, SoDo-based Filson’s 48-Hour Duffel bag ($475) can carry you through rain or shine thanks to its rain-repellent tin cloth exterior, rust-proof zippers and durable bridle leather. Wayward, two locations including Bellevue, Bellevue Square, 238 Bellevue Way NE; 425.230.4740.

2. The waterproof Freeman jacket ($325) is the gift that keeps giving in our drizzly city. The men’s trim-fit, flannel-lined, locally made outerwear comes in a few hues as well as a Lady Freeman version. Freeman, Capitol Hill, 713 Broadway E; 206.327.9932.

3. Electrify your spin class with these bright yellow Rapha Reflective Climber’s Shoes ($400). Made from reflective material, they’re highly visible, and dare we say, hella stylish to boot. Rapha Seattle, Capitol Hill, 301 E Pine St.; 206.420.1810. 

4. From Seattle publisher Sasquatch Books, Curious Kids Nature Guide ($19.99) explores the wonders of our Pacific Northwest playground with fun facts and illustrations that will have little adventurers itching to get outdoors. Available at area bookstores including The Elliott Bay Book Company, Capitol Hill, 1521 10th Ave; 206.624.6600.

5. Oiselle’s Runner Trucker hat ($30) is a fit pick for the female athlete. Made of moisture-wicking mesh with an easy-to-pack, foldable bill, this sporty trucker features nature photography by Olympian track star Sarah Attar and is available at their Seattle flagship store. Oiselle, University Village, 2632 NE University Village St.; 206.523.1091.

6. The Nikon Monarch 5 8x42 Binoculars ($300) offer a large field of vision, and this pair from Seattle Audubon Society works for newbies and seasoned bird-watchers alike. Wedgwood, 8050 35th Ave.; 206.523.4483.

In Good Taste
For lovers of food and drink

1. Craft cocktail fans can take refined sips from these one-of-a-kind vintage Baccarat coupe glasses ($110/glass), available at Seattle-based Watson Kennedy Fine Home, which regularly stocks drinkware from the storied French crystal house. Downtown, 1022 First Ave.; 206.652.8350.

2. If you’re looking for something truly out of this world with the ingredient of the moment, try Moon Goo caramel sauce ($18), with activated charcoal from Frankie & Jo’s, local makers of plant-based ice cream. Incorporate the caramel confection into batters for cakes and brownies, or simply drizzle it over ice cream. Capitol Hill, 1010 E Union St.; 206.257.1676.

3. This restaurant-quality, custom stainless-steel Gatsby steak knife ($125) from award-winning chef Jason Wilson’s newly opened dining hot spot, The Lakehouse, is made in partnership with Bradford Knives. The Lakehouse, Bellevue, Lincoln Square South, 10455 NE Fifth Place; 425.454.7076 (also available at Wilson’s Miller’s Guild restaurant downtown).

4. Soothe a sweet tooth with Jcoco’s chocolate tasting flights ($13/trio of 3-ounce bars), a select line of bars by local company, Seattle Chocolates. Sample cacaos from different South American countries, with varying cacao percentages or levels of milk and cocoa butter. Seattle Chocolates, Southcenter, 1180 Andover Park W; 877.427.7915.

5. An appropriate present for a foodie and entertainer, these hand-forged, hammer-pinged copper CG Sculpture and Jewelry Disco Spoons ($25), by Seattle artist Catherine Grisez, lets you add that perfect dash of spice or mix a cocktail with sophistication.

6. Crack open a local lager in style with this Mount Rainier Topographic Bottle Opener by SML, a local husband-and-wife design duo. Each wall-mountable piece is laser-etched from unique woods (shown here in Douglas fir). The Handmade Showroom, downtown, Pacific Place, 600 Pine St., No. 301; 206.623.0504.

Sparkle & Shine
For those who want a little extra shimmer

1. Keep it fun and make a statement with these Arc + Line Earrings ($112.95) in silver and brass by Portland designer, Natalie Joy. Available, along with several other exclusive designs, at Velouria, Pioneer Square, 145 S King St.; 206.788.0330.

2. Seattle jewelry maker, Rebekah J. Design’s two-toned Londey bracelet ($66) combines a silver bangle with a brass top for a versatile, minimalist-chic accessory for fashion-forward friends and family.

3. The Hugo Boss Grand Prix watch ($295) comes in a few styles of band, including a sporty perforated tan leather and a sleek silver bracelet. Nordstrom, multiple locations including downtown, 500 Pine St., Suite 500; 206.628.2111.

4. These Deakin and Francis Sterling Silver Oval Cufflinks ($220) marry modern design with practiced craftsmanship. Alvin Goldfarb Jeweler, Bellevue, 305 Bellevue Way NE; 425.454.9393.

5. Seattle-based Allison Claire’s Micropavé Dubs Up diamond ring ($1,109–$1,104) in 14K gold with .363 total carat weight is an elegant way to show off your school spirit.

6. Baleen’s geometric, handmade Beam Necklace ($48), with a silicon orb-like bead, will leave your gift recipient beaming as well. Shown in navy (also available in black or white) from the Ballard-based shop and studio. Ballard, 6418 20th Ave. NW. 

Design Minded
For the artsy crowd

1. These hand-cut, 100 percent wool Northwest-chic The Peaks Mountain Pillows by Three Bad Seeds, based in Washington, are available in various sizes ($65–$90) from Join Shop (by the Join Design collective), which carries a bevy of creative gifts for the home. The pillows combine the likeness of nature’s breathtaking design with cozy softness, lending warmth to any room during a Seattle winter. South Lake Union, 400 Fairview Ave. N, No. 102.

2. Forget sand rakes and stress balls, ponder your next big idea while fiddling with Portland-based Ekko’s laser-cut Elliptical Desktop Mobile ($63). Seattle Art Museum Shop, downtown, 1300 First Ave.; 206.654.3120.

3. These limited-quantity scarves are more than just neck dressing, they’re actual works of art. Seattle-based Italian artist Carlo Scanagatta’s Scomposta Rampante scarf ($385) comes printed on soft modal and cashmere fabric. Available at a few locations including Margaret O’Leary, University Village, 2609 NE University Village St.; 206.729.5934.

4. Known for her raw, sculptural aesthetic, Joanna Morgan’s brass dishes ($45–$115; 1.5–2 inches in diameter) are sweet and bijou, perfect for holding your tiniest treasures, and crafted in Morgan’s Pioneer Square studio.

5. Whether you’re 6 or 66, fling some natural beauty back into the environment with these handmade Hella slingshots ($39) designed from found tree branches by the San Francisco company. The accompanying colorful, earth-friendly Hella seed bomb ammo balls ($5.95/pack) include seeds from flowering plants such as snapdragon and catchfly. Prism, Ballard, 5208 Ballard Ave. NW; 206.402.4706.

6. We’re head over heels for these uniquely designed men’s Nike Air Max Woven boots ($200) at Likelihood (which carries a curated selection of both men’s and women’s stylish kicks). Capitol Hill, 1101 E Union St.; 206.257.0577.

One Size Fits All
For those who deserve more than a gift card

1. The Out-of-Town Relative. Aunt Judy couldn’t make it this year from Omaha? Bring the Northwest to her with these sweetly designed Oliotto tea towels ($20) made locally and available at area retailers, including home and accessories gem Click! Design That Fits. West Seattle, 4540 California Ave. SW; 206.328.9252.

2. Secret Santa. Blindly choosing a gift is tough, but in this town, chances are your recipient will have a little Seahawks spirit. These bright Posie Turner Be Twelve socks ($16.50), available in men’s and women’s sizes, are a safe bet from a favorite Seattle designer.

3. The Dog Lover’s Dog. The Seattle Barkery’s Pumpkin Pup Pies ($14 each, $25 for two) from the Treat Bar at Dogwood Playpark are sure to make canine tails wag. Lake City, 12568 33rd Ave. NE; 206.851.1549; (see website for traveling truck schedule).

4. The Coworker. Encourage your staffers to stop borrowing your pen with this nifty Apolis Transit Issue Fisher Space Pen ($28), which they’ll never want to lose (it writes upside down and underwater). From contemporary clothing and home goods store, Glasswing. Capitol Hill, 1525 Melrose Ave.; 206.641.7646. 

5. The Teacher. They’ve given your kids the tools for success, so reward instructors with this adorable and versatile Kikkerland Animal Multi-tool ($20) from Flora and Henri. Pioneer Square, 401 First Ave. S; 206.749.9698.

6. The Traditionalist. Whether it’s grandma or your hipster niece, this clever set of The Letter Farmer’s Letter Topics writing prompts ($22) from their stationery truck are a letter writer’s dream—and they just might up your chances of getting real mail that isn’t a bill.

From left to right: Feller raincoat (Tereza Janakova), Not Monday cardigan (Darren Hendrix) and SCHAI Vita Snood (Charlie Shuck).

Fashion: Hers and His
For stylish men or women

Rain Gear
The “Queen Anne” waxed cotton and water-resistant trench ($495) by Seattle-based Feller adds a bit of cheer to the dreary season with a fresh floral pattern that compliments your best jeans and wellies.

Wrap Up
Seattle tee and sweater company Not Monday’s “The Weekend” cardigan ($350) is a dreamy blend of mercerized wool and cashmere that we can’t wait to fold ourselves into.

Neck Cozy
Designer and Seattleite Suk Chai of brand SCHAI offers polished, modern and versatile pieces for women, including this luxe alpaca “Vita Snood” ($295).

Photo by Angela Carlyle of Angela and Evan Photography

Dual Scent
What’s better than having one signature scent? Having two! Seattle area perfumier, Immortal Perfumes, has created romance in a bottle with the “Heathcliff & Catherine - Literary Lovers Set.” Heathcliff possesses darker notes of leather and chocolate, while Catherine’s notes are lighter with English Ivy and heather ($75).

Clockwise from top left: Photos courtesy of Tunellus, Dick's Drive-In Restaurants, Woolly and Sharply.

Warm Up
Local brand Tunellus keeps things cozy and sophisticated with their speckled “Shawl Neck” cardigan ($99) available at Nordstrom. Multiple locations including downtown, 500 Pine St.; 206.628.2111

Seattleite Must
Guys, represent your favorite burger joint in a classic button down flannel ($39.99) that sports the orange and blue of Seattle establishment, Dick’s Drive-In.

Travel Time
A solid dopp kit is a must when traveling. Seattle company Sharply carries a number of quality goods for men, including this waxed canvas kit ($75) by Portland-based Wood & Faulk. Capitol Hill, 500 E Pike St.; 206.258.2881

In the Fold
Time to replace that velcro bill holder? Portland brand Woolly offers the sleek, handsewn leather “Landscape” wallet ($120) available at Seattle graphic design and apparel spot, Mystery Made. West Seattle, 2727 California Ave. SW

Clockwise from top left: SheePals courtesy of Bergström Studios, Seattle Ballooning, Lenna Peterson rug (photo by Brandon Herrell) and The Stemmery (photo by Sarah Abare).

Yours/Ours
Gifts for the special anybody in your life

Creature Feature
Sit back and put your feet up on these adorable Sheep Pals ($189) made from organic materials by Vashon-based artisans, Bergström Studios.

Up & Away
See Washington as you’ve never seen it before—from above! Choose from several gift certificate packages from Seattle Ballooning($275-$1150) and float above the treetops towards Mt. Rainier. Burien, 16247 8th Ave SW; 206.588.9788

Flower Power
Give the gift of natural beauty this season with a subscription to The Stemmery, which delivers to Seattle, Kirkland and Bellevue. Go big with an Olympic Blooms bouquet (price varies based on delivery and frequency), featuring locally and seasonally sourced flora. 

Fabulous Floor
Seattleite Lenna Petersen weaves her one-of-a-kind rugs ($400-$1100) from the looms in her dining room, creating colorful geometric pieces that are also on display at Seattle boutique, Jack Straw, through December.

O, Christmas Tree!

By Shelby Rowe Moyer | November 27, 2017 | Courtesy of 425magazine.com

Evergreens are breathtaking year-round, but they’re arguably even more stately during the winter as we approach the holiday season. Our collection of Eastside Christmas tree farms offers the perfect destination for foraging through a variety of beautiful firs. You certainly won’t find any Charlie Brown trees here.

Trinity Tree Farm

The quaint 40-acre farm isn’t just a run-of-the-mill Christmas tree farm. It’s also a stunning backdrop for Pacific Northwest weddings, so you know you’re arriving at a picturesque location to pick out an equally beautiful tree. You can cut down a tree yourself or pick from their precut selection. Entertain your wee ones with train rides, and snap a photo next to the 1955 fire engine. Before you go, stop by the boutique for a quick gift. trinitytreefarm.com

Carnation Tree Farm

Two Norwegian immigrants from the late 1800s purchased a midsized farm and built a charming house in 1907 that’s now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Carnation Farm is a little slice of history that currently operates as a U-Cut Christmas Tree farm with a hearty selection of precut trees. Also available are handmade wreaths, cedar garland, swags, mistletoe, and holly. You’ll feel good about any purchases because the farm uses eco-friendly practices. Carnation. carnationtreefarm.com

Buttonwood Farm

Buttonwood Farm has a real community feel with a family-run operation and help from area high school students. Being 100 percent organic is a high priority for the owners, who are committed to keeping toxic sprays off the trees. If you aren’t partial to the heavy lifting that comes with cutting down a tree, pick out your favorite and let one of their friendly staff members do the work for you. Just let them know where you want it delivered! Redmond. buttonwoodfarm.com

Snow Valley Christmas Tree Farm

The Wick family wants to be part of your holiday tradition of sipping hot chocolate, taking in the smell of the Evergreens, and discovering this year’s family tree. Choose from a selection of 28,000 trees and six varieties — Noble, Grand, Frasier, Turkish, Nordmann, and Norway. And leave your gardening tools at home. At the farm, saws, mats, and twine are provided, and staff can help you harvest the tree, if you’d like. Duvall. snowvalleychristmastreefarm.com

Snowflake Lane Returns For 21st Year

By Joanna Kresge | November 22, 2017 | Courtesy of 425magazine.com 

Photo courtesy Snowflake Lane via Facebook

nce you’ve gotten your fill of turkey and gravy, it’s time to don the ugly Christmas sweaters, deck the halls, and hang the stockings by the fire.

Bellevue also is ready to celebrate the holiday with its 21st annual Bellevue Magic Season Snowflake Lane which kicks off this Friday and runs nightly at 7 p.m. through Christmas Eve.

Following the opening night parade, guests also will be treated to the lighting of the 30-foot tree at the Bellevue Place Wintergarden with Jolly Saint Nick, himself. Attendees will also have the opportunity to have the photo taken with Santa and other Snowflake Lane Characters, enjoy hot chocolate and candy canes at Fonte Coffee, or visit Suite Restaurant and Lounge for piping hot butternut squash soup.

The nightly holiday parade has been expanded to run the entire distance between Northeast Fourth Street and Northeast Eighth Street to accommodate more spectators. For this reason, Bellevue visitors should expected increased traffic congestion in the downtown area as people gather for the festivities.

Visit Bellevue Magic Season and Snowflake Lane online for more information.

Check out our full list of holiday happenings here.

Who Needs Black Friday When Seattle's Small Business Saturday Deals Are This Good?

Shop local and save while skipping the Black Friday hysteria.

BY: NIA MARTIN | FROM THE PRINT EDITION |  | SEATTLEMAG.COM

Image Credit: 

Meredith McKee

Stock up on prints at Constellation and Co.

Forget Black Friday. During Small Business Saturday (November 25), you’ll find stores offering exclusive promotions and discover that special something. Here’s what some of our favorite small shops are offering.

1. Sell Your Sole, which offers high-end consignment pieces (think Alexander McQueen and Prada), hosts the designers behind Seattle modern women’s wear brand Schai, Joanna Morgan Designs’ sculptural jewelry line and high-quality essentials by Mia Fioravanti. The meet-and-greet includes Champagne, macarons and fashion tips from a personal stylist. Belltown, 2121 First Ave., Suite 101; 206.443.2616

2. Browse contemporary, globally inspired housewares from design-minded Stock and Pantry, while enjoying complimentary bubbly and gift wrapping. Capitol Hill, 313 E Pine St.; 206.623.5555

Photograph by Bobby Arispe; Stock and Pantry

3. Support female makers at minimalist home decor and nursery shop Miroja. Spend $25 or more at the storewide sale and enjoy a surprise gift. Ballard, 1417 NW 54th St.; 206.466.6393

Photograph by Hannah Garvin; Miroja

4. Peruse a delightful selection of T-shirts, baseball caps and pins with vintage team logos, as well as the wool flannels that put Ebbets Field Flannels on the map, and enjoy a 20 percent discount on everything in store—including that Seattle Rainiers jersey. Pioneer Square, 108 S Jackson St.; 888.896.293

Photograph by Abigail Keenan; Ebbets Field Flannels

5. Specialty food and wine shop Hedge and Vine is offering complimentary tastings paired with a storewide 20 percent discount and free wine key with purchases of more than $50. Delicious. Bellevue, 10028 Main St.; 425.451.7872

6. Pick up your free stationery gift and get 10 percent off your purchase at Constellation and Co., where you’ll find beautiful paper goods handmade in its letterpress studio at the historic Fishermen’s Terminal. Interbay, 1900 W Nickerson St., No. 101; 206.453.4415

BONUS:

Meander into Rizom to check out sophisticated women’s wear and accessories by local and international designers, then wander up the spiral staircase to Pacific Standard Books and take in the dreamy collection of rare art, fashion and photography books. The two shops will offer discounts of 10–20 percent. Belltown, 2316 Second Ave.; 206.441.7541

The Past and Future of Seattle in Ridiculous Gingerbread Houses

Sheraton’s Seattle Gingerbread Village celebrates its 25th anniversary in a new location.

BY: MEGAN TOAL | Posted November 22, 2017 | Courest of Seattlemag.com

Image Credit: Sheraton Seattle

This is what happens when you let architects design gingerbread houses.

Since 1992, the Sheraton Seattle has held a competition for architecture firms, master builders and Sheraton’s culinary teams to build the best and most elaborate gingerbread displays. This year’s theme for the Sheraton Seattle's 25th annual Gingerbread Village is “25 Years of Cheer: A Celebration of Seattle.”

How do these talented gingerbread builders celebrate the Emerald City, you ask? By building glorious candy neighborhoods of Seattle from both 100 years ago and 100 years into the future.

Be awed by the rotating 360-degree gingerbread history of Seattle, featuring the Great Fire of 1889 and the famous buildings that rose from its ashes in the decades to come. Some builders chose to embody the seven hills of Seattle by building 1917 Seattle on a giant gingerbread hill, with St. James Cathedral perched on top and the docks in the Sound at the bottom, replete with candy otters and whales.

The gingerbread villages of Seattle neighborhoods in 2117 feature a broad variety of futuristic visions, from a city of bright flashing lights in one display to a space station in another. Be sure to see the other gingerbread displays with Seattle halfway underwater—look for the submerged Fremont troll and an attacking giant squid.

There is no cost to attend, but donations to Sheraton Seattle's Gingerbread Village benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Northwest Chapter. While previously held at the Sheraton Hotel, the Gingerbread Village is at City Centre this year as the Sheraton undergoes a renovation. Visit the displays now through January 1.

Sheraton’s Seattle Gingerbread Village
City Centre, 1420 Fifth Ave., at the Fifth and Sixth Avenue entrances

These Seattle Restaurants Are Open for Thanksgiving (Plus a Few To-Go Picks)

Cooking is hard. Leave it to the pros with these Thanksgiving restaurant options.

BY: ALEXANDRA HAUPT |  SEATTLEMAG.COM

Image Credit: bhofack2 Food tastes better when someone else prepares it.

Instead of trying to master your grandma’s stuffing and embarking on turkey-cooking misadventures, consider letting one of these Seattle restaurants do the work for you. There are plenty of fine establishments open for Thanksgiving, and even a few that will prep a takeout feast. Whether you’re looking for a traditional turkey dinner or a year off from the gravy-soaked carb load, we got you. 

North Seattle

Tilth
Seasonal American fare restaurant offers a prix fixe dinner, $85 per person. Dinner includes appetizers and entrée choice of roasted turkey breast, grass run rib-eye and field roast (vegetarian). Dessert options include pecan pie and pumpkin cashew-coconut cheesecake. 1411 N 45th St., Seattle; 206.633.0801; mariahinesrestaurants.com.

Agrodolce
Family-style Thanksgiving at the Southern Italian-inspired loft, reservations required. $70 per person ($30 children 13 and under). This six-dish affair is Thanksgiving dinner with an Italian spin; think sweet potato cavatelli and turkey breast involtini. Sicilian pear and olive oil cake for dessert. 709 N 35th St.; 206.547.9707; mariahinesrestaurants.com.

Capitol Hill and Madison Park

Hula Hula
Prix fixe dinner of Hawaiian-style Northwest fare, reservations recommended. $26 per person. Enjoy roasted smoked Northwest turkey with rosemary gravy, sausage-herb stuffing, creamy mashed Yukon Gold potatoes, crispy brussels sprouts, pineapple cranberry sauce and house-made Hawaiian sweet roll. Dessert is a house-made banana cream pumpkin pie. Karaoke will be held at 9 p.m. 1501 E Olive Way, Capitol Hill; 206.284.5003; hulahula.org.

Cafe Flora (vegetarian)
Four-course vegetarian menu, reservations recommended. $75 adults ($25 for kids). The menu also features vegan and gluten-free options, including spice apple parsnip soup with crispy brussels sprouts, roasted fennel and grilled Belgium endive salad, and creative veggie entree choices. Dessert includes pumpkin mouse or rustic apple galette. The kids menu includes carrots in a blanket, a garden salad, mini shepherd's pie and a pumpkin pie dessert. 2901 E Madison St., Madison Park; 206.325.9100; cafeflora.com.

South Lake Union

Daniel’s Broiler and Chandler's Crabhouse
Seafood-heavy four-course menu, served from noon to 8 p.m. $52 adults, $12 children 6-10, children 5 and under free. Begin with a seasonal relish tray, choice of signature soups or salads, and an entree of your choice: roast turkey breast, grilled king salmon or prime rib, all of which comes with traditional sides. For dessert choose a double scoop of Olympic Mountain Ice Cream with snicker doodle cookies or pumpkin pie with coffee and tea. Locations vary; 206.223.2722; schwartzbros.com.

Belltown

Local 360
Local and sustainable restaurant in the heart of Belltown is serving dinner for $39 per person. It includes roast turkey breast with confit legs, sides such as buttermilk biscuits and celery root puree, with pumpkin pie or chocolate hazelnut torte for dessert. 2234 1st Ave., Belltown; 206.441.9460; local360.org.

Belltown Brewing
Enjoy a beer lover’s Thanksgiving for $25 per person with a curated beer flight for $12. The menu includes butternut squash bisque, fire-roasted turkey breast, glazed brussles sprouts, house-made seeded pretzel stuffing, cranberry chutney and roasted garlic mashed potatoes with cider-sage gravy. Dessert is pumpkin cheesecake. 200 Bell St., Belltown; 206.485.7233; belltownbrewingseattle.com.

Shaker & Spear
The seafood restaurant created a special Thanksgiving menu ($30 per person). Thyme-roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, cranberry and gravy with dessert options including gingersnap pumpkin pie, apple crisp and more. The regular menu will also be available a la carte. 2000 2nd Ave., Belltown; 206.826.1700; shakerandspear.com.

Downtown

Wild Ginger
Enjoy an Asian-inspired Thanksgiving, reservations accepted. The menu features Malay-style roast turkey, wok-fried brussels sprouts, kabocha squash curry and sweet potato mash. Dessert is vanilla bean cheesecake. 1401 3rd Ave., downtown; 206.623.4450; wildginger.net.

Six Seven Restaurant & Lounge
The Edgewater Hotel offers a four-course menu, $75 per person from 12-8 p.m. Appetizers include foraged mushroom risotto, butternut squash and apple bisque, Dungeness crab cake, classic salads. Entree are roasted natural turkey, Roquefort-crusted beef filet, cedar plank king salmon, miso-glazed black cod and seasonal pappardelle. Dessert choices include traditional pumpkin pie, flourless chocolate torte and lemon ricotta cheesecake. 2411 Alaskan Way, downtown; 206.269.4575; edgewaterhotel.com.

RN74
French-inspired menu with traditional festive dishes, $75 per person with $40 optional wine pairing. The menu includes a variety of appetizers, such as Belgian endive and apple salad and sweet potato gnocchi. Entrees include roast heritage turkey, lobster, filet mignon and risotto. Dessert options are pumpkin pie, fall apple cobbler, mousse au chocolate. 1433 4th Ave. and Pike St., downtown; 206.456.7474; michaelmina.net.

Outlier
Enjoy a Thanksgiving menu at this recently renovated upscale restaurant offering Pacific Northwest and globally inspired dishes. $75 per person, $40 for kids 12 and under, $5 for kids 5 and under. Menu includes butternut squash and pear soup, wild mushroom bread pudding and turkey leg confit. Desserts include pumpkin cheesecake and cranberry crumble. 1101 4th Ave., downtown; 206.624.7755; outlierseattle.com.

Plum Bistro (vegetarian)
Choose from 3 different varieties of a prix fixe all vegan menu or order catering to go (reservations required, email holidays@plumbistro.com), $62-$67. Festive sides also available a la carte. Dessert options include pecan pie, gluten-free chocolate coconut cream pie, apple pomegranate and ginger pie, sweet potato pumpkin pie. 1419 12th Ave., downtown; 206.838.5333; plumbistro.com.

Frolik
Located on top of one of Seattle’s beloved boutique hotels, Frolick offers guests a Thanksgiving Day Feast, $65 for adults and $22 for kids 12 years of age and under. Entrées include herb and citrus butter roasted turkey, green bean casserole with fried shallots, rosemary cranberry sauce and an assortment of organic seasonal veggies. Dessert includes apple and golden raisin pie with toasted walnuts, vanilla ice cream and bourbon caramel sauce. 1415 5th Ave., downtown; 206.971.8015; destinationhotels.com.

Eastside 

Maggiano’s Little Lady (Bellevue)
Enjoy a four-course family-style meal at Maggiano's, $45 per person, $19 for ages 5-12. Carry out package serves five people for $225.00. The first course includes a complimentary bruschetta, then choice of salad, entree choice of traditional turkey breast made with giblet gravy and focaccia sausage stuffing, country-style ham and parmesan crusted tilapia, choice of Italian pasta. For dessert: pumpkin praline cheesecake, tiramisu, chocolate zuccotto cake or warm apple crostada. 10455 NE 8th St., Bellevue; 425.519.6480; maggianos.com.

The Lakehouse
Authentic Thanksgiving dinner, $70 per person, $45 for kids 12 and under. The menu offers small shared plates shared, such as twice-baked sun chokes and deviled eggs, unique salads and entree choices of classic roasted natural turkey, grilled prime rib. Dessert choices include pecan pie and creamy pumpkin pie. 10455 NE 5th Place, Bellevue; 425.454.7076; thelakehousebellevue.com.

Eques at Hyatt Regency
Seasonal buffet of Pacific Northwest favorites and traditional dishes, $50 for adults, $24 for children 5-12. 12-4 p.m. Reservations recommended. The feast includes a choice of three salads with assorted toppings, a variety of hot items including miso-orange salmon jasmine rice, cider brined chicken, sweet and whipped potatoes and green bean casserole. A carving station includes turkey and gravy, chorizo cornbread stuffing, herb roasted prime rib and mini brioche rolls. Beechers mac ‘n’ cheese is also offered, plus a variety of desserts. 900 Bellevue Way NE, Bellevue; 425.698.4100; bellevue.regency.hyatt.com.

Thanksgiving To Go

Gourmondo's
Gourmet Thanksgiving meal, along with the favorite sides and dessert. Orders must be place online or by phone before Monday, Nov. 20 for pick up or delivery up to the Wednesday before the holiday. This package includes cider-basted turkey, turkey giblet gravy, a wild greens salad, parsnip apple bisque, creamy Yukon Gold mashers, savory sausage and date stuffing, roasted brussels sprouts, citrus and spice poached cranberries, fresh breads and rolls, spice roasted pumpkin pie. $45 per person, six-person minimum. 309 South Cloverdale St. Ste B3, Seattle, WA 98108, 206.587.0190; gourmondoco.com.

Out of Town

Tulalip Resort
Resort restaurants serving Thanksgiving dinner range from modern and sophisticated Blackfish Wild Salmon Grill to the casual Draft Sports Grill and Bar. Cedar's Cafe is offering a slow-roasted turkey, scratch-made turkey gravy and various traditional sides. The Eagle's buffet offers an all-day Thanksgiving feast from 9 a.m to 9 p.m. Prices vary. 10200 Quil Ceda Blvd, Tulalip; 360.716.7162; tulalipresortcasino.com.

Additional reporting by Megan Lamb.

These Souped-Up Deli Counters Sling the Best Premade Dishes by the Pound

Skip the heat-lamped Safeway case and give your picnic some panache.

BY: CHELSEA LIN AND JESS THOMSON | SEATTLEMAG.COM | FROM THE PRINT EDITION | NOVEMBER 2017

mage Credit: Hayley Young

Don't settle for an average deli counter.

hese aren’t your everyday deli counters—and that’s a good thing. For the finest in premade dishes and by-the-pound sides and salads, these spots are the best.

East Anchor Seafood
At this clean, bright Madrona fish shop, head for the help-yourself fridge case for dishes that highlight the ultrafresh seafood, including a Dungeness crab and snap pea salad ($11) and the excellent house-smoked fish spread ($11), best with a Columbia City baguette from the basket nearby. Madrona, 1126 34th Ave.; 206.708.6669.

The London Plane
Although the takeout selection has changed recently (gone are those by-the-pound salads and meatballs), in a cold case up front, you can now find boxed sandwiches and mezze assortments (plus yogurt, cheeses, and the can’t-miss pastry options)—that is, if you arrive early, before everything has sold out. If you want ensured lunch satisfaction, order 48 hours in advance from its specialized takeout menu. Pioneer Square, 300 Occidental Ave. S; 206.624.1374.

Deru Market
Don’t miss the baked goods at this much loved Eastside café, but strike a balance with the savory: giant meatballs in tomato sauce ($8 each), golden beet salad with pistachio pesto ($13 per pound), and roasted broccoli and kale ($13 per pound), plus woodfired pizzas and sandwiches made to order. Kirkland, 723 Ninth Ave.; 425.298.0268.

Copine
Think of the takeaway items in the deli case at this fine-dining Ballard destination as complements to a wonderful meal there—not substitutes. Pick up perfect seasonal soups and simple salads to enjoy the next day ($7–$10), plus some foie gras dog biscuits for Fido ($4). It also offers a takeout-only Sunday supper for two ($65), which must be ordered by the prior Thursday. Ballard, 6460 24th Ave. NW; 206.258.2467; Wednesday–Saturday, noon–2 p.m. and 5–9 p.m.; Sunday noon–4 p.m.

I Love Souzai
This hidden gem, a counter of ready-to-eat Japanese dishes, is tucked inside Bellevue’s I Love Sushi restaurant. Grab-and-go bento boxes ($9–$20) are available, but you’ll want to try the colorful salads sold by the pound; the steamed chicken salad ($4.25 per quarter pound) is the best seller for a reason. Bellevue, 23 Lake Bellevue Drive; 425.455.9090.

Snowy Escapes

By Shelby Rowe Moyer | November 13, 2017 | Courtesy of 425magazine.com

Washington winters are marked by rainy days and thriving evergreen trees, but snowfall can be rare in our area. If you’re craving fresh powder and the humbling experience of standing at the base of a regal mountain, check out these Pacific Northwest resorts.

© Eli Duke, Creative Commons

Schweitzer Mountain Resort

All mountains are picturesque, but Schweitzer Mountain Resort feels like paradise in the Idaho Panhandle, about 85 miles from Spokane. Founded in 1963, it offers a variety of runs based on level of expertise, with the longest being 2 miles — Little Blue Ridge Run. The 9,000-square-foot summit Sky House lodge is the best place to take in the views, and warm up with Evans Brother Coffee Roasters or beer from MickDuff’s Brewing Company. Have a hot pastrami sandwich or a chicken pot pie at the Red Hawk Café, and then hit the slopes again. schweitzer.com

Ski Season Dec. 1 to early April, conditions permitting

Whistler Resort

The Whistler Resort Association in British Columbia is a Northwest staple, with an extensive list of activities for those who want to see the brilliance of fresh powder on a mountaintop, but aren’t interested in skiing or snowboarding. Take a ride on the Peak 2 Peak gondola with 360-degree views, or go dog sledding through the old-growth forest of the Callaghan Valley. If you’re on the more adventurous side, spend the day touring ice caves and hot springs via helicopter. The town has plenty to offer for everyone. whistlerblackcomb.com

Ski Season Nov. 23 to late April or May

Crystal Mountain

Located about two hours from Bellevue in rural Enumclaw, Crystal Mountain is the largest ski resort in Washington, with 2,600 acres and more than 50 runs. More than $30 million was invested in the last 10 years to make the mountain a highly sought-after destination. Gondola rides are available year-round, but seeing the terrain as a snowy expanse is an unmatched experience. The Summit House restaurant is the perfect place to wind down after hitting the slopes. Sign up for a snowshoe tour, or sip a brew while listening to live music. crystalmountainresort.com

Ski Season End of November to mid-April

Mount Baker Ski Area

Just east of the quintessential college town of Bellingham is Mount Baker. Small class sizes make Mount Baker an ideal place to learn how to ski or snowboard. And there are several activities that will keep you coming back for more snow-filled fun, including the November Film Fest and a Santa photo-op in December. mtbaker.us

Ski Season Late November to the end of April

Mount Hood

Mount Hood offers panoramic views of Oregon, and staff members claim it “delivers a big mountain experience” without the hassle of traveling far. The resort is about 90 minutes from Portland and offers some of the best skiing and snowboarding in the Northwest with runs that suit a range of skill levels. For more challenging terrain, check out Heather Canyon, with steep pitches of glorious snow. skihood.com

Ski Season Mid-November to mid-April, weather permitting

Eastside Holiday Events

By Lauren Foster | November 14, 2017 | Courtesy of 425magazine.com

The days are shorter, the temperatures are colder, but – dare we say it – it’s the most wonderful time of the year. Here are some of our favorite (old and new) Eastside events to get you in the spirit. Queue the jingle bells!

Through Dec. 24
Snowflake Lane at The Bellevue Collection
Drumming toy soldiers, animated snow characters, glittering lights, vibrant floats, and even “snow” transform a four-block stretch of Bellevue Way into a magical, family-friendly celebration of the holiday season nightly at 7 p.m.

Through Dec. 25

Visit with Reindeer

Country Village Shops in Bothell will play host to two of Santa’s reindeer throughout the holiday season. Shop the charming small business stores for holiday treasures, stop in to visit with the magical beasts between Keepsake Cottage and The Pet Place, and enjoy lit displays as you take a stroll through the grounds.

Through Dec. 31

Garden d’Lights at Bellevue Botanical Garden

If you like the Bellevue Botanical Garden by day, you will love it illuminated with more than a half-million holiday lights at night. Walk the garden path between 4:30 p.m.-9 p.m. Admission is $5 for 11 and up; admission is free for kids ages 10 and younger. For more information call 425.452.6844 or visit Garden d’Lights online.

Through Jan. 15

Bellevue Magic Season Ice Arena

Nothing feels more festive during the holiday season than ice skating with your loved ones. This year, the Bellevue Magic Season Ice Arena will be held at the recently completed Downtown Bellevue Park. Skate no matter the weather under a covered shelter and enjoy music, free skate Mondays, complimentary lessons, and more. For more information, visit Bellevue Downtown online.

Dec. 1-23

Issaquah Reindeer Festival

Visit Cougar Mountain Zoo from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily for a photo with Santa. Feed reindeer, create and send a letter in the post office, wander through a magical forest, and hear a story from one of Santa’s elves.

Dec. 2

Redmond Lights

A trio of holiday events begins at 4 p.m. with a tree lighting ceremony and holiday market at Redmond City Hall, followed by an illuminated, mile-long walk along the Sammamish River and Redmond Central Connector trails, and ending at Redmond Town Center, where plenty of family-friendly activities await.

Dec. 2-17

Santa Train

For the last 47 years, the Snoqualmie-based Northwest Railway Museum has hosted the Santa Train, a unique event that has become a beloved tradition. Families will climb aboard and journey to the historic Snoqualmie Depot where they’ll meet Santa, drink hot cocoa, enjoy fresh cookies from coal-fired ovens, and receive a special holiday gift. Reservations are available online.

The Nutcracker(s)

Dancing snowflakes, Christmas parties, a mouse king, a nutcracker prince – what’s not to like? The Nutcracker is a holiday classic. Here’s a few Eastside productions of the nutty tale.

Emerald Ballet Theatre in Bellevue

Dec. 2-3 and Dec.  9-10 at Northshore Performing Arts Center

Evergreen City Ballet in Renton

Nov.24-26 & Dec. 2- 3 at Meydenbauer Theatre

Dec. 9-10 at Auburn Performing Arts Center

Dec. 16 & 17 at Renton IKEA Performing Arts Center

International Ballet Academy in Kirkland

Dec. 15 – 22 Meydenbauer Theatre

Issaquah Dance Theatre in Issaquah

Dec. 8-10 at Interlake Performing Arts Center

*Did we miss one? email us!

Dec. 8-17

Miracle on 34th Street: The Musical

Is Macy’s Santa real or just a guy in a suit? The Bellevue Youth Theatre at Crossroads presents the well-known family-friendly Miracle on 34th Street by Meredith Wilson. Tickets are available at the box office window or by phone at 425.452.7155.

Dec. 10

Brunch with Santa and Reindeer

Santa is checking his list twice, but first he and the reindeer are making a pit stop at The Club at Snoqualmie Ridge. From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. your kiddo can enjoy brunch with the big guy, himself. Call The Club at Snoqualmie at 425.396.6000 to make a reservation.

Dec. 10-19

The Elves and The Toymakers

Oh no! It’s Christmas morning and the toys for the children of the world have disappeared. How will the elves save the day? This magical musical from StoryBook Theater debuts at the Kirkland Performance Center at 11 a.m.  Dec. 10 with additional performances throughout the month.

Dec. 9

Porcelain Adornment Workshop

Still looking for that perfect gift? Attend the City of Bellevue’s porcelain workshop between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. to create up to two projects. The cost is $45 for Bellevue residents, and all materials will be provided. Register by email at NWAC@bellevuewa.gov, or by phone at 425.452.4106.

Kirkland Holiday Wine Walk

By Margo Greenman | November 13, 2017 | Courtesy of 425magazine.com 

Wine lovers have one more chance to sip and shop in downtown Kirkland before the year’s end. Join the Kirkland Chamber of Commerce, Downtown Kirkland Association, and Seattle Uncorked for the Kirkland Holiday Wine Walk on Friday, Nov. 17.

This special holiday edition of the Downtown Kirkland Wine Walk series kicks off at The Heathman Hotel. From there, sip, shop, and mingle your way through downtown Kirkland while visiting local businesses and tasting libations from area wineries and breweries.

This 21+ event is expected to sell out. Get advance access at 5 p.m. with early bird tickets, or join the fun at 6 p.m. with general admission.  Reserve your tickets online.

Last Day to Vote in a Historic Election

All the reasons procrastinators should remember to vote—get your ballots in by 8pm today.

By Hayat Norimine  11/7/2017 at 8:57am  |  Courtesy of SeattleMet.com

If you didn’t think local elections were important, nothing disproves that more than elections in King County this year. Two incumbents have faced allegations of sexual assault; Seattle had three mayors in one week, and an open at-large city council seat; and one race could determine party control in the state Legislature.

Here’s a recap of the most contentious races this year and why you should remember to vote.

The Mayor’s Race

While this year’s mayoral race may have started out with pundits thinking it would be straightforward—incumbent Ed Murray was regarded as a shoo-in, with the first high-profile candidate, Nikkita Oliver, entering the race in February—Murray dropped his bid for reelection and eventual resignation after five accusers came forward with sexual assault allegations.

With Murray out of the picture, 21 candidates chose to run for mayor, four of the six most high-profile candidates women—two of those women, Jenny Durkan and Cary Moon, made it through the August primary. (The other two finished in third and fourth place.) Why is that important? Seattle hasn’t elected a female mayor since 1926. 

Since the primary, Durkan has raised a record-breaking amount of money (nearing $1 million), excluding independent expenditures from business and labor, while Moon has poured her own money into her campaign. With a few exceptions (city council member Mike O’Brien and a few unions endorsed Moon) and most urbanist or transit groups, Durkan won the major endorsements from city, state, and federal officials (big labor groups SEIU 775 and Martin Luther King County Labor Council, three city council members and the mayor, Governor Jay Inslee and Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson, Senator Patty Murray).

Both are progressive candidates—Durkan, a former Obama-appointed U.S. attorney who was a key player in the city’s police reform efforts, and Moon, a civic activist and urban planner whose platform focused on affordable housing. But they differ on major issues like:

-taxes (Durkan says she doesn’t want new ones),

-homeless encampment sweeps (Moon says she wants to stop them),

-a municipal bank or municipal internet (Moon wants both),

-and education. Durkan has a plan for free college tuition for all Seattle public school graduates, while Moon says she wants funds to focus on K-12 education.

City Council Position 8

Labor leader Teresa Mosqueda has cleaned up on the endorsements—Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, labor groups, four current Seattle city council members and Mayor Tim Burgess, and dozens of city and state elected officials. Ex-Tenants Union director and democratic socialist Jon Grant was also endorsed by two city council members and all of Seattle major papers’ editorial boards—The Stranger, The Seattle Times, and Seattle Weekly. 

They fundamentally differ on how to approach Seattle’s affordable housing shortage, as well as opening up collective bargaining agreements between the city and police unions to the public. Mosqueda received 31.6 percent of the votes in the August primary, while Grant came in second with 26.9 percent. 

The Sheriff’s Race

Less than a week before the general election, The Seattle Times reported that King County Sheriff John Urquhart faced a sexual assault allegation that led to an unusual settlement paid by the county. His campaign also offered to disclose an accuser’s medical records in an attempt to discredit her.

Urquhart lost the endorsement of several officials and groups, including Seattle city council member Lorena Gonzalez, and a few days ago took down all his endorsements on his webpage. 

45th Legislative District 

The race between Democrat Manka Dhingra and Republican Jinyoung Lee Englund for the open state senate seat has also been record-breaking in the millions of dollars put into both their campaigns. 

Voters living in the 45th Legislative District will determine whether the state will have a Democratic trifecta—Democratic control in the House, Senate, and executive branch—or whether the state Senate will hold a narrow GOP majority. Two of the biggest groups invested in Dhingra’s campaign? Planned Parenthood and the Washington Conservation Voters. 

36 Halloween 2017 Parties in Seattle to Buy Tickets for Now

FreakNight, Seduction, Fremonster Spectacular, And More Big Events

by Stranger Things To Do Staff | Courtesy of thestranger.com 

FreakNight 2017 features two days of live music, dancing, a market, and a darkly neon environment of scary circus attractions, bizarre sideshow marvels, and carnival rides. TURK PHOTOS

This year in Seattle, you have no excuse for not having Halloween plans—check out our Halloween calendar for more than 200 events ranging from costume parties to haunted houses. But if those numbers overwhelm you, we're here to break it down even further—including with this list of big, spectacular costume parties you should buy your tickets for now, before they sell out. Find all of your options below (ranging from FreakNight to the Fremonster Spectacular to Seduction).

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27

Baila Con Los Diablos Halloween Salsa Party
Dance and cackle wildly into the wee hours at this 12th annual Halloween bash, which promises lively performances, a costume contest, raffles and prizes, a high-stakes salsa competition, "ghoulish drinks," and more.
($20)

Embark After Dark
Party in the Museum of Flight after hours in the good company of cocktails, snacks, "atmospheric beats," and "other young professionals" while you learn about the museum's membership offerings. Costumes are encouraged, and there will also be prizes like "aerospace jewelry" and a Space Shuttle Trainer Tour.
($30)

FreakNight 2017
Annual high-key wild-out throwdown FreakNight raises the bar for their 20th anniversary celebration, with a two-day set of live music, dancing, a market, and a darkly neon environment of scary circus attractions, bizarre sideshow marvels, and carnival rides. Artists this year include Adventure Club, Bear Grillz, Benny Benassi, Borgore, Brodinski, Brohug, Bro Safari, Crankdat, Herobust, Infected Mushroom, Justice (DJ Set), Liquid Soul, Malaa, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs (DJ Set), The Upbeats, Walker & Royce, and special guest Kaskade. 
($107-$169)

Get Wicked: Stanton Warriors & Worthy
Get wicked to house and breakbeat music from Stanton Warriors and Worthy, with local support from PostMatts, Dot Diggler, and Unknown ?layer. Guests can also enter to win $500 in a costume contest, so do your best work. 
($20)

Kirkland Zombie Wine Walk
Even the undead enjoy a good cabernet. Lurch around downtown Kirkland on a tour that stops at several local wineries (and breweries). Dressing up isn't required, but those who go all out could win a gift certificate to Trellis. 
($25/$35)

Noise Complaint: Are You Afraid of the Dark?
See Fred Wildlife Refuge transformed into a haven of ghouls, where you can be your Halloween persona's true self by dancing to tunes from Philadelphia/NYC's Dances With White Girls, with local support from Subset, BGeezy, and Mike Devlin. They also promise tricks, treats, a costume contest, and more secret spooky fun. 
($30-$50)

Seduction: A Fundraiser for the Seattle Erotic Art Festival
People sometimes object to the sexualization of Halloween, so why not get the pervy stuff out of the way before All Hallows'? The Foundation for Sex Positive Culture and the Seattle Erotic Art Festival present what they describe as "a carnival of delights!" From interactive installations to aerial and bondage shows to a VIP Oddities Emporium to sultry games, this event will be kinda artsy and definitely sensual. 
($70-$1,000)

Spooky Soirée Halloween Party
Talk It Up TV presents a spooky yet classy evening replete with a dance party (with tunes courtesy of DJ E Pop) and a costume contest with secret celebrity judges. Proceeds benefit Talk It Up Foundation's programs for suicide prevention and wounded veterans. 
($40-$2500)

Underdog's Halloween Bash
Get dressed in your best seasonal attire and head to the Croc for Underdog's Halloween Bash, a dance party soundtracked by DJ Phosho, with a costume contest and drink specials from Rainier. 
($20-$45)

Halloween Brazilian Party
DJ Neto will be spinning Brazilian funk, pagode, reggae, hiphop, and dance music deep into the night at this Halloween hootenanny. 
($10)

OCTOBER 27-28

Carnevolar VIII: Phobia
As if it weren't nerve-wracking enough watching acrobats flip the bird to gravity, Emerald City's high-flyers will perform a variety show based on phobias and nightmares. Shake out your jitters afterwards during a dance party at this annual Halloween circus.
($55/$85)

Neighbours Presents: Season of the Witch
Fill your Halloweekend with two nights of witchy dancing and costume contests (promising some pretty juicy cash prizes). Roxy Doll will host Friday's party, with music by DJs Billy the Kid and Trent Von. On Saturday, Roxy Doll will co-host with Gaysha Starr, with music by DJ Randy Schlager. 
($10/$15)

OCTOBER 27-31

Smith Tower's Zom-Bees Knees Bash!
Celebrate Halloween '20s style, speakeasy and all, with three nights of super classy (but also scary) dance parties with members of Sister Kate Dance Company. See dance performances by "zombie flappers" and mummies, participate in a séance, and don your best flapper costume.
($35/$40)

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 28

11th Annual Come As You Aren't
For the last decade or so, the Skylark has hosted Come As You Aren't, a massive concert party wherein local bands compete to be the ultimate tribute group. Whoever has the best costume and live set wins a major cash prize. This year's contestants include members of Harvey Danger and Fabulous Downey Brothers as Oingo Boingo, Harrison B as The Killers, Dagger Hands as CCR, Vibe as Whitney Houston, Gibraltar as Smashing Pumpkins, Sweet Jesus as Pink Floyd, Young Chhaylee as Al Green, and Teresa and the Wolves as Pat Benatar. Troy Nelson of KEXP will serve as MC, with Johnny Nails, Atticus George-Andrijeski, Lindsay Peyton, and last year's winners Fine Prince as judges for the ultimate crowning. 
($15)

Black Cat Ball
Dress up as your favorite feline at this cat-centric masquerade, where you'll find over 500 items for sale in a silent and live auction. In addition, guests can drink champagne at the reception and enjoy a three-course vegetarian (or vegan) dinner. All proceeds benefit local cats through Purrfect Pals, an organization that works to end cat homelessness in the Puget Sound.
($150-$1,250)

Bollywood Halloween Scream
Enjoy Halloween cocktails and get creepy and kooky on the dance floor at a Bollywood costume and dance party. DJ RDX will be spinning Bollywood beats and judges will be awarding costume prizes. 
($10/$15)

Bollywood Thriller Halloween Costume Party
Get spooky on the dance floor to sets from DJ Phrasant, DJ KI, SKEE, the Jai Ho! Dance Troupe, and others. There will also be a costume contest with prizes and henna (by donation). They add some helpful details: "Imagine an Indian wedding gone awry as the joyful celebration takes a turn for the worst with a blast that transforms all attendees into zombies." 
($8-$15)

Diwaloween
Kill two birds with one very festive stone by celebrating Halloween and India's festival of lights in the same night. Hear music from Canadian dhol player 2faanmusic, dance to Bollywood music from DJ Aanshul and DJ TAMM, enter a costume contest, and eat free candy. 
(free for ladies/$15)

Fremonster Spectacular
The second annual Fremonster Spectacular promises wild DJ sets within a spooky nightclub atmosphere, a costume contest with a $500 cash prize, a full bar with specialty themed cocktails, festive chocolates, and aerial, shibari, and GoGo performances. 
($55/$125)

Halloween Bash 2017: Prom Night of the Living Dead
Dance your spooky socks off (in your zombie costume, of course) to live New Wave, dance, and synth hits from the '80s, brought to you by Patrick and Daniel's Prom Date Mixtape. There will also be a zombie prom queen and king crowning, '80s horror movies, drink specials, and prizes.
($10/$15)

Halloween Party Cruise
Hop aboard Dracula’s floating castle dressed to kill, and dance the night away with your fellow spooks to Halloween-y classics and cuts. 
($55)

Haunt: The Ultimate Halloween Bash
Dance to sets from "party band" Brand X and DJ Funkdaddy, watch other spooky performances, and participate in a costume contest for "most elaborate," "most creative," "scariest," "best group," and other categories in this massive Halloween celebration that MoPOP has been throwing for 16 years now. 
($45-$149)

Haunted Brewery Bash
Drink beer and booze and snack on small bites while dancing to live music and a DJ, snapping photos in a booth, and participating in a costume contest at the decked-out Redhook Brewery in Woodinville.
($15/$20)

Haute Sauce: Halloween
Join Haute Sauce, "Seattle's home for urban music," in a freaky night of dancing maniacally to Lourawk, Beeba, Famous, and Swervewon. Guests will also have the chance to win $1,000 in a costume contest. 
($15)

Opulent Temple: Gothica
Opulent Temple will host this eerie gothic bacchanalia with an intimate area of music, costumes, and dancing provided by DJs The Scumfrog, Chris Tower, Clint Williams, and Hydef, all amidst the trappings of an underworld costume party. 
($35)

Suite 7th Annual Halloween Bash
Go all out with your look at this annual Halloween shindig, because the winner of the costume contest will win $2,000 in cash and prizes. Winner or not, you can still dance to beats from DJs CIDE and Joey Roxville and enjoy food and speciality drinks. 
($15-$1000)

WerQ Halloween Weekend
Join RuPaul's Drag Race superstar Roxxxy Andrews and local performers Jaxen Brown, Kaleena Markos, Andrew Scott, and others at a Halloween-themed evening hosted by Seattle's Kristie Champagne. 
($20-$50)

Halloween Vibes: Blaxploitation
Celebrate your favorite characters from early 1970s "Blaxploitation" films with a candy buffet, rose bar, a costume contest, and more. 
($10)

Heaven & Hell-oween
The only heavenly thing about this party will be the cocktails—otherwise, prepare for a devilish night with Veuve Clicquot, where you can dance to ghoulish tunes from DJ Marvel and enter a costume contest. 
($50)

Third Time's the Charm
Show off your most diabolical dance moves, drink from an open bar, eat "supernatural snacks," and wear your creepiest getup to win the costume contest at this frightening soirée. All proceeds will benefit Reboot Theatre Company.
($30)

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 31

The Bowie Ball with BowieVision
Local beloved tribute group BowieVision, which features members of Dudley Manlove Quartet and Purr Gato, plus saxophonist Brian Bermudez, will transform the Croc into a glam rock paradise with a night of wild Bowie hits, and a light show and video backdrops for bonus dazzlement. If you need help with the costume contest, the Glitter Squad will be providing makeovers.
($15)

Carnival of Souls
Celebrate All Hallows' Eve with a tribute to old time-y spook shows, featuring macabre music and magic by Jeff Ferrell Music, burlesque by Morgue Anne, a sideshow by Kino B. Demented, a screening of the horror film She Freak, and more. 
($15)

Collide-O-Scope Halloween
Spend the holiday experiencing a delightfully freaky, swirly montage of music and mayhem made of found-footage phantasmagoria from the archives of the cheeky Collide-O-Scope duo, Shane Wahlund and Michael Anderson. Come in costume—they may bestow one of their much-coveted prizes upon you! What will the booty be? "A poster? Some DVDs? Some random thing from the dollar sore [sic]? Or maybe an ACTUAL HUMAN HEAD?!?!" There's a special treat this time: a performance by the local cabaret star and drag disaster Ms. Pak-Man. 
($15)

Cucci's Spooky Weed x Messy Webs
What's spookier than spending Halloween stoned with Cucci Binaca? Binaca is a ringleader among today's alt-drag scene, which includes performers who are more likely to spend their number bleeding onto a canvas than lip-synching to Britney Spears. Cucci's Spooky Weed is a biannual offering from Binaca, and this round features popular enfants terribles like Arson Nicki, Butylene O'Kipple, and Miss Texas 1988. Get hella high, bring some dollars for tipping, and prepare to be spooked. CHASE BURNS 
($13/$15)

Halloween Cruise
Roam the dark local waters on Halloween night while drinking beer from Silver City Brewery and playing games like Pin the Eyepatch on the Pirate, How Many Halloween Candies, Monster Mash Dance Off, and more. There will also be a costume contest where contestants can win gift cards to Flatstick Pub. 
($25)

So Many Pumpkins, So Little Time

By Sophia Sonovich | October 13, 2017 | Courtesy of 425magazine.com 

Photo by Sophia Sonovich.

It is that time of the year again — pumpkin picking time! Some may just head to the grocery store to pick one out in a hurry, but there is nothing better than a day of traditional farm fun to get in the fall mood.  Here are some of our favorite pumpkin patches in and around the 425 area — so put on your coat and boots, and head t0 these farms!

Writer Sophia Sonovich researching all things pumpkin patches.

Fox Hollow Farm – Issaquah

Find your perfect pumpkin in Issaquah at Fox Hollow Farm. Bring your little goblins to enjoy a hay maze, animals, a massive corn bin, savory s’mores at the bonfire, and a train ride along the creek — you may even see the salmon moving upstream! Stop by the Farmers Market to taste their pumpkin pie, raspberry scones, and grilled corn — trust us, you don’t want to miss out on these delectable bites. Check their website for days and times of operation.

Photo courtesy of Oxbow farm.

Oxbow Farm & Conservation Center – Carnation

Celebrate the fall season at the pumpkin patch that puts the “x” in Oxtober — the Oxbow Farm and Conservation Center in Carnation. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays in October, enjoy the full festival of live music, crafts, hayrides, and the Kids’ Farm. Browse the Farm Stand for certified organic produce and other seasonal vegetables, fruits, and plants. Magic beans are the currency used around these hay bales and are available for purchase at the festival.

Remlinger Farms – Carnation

Enjoy some old-fashioned harvest fun with your whole family at Remlinger Farms. This family owned and operated farm of 60 years has it all. Their u-pick patch has plenty of pumpkins for picking, but they also have mini fair rides; a corn maze; live entertainment; a petting zoo; and, of course, farm-baked treats. The fall festivities will continue throughout October, but check their website to see what is open each day as times and availability does change.

Photo courtesy of Remlinger Farms.

Serres Farm – Redmond

Pull out your rain boots and head to Serres Farm in Redmond for old-fashioned fun for the whole family.  Pumpkins in all shapes and sizes are waiting in their field for you to give them a home. Test your navigation skills in their corn maze which is hand designed each year. This quant little patch is perfect to snap some festive pictures and find your perfect pumpkin. This patch is closed on Mondays, but is open for fun Tues. through Fri., 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., and Sat. and Sun. 9 a.m. to 6 p.m..

 Jubilee Farm –Carnation

Spend your Saturday or Sunday exploring Jubilee Farm in Carnation at their annual Harvest Festival. This farm has the whole fall experience — from free hayrides to a pumpkin launch, you will need a couple of hours to complete everything at this patch.  Rotating musicians, delicious food vendors, and cooking demonstrations make this farm unique. The patch is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and has free admissions — don’t miss out on this pumpkin picking experience.

Kirkland Street Named Best in U.S.

By Shelby Rowe Moyer | October 13, 2017 | Courtesy of 425magazine.com

United States, Washington, Kirkland, Park Lane at dusk. Photo by Merrill Images

Kirkland’s revamped Park Lane — a two block corridor snaking through retail shops — was recognized for its “ingenuity” by Great Places in America, and is being honored as one of the top five streets in the nation.

The city redesigned the street during a roughly $3 million project to update the corridor’s aging sidewalks and water main. Instead of just sprucing it up a little, city officials reinvented the style into an American “woonerf,” after a Dutch word that roughly translates to “living street.”

Park Lane is lush with greenery and promotes a walkable environment while accommodating vehicles with 36,000 square feet of pavers.

The American Planning Association compiles an annual list that recognizes streets, neighborhoods, and public spaces that demonstrate character, quality, and planning meant to “enrich communities, facilitate economic growth, and inspire others around the country.”

The American Planning Association also recognized:

• Congress Street — Tucson, Arizona
• Lincoln Avenue — Chicago, Illinois
• South Grand Boulevard — St. Louis Missouri
• Main Street — Waterloo, New York

City officials will accept the award today at 5 p.m. during a ceremony hosted on Park Lane, which coincides with Kirkland’s monthly Art Walk.

“Kirkland is honored to have Park Lane recognized as one of the best streets in the country,” said Mayor Amy Walen. “When we rebuilt this vital downtown avenue, we set our goals high. Our community told us they wanted a walkable, vibrant and green destination place. Those essentials required imagination, curiosity and commerce. We are proud to have hit the mark and are grateful for a robust public process and a team of engineers, designers and contractors who fulfilled the dream.”

Your Complete Guide To October 2017 Events in Seattle

FreakNight, HUMP!, Earshot Jazz Festival, And 100+ More Events This Month

by Stranger Things To Do Staff | Courtesy of theStranger.com 

There are Halloween events all month long in Seattle—including Fright Fest at Wild Waves.COURTESY OF WILD WAVES FRIGHT FEST

In Seattle, October means not only cooler weather and changing leaves, but also a robust arts season, plenty of big-name concerts, and Halloween parties. Below, we've rounded up the 130 biggest events that you should know about, including the 13th Annual HUMP! Film Festival, the opening of Andrew Wyeth: In Retrospect at SAM, Earshot Jazz Festival, Lit Crawl, food events like the Olympic Peninsula Apple and Cider Festival and Seattle Restaurant Week, BenDeLaCreme: Beware the Terror of Gaylord Manor, Depeche Mode, and FreakNight. Click through the links below for complete details, and, as always, find even more events on our complete Things To Do calendar.

OCTOBER 3

FOOD & DRINK

1. Feast at the Market
This 35th annual event, benefiting Neighborhood Health at Pike Market Clinic, includes a wine and appetizer reception plus access to more than 20 restaurants like Matt's in the Market, The Pink Door, Red Cedar & Sage, Radiator Whiskey, The Pike Brewing Company and more.

MUSIC

2. Seun Kuti & Egypt 80
Imagine the pressure saxophonist/vocalist Seun Kuti must experience. Being the son of Fela Kuti—revolutionary pioneer of Afrobeat and a powerful political force feared by the government in his native Nigeria—cannot be easy. But 34-year-old Seun has taken the reins of his father’s large ensemble, Egypt 80, and guided it into the 21st century with authority. Fela’s earnest offspring is furthering his pop’s dictum to keep the rhythms sizzling and the lyrics sociopolitically trenchant. Seun Kuti has kept one of music’s heaviest legacies thriving long after its progenitor’s death, maintaining rigorous quality control, with help from several members from Fela’s era. Wear a sweatband or two tonight.  DAVE SEGAL

OCTOBER 4

MUSIC

3. Bleachers with Tangerine
Bleachers, Jack Antonoff's latest project, will unleash its brand of synth-driven, nostalgia-heavy party rock in support of their recently released second album, Gone Now. They'll be flanked by Seattle expat group Tangerine (now in Los Angeles).

READINGS & TALKS

4. Civic Cocktail: Seattle's Shift to the Left
Join Nikkita Oliver, Stranger publisher Tim Keck, and former King County executive Ron Sims in what will no doubt be a lively discussion of Seattle's current leftist movements and their future. Knute Berger of Crosscut will also attend, and Joni Berger will moderate.

5. Women You Need to Know: Janet Mock
The PR copy for Janet Mock's new memoir, Surpassing Certainty, about her life as a twentysomething sex worker is too unapologetically salacious not to partially reproduce here: "Under the neon lights of Club Nu," the copy reads, "Janet meets Troy, a yeoman stationed at Pearl Harbor Naval Base, who becomes her first." But this encounter with Troy was only the maiden voyage on Mock's long, rough, and ultimately affirming journey to becoming the person she is today. "I came from that world and I was built by that world," Mock told the Los Angeles Times about her time as a stripper and sex worker. "I will not forget my people. I have a firm stiletto planted in the streets and in those clubs with those girls." RICH SMITH

OCTOBER 4-5

MUSIC

6. Feist
Leslie Feist exists in this squiggly middle ground of folksy pop weavers who have excellent production and promotion teams but don’t necessarily stir tangible excitement with their output. To her misfortune, she’s not as poetically bizarre as Kate Bush and not as tightly orchestrated as St. Vincent. Her latest release, Pleasure, relies heavily on the tried-and-true, stark-yet-emotive nature of bluesy arrangements to provide a backbone for her lengthier exercising of lyrical drama. She’s certainly talented, but not life-changing, which, I guess, is all any of us can really hope for. KIM SELLING

OCTOBER 4-18

FILM

7. The Films of Jean-Pierre Melville
If you do not understand French cool, if it is a mystery to you, if you have any doubts about it, then you must see the the action and crime films of Jean-Pierre Melville. Enough said. CHARLES MUDEDE

OCTOBER 6

COMEDY

8. Nick Offerman
Nick Offerman—who you will probably recognize from his role as Ron on Parks and Recreation, his various movie appearances, or from making the New York Times best-seller list with Paddle Your Own Canoe—will entertain for an evening at the Moore. And heads-up: Offerman the comedian is not as aggressively masculine or stubbornly libertarian as the character he's best known for playing.

MUSIC

9. Aminé, Towkio
Portland’s Adam Aminé Daniel, better known as Aminé, emerged on the scene last year with the release of his debut single, “Caroline.” The slick and catchy track rose to number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2016, securing Aminé’s place in XXL’s Freshman Class in 2017. Since then, “Caroline” has made it into one of Beyoncé’s Instagram posts, and he released his debut record earlier this year. Good for You is a banana-crazed ode to summer that will stay in your head for days, and it includes features from Offset, Nelly, and Kehlani. ANNA KAPLAN

10. Florida Georgia Line, Nelly, Chris Lane
Nu-bro duo Florida Georgia Line have hit the big time making contemporary country music for the masses. They'll be joined by Nelly and Chris Lane on their "Smooth" Tour.

11. Flosstradamus
Kids these days still have morning wood for EDM and acts like beatmaking duo Flosstradamus, who have forayed into “trap,” a genre that takes its name from the hyper-attitude Southern hiphop of the early ’90s and is characterized by hard bass and manipulated 808-sample melodies. Flosstradamus often vacillate between more hiphop-oriented beats and electronic trap throughout a set, and according to the die-hard youngster demographic, they’re quite good at it. GRANT BRISSEY

12. Imagine Dragons, Grouplove, K.Flay
Choose your own adventure, Imagine Dragons edition. A: You go ga-ga for these clean-cut pop-rockers, you bought your tickets months ago, and you have the concert poster set as the lock screen on your phone. Go directly to KeyArena and enjoy yourself. B: You’re jaded, pop radio is garbage, why would the Stranger even bother to waste the space writing about a band seemingly lab-created to enthrall idiots and irritate everyone else? Go here, wherein I’ll give you my honest take: Imagine Dragons craft an entirely disposable, offensively innocuous cocktail of Coldplay and Mumford and Sons. A band couldn’t sound more like they hailed from Vegas if they tried. C: You don’t know who or what Imagine Dragons is/are. Turn on that sleek rectangle on your desk, go to this thing called Wikipedia, and catch up with the under-30 set, then return to choice A. D: You want a contrarian thesis on why, actually, Imagine Dragons and their ilk are secretly pop-music geniuses and their pre-fabricated sound is a subversive commentary on the transient nature of fame in a post-sellout music landscape. Go to choice B. I don’t have the energy, and these guys aren’t that smart. KYLE FLECK

13. Moon Taxi
Moon Taxi is a five-piece indie-rock band hailing from Nashville, Tennessee. They'll be stopping in Seattle for their Put Em Up tour, joined by Too Many Zooz, an experimental dance group from New York.

CLOSING OCTOBER 6

FILM

14. French Cinema Now
This annual mini-festival celebrating new French movies, presented by SIFF, is one of Seattle’s best film festivals. This year, the opening film is Django, a slice of the great jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt’s life in Nazi-occupied Paris. Indeed, the festival is heavy on biopics this year: Other entries include Marie Curie, The Courage of Knowledge, Dalida(about the Egyptian-born Italian-French pop star), and Nelly (about the Quebecois writer Nelly Arcan). But if you see only one or two films at the festival, we recommend Bertrand Tavernier’s cinephilic collage My Journey Through French Cinema and the idiosyncratic master Agnès Varda’s Faces Places.

OCTOBER 6-8

MUSIC

15. Boney James
Four-time Grammy nominee, multi-platinum-selling musician, and prolific saxophonist and composer Boney James has been performing for over 25 years, and recently announced the release of his 16th album, Honestly, which he will promote over a three-night set.

OCTOBER 6-9

FILM

16. Orcas Island Film Festival
Head to Orcas Island for this film festival—with 30 feature-length and short films—featuring progressive plots and directors. From the festival: "Going into its fourth year, the Orcas Island Film Festival has presented extraordinary films from around the world that have garnered 25 Academy Award Nominations and 6 Oscar wins. The 2017 edition—October 6-9—has some of the best films fresh from their debut at Cannes, Telluride, Toronto, Venice and the New York Film Festival."

OCTOBER 6-14

FILM

17. Seattle Latino Film Festival
This year's Seattle festival of hispanic and Latinx cinema will highlight the Dominican Republic and feature nine days of independent films, filmmaker panels, workshops, parties, and more.

OCTOBER 6-15

FESTIVALS

18. Seattle Made Week
Drink beer, learn about the future of urban manufacturing, attend demos, and party the night away at this week of events celebrating all of the wonderful things that are Made in Seattle.

FILM

19. Twelfth Tasveer South Asian Film Festival
Plunge into the cinema scene of the South Asian subcontinent at locations from Bellevue to Seattle to Renton. Tasveer will show 45 films this year, with a special focus on Nepal.

OCTOBER 7

FOOD & DRINK

20. Seattle Fresh Hops Festival
Being a beer lover in the Pacific Northwest can sometimes feel like death by a thousand IPAs. At some point, the bitter, hoppy onslaught is too much for my taste buds, and I revert to the gentler, more understated domain of pilsners and pale ales. But then fresh hop season rolls around and I remember that, contrary to what all the one-dimensional hop monsters out there might lead you to believe, hops are our friends. Fresh hop IPA is made with whole fresh hops, as opposed to compressed hop pellets. The difference might seem insignificant, given that it's all the same hops with the same terpenes at the end of the day, but an Amarillo flower pulled straight off the vine and tossed into the boil does something very different from an Amarillo pellet. Fresh hop IPAs are lush and vegetal, offering you the richest expression of the hop possible. There is no purer way to experience the hop and its terroir, and no more potent reminder of why we love IPAs so goddamn much. Fremont has a line of fresh hop IPAs celebrating individual hops, as well as a single farm brew. You should get them, and you should also keep your eye out for two of my other favorite fresh hop makers' releases—Schooner Exact and Two Beers. TOBIAS COUGHLIN-BOGUE

MUSIC

21. Boris, Sumac, Endon
Boris don’t want to be categorized. Fine. I’ll just say that the new album, Dear, sounds like tectonic plates shifting and/or a boulder rolled by Sisyphus slowly crushing a garbage truck full of glass. That simple! And they don’t seem decided about breaking up and/or not releasing new stuff after they run out of already-recorded stuff, so catch this if you care. Sumac want to be the heaviest band in the world. Well, I hear a lot about such things down here, but they’re smart enough to mix in some plink in with the smackdown. ANDREW HAMLIN

22. Gorgon City
London-based Gorgon City will present their second studio album, KINGDOM, joined by Solardo, a fellow UK techno duo.

23. Liars, HXXS
So rereading Stephen King’s Skeleton Crew turns out to be good schoolin’ for the new Liars album, TFCF. I got reacquainted on both sides with menace rising dark and burbling like floodwater, and the isolation a human can feel inside said human’s own head. Liars mastermind Andrew Angus shows up solo in a wedding dress for the cover, waiting for someone to take it, not from him but with him. He’s the only one left from what used to be a band, and he’s down to less in-your-face Lecter, more brooding over time lost and how much is left.  ANDREW HAMLIN

24. Ludovico Einaudi
Iconic Italian composer and pianist Ludovico Einaudi has topped the classical charts in 42 countries and recently released an album called Elements.

OCTOBER 8

MUSIC

25. Tech N9ne, Krizz Kaliko, Illest Uminati, Swisher Sleep
Hip hop legend Tech N9ne brings his many evolutions to the Showbox stage, with guests Krizz Kaliko, Illest Uminati, and Swisher Sleep on his second Seattle tour stop of 2017.

OCTOBER 8-NOVEMBER 12

MUSIC

26. Earshot Jazz Festival
If you have any love for jazz in the Pacific Northwest, clear your schedule right now for the Earshot Jazz Festival. The nonprofit Earshot began life in 1984 and has presented 2,500 concerts since then, and the festival marks the yearly culmination of their programming. This year, it will feature more than 50 events in venues across the city, including "the contemporary giants of the art" (Brad Mehldau, Brian Blade, and Wycliffe Gordon), according to Charles Mudede, not to mention the avant-garde star Satoko Fuji and Greg Tate's Burnt Sugar Arkestra, which is "all about Miles Davis fusion period." What keeps Earshot so vital, year after year? "Jazz is an expanding universe," said festival executive director John Gilbreath to The Stranger's Dave Segal in 2014. "All directions. All of the time. In Seattle, as around the world. And that's the juice for this festival, presenting that momentum within the frame of this place, at this time."

OCTOBER 9

FESTIVALS

27. Indigenous Peoples Day Celebration
In 2014, the Seattle City Council unanimously voted to stop celebrating the voyage of Christopher Columbus and turn the second Monday in October into a day of recognition of Native American cultures and peoples. As Ana Sofia Knauf wrote in 2016, with this move, Seattle "stepped onto the correct side of American history." This year, the United Indians of All Tribes will once again lead a march from Westlake Park to City Hall, host a lunch with guest speakers, and serve a dinner accompanied by cultural performances, round dancing, and singing in honor of the holiday. More events will be popping up as the day approaches, so stay tuned.

READINGS & TALKS

28. Art Garfunkel: What Is It All But Luminous
American songbook legend and general beloved weirdo Art Garfunkel will bring his decades of folk-pop experience, myriad of chart-topping hits, and literal thousands of miles walked and the memories therein to Seattle. Garfunkel will share his highly anticipated memoir What Is It All But Luminous: Notes From an Underground Man.

29. Steph(en) Burt
Steph(en) Burt is a Harvard professor of English, one of the greatest living literary critics, and a very good transgender poet. Burt is touring with a new book called The Poem Is You, which offers 60 good readings of poems. If you have ever thought to yourself, "I don't get poetry!" then this lecture is for you. Also, you can just e-mail me. I'm right here. RICH SMITH

OCTOBER 9-10

MUSIC

30. The War on Drugs, Phoebe Bridgers
There’s a paradox at the heart of the War on Drugs. For a band so baldly influenced by the freewheeling Americana of Springsteen, Petty, and Dylan, their music can sound strangely tense and stultifying. The most obvious cause is WoD mastermind Adam Granduciel’s reputation as a fastidious studio obsessive. Most War on Drugs songs are rich with detail: layers upon layers of guitar and synth, carefully calibrated vintage effects. But the music, though frequently gorgeous, rarely has room to breathe. Instead, it bellows—Granduciel’s work has increasingly taken on an anthemic, shouting-toward-the-cheap-seats quality. And, unsurprisingly, it’s paid off with sold-out dates like this one. ANDREW GOSPE

OCTOBER 10

MUSIC

31. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Tropical Fuck Storm
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard are a collection of seven Aussies who produce music on a frequency like no other. King Gizzard put out at least two albums a year, and they’ve said they want to put out four or five in 2017 (they’re up to three already). Their music changes from record to record, but it always has something unique—including an infinitely looping album to a full-length recorded exclusively with microtonal guitars. You never quite know exactly what you’re going to get with these guys, but their live show is guaranteed to be outrageous. ANNA KAPLAN

32. Ms. Lauryn Hill, Nas, Hannibal Buress, Chronixx, Nick Grant
We have said more than enough already about Lauryn Hill’s personal shit. Let’s just stop the gossip and focus our attention on the fact that hiphop has only a handful of female rappers who really made it big (meaning, entered the mainstream) by selling nothing but skills, and Ms. Lauryn Hill is one of those rappers. Her name is on two albums in the hiphop canon—the Fugees’ The Score and The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. There is also the raw boom-bap of the track “Lost Ones,” which is on Miseducation and put any doubt about her skills on the mic in the grave. So none of this talking behind her back—let’s just show some respect to someone who contributed to the great adventure of hiphop.  CHARLES MUDEDE

OCTOBER 11

MUSIC

33. Gillian Welch
The phenomenon of seeing the “two person band called Gillian Welch” (Welch and David Rawlings) play and sing together really does feel like a miracle. You’ve seen people do what they do before—roughly—which is to pick guitars and sing new old-timey songs in complicated, perfect harmonies, but Welch and Rawlings are less like a conventional duet than an exercise in alchemy, the migration of souls, transubstantiation. I’m sure their secret has something to do with attention to detail, attunement to instinct, or just good old-fashioned talent, but I’ve seen them many times, in 2,000-seat theaters, movie houses, and living rooms, but I’ve never come anywhere near understanding just what it is that makes them and their work so special. Lucky for me (and less fussy people) that not understanding isn’t a requirement. Sometimes you can just listen and love it. SEAN NELSON

34. Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions, Daydream Machine
One good thing about Hope Sandoval: If you like her earlier work with Opal and Mazzy Star and previous recordings with the Warm Inventions, her latest unit with My Bloody Valentine drummer Colm Ó Cíosóig, you’ll probably dig her new stuff, too. For example, the just-released Son of a Lady EP captures Sandoval and company’s keen grasp of melancholy melodiousness in an intimate orchestral-pop vein. Fans of Lee Hazlewood and Nico should sigh with deep pleasure over these songs and, by extension, everything Sandoval’s done since the late 1980s.  DAVE SEGAL

OCTOBER 12

FOOD & DRINK

35. Eat Your Heart Out
Join Tom Douglas, Renee Erickson, Edouardo Jordan, Jason Stratton, Josh Henderson, Kari Brunson, and many others in supporting those affected by the recent natural disasters around the world. Enjoy bites from several chefs, including Etta's Andrew Rivera. All proceeds benefit Direct Relief.

36. Omnivorous
A benefit for the great Capitol Hill Housing, Omnivorous will be full of food and drink from dozens of places that are also great, including Marjorie, Cafe Presse, Grim's, Le Pichet, L'Oursin, Lost Lake, Caffe Vita, Rumba, Optimism Brewing Co., That Brown Girl Cooks!, Monsoon, and more. Proceeds from the event will go to help CHH provide safe, affordable housing for people of limited means.

MUSIC

37. alt-J
Alt-J sound like the survivors of the electro-war waking up, hastily trying to re-invent the language of emotions through reverse engineering of forest sounds, just in time to headline an Ewok luau. JOSH BIS

38. Gavin Degraw
Despite 14 years having passed since his breakout album, Chariot, Gavin DeGraw has reemerged for his "Raw" Tour, named for the manner in which he'll be spilling out those indie pop-rock throwback tracks.

39. Live @ Benaroya Hall: Sun Kil Moon
Mark Kozelek of Sun Kil Moon has spent his career wrangling his choked acoustic darkness into a marketable shape, and that decades-old practice remains the case with his latest album, titled Jesu / Sun Kil Moon, a project in partnership with perma-weird Brit experiment human Justin Broadrick of the early ’00s band Jesu, known for their coherent drone-gaze. As much as I prefer the imagery of Kozelek’s lone figure bleating into the void (as it is in much of his music), the partnership works. It’s got a very mid-’90s “The Future Is Nigh” vibe, with an innate sense that you’re keeping pace with a guy traversing his neighborhood as he shout-mumbles distinct memories throughout his life of every corner he rounds, set to the slash-and-burn reverb of three-chord guitar riffs and the background noise of someone banging their face against a kick drum. There’s something very therapeutic about Kozelek screaming “SUCK MY HUNDRED MILLION DOLLAR DICK” over a backing track that a bored high-schooler could’ve arranged. Humor and angst, what else do you need? KIM SELLING

READINGS & TALKS

40. Dan Savage with Esther Perel
Belgian psychotherapist Esther Perel is known for the 2007 book Mating in Captivity: Unlocking Erotic Intelligence, her podcast Where Should We Begin? and her popular TED talks. At this event, she'll join our own snarky, hilarious, and helpful relationship expert Dan Savage to discuss her new book The State of Affairs: Rethinking Infidelity. Expect a frank and entertaining discussion about cheating, "successful" relationships, and love.

OCTOBER 12-14

MUSIC

41. Joe Bonamassa
Grammy-nominated blues-rock guitarist and genre icon Joe Bonamassa has set off on his North American Fall Tour, in support of his latest solo studio album, Blues of Desperation. Joe has been hailed worldwide as one of the greatest guitar players of his generation.

OCTOBER 12-15

FESTIVALS

42. Taste of Iceland
Join Iceland Naturally for its tenth year of celebrating Icelandic culture with four days of the Nordic nation's cuisine, music, art, film, and literature. Among other giveaways at this year's event, guests can win a trip to Iceland.

PERFORMANCE

43. Jody Kuehner/Cherdonna Shinatra: Kissing Like Babies: Part III of one great, bright, brittle alltogetherness
You never know what you’re going to get with Cherdonna, the female impersonator impersonator (or is it female female impersonator?) who combines dance, performance art, drag, music, and political commentary into uncategorizable spectacles. The political commentary is almost never explicit, so here’s a handy tip: This one "explores the infantilization of the feminine.” It’s also said to be faster paced than some of her recent work, and it will include a chorus of adult toddlers and a seven piece brass marching band. I can’t wait. CHRISTOPHER FRIZZELLE

OCTOBER 12-22

FILM

44. TWIST: Seattle Queer Film Festival
Local shorts, indie features, and national or international releases will stoke and satisfy your appetite for gay, lesbian, bi, trans, and otherwise queer-focused films, from hot romances to incisive documentaries to perverse suspense flicks. If you love queer movies and moviemakers, this festival is indispensable: Not only will you watch the pivotal LGBTQ+ films of the year (last year, the lineup included Clyde Peterson's extraordinary Torrey Pines, just to give you an idea), you'll also get the chance to rendezvous with filmmakers and take cinema workshops.

OCTOBER 12-29

PERFORMANCE

45. BenDeLaCreme: Beware the Terror of Gaylord Manor
Someone got wise and gave BenDeLaCreme a Halloween show. The fact that that someone is ACT Theatre, a company not exactly known for big drag blowouts, is suspicious, but for BenDeLaCreme I'm willing to suspend my disbelief. This horrific tale begins—where else—at Gaylord Manor, where a team of "paranormal researchers" have found themselves on this fateful night. Soon they're beset by "vampire vixens, well-built werewolves, mischievous mummies and witches that WERK," and it only gets more fabulously frightening from there. RICH SMITH

46. Disney's Aladdin
Laugh if you must, but Disney's Aladdin is great. Any musical that has lyrics written by Howard Ashman is a masterpiece in my eyes. Granted, Ashman died (heartbreakingly, of complications related to AIDS, at the age of 40) before Disney produced Aladdin, so only a few of the songs in the final cut of the movie were his—specifically the linguistically dazzling tongue twisters “Prince Ali” and “Friend Like Me.” But as with The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast, the stage version includes songs you may not know, and some of them have lyrics by Ashman, including “Proud of Your Boy.” CHRISTOPHER FRIZZELLE

OCTOBER 13

FOOD & DRINK

47. Science of Spirits
Science: It gets you drunk! Sample booze from local distilleries and learn why alcohol does the wonderful things that it does. Plus, enjoy the Science Center's attractions after hours.

48. Taste America: Seattle
Ashley Christensen, alumnus of Iron Chef and James Beard Award winner, has won the title of "All-Star Chef" at this year's James Beard Foundation "Taste America" dinner, taking place right here in Seattle. The annual event, which spans six weekends from September 22 to November 11, has stops in 10 American cities, including Austin, Boston, Chicago, Kansas City, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Francisco, and our fair city. The star-studded lineup at the Seattle dinner includes past James Beard Award winners Matt Dillon and Holly Smith. In addition to a reception featuring samples from some of the city's best chefs, there will also be a four-course dinner, prepared by Christensen.

MUSIC

49. Bone Thugs-N-Harmony with Guests
“Tha Crossroads” is one of the sacred texts of rap, a Grammy-winning, heart-bursting, radio-dominating slice of maudlin thug life, perfectly suited to the post-Eazy, post-Pac, post-B.I.G. hiphop scene of the latter ’90s. The album from which it sprang, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony's E. 1999 Eternal, is rightly considered a classic of the era, with equally transcendent bits of street knowledge like “Budsmokers Only” and “1st of tha Month” sprinkled liberally, magically, throughout. KYLE FLECK

50. The Mavericks
The Mavericks are scene legends, having started in the Miami punk club crowd, and made their way into a groove all their own, drawing on a mix of classic country, cow-punk, and rhythmic Latin standards.

51. RL Grime
RL Grime's gusty, crystallized "Amphibian" swishes solidly out of the speakers. This is the sound of the selfie, and it's time to display to potential mates that your vibe couldn't be righter. Grime's sonic ingredients set you up well—the glide of rave, the tonnage of Southern rap beats, and the game (shame) of meathead trap. Your moves are succinct demonstrations of pelvic knowledge. Next up on the system is the harder-hitting "Valhalla" off Grime's new album, Void. You let out an eighth of a twerk, and then it's the build. Feel it ascend—whap whap whap whap, tat-tat-tat-tat, ta-ta-ta-ta shuffffle. Then the moment of silence, the hesitation, and the drop. The room loses it when the beat kicks in. Vodka Red Bulls spill everywhere. People fall and flail. This is what you've worked for—this losing it. The room combusts in selfies, sex explodes, and you dance like a condor. TRENT MOORMAN

SPORTS & RECREATION

52. Air Sex World Championships
Watching someone shred an imaginary guitar is fun, but not as much fun as watching someone have imaginary sex onstage, alone, with imaginary partners. That's exactly what you'll see at this kinky sporting event created and hosted by comedian Chris Trew.

OCTOBER 13-15

FOOD & DRINK

53. COWABUNGA
Cowabunga USA, a beef-filled bacchanalia brought to you by Seattle Met and Amazon, is three days full of 9,481 pounds of red meat. There will also be over 50 chefs preparing said beef. There are different events and activities each day. (This event was moved to November.)

54. Olympic Peninsula Apple & Cider Festival
It's a fact that cider is one of those things essentially Northwest—it defines our region, and it's always seemed to especially define the fall. Take advantage of apple season this year with the first annual Olympic Peninsula Apple & Cider Festival, an ambitious three-day celebration of cider and the fruit it comes from. On Friday, indulge in a five-course feast paired with Alpenfire ciders and prepared by former Canlis executive sous chef Deborah Taylor and her husband, Scott Ross, (the couple who owns the buzzy new Port Townsend restaurant Finistére). The festivities will continue with a "hard cider tasting festival" on Saturday, featuring more than 40 ciders, apple pressing, live music, and an after-party that promises a fire show. To close out the weekend, there will be open houses at participating cideries, distilleries, and tap rooms on Sunday.

OCTOBER 13-NOVEMBER 5

PERFORMANCE

55. Ragtime
This musical is “rarely produced at the professional level due to the sheer size of it,” a source at 5th Avenue Theatre said. “It calls for a nearly 30-person cast and the orchestra is monstrous.” But after Theatre Latte Da in Minneapolis produced a stripped-down, streamlined version of Ragtime with very little in the way of a set, the 5th Avenue hired that same director, Peter Rothstein, to do a similar production for Seattle. The cast includes talented 5th Avenue all-stars like Joshua Carter, Louis Hobson, and Kendra Kassebaum. CHRISTOPHER FRIZZELLE

OCTOBER 13-NOVEMBER 12

PERFORMANCE

56. The Crucible
Arthur Miller's The Crucible is a powerful play that's also fun: the McCarthy-era communist witch hunts are communicated through the Salem witch trials, a device that enables Miller to combine themes of ideological and political paranoia with religious zealotry, teenage girl drama, and foreboding scenes of creepy witchery. Knowing ACT, they'll also manage to tie in relevant Trump-era mind games and intimidation.

OCTOBER 14

COMMUNITY

57. Diwali Ball
Celebrate India’s Festival of Lights, which honors "the triumph of good over evil." The Ball will feature henna, fortune tellers, dance performances, live music, tours of SAM's collection, food, drinks, and dancing.

58. The Diwali Experience
Celebrate India's Festival of Lights at MoPOP by watching a traditional diya-lighting ceremony, getting a henna tattoo, dancing to a Bollywood set by DJ RDX, watching YouTube singer Arjun perform, and more.

MUSIC

59. The Kooks with Barns Courtney
Brighton rockers The Kooks have entered their thirteenth year of playing together and will showcase tracks from The Best of... So Far at this tour stop with bluesy singer-songwriter Barns Courtney.

60. Nick Murphy, Charlotte Cardin, Heathered Pearls
Nick Murphy has returned to his actual name after years of making swirling electro-soul under the name "Chet Faker." With a new album and an extensive tour, he'll continue to soundtrack elitist music festival after-parties the world over for years to come.

READINGS & TALKS

61. Whitney Cummings
Comedian and actress Whitney Cummings (Whitney and 2 Broke Girls) will visit Seattle to speak about "codependence, addiction, workaholism, dating narcissists and a host of other mortifying situations." She'll also share her new book, I'm Fine...and Other Lies.

OCTOBER 14-28

PERFORMANCE

62. The Barber of Seville
Gioachino Rossini's classically humorous and high-energy opera The Barber of Seville, known as the prequel to Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro, will be given a slightly modernized tweak by Seattle Opera. The sets and costumes have been created squarely under the influence of the worlds of Wes Anderson and Pedro Almodóvar, and each performance will feature a special appearance by Juilliard-trained burlesque sensation Marc Kenison (as his alter ego Waxie Moon) in the role of Ambrogio. This production will of course still be in Italian with English subtitles.

OCTOBER 15

MUSIC

63. Arcade Fire with Phantogram
We agreed that Montreal-based Arcade Fire have a suspended-over-your-own-body quality to their sound, something lambent and at peace. Reflektor rises spiked with endorphins and heads toward a bright white light, of a disco ball. The band lives in melodies and etched euphonic conglomerations. For Reflektor, the Grammy winners took the baroque and wood from the casket of their previous releases and fashioned it into a dance floor. Sounds embody much more bubble machine than hymnal. Arrangements travel an arc lit by the husband-and-wife harmonies of Win Butler and Régine Cassagne. TRENT MOORMAN

64. Kaki King and Lost Lander
A routine singer-songwriter Kaki King is not. Her toolbox of guitar techniques includes fanning, finger tapping, flamenco, and other uncommon methods. Put another way, she knows how to get more sounds out of a guitar than almost anyone, and it’s served her pretty well: King has contributed to the Into the Wild and August Rush soundtracks, as well as to albums by the Foo Fighters and Miley Cyrus, plus a collaborative EP with the Mountain Goats. Solo, King’s versatility makes predicting her sound kind of tricky. She’s as adept at pop songs as she is at experimental loops. Always, though, her playing is pyrotechnic.JOSEPH SCHAFER

CLOSING OCTOBER 15

PERFORMANCE

65. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
To say Malika Oyetimein is “having a good year” is an understatement. Though she just graduated from the University of Washington school of drama this year, her direction of Robert O’Hara’s Barbecue showcased her comic chops and her ability to handle big ensembles, while her direction of Katori Hall’s Hoodoo Love proved she’s not afraid to get in your face with intense material. And now she’s co-adatping one of the most harrowing and yet triumphant memoirs written in the English language? Not to be missed. Neither is Dedra D. Woods, who plays the indomitable Mother Dear. Also—Book-It is kinda good this year? I’m still thinking about their incredible production of T. Geronimo Johnson’s Welcome to Braggsville. RICH SMITH

OCTOBER 15-NOVEMBER 2

FOOD & DRINK

66. Seattle Restaurant Week
I think Seattle Restaurant Week benefits all parties involved. For one, it provides access to a host of the city's best restaurants at a price comparable to what you'd pay to Postmates for some mediocre pad thai. You can go out to all the places you've been meaning to go, try a wide swath of their menu, and leave with your financial well-being intact. It's only $33 for three courses, and only $18 at lunch! At places like Lark, Tilth, and Terra Plata! For two, restaurants win because it brings in all those people who have been meaning to go but have never gone, and potentially converts them to return customers. Regulars are, as any restauranteur will tell you, the real meat and bread of the business. Lastly, the actual restaurant staff wins because, if you're not a bad person, you listen to the sage advice my predecessor Bethany Jean Clement used to give every year, "Tip well, these things are hell for servers." TOBIAS COUGHLIN-BOGUE

OCTOBER 16

READINGS & TALKS

67. Armistead Maupin: Logical Family
San Francisco-based novelist Armistead Maupin was one of the first authors to write about AIDS (in 1983) and is best known for his Tales of the City series. His latest book, Logical Family, is a photograph-filled memoir that Neil Gaiman described as "fascinating, as delightful and as compulsive as any of the tales he has made up for us.”

OCTOBER 17

MUSIC

68. Hanson
Famous corn-fed brother trio Hanson have weathered 25 years in the music biz since their platinum album, Middle of Everywhere, dropped. They'll be celebrating this anniversary on an extended tour, playing tracks from this album, along with newer works.

OCTOBER 17-18

FESTIVALS

69. Seattle Interactive Conference
Seattle Interactive Conference is the culmination of the best technology that online business professionals, developers, and entrepreneurs from around the world have to offer. SIC brings technology, creativity, and current trends to one place for tech lovers to explore and discover. Attendees will be able to network and mingle with individuals in the tech industry while enjoying disruptive technology, business models, social media apps, new games, advertising, and more hands-on entertainment.

OCTOBER 17-NOVEMBER 18

PERFORMANCE

70. Coriolanus: Fight Like a Bitch
The all-woman cast of this infrequently produced Shakespearian tragedy stars Z Nation’s Nike Imoru, who showed off her ability to play King Lear and Lady Macbeth in her solo show Ode earlier this year. When she bellowed Lear's famous line, "Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! Rage! Blow!" I felt a desperate urge to see her take on a kingly role of classical proportions, and the theater gods (who are taking the form of Rebel Kat Productions) have granted me this wish. Straight from the audition materials: “What happens when we smash our current political, gendered landscape onto the sacrosanct canvas of one of the greatest playwrights ever? If a man can destroy an entire city… can’t a woman do the same? We say they can.” RICH SMITH

OCTOBER 18

MUSIC

71. The Afghan Whigs with Har Mar Superstar
The Afghan Whigs are the real treat here. Greg Dulli's kinky, soul-inflected hard-rock project are still one of the most vital acts in alternative rock. Oh, also, their comeback album, Do the Beast, is a monster. JOSEPH SCHAFER

72. Iron & Wine
Oscillating between straightforward folk, alt-country, and generic traveling bard, singer-songwriter Sam Beam has been at the helm of Iron & Wine for over a decade now.

73. Paul Weller with Lucy Rose
British rock vet Paul Weller makes his second Seattle appearance since 2009, when he played the Moore. The venue change suggests waning popularity, but the former Jam and Style Council leader hasn’t declined artistically as steeply as some of his OG punk peers have. An adaptable, versatile musician, Weller has gone through punk-inflected mod, Motown-homaging soul, psychedelia, funk, and sensitive singer/songwriter motions over the decades. If he’s never really embarrassed himself through all those changes, he’s also rarely attained lofty heights in his 23-year solo career. Weller’s last two full-lengths, Sonik Kicks and Saturns Pattern, mark a steadfast reliance on solid rock foundations with hints of psychedelia—as if he nibbled a fifth of a tab of acid in the studio, just to add a glimmer of disorientation and chaos. A man in his mid 50s has many responsibilities, after all. DAVE SEGAL

READINGS & TALKS

74. Ron Chernow
I'm sure you're familiar with the Tony Award-winning smash hit musical explosion known as Hamilton? Well, I've been told Ron Chernow wrote the biography of Alexander Hamilton that Lin-Manuel Miranda used as source material for his wildly popular show. This year, Chernow will be touring with a new presidential biography about Ulysses S. Grant, probably the greatest writer ever to hold the office. RICH SMITH

OCTOBER 19

MUSIC

75. The Aquabats, Mean Jeans, Dog Party
You know that camp song, the one that never ends? "This is the song that never ends, yes it goes on and on my friends!" The Aquabats are the band equivalent to that song. Annoying to many, but childishly charming to some. And, like the song, they never really end. The 'Bats have kept up their ska-playing superhero act for about a decade now, surprisingly, and through all the trends and music-biz ups and downs, they've stayed on course, fighting off villains and assaulting their enamored fans with flying vegetables at live shows. You love them or you hate them—either way, the Aquabats remain true to themselves. "Some people started singing it, not knowing what it was, but they continued singing it forever just because..." MEGAN SELING

76. Zola Jesus with John Wiese
Zola Jesus (aka Nika Roza Danilova) is sort of a modern-day Siouxsie Sioux, a powerful singer with a propensity for dark, chilly, and semi-over-the-top synth ballads. Which makes her an unlikely—but totally likable—pop artist. Her fifth album, Taiga, is a bit of a departure from her past works. As The Stranger’s Dave Segal noted, it’s more accessible and slickly produced: The songs are still dramatic but less gloomy, her beats more club-worthy and her voice more soulful and melismatic (though still operatic—she was trained in opera). I’d still take her over [insert any pop star’s name here] any day. KATHLEEN RICHARDS

READINGS & TALKS

77. Lit Crawl Seattle: 2017
Last year, Rich Smith described the fifth annual Lit Crawl thus: "Lit Crawl is an obnoxious, overwhelming, FOMO-inducing literary nightmare that exploits the labor of writers who feel as if they have to say 'yes' to all readings. But last year all the events were really well-attended! And it ran pretty smoothly! And the evening introduced Seattle to some new writers and revived interest in more established ones!" Now the event is back for its sixth incarnation with more than 35 locations, and you won't want to miss it either.

OPENING OCTOBER 19

ART

78. Andrew Wyeth: In Retrospect
Born in Pennsylvania 100 years ago, Andrew Wyeth is an American realist painter associated with regionalism. His paintings and drawings generally include figures—sometimes in a landscape, sometimes in contemplatively lit interiors—that simultaneously present drama and stillness. In the 1970s and ’80s, he painted more than 247 studies of a German-born woman named Helga Testorf, resulting in some of the most intimate and compelling examples of 20th-century portraiture. Organized in partnership with the Brandywine River Museum, Andrew Wyeth: In Retrospect presents more than 100 works by this quintessential American artist. EMILY POTHAST

PERFORMANCE

79. Love, Chaos, and Dinner
Beloved circus/cabaret/comedy institution Teatro ZinZanni will return to Seattle for a dinner theater production of Love, Chaos, and Dinner. They promise "the same stunning, velvet-laden, and iconic Belgian spiegeltent Seattleites will remember from Teatro ZinZanni’s former location on lower Queen Anne." The cast is led by first-time "Madame ZinZanni" Ariana Savalas, and will feature a duo on aerial trapeze, a magician, a "contortionist-puppet," a yodeling dominatrix, a hoop aerialist, and a Parisian acrobat.

OCTOBER 19-21

MUSIC

80. Christian McBride
Lauded bassist Christian McBride, who's been a force in the jazz world for over 20 years and has played with musicians including Herbie Hancock and Sting, will perform with Benny Green and Lewis Nash in memory of Ray Brown.

OCTOBER 20

COMEDY

81. wellRED: From Dixie With Love
See stand-up from three Georgian and Tennesseean comedians, including "the Liberal Redneck" Trae Crowder, Drew Morgan, and Corey Ryan Forrester, who are touring across the country to promote their book Liberal Redneck Manifesto: Draggin Dixie Outta the Dark. Their take on the ideal South: "It’s about dancing to country music at a gay wedding. It’s about loving your neighbor whether you have the same religion, skin color, or sexual preference, as long as they cheer for the same college football team."

82. Whose Live Anyway?
The cast members of the Emmy-winning show Whose Line is it Anyway?—including Bellingham-born Ryan Stiles—will play their hilarious improv games onstage.

FOOD & DRINK

83. Behind the Table
Enjoy an evening of local art, live music, dinner, drinks, a silent auction, and more. Proceeds benefit The Market Community Safety Net, a fund that provides financial assistance to anyone working or living in Pike Place Market.

PERFORMANCE

84. Poppy
Bizarro pop Barbie web artist Poppy has racked up hundreds of millions of views on YouTube for her many surreal Technicolor videos. She'll be gearing up to release her debut album this October.

OCTOBER 20-21

FOOD & DRINK

85. The American Whiskey Experience
Consider a "Northwest premiere showcase of some of the finest and rarest American whiskeys." Drink cocktails, sample whiskey, and eat "whiskey-centric food pairings" from local chefs.

OCTOBER 20-31

PERFORMANCE

86. This is Halloween
Can Can's creepy yet cheery musical is back! Last year, Rich Smith wrote: "It's Tim Burton's classic The Nightmare Before Christmas repackaged as a semi-scandalous spectacle for the masses. The audience eats chicken skewers and knocks back $10 cocktails while they watch Tim Keller as Jack 'the Pumpkin King' Skellington sing and dance, cabaret-style, along with Luminous Pariah, Paris Original, Marissa Quimby, and Baby Kate, while a ghoulish orchestra pumps out the show's signature tunes. Despite the glitzy and consumerist exterior, the crew manages to smuggle a complicated cabaret about the horror of fixed identities into the unpretentious space of the Triple Door."

OCTOBER 21

MUSIC

87. Ariel Pink and Telecaves
They broke the mold when they made Runaways manager Kim Fowley, who left this mortal coil in 2015. When it comes to an heir apparent, though, look no further than Ariel Pink (born Ariel Rosenberg), who shares Fowley’s knack for insidious hooks and jumble-shop threads. If his records, like the Zappa-damaged double-album Pom Pom—it features five songs co-written with Fowley—can be scattershot affairs, Pink has a way with throwback tracks like "Lipstick," the imaginary theme to a neon-lit slasher flick, that helps to balance out bizarre proclamations like "I love pedophiles." (Huh?) Bust out the feather boas and the platform shoes, and prepare to get weird. KATHY FENNESSY

88. Bob Mould
While he may be best known for writing heartfelt anthems for the seminal punk band Hüsker Dü, Bob Mould has had a long and diverse career: forming short-lived-but-excellent power-pop band Sugar, releasing several cross-genre solo albums, and in more recent years abandoning rock altogether for electronic music. Now, at age 55, Mould has re-embraced the legacy of his Hüsker Dü–era works to deliver another round of introspective jangle punk at its finest. Beauty & Ruin, his last solo effort, sounds like a natural re-evolution from the decidedly Dü-y Silver Age, and sees Mould’s rediscovery of his deep pop sensibilities and driving rock roots. While Beauty is not a new day rising (*wink*) for Mould, his musical chameleon-ism doesn’t betray what he does best: smart, honest punk songs. BRITTNIE FULLER

89. Depeche Mode
Over the past 36 years, synth-pop pioneers Depeche Mode racked up 50 UK-charting singles and worldwide adoration for their emotional electronic sounds. Recently, as all good things are, they were appropriated by the "alt-right" (aka white supremacists) and the group immediately shunned their support (have they heard BDSM anthem "Master and Servant" or the practically socialist "Everything Counts," tho?). From the infectious synth-pop melodies of "Just Can't Get Enough" to the passionately stoic "Never Let Me Down Again," the band evolved from bright techno-pop to something darker and more industrial. They've been cited as an influence from Nine Inch Nails to Coldplay, and through the fetish wear and seductive darkness, Depeche Mode wrote some of the 20th century's best songs. BRITTNIE FULLER

90. Little Big Show #19: Perfume Genius with Briana Marela
When “genius” is right there in your band name, you’re going to have to deliver. Fortunately, Mike Hadreas figured out how to summon the goods. The first two records were real good, but Perfume Genius achieved a glory on 2014’s Too Bright that only grew more glorious on this year’s No Shape. If there’s any justice, he’ll be carried out of this show on a team of white stallions. SEAN NELSON

OCTOBER 21-22

MUSIC

91. Courtney Barnett with Kurt Vile & The Sea Lice
The first time I heard Courtney Barnett sing, I was writing a passive-aggressive e-mail in a stall of the Sub Pop bathroom, which ended up being the ideal landscape for her casual misdirects of true emotion. With inscrutable delivery and a ramshackle lyrical structure, Barnett tells you about her deepest secrets, most abject failures, and forbidden needs in the course of a simple rock song—seemingly downplaying her own humanity by showcasing it completely. Some of the most affecting music, Barnett’s included, comes from artists who feel exactly like your peers and yet create something that sounds better than however you tried to say it. KIM SELLING

OCTOBER 21-22

GEEK & GAMING

92. GE2
Spend an evening playing Esports, board games, dodgeball, and laser tag, racing drones, and experiencing VR.

OCTOBER 22

READINGS & TALKS

93. Humans of New York: Brandon Stanton
Brandon Stanton gained international fame for his Facebook page "Humans of New York," on which he posted his street photography documenting the interesting outfits, poses, and activities of NYC residents. But what made his work really interesting were the captions, often quotes from the people being photographed, that allowed glimpses into their inner lives and most traumatic struggles. There have been quite a few smart take-down pieces of Stanton that point out the potential dangers of his empathetic ethnography, but ultimately, Stanton has achieved his goal of humanizing strangers and giving audiences practical examples of the (newly minted) word "sonder" (the realization that strangers have as rich and complex a life as you do). At this event, Stanton will share "his own personal story, and the perspective he has gained since embarking on his journey to help others tell theirs."

OCTOBER 22-23

MUSIC

94. Broken Social Scene with Belle Game
Easy listening is a term most commonly deployed as a pejorative, but I think Broken Social Scene make a convincing case for its use as an accolade. The loosely defined, sprawling indie-rock collective's equally loose and sprawling guitar rock could not possibly be easier on the ears, but that's not to the detriment of their songs, which range from tiny pop treasures à la "Anthem for a Seventeen Year Old Girl" to careening yet controlled studio riots to impeccable chill-out music just the right side of yacht rock. ERIC GRANDY

OCTOBER 23

MUSIC

95. The Black Angels with Ron Gallo
The Black Angels' music has always come off as something like psych-rock 101. While they have a solid discography in the Velvet Underground/13th Floor Elevators/Doors style, which has become a default mode for a lot of psych groups, the Black Angels never conjure the delirium and otherness that the greatest psych artists achieve. These Texans too closely adhere to psychedelia's dog-eared manual rather than forging new pathways to aural transcendence. They may be (figuratively) tripping, but they've always got one hand on the reins. Don't get me wrong: The Black Angels are a very good band, probably more enjoyable than 79 percent of the groups working today. But they could stand to fire all of their guns at once and explode into space once in a while. DAVE SEGAL

96. Milky Chance
Known for their 2013 EP Stolen Dance, German duo Milky Chance are back on tour for Blossom, their second full-length album rife with electronic beats and indie-folk melodies.

READINGS & TALKS

97. G. Willow Wilson with Jamala Henderson
G. Willow Wilson used to describe herself as an "upper-middle-class American White girl with bland politics and polite beliefs." That changed when she converted to Islam in college, worked as a journalist in Egypt, and began writing the comic series Ms. Marvel, featuring a Pakistani American teenage girl from Jersey City. Hear Willow discuss the series, moderated by KUOW's Jamala Henderson.

OCTOBER 24

MUSIC

98. Yelle
Maybe it's because everything sounds better in French (cwoisssaaauunnt), but there's something extra super about Yelle's French electro-posi-pop. It's bright Euro disco with a slightly comical (can a synthesizer sound like bouncy house feels?) approach to the music that makes the aforementioned genre more listenable than usual, especially when each song is catchier than the last. Yelle's (Julie Budet) neon voice shines with a glittery sexiness that is not gross or eye-rolly in the least. And the last time I saw her, matching drummers and coordinating outfits were involved! EMILY NOKES

READINGS & TALKS

99. David Neiwert: Alt America: The Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump
The journalist David Neiwert wrote a book a few years ago about killer whales (Of Orcas and Men) that was so packed with illuminating facts it practically changed my life. His latest is a book is Alt-America: The Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump, about neo-Nazis, militias, conspiracy theorists, xenophobes, and the president of the United States. For more than two decades, Neiwert has been tracking homergrown extremists for the Southern Poverty Law Center, so who better to provide what is being billed as “a deeply researched and authoratative report on the growth of fascism and far-right terrorism.” CHRISTOPHER FRIZZELLE

OCTOBER 25

MUSIC

100. Silversun Pickups with Minus The Bear
I first heard Silversun Pickups when their song “Panic Switch” was the only good thing about the trailer to the movie Sucker Punch. (Does anyone remember that movie?) After purchasing that record, Swoon, I discovered that the band had a less-than-stellar reputation in critical circles. Screw the critics, I later thought, watching the band open for Metallica in Detroit. They’re energetic and driving live, even though singer Brian Aubert has a somewhat delicate voice. Every one of their records has at least a handful of excellent chrome-plated-but-plaintive rock songs, and 2015’s Better Nature is no different. JOSEPH SCHAFER

101. Slowdive with Cherry Glazerr
British shoegaze giants Slowdive recently joined the ’90s reunion circuit. Lovers of “noisy guitars and cool pedals” (sayeth the band of themselves), Slowdive are a legendary part of the early-’90s Creation Records history, and should lull listeners into a dream-pop coma tonight with their walls of blissed-out distortion. BRITTNIE FULLER

102. Yelawolf, Mikey Mike, Big Henri, Cookup Boss
Yelawolf is a lean, tattooed, half-white, half-Cherokee MC from the unlikely hiphop outpost of Gadsden, Alabama, at the tail end of the Appalachians. He has floppy, jet-black hair that falls somewhere between mullet and uncharged Mohawk. He's probably the most unusual face in Southern hiphop right now, and after years of mixtape toil, he's poised for big things in the year to come. ERIC GRANDY

READINGS & TALKS

103. Amy Tan: Where the Past Begins
Amy Tan has written beautifully (and sometimes controversially) about Chinese-American culture, generational gaps, and familial relationships; her best-known books are The Joy Luck Club (which was made into a fairly groundbreaking movie, for Hollywood standards) and The Valley of Amazement. She's here to share her latest work, Where the Past Begins, a memoir about how she became a writer.

MUSIC

104. Action Bronson
Action Bronson's towering concoctions, whether they're meals or songs, only seem over-the-top once he tells you so. The best part of his music isn't necessarily what he says as much as how he says it. You can pick any Bronson song and find some of his favorite references: '80s wrestlers, '90s athletes, his hometown of Queens, New York, and yes, food, all expertly arranged and distorted. JACKSON HATHORN

105. Hoodie Allen, Luke Christopher, Myles Parrish
"Hoodie-Hop" progenitor Hoodie Allen will be back in town for an all-ages rager rife with pop-infused bars and guest artists like Luke Christopher and Myles Parrish.

106. Songhoy Blues
Malian blues, West African throwback funk, and desert rock will take the stage in the form of Songhoy Blues.

READINGS & TALKS

107. An Evening with Anna Faris
Actress (and UW alumna) Anna Faris will discuss and sign her new memoir, Unqualified, which "reveals her unique take on how to navigate the bizarre, chaotic, and worthwhile adventure of finding love."

OCTOBER 26-NOVEMBER 12

FILM

108. 13th Annual HUMP! Film Festival
Every year we put out the call to sex-havers everywhere to submit a homegrown amateur porn film depicting whatever they're into (barring poop, kids, and animals, of course). The result is an incredibly diverse representation of human sexuality in all its straight, gay, trans, queer, kinky, funny, pissy, painful, and pretty forms. (And then it goes away, allowing the filmmakers to go back to their normal lives, thanks to the festival's strict privacy and security policies.) That diversity is also reflected in HUMP!'s audiences, making for a unique theater experience. The person sitting next to you might be seeing your everyday kind of sex for the very first time. In a world where fear and ignorance breed hatred, HUMP!'s demystifying inclusivity is on the front line of deflecting destructive alienation. (You also might surprise yourself by getting turned on by something unexpected.) And, like the best film festivals, it's also fun, thought provoking, and often hilarious. MARJORIE SKINNER

OCTOBER 27

HALLOWEEN

109. Seduction: A Fundraiser for the Seattle Erotic Art Festival
The Foundation for Sex Positive Culture and the Seattle Erotic Art Festival present what they describe as "a carnival of delights!" From interactive installations to aerial and bondage shows to an Oddities Emporium, this event will be kinda artsy and definitely sensual.

110. FreakNight 2017
Annual high-key wild-out throwdown FreakNight raises the bar for their 20th anniversary celebration, with a two-day set of live music, dancing, and a darkly neon environment of circus surprises, bizarre sideshow wonders, and carnival rides.

MUSIC

111. Kesha with Savoy Motel
Witness pop star Kesha perform as her newest, most colorfully redemptive iteration with Nashville glam rockers Savoy Motel.

112. Snakehips, STWO, Yahtzel
Blog house superheroes Snakehips' remix of "Warm Water" by Banks essentially made her entire career worthwhile, and while we wouldn't say the same of all their remixes, they're reliably groovy dance technicians KYLE FLECK

113. Tegan and Sara
If you have a twin, you basically owe it to the world to start a band with them and cash in on those perfect harmonies. Cases in point: the Breeders, P.S. Eliot, Wet Nurse, and um… Good Charlotte? Fellow twin band, Canadian pop stars Tegan and Sara, make the kind of music that fits seamlessly into a Forever 21 soundtrack but somehow still oozes real emotion. They weren’t always pumping through shopping-center sound systems alongside recycled air, though. The record that endeared me to them was 2004’s So Jealous, which I first heard through the CD library of the community radio station where I volunteered. For months I would drive home at 3 a.m. after my DJ shift listening to the perfectly crafted indie-rock breakup record, and feel justified in liking something my cooler friends deemed uncool because Weezer/Rentals member Matt Sharp played Moog on it. Tegan and Sara’s rise to full-fledged pop stars has made the music more electronic and mainstream-palatable, but it kept the same whip-smart heart (and magical twin harmonies) that first cut straight to myheart. ROBIN EDWARDS

OCTOBER 27-28

COMEDY

114. Arsenio Hall
Join comedian Arsenio Hall, best known for his late-night talk show The Arsenio Hall Show, which debuted in 1989.

OCTOBER 27-29

FESTIVALS

115. Steamposium 2017
It's a three-day celebration of all things steampunk, so bust out your finest clockwork corsets and reserve some zeppelin parking down at the waterfront. Spectate future-past style parades at the Tea and Fashion Show, snoop out the villain at the Murder Mystery, and hear concerts by Abney Park and Unwoman.

OCTOBER 28

HALLOWEEN

116. Fremonster Spectacular
This Halloween party promises wild DJ performances, a costume contest, a full bar with specialty cocktails, festive chocolates, and performances.

117. Haunt: The Ultimate Halloween Bash
Dance to sets from "party band" Brand X and DJ Funkdaddy, watch other spooky performances, and participate in a costume contest for "most elaborate," "most creative," "scariest," "best group," and other categories.

MUSIC

118. Alvvays with Jay Som
Alvvays, saddled with general Canadian cuteness, hark back to a time of indie-pop nostalgia wherein the ice-cream truck jingle morphs into a siren song of teen drone necessity. This time never actually existed, which makes Alvvays that much more affecting, a band capable of making you miss an age through which you never lived. KIM SELLING

119. NEEDTOBREATHE with Guests
Southern rockers NEEDTOBREATHE bring their South Carolinian shred to the Moore on their All The Feels Tour, ostensibly named for what will be invoked within you once you experience the unbridled energy of their live show.

120. Shadows: Toro Y Moi (DJ Set) and Sango with Romaro Franceswa, Qreepz, Chong The Nomad
Upper Left will be taking a more avant-garde approach to Halloween this year, with an evening of live performances and DJ sets that will soundtrack the darkest of holidays. Revel in the haunted imagery of a bygone era alongside the sounds of Toro Y Moi, Sango, Romaro Franceswa, Qreepz, and Chong The Nomad.

OCTOBER 29

MUSIC

121. Mary Lambert with Mal Blum
Queer pop artist Mary Lambert, who performed with Macklemore and Ryan Lewis on "Same Love," will perform tracks off her latest EP Bold, along with guest musician Mal Blum. She's got a nice blend of snark and sincerity, so if you like smart lyrics and sunny hooks, go check her out.

PODCASTS

122. An Evening with with Brian Reed
One thing that the podcast S-Town (a truth-based radio mystery à la Serial) is great for is provoking strong opinions—everyone and their mother had a take on the style, investigation, and ethics of the series. At this event, get a peek into the mind of S-Town co-creator and host Brian Reed, who will share audio outtakes from production, reporting details that were left out of the final product, and anecdotes from the process.

CLOSING OCTOBER 29

ART

123. Storme Webber: Casino: A Palimpsest
Storme Webber is a Two-Spirit First Nations (Alutiiq/Black/Choctaw) interdisciplinary artist, curator, writer, and performer who creates socially engaged texts and images at the intersections of race, class, gender, sexuality, memory, and spirit. Through the exhibition of archival photographs, installation, and experimental storytelling, Webber uses the pre-Stonewall working-class LGBTQ history of the Pioneer Square neighborhood as a point of departure to shed light on the hidden stories of the marginalized people in Seattle's present and past. Expect to see the historical made timeless, and the timeless made tangible. EMILY POTHAST

HALLOWEEN

124. Fright Fest
Listen to the swooshing of the wind on rollercoasters in the dark, check out two haunted houses, walk down a creepy trail through the woods, and make scary arts and crafts at Fright Fest.

PERFORMANCE

125. Pride And Prejudice
Kate Hamill (known for her adaptations of Sense and Sensibility and Vanity Fair) offers another modern take on Jane Austen through this production of Pride and Prejudice. This run at the Seattle Rep will be the play's West Coast premiere, with direction by Amanda Dehnert, who has directed shows at a number of regional theaters (including the esteemed Oregon Shakespeare Festival).

OCTOBER 30

MUSIC

126. A$AP Mob, Playboi Carti, Key!, Cozy Boys
Known possibly more for what they've taken rather than what they've originated, A$AP Mob returns to the best coast on a promotional tour for their recent release Cozy Tapes Vol. 2: Too Cozy. Expect appearances from A$AP Rocky, A$AP Twelvyy, A$AP Nast, and A$AP Ant, with support from Playboi Carti, Key!, and Cozy Boys to round the night out.

127. Chelsea Wolfe with Youth Code
Chelsea Wolfe’s 2015 album Abyss was a big step forward for the Los Angeles doom-folk maven, an alluringly abrasive witch’s cauldron of overblown goth pop, desperate balladry, and sludgy metal. Its bounds more hi-fi than her early work, with industrial beats that pound like premium-grade Nine Inch Nails and ghoulish ambience swirling in the margins of the songs, and the songwriting matches the production’s ambition. Wolfe's aesthetic sometimes leans toward histrionics, as goth tends to, but there are moments like “After the Fall” that approach latter-day Portishead for grandiosity, a kind of glamorously damaged suicide soundtrack that’s called for in certain times of emotional desolation. KYLE FLECK

READINGS & TALKS

128. Walter Isaacson: Leonardo da Vinci
The very influential Walter Isaacson (President and CEO of the Aspen Institute, former CEO of CNN, and former managing editor of Time) has written a number of very good biographies of people including Henry Kissinger, Benjamin Franklin, Albert Einstein, and Steve Jobs. At this event, he'll share his latest book: Leonardo Da Vinci, which explores the artist's life and essential genius.

OCTOBER 31

HALLOWEEN

129. The Bowie Ball with BowieVision
The local tribute group Bowievision—featuring members of Dudley Manlove Quartet and Purr Gato, plus saxophonist Brian Bermudez—replicate as faithfully as they can the chameleonic British singer/songwriter’s hits, with a light show and video backdrops for bonus dazzlement. DAVE SEGAL

CLOSING NOVEMBER 4

HALLOWEEN

130. Georgetown Morgue
Want to grope through a pitch-black maze with a bloody clown screaming in your ear, but most likely emerge with all your important bits still attached? Cheesy as it looks, Georgetown Morgue has scared a lot of people. Not recommended for claustrophobes.

National Home-Building Giants Flock to Moneyed New Seattle

An invasion of national firms has changed the home-building market here.

BY: JEANNE LANG JONES | Posted October 2, 2017 | Courtesy of seattlemag.com

Image Credit: Navid Baraty

Quadrant Homes; The company has three townhome sites, including Breva in Bellevue near the planned light-rail line.

In 2011, as the local economy was recovering, giant home-building firms poured into the Seattle market. Among them were Richmond American Homes (Denver), Toll Brothers (Philadelphia), Henley Properties (Australia), Newland Communities (San Diego) and Lennar Corp. (Miami). They joined Shea Homes (Los Angeles) and publicly traded home builders D.R. Horton (Fort Worth) and Centex Corp. (Dallas), now owned by PulteGroup Inc. (Atlanta).

These new players quickly snapped up local home builders. Richmond American parent M.D.C. Holdings bought SDC Homes of Seattle. Toll Brothers bought Kirkland’s Camwest Development. Lennar bought Premier Communities of Puyallup. Henley partner, Sumitomo Forestry Group Housing, bought Bellevue’s Bennett Homes. These acquisitions provided the newcomers with local expertise and instant property portfolios.

To better compete, Quadrant Homes, a former Weyerhaeuser subsidiary, hired an industrial design firm in 2012 to do consumer analytics on the housing market. The research “brought in some different thinking and yielded great fruit,” Quadrant President Ken Krivanec says.

Krivanec relates that some well-heeled buyers were willingly paying $750,000 for a new home at a time when Quadrant’s average sale price was below $300,000. So the company developed a contemporary design aesthetic and decided to concentrate on the Eastside luxury home market.

Quadrant itself was acquired in 2014 by publicly traded TRI Pointe Group, which is based in the Los Angeles area and owns six premium homebuilding brands operating across eight states. Fueled by new capital, Quadrant began shopping for land — from Bothell to the Renton Highlands — and was able to win some very aggressive bids, says Bonnie Geers, Quadrant’s SVP of community development.

Quadrant also sold five properties in Seattle’s Columbia City neighborhood, where it once planned to build more than 100 townhomes. The properties had appreciated significantly in value. “Selling the assets in Seattle let us keep our energy focused in the direction we were heading,” Geers notes. Quadrant currently has three townhome sites on the Eastside — in Kirkland, Newcastle and near the planned light-rail line in Bellevue.

Meanwhile, Charlie Conner, owner and president of Conner Homes in Bellevue, says his company had to become more nimble to compete against the larger home builders. At its peak in 2004, Conner Homes built about 220 homes a year. After suffering a dip in production during the recession, Conner extended its reach into the South End market and partnered with another business with significant land holdings there. The geographic expansion enabled Conner to return to a pace above 200 homes a year despite the downturn.

Conner now has a presence in seven communities, from Sammamish in the north to Edgewood and Buckley in the south.

While the business did slow in 2009, says Conner, support from its banks enabled the company to continue building throughout the recession. One advantage of being an independent home builder, Conner adds, is that he can be more creative in the type of house he builds on a particular parcel that might not fit a larger builder’s stock house plans.

Photograph by Navid Baraty. Developer Conner Homes added properties in the South End market, including homes in Edgewood’s Westridge, above.

Like Quadrant, Conner is also building townhomes. He sees them as a good alternative for empty nesters and others who don’t necessarily want a big yard. But Conner says the competition remains “pretty fierce” from national companies that can spread their risk across projects nationwide. “People build in inflation, assuming prices will continue to go up 10 to 15 percent per year,” Conner says. “If you operate all over the United States in different markets, then perhaps you will gamble here and there and pay the upper price for land.”

By contrast, says Conner, “We have to make it work here because we are a local company.” 

Puyallup-based Soundbuilt Homes has also adjusted. Before the recession, Soundbuilt was doing 600 to 700 homes a year. It has scaled back production to about 200 homes annually.

“All the nationals are here and it’s hard to get land to do that kind of number,” says COO Kurt Wilson. “We have to be nimble and able to do various types and sizes of projects that we may not have done 10 years ago.”

Soundbuilt builds houses in King, Pierce and Thurston counties, from Renton to Gig Harbor south to Yelm. Soundbuilt also develops and sells land to national home builders when the properties don’t fit into its production timeline, Wilson says. The company is working on some big projects that were acquired before or during the downturn and are being built in phases.

No Passport Required

By Denise Sakaki | September 20, 2017 | Courtesy of 425magazine.com

photos by Olivia Brent

Within the city of Bellevue, your taste buds can travel the world. As the city continues to grow, so does its culinary scene, with a dynamic array of international options. Local restaurants and markets specialize in cuisine from so many countries, we wanted to share a taste of what’s available within a five-mile radius — stretching from downtown Bellevue to Crossroads.

Blue Ginger Korean BBQ

The aroma of meat and vegetables sizzling on a grill is hard to resist, and what better way to enjoy it than at a table full of friends? Experience Korean barbecue with a hands-on approach by ordering combination plates of fresh beef, cuts of pork, and seafood to sizzle away on the grill set in the center of the table. The marinated gal-bi is the best of everything — beef short ribs cut flanken style, thin for quick searing, with the added flavor of meat on the bone and the sweet/savory/spicy flavors of Korean seasoning. That, with the banchan of pickled vegetables, and one of the spicy soups make for a memorable group meal. 14045 N.E. 20th St.; koreanbbqbellevue.com

Byblos Deli

Levantine cooking, the Eastern Mediterranean region that includes Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Israel, is diverse with multiple culinary influences and permeated with garlic, spiced meats, and fresh vegetables. Byblos Deli’s combination platter of grilled marinated beef, lamb kafta, and chicken shish taouk is a delicious sampler of different meats atop seasoned rice with vegetables and a swirl of creamy hummus. There are also specialties like manti, small Turkish dumplings, and lahmajune, a pizza-like Armenian flatbread topped with seasoned beef, fresh tomatoes and onion.

14220 N.E. 20th St.; byblosdeli.com

Uwajimaya

Located in downtown Bellevue, Uwajimaya has been an Eastside staple for Asian groceries for more than 30 years. Shop for fresh meats, seafood, and produce. Stopping in for lunch? Try the café for hot food or Sashimi Island for fresh sashimi. 699 120th Ave. N.E. (also located in Renton); uwajimaya.com

Mediterranean Kitchen

Their house-made toum, a Lebanese garlic sauce used on almost everything, is totally addictive. Diners aware of the huge portion sizes unabashedly bring containers to take home leftovers, leaving no bite behind. 103 Bellevue Way N.E.; mediterraneankitchens.net

Crossroads Mall Public Market

Before global cuisine had the cachet it’s enjoying today, Crossroads Mall had its international food court with dozens of different countries represented. This is the place to have a little bit of everything when you just can’t decide. 15600 N.E. Eighth St.; crossroadsbellevue.com

Kizuki Ramen & Izakaya / Hokkaido Ramen Santouka / Jinya Ramen Bar / Ramen Yoshi

The ramen craze is in full effect! Bellevue’s range of ramen restaurants specializes in different broth styles and noodle combinations, so the most delicious advice is to try them all to find your perfect ramen fit.
kizuki.com, santouka-usa.com, jinya-ramenbar.com, facebook.com/RamenYoshi

Taqueria El Rinconsito

Crave-worthy tacos, along with a full menu of enchiladas, burritos, and entrée-sized plates like carne asada. On weekends, try the special pozole soup, perfect for locations like Bellevue with extended late-night hours. 2255 140th Ave. N.E.; elrinconsito.com

Szechuan Chef

Can’t get enough spicy food? Szechuan cuisine, originating from the Southwestern province in China, features the generous use of the regional peppercorn of the same name. Slightly citrusy in flavor with a unique tingling numbness to the mouth, its heat develops as you eat. Szechuan Chef’s menu is dotted with little red pepper icons, signifying an item’s spiciness, even in the cold dishes. Chong Qing Hot Chicken is an addictive mix of bite-sized crispy, dry-fried chicken mixed with whole chili peppers, appealing to the heat-seeking culinarian, as well as anyone curious to try Szechuan food for the first time.
15015 Main St.; szechuanchef.us

Liebchen Delicatessen

A European grocery store and German deli, you can get hard-to-find imported ingredients, as well as packaged cookies and sweets. They sell cheeses and fresh Bavarian sausages, and it’s a perfect stop for cold cut sandwiches or daily soups. Insider tip: go early for the best selection of fresh pretzel rolls and breads, or call to find out when they get their delivery from their bakery. 14125 N.E. 20th St.; liebchendeli.com

Dough Zone

The popularity of xiao long bao has given rise to dumpling houses like Dough Zone, but take note of specialties like sheng jian bao, steam-fried buns filled with pork and broth; they’re heartier and more than double the size of the dumplings.15920 N.E. Eighth St.; facebook.com/doughzone

Ginza

Some of the freshest sushi you’ll have, beautifully hand-formed to showcase the cut and color of each piece of seafood. Sit barside to watch sushi artistry at work! 103 102nd Ave. S.E.; ginzaatbellevue.com

Fogo de Chao Brazillian BBQ

The flavor of Fogo de Chão got its start on a traditional Southern Brazilian farm, where the founders learned to grill fresh meat. The Bellevue restaurant brings churrasco-style dining to the Northwest. 440 Bellevue Way N.E.; fogodechao.com

Japonessa

This new Lincoln Square restaurant is known for its sushi with Latin flair — like traditional sashimi rolls topped with jalapeño, cilantro, and mango. Don’t miss the happy hour. 500 Bellevue Way N.E.; bellevue.japonessa.com

H-Mart

With locations throughout Eastside suburbs, the Bellevue H-Mart smartly adapts to downtown living. The smaller space is stocked with ingredient basics for Korean cooking, and features a deli-style section of prepared meals. 100 108th Ave. N.E.; hmartus.com

Mercato Stellina

A sibling of neighboring restaurant Cantinetta, Mercato Stellina takes the same care in its focus on handmade ingredients, like producing its own charcuterie and making the dough for its crust, which is transformed to a carbon-kissed crispy delight against the open flame of the oven. 10000 Main St.; mercatostellina.com

Old Country Bakery

A combination of several Eastern European countries in one shop, Old Country Bakery makes a range of items, including Jewish challah braids and rugelach cookies, German whole wheat and Russian rye breads, as well as unique-shaped loaves like the Georgian puri or Armenian matnakash. Of course, there are also familiar desserts like special occasion cakes and French-style pastries, but be adventurous with your sweet tooth and try the Armenian gata, an ornate dessert bread filled with vanilla. 900 160th Ave. N.E.; oldcountrybakery.net

Facing East

Taiwanese food is a complex combination of Chinese and Japanese influences intertwined with Taiwan’s native cuisine. At Facing East, dishes feature seafood and pork with vegetables, as well as tropical fruit. Delicate yet hearty, aromatic yet subtle, the dishes cover a wide spectrum, which Facing East captures beautifully. There’s familiarity in the salt and pepper shrimp, a velvety richness in the braised tofu with pork, and most everyone gets the Taiwanese Pork Burger, a super-sized gua bao — a steamed bun with a slab of slow-cooked pork belly, pickled vegetables, fresh coriander leaves, and crushed peanuts. 1075 Bellevue Way N.E.; facingeasttaiwanese.com

Chaat House

“Chaat” is a general term to describe a savory snack or appetizer-sized repast popular in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal. Chaat House specializes in vegetarian small plates like potato- and lentil-filled samosas, as well as a variety of flatbreads such as parathas, kulcha and roti, or fried pillowy poori bread with curry or chutney toppings. Or try thalis, small portions of dishes like paneer curry, if your appetite seeks something heartier. And if you’re feeling the heat of the spices, get a sweet, creamy mango lassi to cool those taste buds. 14725 N.E. 20th St. (also located in Bothell). bellevuechaathouse.com. 

Dine Out for a Good Cause at Cactus

Cactus Restaurants pledges $10,000 to help fund hurricane relief efforts

By Margo Greenman | September 22, 2017 | Courtesy of 425magazine.com 

Photo courtesy Cactus Restaurants

ungry to help victims of hurricanes Irma and Harvey? From Sept. 27 through the Oct. 27, Cactus Restaurants is donating $1 from every item sold off its feature menu to the American Red Cross to help fund hurricane relief efforts in Texas, Florida, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. All five Cactus locations are participating, and the restaurant has pledged a minimum donation of $10,000.

“We hope to exceed our $10,000 donation pledge,” said Cactus co-owner Bret Chatalas. “We feel strongly about feeding and taking care of people here at Cactus, and by extension, those affected by the hurricanes. We think this is a great avenue for our customers to help their fellow Americans start to rebuild their lives.”

The feature menu includes a wide variety of items for guests to choose from, like roasted carrot tacos made using organically grown carrots from Sound Sustainable Farms, and even cocktails like the Patron single barrel Old Fashioned.

Westland Distillery’s Peat Week Returns

The SoDo single-malt whisperers celebrate smoky whiskeys with a cocktail competition, a peat symposium, and a whole roasted pig.

By Stefan Milne  9/27/2017 at 9:30am | Courtesy of Seattlemet.com 

IMAGE: WESTLAND DISTILLERY

There are a lot of alcohol-related festivities in early autumn: Oktoberfest, fresh hop events, Washington Cider Week. Next week (October 2–7), lauded single-malt maker Westland Distillery is bringing back Peat Week, a celebration of their peated whiskeys, for the fourth year. Here’s why it might be worth the trip to Westland’s SoDo distillery.

All Week
Peat-Focused Distillery Tours
All through Peat Week the SoDo tasting room will hold special, peat-centric tours. You might learn that while Westland’s current peated releases use malts imported Scotland, distillers there have been working with Skagit Valley Malting for the last few years to make true Washington-peated single-malt. Skagit Valley Malting has been getting peat from a bog out in Shelton and malting local barley with it. Westland will be distilling a new batch of this whiskey during Peat Week, though Westland’s director of marketing Steve Hawley says the first batches won’t be ready for a couple more years. 

Mon, Oct 2
Peat Symposium
Washington has a thing for smoke—weed, salmon, and now whiskey. (Cue some jazz about gloomy weather and cozy fireside connotations.) Peat is essential moss that’s turned into charcoal, which is used to smoke the barley malt that the whiskeys are made from. If you want to know more, Peat Week kicks off with this symposium on Monday night, 7–10pm. Westland master distiller Matt Hofmann will speak with Allan Logan, the production manager at Bruichladdich, an Islay distillery that Hawley describes as “a kindred spirit to us, they buck traditional Scottish traditions at every turn and are rebels of the scotch world.” Snag a ticket quick though: last year’s peat talk was the first event to sell out. 

Wed, Oct 4
Cocktail Competition
A $60 ticket lets you judge a peated cocktail competition with four cocktails included in the ticket price. Bartenders hail from Bar Sue, the Barrel Thief,  the Hideout, and Thackeray (which will also provide smoky food stuffs to pair). 

Sat, Oct 7
Closing Night Party
Westland got the idea for Peat Week from similar Scottish festivals, where there’s a long tradition of throwing festivals for new bottlings, similar to Oktoberfest in Germany or Beaujolais Day in France. If you have a similar passion for peated whiskeys, the closing night party may be your best bet. Anyway, it’s a party; you’ve been to a party; they tend to be fun. You can pick up a bottle of the special 100 percent peated-malt special release. Radiator Whiskey is roasting whole pigs. So the next morning you can wake up with very, very smoky breath. 

For more details and tickets, check out the antiquated circus themed Peat Week website.

Fall Might be Washington's Best Wine-Drinking Season

In the final part of a series on Washington varietals to drink each season, Paul Zitarelli recommends the best wines for autumn.

BY: PAUL ZITARELLI | FROM THE PRINT EDITION | OCTOBER 2016

Autumn brings “leafy” reds such as Tempranillo and honeyed-apple Chenin Blanc

I can’t be the only Seattleite who harbors a secret love of our rainy autumns. Don’t get me wrong: I love our glorious sunny summer as much as the next wine writer, but by Labor Day, I’m itching for that first morning when the gray underbelly of Puget Sound’s clouds are seemingly only 15 feet off the ground.

Why the love for overcast weather? It gives us guilt-free permission to turn our focus from the outdoors to the indoors and toward family and home, and very much toward the kitchen and the table. All of the sudden, it doesn’t seem ridiculous to have the entire Saturday to-do list be: 1) Braise short ribs for six hours until spoon-tender; 2) Choose an appropriate bottle of wine.

Autumn is a magical time for drinking wine. The white wine I love most in autumn is Chenin Blanc. Its honeyed apple character is evocative of an autumn harvest fair, where some old salt is pressing apples into cider with an antique hand crank. Chenin is incredibly versatile, making lovely dry wines and luscious sweet wines. Some of Washington’s oldest vines are planted to this character-filled variety.

Now we shift gears to three autumnal reds. This time of year marks the end of tomato season, with the last heirlooms turning up at farmers markets, and with home gardeners bringing under-ripe plants into the kitchen to finish maturing. No wine varietal pairs as well with a fresh chunky tomato sauce as Sangiovese, a grape whose ancestral home is Tuscany, where tomatoes play a central role in local cuisine. Sangiovese’s naturally high acidity allows it to still taste bright and fresh when paired with tomato-based dishes, and its alluring kiss of cherry-pit bitters offsets a tomato’s natural sweetness.

Any wine varietal whose description frequently includes “leafy” seems just about perfect for autumn, don’t you think? Frequently, descriptions of Tempranillo include tea leaves, tobacco leaves and, well, just plain leaves. There’s something about sniffing a good Tempranillo that can put you in mind of a twilight trail walk, leaves crunching underfoot. It’s also a beautiful braising wine, softening up all manner of tough cuts with enough hours of slow cooking.

Finally, autumn is nirvana for Northwest mycophiles. Mushroom lovers across the region head into the woods (or the grocery stores) seeking out chanterelles and lobster mushrooms and porcinis. Pinot Noir is generally considered the ne plus ultra of mushroom pairings. While Oregon is much better known for Pinot Noir than Washington, there are a few select vineyards north of the Oregon–Washington border where this delicate grape performs beautifully. Its light body and delicate flavors complement subtle ’shrooms whereas bolder wines can overwhelm, and Pinot’s natural earthiness makes it a fine spouse for up-from-the-soil fungi of all kinds. Better yet, versatile Pinot is the perfect red for the Thanksgiving table, so keep a few bottles around for the holiday that marks the end of autumn proper.

Paul’s Picks for Autumn Washington Wines

2015 Orr Wines Old Vine Chenin Blanc, $25
Erica Orr’s enology consulting business in Woodinville has been wildly successful since she launched in 2006, helping wineries such as Baer, Mark Ryan, Guardian Cellars and Sparkman Cellars make a series of beautiful wines. For her own Orr Wines label, she makes exactly one wine: this old-vine Chenin Blanc, from a nearly 40-year-old site in the Yakima Valley called Rothrock Vineyard. It’s an intense, delicious, bone-dry Chenin, mixing apple fruit and apple-blossom floral notes with honey and malt powder.
PAIRS WITH: Thickly cut pork chops stewed with caramelized apples and onions.

2012 Kiona Estate Reserve Sangiovese, Red Mountain, $25
This Sangiovese comes from two of JJ Williams’ Kiona estate vineyards on Red Mountain. It offers a wonderful aromatically dusty character, hovering over a core of red cherry and pomegranate fruit. A note of star anise adds further complexity. The palate possesses wonderful Sangiovese character: pie-cherry fruit, rustic back-end chew and a great finishing lick of Aperol-flavored bitters. The rich fruit (14.5 percent alcohol by volume) is well-balanced by Sangiovese’s bright natural acidity.

PAIRS WITH: Gnocchi Bolognese, the sauce made from the last fresh tomatoes of the season. 

2012 Idilico Tempranillo, $20
It’s a sign of Tempranillo’s recent success in Washington that Woodinville-based Javier Alfonso can now source grapes from sites across our state, including Snipes Mountain (Upland Vineyard), Horse Heaven Hills (Elerding) and the greater Yakima Valley. His Tempranillo begins with a nose of deep black cherry fruit, autumnal leafy notes, and spices like anise and clove. Tannins are fine-grained, acids bright and juicy; all the components coexist harmoniously.

PAIRS WITH: Oxtails (short ribs or pot roast also work well) braised in this Tempranillo alongside a mess of root vegetables: carrots, celery root and turnips. 

2009 Bainbridge Vineyards Pinot Noir, $29
Most of Washington is climatically inappropriate for growing Pinot Noir, but there are a few cool-climate pockets where it makes sense. One of those is the Puget Sound AVA. This Pinot Noir comes from one of the closest vineyards to Seattle as the crow flies: Bainbridge Vineyards on Bainbridge Island. Winemaker Betsey Wittick has crafted an eye-opening Pinot, elegant and delicious with its mix of red fruit and earthy mineral tones. Now seven years past vintage, this is beginning to display wonderful maturing tones of mushroom and leather.

PAIRS WITH: A bowl of polenta topped with whatever wild mushrooms you can find, sautéed in butter and fresh thyme, and deglazed with dry sherry.

Check out Zitarelli's picks for winter, spring and summer.