One Day in Seattle Itinerary

Chihuly 

     For Memorial Day weekend we took Amtrak up to Seattle. The train is becoming a new enjoyment of mine. The train from Portland to Seattle is approximately four hours and if you get the cheapest ticket, it is around $50 to travel round trip. Normally, I spend the train ride catching up on my latest tv drama, however this trip I had forgotten my headphones. Instead of television, I drew possible future home layouts, meal planned and caught up on social media planning. As my aunt says, the train is the perfect time to get work done because you are in an environment where it is hard to do other tasks. 

     We arrived Friday night, and had intended to unpack and go out again, however when we were walking through Capitol Hill we noticed it was rather quiet. Once we had unloaded and made it to our lodging we were tuckered out from traveling and just called it a night. We did fill our weekend with exploring and site seeing, but the day that was filled was Sunday.

     We woke up around 8:00am Sunday morning to
take an Uber to go to the Chihuly Glass Garden near the space needle. We arrived just before opening and tried to find somewhere to grab a quick bite to eat but were unsuccessful. At 9:00am we entered the museum. We spent roughly 45 minutes walking through the entire museum, with 20 of those minute spent at the end taking photos in the glass house.

    We found a coffee shop, called Vita at KEXP for breakfast and to kill some time before our next agenda item. The space appeared to be a large industrial warehouse used as a multifunctional space. I got a cookie butter latte (which was a sweet as it sounds) and Roy enjoyed an Ethiopian drip coffee. After finishing, we made our way past the International Fountain to the Space Needle

Glass Floor

     At 11:00 am we stepped in line to go up to the top of the Space Needle. The process is rather straight forward. We waited in a line for the elevator to take us to the top. While waiting in line they have a place to have a complimentary photo taken in front of a green screen for you to choose your digital background later online. They give you a ticket with a QR code to scan in various locations to take photos and download at a later time. The elevator takes you to the top observation deck. I will say, the view from on top of the Space Needle is amazing, but the poor crowd control made our experience rushed. Trying to navigate through crowds, take a photo, or even just make your way to the exit was a constant push and shove that took away from the enjoyment of seeing a spectacular view. Taking the stairs down one floor brought us into the revolving glass floor. Similar to the observation deck, it was hard to enjoy the awe of the structure and height because of others. For us, or at least for myself, the experience ending up being more of a "let's get this over with" than it was enjoyment. 

     Once we came back down from the Space Needle, we stayed in the area to find some food and enjoy the Folklife Festival that was happening. After eating some delicious gyros, we began to walk the 30 minute walk down hill towards the Seattle Aquarium. On the way we got lost and wandered through the Olympic Sculpture Park. This was my favorite non-food part of the trip. We hadn't planned to go, but I got distracted, and saw something shiny to explore. Well, not actually, but the idea is the same. 

      We made it to the Seattle Aquarium around 1:30 and headed inside. By this time of day, families were wrapped around the building and rain was just around the corner. With these factors and Memorial Day weekend, the aquarium was full of families. We rushed through the first part to the seals and otter exhibits. Overall, we only spent about 40 minutes here, but you could definitely spend longer. 

     Following the aquarium, we took an Uber back to the Museum of Pop Culture. Of everything, this was my least favorite experience. Admittedly, there was a lot of interesting relics to see, and the Indie Gaming room was a favorite of Roy and I's, but overall, I felt that the museum was incohesive and had poor flow of traffic. We did go when it was raining, and the museum was probably at capacity, if not over capacity, but realistically with the amount of people that was there it was impossible to truly enjoy any of the exhibits. 

The Crab Pot

     We ended our night with Roy's pick of food at The Crab Pot. This is the restaurant located back by the Seattle Aquarium (yes our route was poorly planned), that is known for dumping its bucket of seafood on the table for you to enjoy. Both Roy and I were excited for this and I was particularly excited to enjoy some crab. 

     Other parts of this trip included, a trip to the International District/Chinatown for coffee, tea shopping, and a visit to the Waterfall Garden. An exploration of Capitol Hill and a drive-by tour of Freemont.

Three Day Weekend in Seattle:

• 

  Space Needle

  Arrived Friday at 9:00 pm
• Saturday
• 10:00 Coffee at International District/Chinatowns
• 11:00 Tea Shopping
• 12:00 Visit the Waterfall Garden
• 1:00 Fremont Statue Tour
• 6:00 Dinner back at Capitol Hill
• Sunday
• 9:00 Chihuly Glass Garden Museum
• 10:00 Coffee
• 11:00 Space Needle
• 12:00 Folklife Festival
• 2:00 Seattle Aquarium
• 3:00 Museum of Popculture
• I would switch this with the aquarium in timeline planning.
• 6:00 The Crab Pot
• 8:00 Back to Capitol Hill
• Monday
• 10:00 Breakfast at Glo's
• 1:00 back to the train station to go home. 

Kenny and Zuke's Delicatessen

Onion Bagels

     To be perfectly honest, some of the restaurant and cafe's I drag my husband along to are mostly planned out. Looking at location on google, the menu online and even reviews to decide if the adventure will be worthwhile before I even start my adventure. This, in part has encouraged me to write this series. To create a place where readers can know what a place is like before visit. To have someone else check out the place before. There are lots of reasons why someone might want to know what to expect before. For some it's as simple as knowing the vibe or atmosphere to wear the best clothes for "aesthetic". For some it might be social anxiety or limitations. Whatever the reason, there are many valid points to know what to expect before entering somewhere.

     Now, there are those out there who will tell you "some of my greatest adventures where unplanned!" And I get that! I also have experienced fun memories and wild stories from circumstances that didn't allow for planning, or where plans went sideways. I have also experienced not so great outcomes when plans have gone awry. Fortunately for myself, this restaurant was neither an exciting adventure nor a disastrous misfortune. 

    During our weekly outing, on our way to go watch the new Dr. Strange, we stumbled upon Kenny and Zuke's Delicatessen. It's not that this is a super secret location or a brand new location, it just was one that I had not added to my personal list of food to try. We went at approximately 11:00 am on a Saturday. With my new perspective of trying to view areas from all levels, the first aspect I noticed was just that; levels. 

     According to their website; Kenny and Zuke's is a Jewish Delicatessen with choices ranging from various bagels, sandwiches, and other various treats. Located just a block from Powell's, this shop has an ADA automatic door that places customer's right in front of the counter to order. At the counter there is a glass case showing various sweets. Behind the counter shelves of freshly made bagels, next to those, several servings of salami hanging from the wall. Around the corner is where everything else is made. A grill with two or three working fills the restaurant with various smells of perfect sandwiches. After ordering there are truly three options.

    Option one: walk two steps to go sit at the dining area. Now, I know that I cannot speak for those who might have difficulty with stairs, but this use of two steps did slightly frustrate me. Larger staircases architecturally make sense, however with two steps it is difficult to believe that the two floors could not be on the same plane. If absolutely not, there seems to be no reason those two steps cannot be swapped out for a much more accssible ramp. 

    Option two: go back outside, to re-enter the dining area from the emergency access. With those two steps, the only way to enter the dining area is to exit the front door and go down the sidewalk to re-enter the restaurant from the exit door.

     Option three: take your order to go.

Bagel with Lox

     We ordered two simple bagels for breakfast. For Roy, a bagel with cream cheese, for myself, a bagel with lox cream cheese. Overall, they were good, but if I'm being completely
honest, not worth it. We waited longer to order, and receive our food then it took for us to eat the bagels. Also, my bagel was rather difficult to bite into. Roy's however was soft and easy to bite, but I had to battle mine to eat.

     The location is a great spot, right near Burnside, with big windows to people watch. The menu is simple and friendly to most diets (everything is on bread however). The dining area is spacious and provides lots of space for distancing and navigating. Lastly, it is a great breakfast/brunch place for those looking for time to kill while downtown Portland. 

Kenny and Zuke's at a Glance:

• Simple, easy to chose from menu
• Medium volume
• A shop made for talking
• Difficult accessibility
• Some difficult areas to navigate to get to the seating area
• Time
• Not a place for a quick trip
• Price: Two bagels, plus tip for $14.00 

Von Ebert Brewing

Photo from Von Ebert Brewing

      A football game in one corner, a basketball game behind you, a hockey game in the right, premier leauge playing over the bar, and baseball on a small screen to the left. For lunch this weekend we visited Von Ebert Brewing, a sports pub located in the Pearl District of Portland. Upon first walking in, there is a ramp leading you up to the main floor of the pub. Towards the back wall a bar with a large screen overhead. The first area walking in is high rise tables designed for sports fans to sit or more appropriately stand at to watch their game of choice and enjoy their drinks with some finger food. For anyone wanting to sit and enjoy their food, continue to the left towards the back of the pub. Here you'll find booths along the outer wall and middle. Filling the space between the booths are tables. Keep in mind, when I say "filling the space" I mean it. Past Covid regulations of six feet apart no longer exist in this pub. Be prepared to walk sideways to squeeze by tables and those sitting at tables. While last week I made a slight acknowledgement towards accessability, this pub was the first time I looked at a space from a different perspective. As someone who is able bodied, I admittedly went from "this place has great accessability" when seeing the long ramp leading into the restraunt to "someone in a wheelchair would not be able to navigate this space" in seconds. From  my aunt, I have learned that sometimes a difficult space in a restraunt can be manageable with the willingness to assist from staff, however this pub was short staffed, and as someone who is 150lbs, I had to wiggle and worm through tables both empty and with customers to find a seat. The area at the front is more open and easier to move, but as I stated earlier, the tables are standing tables, coming just above my stomach when standing at 5ft 5in. Again, I appologize for any of my readers out there that would prefer to know the bathroom situation before entering a location. I did not use the restroom during my visit nor did I look for it. I did however, make an attempt to snoop through photos posted on Google reviews. I found what may have been the restroom as a single door hidden just to the left of the bar. 

Top: Brisket, Bottom: Pulled Pork

    Once we found our table, there was a laminated sign instructing us on how to order. Like many restraunts are chosing post-covid, a QR label was included on the sign providing a link to the online menu. Overall, the pub largely sells smoked meats, pizza and finger food. For gluten free options the pizzas can be made with a gluten free crust for an additional charge of two dollars. For vegetarian and vegan options it is the typical selection of salads as well as a vegetarian pizza option. When we went the only options they had for sandwiches were brisket and pork. Originally Roy had wanted the grilled chicken sandwich and I wanted the turkey sandwich but we ended up with brisket and tater tots for Roy and pulled pork with coleslaw and a salad for me. The brisket sandwich was good, but it was missing something to put it over the edge, a sharp cheese, a different sauce, more pickles or something else. Between the lack of toppings and pairing with the tater tots it was a rather underwhelming sandwich. The pulled pork on the other hand was much better, largely due to the coleslaw on top. As mentioned earlier, this restraunts in every aspect holds true to an American Sports Pub. Plenty of sports, beer and mediocre food. 

     For those of you who drink beer, you might find there selection more appealing than I did. I however, know what I like and what I don't like. Now I'm not saying I'm picky, but I am particular. Their selection of beers did not match my particular requirements, but I think for those of you who are IPA fans, you'll definately be able to find a drink here. I did end up finding a sour beer, Recent Yesterdays. Truthfully I made Roy finish mine because it was just a little too sour for me to finish a full bottle.

     Overall, this restraunt is exactly what it offers; a sports pub with a small brewery attatched, American pub food and a good location. I would not recommend this location to those with limitations, families with young children or even most tourists. For Portland locals looking for a bite in the Pearl District, or even on a game night I would recommend this location. 

Von Ebert Brewing at a Glance:

• Simple American pub menu
• High volume
• Sports Pub
• Limited accessability
• Some difficult areas to navigate in the seating area
• Not children friendly
• Limited children's menu, closer to a bar atmospher than pub
• Price: Two entries, one drink, plus tip: $60.00