Audio Engineering Society 14th International Conference

A Tourist's Guide to Downtown Seattle (see Seattle Sidewalk for a full Seattle guide...) Taxis Hailing a Taxi is not really legal in Seattle so they may not stop for you. There are Taxi stands at all the major hotels and most restaurants will call for one for you. Yes, this is stupid, but that's the way it is. Streets City streets are on a quasi-organized grid system. Streets run east-west and Avenues run north-south. Directional designators in addresses, as well as their placement in the address, are significant. The Avenue numbering system begins at the waterfront and ends near the Cascade Mountains. Numbered streets don't occur until you travel north of the Lake Washington Ship Canal. Shopping There are many fine stores downtown including the main store of Nordstrom at 1501 5th. Another store headquarters in Seattle is REI ­ Recreational Equipment Inc., Their main store is just off the freeway downtown at 222 Yale Ave. N. If you are into camping, etc. this is a no-miss store. There are several Malls in the Seattle Area including Northgate Mall, which is said to be the first enclosed mall in the country, located north of downtown on I­5: Southcenter Mall which is on the way to the airport, go left at the exit from I­5 instead of right: and Bellevue Square which is probably the most upscale one in the area, go east on either floating bridge and exit to Bellevue. Liquor Hard Liquor in Washington can be bought by the drink in many restaurants, but by the bottle only at State Liquor Stores, There is one downtown at 710 Pike at 7th, it closes somewhat early. You can buy beer and wine at most grocery and convenience stores. Dinning in Seattle: Seattle has many nationally rated restaurants... In the general downtown area are: Dahlia Lounge ­ 1904 4th, Downtown, Wild Ginger ­ 1400 Western Avenue., Southern Part of Downtown, Cafe de Paris in Rainier Square 1300 5th Avenue. (look for the building that looks like a pencil stuck into the ground, point down), Flying Fish ­ 2234 1st Avenue, in Belltown Area just north of downtown, Nikko in the Westin Hotel, Pagliacci Pizza (Fast Food) ­ 550 Queen Anne Ave. North, Seattle Center Area North of Downtown, Shiro's (sushi) - 2401 2nd Ave. The line at the dock forms behind Shiro-san. The Wild Ginger, Downtown Flying Fish, and Shiro's are particularly close to the conference center. Outside downtown: Rovers ­ 2808 Madison Quite a ways east of downtown drive or take a cab straight out Madison from downtown. Fast Food in Seattle There are probably more Teriyaki places in Seattle than Hamburger Place. They are all over just like espresso stands. For those of you who want to try the Seattle hamburgers there are two main local chains ­ Dicks, their nearest location to downtown at 500 Queen Anne Ave. N. near Seattle Center, for the inexpensive burger. They have the best greasy french fries (made from fresh potatoes) if you like them greasy, also milkshakes made with real ice cream. Open until 2 am. A bit more upscale is Kidd Valley, also near Seattle Center at 531 Queen Anne Ave. N. Seattle is not really a Hot Dog town but there is one chain with excellent hot dogs ­ The Frankfurter with downtown area locations at 1525 4th downtown, 1023 Alaskan Way on the Waterfront, and in the Columbia Center. A recent Seattle fast food outlet is Taco Del Mar, which specializes in seafood tacos ­ locations at 1336 1st Ave at Union and 90 Yesler Way Pioneer Square. The old­timer in Seattle fast food is Ivar's Fish Bar on Pier 54 in front of Ivar's Acres of Clams. Its been around for about sixty years, ever since its flounder Ivar Haglund found there was more money to be made selling fish and chips than showing off fish in an aquarium. Dine out on the pier in the company of the polite seagulls who will ask you to share. Seafood Seafood is probably the food Seattle is best known for (next to coffee). Some of the best seafood restaurants are, in the downtown area, Ivar's Acres of Clams at Pier 54 on the waterfront and it newer neighbor Elliott's Oyster House, on Pier 56. In the main part of downtown is McCormick's Fish House at 722 4th. Outside of the downtown area are some that may be worth the trip. Ponti Seafood Grill, 3014 3rd N. on the Ship Canal near the Fremont Bridge. Chinook's at Fisherman's terminal (south end of the Ballard Bridge), and Ivar's Salmon House, 401 NE Northlake Way at the north end of Lake Union near the University of Washington. The Salmon House specializes in alder smoked salmon, although they have a full menu. The difference here is they usually have several species of salmon each night to chose from. One variety to watch for is the Copper River King which is said to be the best Pacific Salmon. It is only available for a few weeks in May and June. (That's NOW!) Steaks & 24-hour If you are looking for steaks a local place is the Metropolitan Grill at 820 2nd Ave. Seattle has a Ruth's Chris Steak House at 800 5th Ave. The El Gaucho has recently opened at 2505 1st Ave in the Belltown area. The best 24-hour restaurant in the area is Thirteen Coins at 125 Boren North (near Seattle Times building). This is not a glorified Denny's. The menu runs from sandwiches to steak and lobster, with pasta, eggs, and seafood in between. They don't take reservations. You may have to wait. It's worth it. Ethnic Pike Place Market, 1st & Pike has many restaurants in it, just browse around. While you there be sure and stop by the fish markets and the farmers market. These are used by locals as well as the tourists. The Wild Ginger is nearby. Seattle has many oriental restaurants. Many of them are in the International District on or near King St and 8th avenue. Dessert, Computers and Coffee For those of you who haven't had enough of computers, the Speakeasy Cafe at 2304 2nd has computers with internet access. Just upstairs from the Speakeasy is the 211 Club, Seattle's oldest pool and billiard hall One area outside downtown that is worth a visit is Capitol Hill. A couple of reasons to go are Dilettane Chocolates at 416 Broadway East for some of the best desserts and chocolates in Seattle (The other place for chocolate is Fran's at 1300 E Pike) and Chang's Mongolian Grill at 1827 Broadway where you can get all you can eat for around $10. You pick your ingredients and the they quick grill them for you. What Else? Seattle is a diverse locale with much to offer. This list is only the tip-top of the iceberg. There's a lot more. The Yellow Pages lists many more restaurants, and there is a section organized by ethnicity. If you want to catch some live music, we recommend that you locate one of the tabloid newspapers: The Rocket or the Weekly. Both have extensive listings of the local club scene. Finally, if there's something that we've missed here (likely!), then just ask any of the volunteers or check at the Concierge's desk in the Conference Center. See Seattle Sidewalk for a full Seattle guide... (C) 1997, Audio Engineering Society, Inc.