Thanksgiving Dinner Brought to You By Pike Place Market

I know we put up a big stink about Halloween, but sadly Halloween is over now (yes, if you were curious, we are already brainstorming for next year's costume) so we must look forward to the next holiday that we can stuff our faces and then regret those decisions the next day. Cue Thanksgiving. 

Ok, ok, obviously this is a day that is about more than food. It's about looking around and noticing all the good you have in your life, big and small, and being thankful for those things. Lucky for us one of the things we are thankful for in life is delicious food, so it all comes full circle in the end :) 

To ensure your shopping goes smoothly we've put together a nice list of shops you can hit up in our favorite place, Pike Place Market, to get the goods to prepare a perfect Thanksgiving dinner. We encourage everyone to shop local and hope we can make it a tad easier with this easy-peasy, full-coverage list. 

Here are 13 shops in Pike Place Market to help you build a P-E-R-F-E-C-T Thanksgiving dinner!

First things first, you need to set the table. And you can't have a beautiful table without fresh flowers. 

Pike Place Flowers

Pike Place Flowers is located at the corner of 1st and Pike and has everything you need for a beautiful fall flower arrangement. You can call ahead at 206-682-9797 to have them create something unique for your table. 

Next up you need to keep your guests from getting hangry. This means plenty of snacking food prior to actual dinner. 

Quality Cheese Company

There are a few places to get cheese in the market, but we like Quality Cheese for its small, but diverse selection partnered with the staff that is always willing to help you pick cheeses to create the perfect platter. 

Simply the Best

Simply the Best is located right across from Pike Place Fish and right next to Rachel the Pig. You've probably sampled their delicious dried apples if you frequent the market. These are a perfect, healthy snack that even people on the most stringent of diets can enjoy! We personally love the pineapple and mango.

Chukar Cherries

Chukar Cherries is a PNW favorite. They take boring old fruit and nuts and dip them in delicious, mouth-watering chocolate. So simple, yet so delicious. We recommend the sampler box! 

And now for the main event... Dinner! 

First things first, no thanksgiving is complete with out...

Wine. 

You thought we were going to say Turkey, didn't you? (That comes later, wine first, always wine first.)

DeLaurenti

If you ask either of us what our favorite store in the market is, we will both say DeLaurenti. They have so many great things to offer and their wine shop is one of them. Head up the steps in the back of the store (behind the deli and cheese counter) and have the knowledgeable staff help you find a few bottles for your feast! 

If you aren't a wine fan, walk up the block and grab a growler or two at...

Old Stove Brewing Co.

Old Stove Brewing Co. is a new and welcome addition to Pike Place Market! They brew smooth, flavorful beers and have a large enough variety you can get something for everyone! Plus since it's got an old-timey vibe they sell you the beer to go in these super cool crowlers (that is a growler, size small) that are representative of the same time period the brewery is fashioned after! 

Then comes the stuffing...

Three Girls Bakery

You'll probably smell the bread baking before you see the shop window. This place is the oldest continually operating business in the Market and we know why. People love carbs. And Three Girls Bakery excels at making awesome carbs. Buy the rosemary loaf for your stuffing and your family will thank you.

And you won't get very far without spices....

Market Spice

You'll find Market Spice near Pike Place Fish as well (stop here after you grab your dried fruit from Simply the Best). And you can probably follow your nose to this shop as well. The spices and teas are potent and you won't be disappointed with their selection. Anything you want, they have! 

Now for the cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, and roasted veggies...

Choice Produce

Choice Produce is a great produce stand in the market to support. The staff is friendly, they give back to their community in the form of food donations, and they always go out of their way to wave and talk to people passing by. Plus their prices are some of the lowest we've found for certain items. Find them at the entrance of Post Alley off Pike Pl.

And the meal centerpiece....protein! 

Don and Joe's Meats

Don and Joe's is a great example of what Pike Place Market is all about. Family owned and operated since 1924 in Pike Place Market. Don Jr. is still working in the shop, making sure his customers always get personalized and friendly service. You can rest assured they will make sure you have the best turkey for your table! 

Alright you have the turkey, but Thanksgiving is no reason to abandon your PNW roots. Make sure you've got an option for the pescatarian in your group too! 

 Pike Place Fish

Pike Place Fish is the only shop in the market that sells 100% sustainable fish and seafood. No Thanksgiving feast should be devoid of a beautiful salmon fillet with some rosemary and garlic butter. These guys will make sure you have fun filling your order too. Be prepared for shouting/cheering/fish throwing! 

It seems like it should be over. Your stomach is telling you to stop, but your mind knows you can keep going. 

That's right. Dessert. 

A step away from traditional pumpkin pie and our personal favorite!

Ellenos

We have a small (ok, large) obsession with Ellenos yogurt. As does everyone who has ever tried it. It's crack. Best of all, they make a pumpkin pie Greek yogurt that will make your heart sing little pumpkin spice songs. 

Choukette Eclair'art

Want to really show off to your guests? Serve them a seasonal variety of Eclairs from Choukette. Choukette is new to the market and located on Western Ave on the backside of the Market. They have pumpkin, pecan, and praline flavored eclairs that are light, fluffy, and a perfect end to this stomach exploding meal. 

Now it's time for a nap. Night night. 

10 Best Kept Secrets of Pike Place Market

Most of us know that when you visit the market on a busy day the main arcade with all the day stalls will be so crowded you can barely walk. Want to escape those crowds? Venture down to the lower levels. That's right, Pike Place Market is huge (nine acres to be exact) and if you don't leave the top floor you'll never discover all the fun that is below. 

We decided to give you a nice teaser of the shops on the lower levels to get you started on your adventure.

Here are our top ten places to shop in the "underbelly" of Pike Place Market:

Chocolate spice and indi chocolate

1. indi chocolate

On the 5th floor of Pike Place Market sits a wonderful little shop selling hand-crafted, small batch chocolate. If you love chocolate and shopping local, well then this is the place for you.

Insider Tip: They are expanding into a larger space in the market in 2017 and visitors will be able to view their whole production process, so keep an eye out for that! 

The cool designs of Slow Loris

2. Slow Loris

Jessica Lynch is the woman behind almost 100% of what you find in this shop on the 3rd floor. Her talents are diverse and so is her shop. You can get wall prints, t-shirts, hats, bags, and so much more.

Organized chaos at BLMF

3. BLMF literary Saloon

This place is exploding books. Every surface is covered. It is the best kind of organized chaos and we love getting lost in here. The prices are right and the staff is ready to help you find your next book to fall into, just watch out that you don't fall over that stack in the corner trying to get to it!

Movie scripts galore at Golden Age Collectibles

4. Golden Age Collectibles

Golden Age Collectibles draws people into their shop in the most genius of ways: life-size cutouts. You can't miss them as you walk around the 4th floor because Han Solo and Daryl Dixon won't let you! Once you're inside you'll find everything you need to feel young again from The Goonies movie script to rare comic books. 

Colorful skull at Cintli

5. Cintli by Beto Yarce

Cintli has everything you need for your Day of the Dead alter as well as unique Mexican jewelry and fun Mexican crafts. It also might be the most colorful shop in Pike Place Market, which always draws us in.  

Paper toys at Chin Music Press

6. Chin Music Press

This small publishing house focuses on primarily Japanese authors. Their studio holds not only all of their beautiful books but beautiful artwork as well. It's an incredibly unique and cool space which everyone should check out.

Orange Dracula's pin festish

7. Orange Dracula

This shop is quirky and amazing. You can play Pac-Man, shop their wide selection of pins, or find great gag-gifts (Squirrel underwear anyone?). We covered Orange Dracula in another post because they have one of the few working film photo booths left in Seattle. 

8. Gem Heaven 

Gem Heaven is like no other place in the market. While it’s a small shop, it doesn’t skimp on variety and sells a wide assortment of beautiful gems, rocks, geodes, fossils, and crystals. We love reading the signs that explain how each gem promotes wellness, and if the signs don’t answer your questions, the lovely shop keepers can. 

Get your fortune told at the Market Magic Shop! Elvis knows best.

9. Market Magic Shop 

We covered this shop for April Fools Day, but honestly it's fun year round. If you have a curious kid inside of you we promise you'll have a blast rummaging through the Market Magic Shop. And if you are wondering if the Elvis Fortune Teller is legit, the answer is yes. Yes he is. 

Lots of gift options at Ventures HandCrafted Gifts

10. Ventures HandCrafted Gifts

This is our go-to place for gifts when we need something useful and unique. Our mothers have their dish towels and our friends have their art. The best part is you are not only walking away with a locally-produced item, you can also sleep well knowing you helped support a store that makes it part of its mission to coach the young entrepreneurs that make the goods featured in the store. Two thumbs up, Ventures!

Meet the Maker: Joanna Morgan Design

We continue our Meet the Maker series with a feature on one of our favorite jewelry artists in the city. Joanna Morgan creates timeless and beautiful pieces in her studio in Pioneer Square. We sat down with her to learn more about her craft and what it takes to make her wearable art.

When did you start making jewelry and why?

I feel I have always been creative, but I started making jewelry about 10 years ago. At the time I was living in New York and still had a full-time job. I would see things in stores that I liked but that I wanted to make changes to - since I was in New York I could go to the fashion district, pick up materials, and make what I wanted myself. It was a bit crazy. I would work my job all day, then create the jewelry pieces at night and bring them back into work the next morning to sell to my friends.

Then about nine years ago my husband and I moved to Seattle; six years ago I decided to work on my jewelry full time, and three years later I opened this studio. Since then I've started to become more interested in metal work and have become entrenched now in working with it. 

What is your favorite thing to create? 

Silver is my favorite metal to work in right now. It’s so versatile.

When creating jewelry I rarely make anything that is meant solely for special occasions. My jewelry won’t just sit in your jewelry box. It is meant to be worn every day, from work to drinks. You can dress it up or dress it down. It doesn't fit a certain season or age. It becomes a part of your life. It has longevity. 

When my clients reach for their jewelry every morning they can feel comfort they have this piece. It might remind them of a special moment or a period of time. I feel privileged my jewelry can be that for people.

What inspires you and your creations?

I love museums. Any time I’m feeling depleted I go to museums or look at art books or beautiful websites. I am inspired by modern art, but I also love Roman and Greek history. I think whatever we create now is in some way a repetition of that time period. 

My husband also jokes I make jewelry for myself. Everything I create needs to be something I would add to my own wardrobe. 

Bridget rings

What is your favorite (current) piece that you’ve created?

I have stages where I create a certain piece and then wear it ad nauseum. Right now my favorite pieces are my Bridget rings in silver and gold. I also wear this silver Kali cuff every day. 

How long does creating a piece take?

If I’m being honest I would have to say 50 years, which is about how old I am. When you create something you pour your life experiences into it. I may create something in one day, but it really took more than the actual hours I spent on it. 

When I work on a new design, in addition to making it aesthetically pleasing, I also make sure that it is functional. It is extremely important to me that my designs are easy to wear. I try the pieces on, walk around in them, make adjustments – to the length of necklaces, weight of earrings, thickness of rings. I have to love it and want it first, and I want to make sure that a person who chooses to purchase my jewelry is not only satisfied with how pleasing to the eye it is, but also feels good wearing it.  As you see, making a new design is a process.

What is your process?

I fill countless Moleskine notebooks with sketches. The inspiration can come anytime and anywhere so I doodle a lot. I try to do something creative every day. I think it brings ideas to fiddle about in the studio, even when I’m not working on anything particular.

Largely I am self-taught, but I also took some classes to learn the foundations of jewelry making. I think you need to learn the rules first, so you can break them.  

How can people find you?

The best way to find me is my website, Joannamorgandesigns.com. It also shows you all the events I take part in (like the Pioneer Square Art Walk and Second Saturdays open studio events at the Tashiro Kaplan Building), where to find my studio, and how to contact me for special requests. 

Who inspires you?

My idols in the design world are probably Michelle Oka Donar, Patricia Von Musulin, and the Scandinavian designer, Torun. 

I'm also surrounded by creative and talented people in my studio building. It's hard not to let them inspire you.  

Joanna and her dog, Mandy!

Thanks, Joanna! Know an amazing maker who should be featured? Email us at rainorshineguides@gmail.com.

Seattle Brewery Tour: Capitol Hill

By now you probably know we are working our way around the city to taste all that our local breweries have to offer. Here are the results from our trek around Capitol Hill. 

Optimism Brewing 

Quote by the bar at Optimism Brewing

Optimism is an intriguing new addition to Capitol Hill breweries. This open beer hall is the creation of a Microsoft/tech power couple who were tired of software. Naturally, they decided the next step in their lives would be to open a humble, 16,000 sq ft. brewery in one of Seattle's hottest neighborhoods. 

When you walk into Optimism you feel the openness of the massive space, their brewing operation is front and center and they have communal seating. The yellow paint and large windows give off a light feeling. Perfect for drinking a beer with some friends. 

Many beer enthusiasts will pause in confusion when reaching the bar to order though. Optimism's owners have been clear they want to bring beer drinking back to the "every day (wo)man." So instead of calling it a Stout, they describe and label their beers with more general names (Ex. Black: bold, coffee, nutmeg). 

They state beer is "not something that should be intimidating, pretentious or expensive. For this reason, we try to make beer approachable to everyone by describing our beers in ways that everyone can understand without beer-geek jargon."  

It's a nice thought. Not sure if it really works though.

Regardless of how they name the beers, we've found that they do indeed know how to create beer that tastes good, which is more important than anything else. Dive into a sampler and you'll agree with us.

Sampler at Optimism Brewing

In addition to the good beer, the no-cash checkout is speedy which means you'll never wait in a long line and the food truck pod in the back brings delicious food to their door. You can also bring your own food in to enjoy with their beers. 

And can we just get on a soapbox for a minute and say that the way they've done their bathrooms is how EVERYONE should be doing bathrooms. Seems so obvious. Thank you, Optimism.

Our favorites? Amplify and Zest

Elysian Brewing Company

Night Owl Pumpkin Beer at Elysian 

Elysian. Ohhhhhh Elysian. We used to all love you without question. You made great beer. You were Seattle's pride and joy. Then you sold to Anheuser-Busch. You went corporate. And now we are all confused. 

We will try to put on our unbiased reporting hat for this review though.

Capitol Hill is Elysian Brewing's original location, which opened in 1996. For the most part, it's your classic brewpub (their food is decent). There isn't any trendy logo or minimalist design like these hot new kids on the block. It's a more traditional atmosphere with exposed timber and dark, heavy curtains hanging in the windows. 

As for the beer. It's delicious. They might have sold out, but they didn't change the recipes that have made them big enough to gain interest from the largest beer company in the world. Right now they have their famous pumpkin beers on tap, which go well with the rainy, chilly weather!

Our favorites? Space Dust and Super Fuzz

Outer Planet Brewing

A "One of Everything" sampler at Outer Planet 

Another new brewery to Capitol Hill! Outer Planet opened in 2015 and is a small operation, but it has a great vibe and some good beers. With their live music performances and huge pile of card and board games you can always bank on entertainment while you drink. 

Their taps are also fun to say, with names like The Meddling Monk and Galaxy Girl it will make you spark up a conversation with the brewery owner to find out what inspired them. 

Oh, and did we mention they just recently started serving pizza? I mean why wouldn't you go check this place out? 

Our favorites? Kumbaya Supernova IPA and Spacetrucker Brown

Standard Brewing

Photo from Instagram by @nathaniel.stott

This small brewery up on Jackson St. is wonderful. It might technically be the Central District, but we wanted to include it here because it's not too far and you gotta know about this place!

With what seems like a million breweries opening up around the city it's hard to accomplish a unique vibe. So many are starting to blend together in look and feel. We think Standard's ability to do something a little different is what drew us in. And fortunately for us they are doing a pretty good job on the beer front too. 

With 12 beers on tap you'll have plenty of options, regardless of what you like you'll find something good here. If you need help choosing a truly exceptional one though, they have two award winners from the WA Beer Awards this year, the Imperial IPA (bomb.com people) and the Brett Earl. They don't serve food but allow you to bring it with you, so hit up a food truck and head on over. 

Our favorites? Imperial IPA and West Coast IPA (We like IPA's okay?)