Occidental Park: Games, Food Trucks, and Art

This urban park has gotten a serious facelift in the last year and we keep finding ourselves going back for more.

This "park" is located in the heart of Pioneer Square and even though there isn't much grass to be found it has a lot to offer us city folks. Year round bright green and blue tables and chairs sit out for people to enjoy the mild Seattle weather. Peppered in between all the seating are a ton of fun games for groups to play and often in the summer time musicians come here to play for the people enjoying the space. 

Food

Occidental Park is home to our favorite city thing: Food Trucks. There is a happy little pod that sets up shop here Monday through Friday. We recommend Wednesdays when Nosh and El Cabrito Oaxaca are in attendance. (Read more about Seattle's best food trucks here)

Grand Central Bakery always has a line out the door and for good reason. Their flagship location is located inside Grand Central Arcade on the west side of Occidental Park. They bake fresh bread daily and their specials are always unique and delicious, with their permanent menu full of tried and true options.

Look for the ivy entrance to Grand Central Bakery

Swannies is a sports bar located on the west side of Occidental right next to the Comedy Underground. This is a great place to grab some greasy burgers and fries and cheer on the Sounders with friends. 

The London Plane is a hot new spot in the neighborhood. Find it right across the street on the south end of Occidental Park. This place has great baked goods and coffee. Stop in for a croissant and latte and take a sea salt chocolate chip cookie for later! 

Games

Occidental has gained a reputation as a great park to take friends or kids for some fun and games. This is because with the improvements last year they brought in a ton of actual games for people to play free of charge, out in the open. Most of them are oversized which adds to the fun (Think giant chess, checkers, and connect four). There are also a couple foosball tables, bocce ball courts, and cornhole boards around the park. 

Art 

Occidental is full of wonderful art, especially native art. The totem poles and wood carvings tell stories from a culture rich in history. Our favorite is Tsonoqua, "a mythological giantess and 'nightmare bringer' invoked by exasperated North Coast mothers to frighten their children into obedience." You can also find Sun and Raven telling the story of the raven's theft of the moon and Man Riding on Tail of Whale. The other large sculpture is the Seattle Fallen Firefighters Memorial by Hai Ying Wu. The life size firefighters pay tribute to generations of Seattle heroes. 

Welcome to Occidental Park!

Find Occidental Park here: 117 S Washington St., Seattle, WA 98104

There is also a tourism booth located in the southeast corner of the park. If you have questions head over here to learn more about the area, rent bocce balls, etc. 

Insider tip: If you have some time, make sure to walk the block over to check out the Waterfall Garden Park! It's one of Pioneers best secret spots. 

EarthCorps

Getting the gear ready for park restoration

We spend a lot of time eating, drinking, and exploring Seattle (hence this website).  It's no secret we love this city. It gives us so much when it comes to culture, activities, and good food. So what do you do when someone gives you a wonderful gift (did we mention the amazing food?), well you reciprocate!  We want to make sure we are always finding ways to give back in order to show our thanks. We have volunteered with the Pike Place Market Food Bank, and, most recently, we spent a day doing park restoration with EarthCorps. Park restoration in the middle of winter? Call us crazy, but the good folks over at this lovely organization are out there year-round doing park clean-up so we decided to join them and soak-up some of that fresh PNW air. I mean this is "Rain or Shine Guides," right?

EarthCorps' mission is to build a global community of leaders through local environmental service. The team leads park restoration events all over the city with volunteers of all ages and backgrounds. Tasks range from pulling invasive species, planting native trees and shrubs, and mulching.

EarthCorps lends a helping hand to some serious problems regarding the parks in the area. Turns out, a long time ago, English Ivy was planted in the parks around Seattle. It’s beautiful and grows fast, but unbeknownst to the people who planted it, it’s also invasive, covers the ground entirely, grows up trees, and eventually chokes them out. Seattle is a welcoming place and we don't like to choke out beautiful trees that give us clean air and lush landscapes. Trees are what puts the emerald in our emerald city, so English Ivy, you gots to go!

In 1993, Dwight Wilson, a Peace Corp volunteer, dreamed up the idea of Peace Corps for the earth (creatively naming this organization EarthCorps) and in 2003 EarthCorps declared war on the invasive weeds attacking our parks. With the help of over 175,000 volunteers, all Seattle parks have been put into restoration so that we can continue to enjoy them.

Take that you rotten old English Ivy!

What does a day volunteering for the earth look like? During our shift this year we worked in the Thornton Creek Watershed. The first two hours were spent ripping ivy out of the ground. It’s hard work, but supremely rewarding. After a break for lunch, we planted around 50 native shrubs and then mulched. All shifts are 10am – 2pm with a break for lunch. The EarthCorp team also spends time with the group educating about the parks, identifying native and invasive plants, and showing the proper way to use tools. We love that you leave there not only having worked hard to save a park, but educated as well.

English ivy growing up a tree

EarthCorps work in parks all around the city, so it’s easy to find an event near you, and they have a very easy online sign-up. Check out the calendar, and maybe we’ll be seeing you there!

Crabbing 101

We write about all the amazing places to eat in the city quite frequently, but what if you wanted to actually catch your dinner? What if you were looking for a real PNW experience that resulted in a delicious, well deserved meal? Well, we’ve got you covered. This post is dedicated to a favorite northwest activity…crabbing! How amazing is it that some of the World’s best crab is located right here in the Puget Sound just waiting to crawl into your trap and your dinner table. Here is our step by step guide.

Step 1: Get yourself a crabbing license. It’s illegal to catch crab without one if you are over the age of 15. You can get a day pass or one that is good for the year, and you can easily find them at most local sporting goods stores. Here is a complete list of locations. You also need to carry a catch card and record all of the Dungeness crab you catch (even if you catch zero, you are required to record and submit that). There is actually a $10 fine for not turning in your catch card!

Step 2: Gather your equipment. You will need a crabbing cage. There are many different types, but we prefer this one because it has four entrance doors and will trap the crab. You are also going to need a bait cage, which you fill with chicken parts (just buy cheap stuff!) to attract the crabs. You'll need a 75 ft. (or longer) rope tied to the cage and to a float so you can find your cage after you've dropped it. Buy them together here. Last you need to bring a measuring tape and a bucket to hold alllllll the crab you are about to catch. While this might sound intimidating, these items are not all that expensive.

Step. 3: Choose your spot! There are many different areas to crab around town. If you don’t have easy access to a boat, no worries! You can crab right off of a pier. We like Shilshole Bay Marina near Golden Gardens Park, Mukilteo Pier, and Redondo Pier in South Seattle. This article from the Seattle Times lists a bunch of places you can crab. Also, don’t forget to make sure the crabbing season is open. There are times through the year where it closes to allow scientist to count the population and for the crab’s molting season. The season is currently closed in Seattle, but it is open along the coast. Check this site to see which areas are open.

Step 4: Add the bait to your trap, toss it in, and wait! You can leave it for a few hours or overnight. This would be a good time to crack open a beer. When you are ready to check on your cage, pull it up. It should (hopefully) be filled with crab. However, don’t get too excited. Chances are you will only get to keep some of them. All females have to be thrown back to keep the population sustainable. You can also only keep crab that are over 6 ¼ inches. Throw back anything smaller. 

Photo Source

Step. 5: Take your crab home, crack, clean, and enjoy! Pat yourself on the back for a job well done and bask in the glory you are sure to receive from your friends and family. Here is a great tutorial for how to clean and cook your crab. 

Meet the Maker: indi chocolate

We had the opportunity to sit down with some of the ladies of indi chocolate and learn all about what it takes to make chocolate in Seattle!

What is the story of indi chocolate and its Maker? 

Erin Andrews is the genius behind all the delectable chocolate that comes out of this Pike Place Market chocolate shop. When she opened indi chocolate four years ago she was one of the only women in the industry who was making her own chocolate from bean to bar. In those four years a lot has happened: expanded offerings, a Marketfront Expansion project, and a lot of growth within the community. 

Erin's experience in the chocolate business started with a business venture prior to indi chocolate with a bean - bar chocolate operation run out of Belize. She was visiting Belize with her family for vacation and her daughters had been curious about where chocolate came from so they included a tour of a local cacao farm. This ended up leading to Erin partnering with some local businessmen to start a new chocolate company. After a couple years doing this she decided to sell her share in the company and open up her own shop in Seattle. And so indi chocolate was born. 

In the beginning indi chocolate was not the robust store they are now. Erin started out selling her chocolate cocoa butter lotion at a small pop-up shop. This allowed her to raise money for the storefront in Pike Place Market and to buy the pricey machines you need in order to make chocolate.

Cocoa butter lotion

So why the name indi chocolate?

It pays tribute to two things. Erin’s oldest daughter is named India and because of her curiosity before that trip to Belize Erin has been making chocolate ever since. Secondly, it recognizes the nature of the business. It is an independently owned and operated small batch chocolate shop. 

Cacao beans

Roasting the bean in-store

What kind of an operation do you have here?

indi chocolate is direct trade and gluten, soy, and dairy free. Most of the chocolate has three simple ingredients to make sure the taste of the bean is front and center. indi chocolate is one of the only bean-to-bar operations in Seattle. 

All the beans are roasted in the shop, which is why it smells so heavenly. They roast about 10 pounds of beans per day and from there the beans are put into the chocolate maker. Once the beans are in the machine it takes about 3 days of refining to create the chocolate that you buy. 

They also create the lotions and lip balms you see in the shop with cocoa butter and partner with other small business owners for various other products. These partnerships have produced things like the Chocolate Chai Tea from Market Spice and cacao based spice rubs. Other products you can find out in the wild include Old Stove's cacao nib infused beer or Shug's ice cream topped with cacao nibs. 

Where do you get your beans? 

A big mission of indi chocolate is only sourcing beans from farms Erin and her team have visited to ensure good working conditions and high quality operations. At the moment they have beans from Ecuador, Peru, Guatemala, Ghana, Vietnam, and Panama. 

Chocolate spices

Chocolate soap

What are some staff favorites in the shop?

It's always hard to pick one thing you like above all others, but it seems the Mole spice rub and cacao nibs are the two favorites for their diversity in use.

Becca, the Marketing Director at indi chocolate is also the resident chef. She has a long list of recipes that frequently include both of these products. Every recipe will make your mouth water and there is a huge variety. Who knew you could add chocolate to so much?! 

Fun fact: Cacao nibs have one of the highest sources of antioxidants in any food on earth.

What is in the future for indi chocolate?

indi chocolate is set to open their new space in the Marketfront Expansion building by summer 2017. This will be a much larger space which will include a café and chocolate factory, along with their retail space. The chocolate factory is what everyone is buzzing about, which will have large glass windows and a completely transparent display of the chocolate-making process from beginning to end! 

They will also have a place in the new store to host classes on mixology, chocolate making, and tasting classes.

What are some of your favorite places in town to visit for chocolate?

Intrigue Chocolate in Pioneer Square is wonderful and the new Fran's shop in Georgetown is a beautiful experience, with a window where you can watch them creating the chocolates. 

Correction: We originally stated indi chocolate and Theo Chocolate were the only bean-to-bar chocolate shops in Seattle. There are in fact, two more: Fresco Chocolate, and Bellflower Chocolate Co.