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Broadway Shopping District Review

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Broadway Shopping District

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Category: Stores/Malls
Location: Capitol Hill

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Fodor's Review:

Seattle's youth culture, old money, gay scene, and everything in between all converge on this lively, if somewhat scuzzy stretch of Broadway E between E. Denny Way and E. Roy Street. It's a cluttered stretch of cheap restaurants (with a one or two more-upscale-looking cafés thrown into the mix), even cheaper clothing stores, a few interesting books and records shops, and a few bars. Most of the good shopping, eating, and drinking is along the Pike-Pine corridor or on side streets, and it's a real stretch to claim as some guidebooks do that Broadway is the epicenter of Seattle's counterculture (whatever that means), but a lot of people still find the area compelling because of its human parade. It's also one of the few areas in Seattle that can claim to have a consistently lively street life, and despite some aggressive panhandlers and the occasional twitchy meth-head, the avenue is generally safe at all hours. If you really want to see Seattle in all its quirky glory, head to Dick's Drive-In around 1 AM on a weekend night (or around 11:30 AM the next morning). Between Pine and Roy streets artist Jack Mackie inlaid seven sets of bronze dancing footprints demonstrating the steps for the tango, the waltz, the fox-trot, and others. Look closely at the steps near Roy Street to see coffee beans in the concrete, a nod to the region's love affair with java. Near Pine Street is a bronze effigy of one of the city's most worshiped rock-and-roll icons, Jimi Hendrix. You might see someone leave an offering—a flower, a cigarette, or even a joint—in his outstretched fingers.

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