<Also mentioned someplace there with fancy tea that they thought I would like.>

That'd be The Empress in Victoria. You can take the Victoria Clipper ferry up there for a day trip or an overnight.

A few places with outdoor dining & a view in Seattle:
Pink Door in the Market
Anthony's Pier 66 waterfront
Ray's Boathouse
Daniel's Broiler Lake Union
Marination Ma Kai West Seattle
Ivar's Acres of Clams waterfront

This place is pretty cool, on the water, kayak rentals and Mexican restaurant in one!
http://aguaverde.com/

I like Argosy's cruise through the Ballard Locks into Lake Union and Lake Washington and their whale watching cruise from Seattle to the San Juan Islands.

HTtY

marvelousmouse--That milkshake is on tap for Monday when we get back from backpacking, lol! After hard hikes, a burger and shake are our treat and well earned with no guilt, lol!

HTTY--I agree, that Argosy cruise through the locks is really good! We played tourist and did that earlier this summer and really enjoyed it.

You might also look at kayaking. There are lots of places to do it. We have used Alki Kayak as well as Ballard Kayak and really like the trips they do.

http://www.salishlodge.com

I enjoy my breakfast/brunch here. :)

Salty's brunch on the weekend is wonderful.

Ray's Boathouse?

A seaplane ride up to the San Juan Islands or a Seattle flight during late afternoon.

We decided to go for six days. I wish we had more time. I'm having fun reading all the suggestions - it all looks really great.

A fun night on the town is the Teatro Zinzanni. It is held in an antique circus tent imported from Europe and includes dinner and a show. The wait people are part of the show and it is pretty hysterical. I have gone a couple of times.

Agree with Argosy Tours. We did the one of the harbor with a visit to Tillicum Village- a Native American Village where you enjoy a show and fabulous salmon dinner. You can stay on the island as long as you want- or at least until the last boat leaves and make a day of it.

I know we definitely want to go to Pike Place Market - how long would you guys estimate we would spend there? Just enough time to wander around and see everything and shop a bit? What are your favorite places in the market? Do they have food you can grab and go? Would love your recommendations on that.

A couple hours is plenty for the Market.

Yes the are loads of places with food to-go. If you want to have some seafood, the fish vendors do things like crab or shrimp in a cup. There's Market Grill with fish sandwiches. Pike Place Chowder... well with chowder. Mishou's is a great deli. Le Panier a french bakery. Beechers (you can see the big vat of them making cheese) has delish to go things including a cup of mac & cheese...

that's just off the top of my head!

The Market has year-round permanent shops in several buildings. Plus it also has even more summer-time vendors for flowers, vegetables, lots of arts & crafts. Those are in the arcade heading north from "the pig" (statue).

Lots of grab and go food in the Market, but also some nicer restaurants. My fave is Maxmillian's, but Matts in the Market gets good reviews as well.

One could easily spend all day in the Market. But you can also go and browse for a couple of hours.

That all sounds great. I was thinking we might do one of the food tours - that sounds really fun. Thanks for all the restaurant suggestions too.

Is Mt. Rainier something you all think we should do on our own or maybe do a day tour? Are there easy hikes you can do there? I've seen some guided tours offered too - what do you guys think?

If you are going to have a car (or even just rent a car for a day) Mt. Rainier is easy to do on your own. There are many easy hikes you can do.

I agree, if you have a car there is no reason to not do Rainier on your own. There are a lot of easy hikes you can do. Here are two websites that as hikers, we use a lot.

www.wta.org
www.nwhikers.net

The first one is excellent in describing hikes and has elevation and distance for each one, as well as all the trip reports for each hike. The second website is a forum based but is a wealth of info from other fellow hikers.

marvelousmouse--I was so bummed as we had to skip the burger/shake when we got back on Monday! Friends were in town and wanted to meet at Matador instead. It was fine but not the burger/shake that we had earned with our backpacking, lol!

We got our tickets to the Mariners game booked and also booked a Savor Seattle tour - already getting excited about the trip. Snoqualmie Falls looks pretty - how far is that from Seattle?

It looks like Chihuly and the Space Needle are close to each other - is that right? About how long would you guys recommend to see those two? Is Collections Cafe a good place to grab a bite to eat?

Super helpful tips...I'm saving this post for my future Seattle travel. Thanks!

I believe it was 45 minutes or so out to Snoqualmie Falls. I'll never forget that it was sunny the entire ride there. As soon as I got to the top of the waterfall, a downpour started. I would have been drier if I jumped into the waterfall...

Also near the Space Needle is a Science Fiction Museum and a Guitar museum if interested.

I am sure you will enjoy those!

The Falls are about a half hour from Seattle. Be sure to take 90 across the water and NOT 520 with a rental car. 520 is a toll bridge, with no way to pay cash. If you do not have a Good To Go pass, the rental car companies pass along a convenience fee of around $25 each time you cross the bridge. On 90 there are no tolls, so no worries. Plus it is a bit shorter. So just keep an eye on your directions.

The Chihuly garden is right smack next to the Space Needle. It is hard to say how much time to allow since the lines at the SN vary a lot. With no waiting, I would say maybe an hour total for the SN and about 45 minutes for Chihuly. I have not eaten at the cafe there, but hear it is very good, FWIW.

The Space Needle and Chihuly sell combo tickets that save money if you're planning to see both. The cafe at the Chihuly exhibit is pretty good if rather pricey.

However you might look at the total cost of having lunch in the Space Needle then visiting Chihuly separately. Lunch has a minimum per person spend requirement of $25, but they throw in the elevator and observation deck for free ($22 otherwise) so compare lunch (say $30) plus Chihuly ($27) vs. the combo ticket ($46) plus the cost of lunch at the Chihuly cafe (say $20.) The food at the Sky City restaurant in the Space Needle is actually pretty good. http://www.spaceneedle.com/information/

Unless you manage to miss all the traffic, the drive to Snoqualmie Falls will be 45-60 minutes. I have lived here a long time, so can remember when the drive was only 30 minutes, but I have a long memory.

We had a nice lunch at Collections Cafe when we visited the Chilhuly museum and garden. I know we spent an hour or so there, but Cheryl was photographing. Other things at the Seattle Center include The Experience Music Project - what tchoiniere called "Science Fiction Museum and a Guitar museum" While there are some interesting exhibits, the building is at least as interesting.

Are you planing on going up in the space needle? If so, expect a long line. Personally, I don't find it a compelling view. Maybe go to Volunteer Park - atop Capital Hill and see the glorious view of the city and the Bay laid out before you. No lines! I also like that the view there includes the Space Needle.