Toucan2

Another one for Matt's in the Market. I don't even know who to thank here but when I was in Seattle recently for a day, I remember how many peopled raved about it here and so met a friend there for lunch.

It is tiny, we ended up sitting at the bar to eat and it was a blast. The food was great, and the bartender a hoot. We were curious about the champagne drink he was making so he served us a small glass--pink grapefruit juice and champagne, what's that called?

I had the cassoulet (maybe not a summer meal!) and took home half, my friend had a sandwich that was pork tenderloin, roasted red peppers, etc. The bartender said it was a staff favorite. I did look longingly at the plate full of scallops that walked by.

Definitely make reservations!

suze

One tidbit about Hotel Andra at the moment- there's a high rise going up across the street immediately to the south of the building. The construction's awful noisy right now (walked by yesterday) if you had any desire to nap in your room during the day, might be an issue.

NWWanderer

From personal experience and from talking to people who've stayed at the Andra very recently, so long as you are not on the side of the hotel facing the construction, it's really not an issue. They have good double-paned windows.

Of course, as with any city hotel, it's not going to be completely quiet, unless you're staying on the highest floors of a high rise like the Grand Hyatt or Sheraton.

lennyba

One of my old standby favorites is the Pink Door in Post Alley - especially on the deck in the spring and summer. Purple Cafe on University is another good one. Fantastic cheese plates and an enormous wine list. I'm not enamoured of Steelhead Diner myself but it's not horrible.

AtlTravelr

Thank you again to all who have helped me. I'm into withdrawl from trip planning - no Europe trip this summer - so I'm in high gear with even the smallest US trip! Thanks again.

AtlTravelr

A big thank you to all who answered my questions. We visited my daughter last week in Seattle and it was great. We did stay at the Hotel Andra and loved it. Their staff, especially the valet guys, were so friendly and accomodating. The location was perfect, better for us than staying in the University area. We picked up my daughter and took her back to downtown and she stayed the night with us, which was great as we were enjoying walking around and having drinks as well.

And a BIG thank you for the Matts in the Market rec. It was definitely the kind of place we like and my daughter was able to report that the locals she talked to were quite impressed that this is where we were eating. We were quite "trendy". The place was packed and since it is pretty small I'm glad I made a reservation. I really appreciate all the help!

happytrailstoyou

Thanks for the up-date.

ncounty

Thanks for the update, At. How much was the Andra? I will be going late this summer and have reserv at Hotel Vintage Park for $129/night. I'll call to make reservations for Matt's in the Market; thanks for the info.

AtlTravelr

I paid $229 per night at the Andra and we really did think it was lovely. My stepson also stayed a few nights there with his daughters & his mother. It was funny that she had picked that hotel without any conversation with me.

Hope you get a table at Matts!

parsley

Another vote for Hotel Andra - notice a pattern here? We got a great package there that included gift cards for the Tom Douglas restaurant in the Andra for breakfast but when we looked closely at them, we saw we could use them any time at any of Tom's wonderful restaurants. Call the hotel and ask about special packages. I believe we recently got an email from them.

For restaurants, we recommend both Ettas Seafood across from Pike Place Market and the ever wonderful Dahlia Lounge which is across the street from Andra. We never miss ordering the oriental inspired appetizers there and have sometimes made a complete meal from them. There is also a wonderful Italian restaurant just to the right of Andra as you walk out that had memorable bolognese sauce.

suze

That wonderful italian restaurant is Assagio's.

PamSF

We were just in Seattle for the millionth time(baby sis lives there)~we revisited Matt's and were delighted with the changes. I would recommend it absolutely as a place to eat while visiting Pike Market.