Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The Vashon Island Roasting Company's java has a lot of horsepower.
approach to espresso has put the coffee at
Espresso Vivace
(227 Yale Ave. N) head
and shoulders above most contenders, but
Victrola Coffee
(in Capitol Hill at 411 15th
Ave. E or downtown at 310 E. Pike St.) has its
own fierce band of partisans, who also pre-
fer Victrola's artsy vibe. When you want a
break from espresso, try the Latin coffees
such as
café Cubano
and
café con leche
at
the
El Diablo Coffee Co.
(1811 Queen
Anne Ave. N.). That area, Upper Queen
Anne, is just the sort of yuppified neighbor-
hood where coffeehouses sprout like weeds;
there's a particularly welcoming branch of
the excellent local chain
Caffe Ladro
up the
street at 2205 Queen Anne Ave. N. In Lower
Queen Anne, you can sample the premium
blends of local roaster
Caffe Vita
(813 Fifth
Ave. N.), another chain worth seeking out
around town.
Just a ferry ride away on laid-back
Vashon Island,
The Vashon Island Roast-
ing Company
(19529 Vashon Hwy. SW)
shares premises with an organic health
food store, The Minglement, in a charming
century-old white frame building with a
rambling front porch. Unpretentious as it
looks, it's a landmark: Specialty coffee
pioneer Jim Stewart first opened The Wet
Whisker here in 1968, which eventually
became Seattle's Best Coffee (a chain now
owned by Starbucks). Fair-trade, shade-
grown heirloom coffees are still the stock
in trade here—as far away from Nescafé
as you can get.
(
Seattle-Tacoma International (14 miles/
23km).
L
$$$
Inn at the Market,
86 Pine St.
(
&
800/446-4484
or 206/443-3600; www.
innatthemarket.com). $$
Bacon Mansion
Bed & Breakfast,
959 Broadway E (
&
800/
240-1864
or 206/329-1864; www.bacon
mansion.com).
