Holy crap! Carta de Oaxaca was INCREDIBLE! Thank you soooooo much for suggesting the restaurant. I have never,ever had mole as good as this- and probably never will again- unless I go back there. The place was awesome- prompt service, no tv's to distract you from the food and decor. Theres communal/shared seating to promote actual human interaction, and there wasn't a single dish I ordered that was even "acceptable." Each dish was better than the last and I kept ordering more and more after I finished the previous one!
Fremont was just down the road so I wandered around and found a place called "bottlewerks" which is a bar-ish liquor store. They have 8 beers on tap that they'll sell you and you can chat with other patrons or the guys who run it. In addition to those beers, they have a TON of other hard to find, hard to import beers in bottles that you can buy for consumption there or take home to your hotel room to enjoy like I'm doing now.
I also had Molly Moon's Homemade Ice Cream. Every ingredient is locally sourced and pinned quietly on a map on the wall behind the line you wait in. They don't seem to broadcast that they make superb, local ingredient ice cream but the product speaks for itself. A single scoop was a generous size and had just the right amount of milk fat to coat your tongue. MAN! So good.
I really did not expect to like Seattle so much on my first day, LMAO. Can't wait for the rest of the week!
You just made my day with this post! I'm so glad you liked the recommendations! La Carta de Oaxaca is the best Mexican restaurant I've been to in the country. It's that good. And the mole is to die for. Glad you also enjoyed Fremont. Now don't forget to do the Underground Tour.
By the way, I forgot to mention that you should take a stroll through the Olympic Sculpture Park in downtown Seattle. Quite impressive and free. Incredible blend of nature, city architecture and sculpture. Phenomenal stroll with amazing views.
I also forgot to mention that an unforgettable side trip is to go to Leavenworth, WA. It's a 2 hr drive from Seattle and a 30 min drive from Stevens Pass. It's a really cool Bavarian town, with people dressing the part, with the typical architecture and good beer and nice bratwurst. Also, the Christmas lights and decoration are so good they routinely win the travel channel and other networks awards for best town to be in for Christmas. Their lights and decoration are something to behold.
It's a good base from which to ski Stevens. The problem is that you don't have a lot of time, and there's better skiing to be had at Baker and Crystal. But Stevens is in the running for 3rd best in the state, so perhaps worth a second look. Guess it depends on what your priorities are. If you're just looking for the best skiing, Baker over Stevens Pass. But if you're looking for a good ski/après/ town combo, then Leavenworth/Stevens Pass is worth a second look.
By the way, don't forget to grab an après drink at The Snorting Elk when you ski Crystal. Legendary après bar, which consistently wins awards in ski mags for its decor and crowd. It's inside the resort. One last thing, if you didn't travel with your skis, you can rent them at Sturtevants Ski Mart in Bellevue if you want to rent at low prices. Not a lot of selection, but prices are very good. It's kind of like an outlet, so you can also buy other goodies at good prices.
