Three Meals in Fremont
Self-proclaimed the Center of the Universe, Fremont radiates creativity and color with its street art, dino-shaped shrubbery and smells of chocolate wafting through the air – so it’s no wonder we found ourselves gravitating there every night during a recent stay in Seattle.
With all the fabulous flavors hitting you straight in the face, it’s hard to know which restaurants to give your attention to, so here are three we were completely WOWed by and would totally give another try.
Local Tide
With lines out the door mid-week, it’s clear that Seattle loves how Local Tide is taking everyday seafood and making it inspired, approachable and a little extra yummy.
I had my eye on the Crab Roll, but sadly found out that’s a delicacy served in limited quantities on the weekend – so I’d recommend arriving early on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday if you have a shared goal in mind.
Instead I ordered the Rockfish Banh Mi while Hahn treated himself to a big old bowl of Clam Chowder.
But don’t go thinking this was just any old chowdah.
Nah. With whispers of jambalaya flavorings, I can only guess that the rich and flavorful soup was lovingly made with a nice dark roux.
Word to the wise: Don’t forget to order their crisp, yet soft and pillowy, Salt & Pepper Fries.
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401 North 36th Street, Seattle || localtide.com
Crumby
Casual and airy, the dining room at Crumby’s is everything you’d hope for in a sandwich shop that uses fresh seasonal ingredients and exotic proteins like octopus and soft shell crab.
Torn between several sandwiches, I opted for the Duck Confit while Hahn had the Spicy Fried Chicken and the kids f*cked with the Carnitas and Salumi.
Not gonna lie, everything could’ve used a little more seasoning, but I dream of giving their entire menu a try.
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709 North 35th Street, Seattle || crumbysandwiches.kitchen
Meesha
Don’t let the gorgeous dining room fool you into thinking you can’t roll in wearing shorts, but you will want to show up with a reservation. Luckily we arrived before the dinner rush and were able to steal a table for two.
Menu brimming with possibilities, it was hard to nail down exactly which dishes we’d choose. After much deliberation we landed on the Rarah Keema Pao, Connaught Butter Chicken, Goan Prawns with Cardamom Ghee Rice and Kulcha Bread.
The garam masala spiced ground lamb and pickled veggies on brioche sliders (Rarah Keema Pao) was reminiscent of tiny Sloppy Joes from elementary school, but HIGHLY elevated and extra dreamy.
Not your typical bite-sized chunks of chicken in butter sauce, the Connaught Butter Chicken turned out to be large pieces of charcoal smoked chicken that effortlessly fell apart in its velvety fenugreek spiced tomato cashew sauce.
And finally, grilled to perfection, the Goan Prawns were paired with bright bites of green mango floating in a ridiculously good coconut curry sauce.
Everything that arrived at our table was almost too pretty to eat, but somehow we managed to lick our plates clean.
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127 North 36th Street, Seattle || meeshaforyou.com
Not stoked on any of these? Check out Eater’s most recent article on 15 Fantastic Restaurants in Fremont to try.
You’re bound to find something that leaves you flying high.
When To Go
If you aren’t afraid of a little rain, Seattle is a tourist-friendly town year round, but there’s no time like July and August in the Pacific Northwest – sunny and clear with just enough humidity to amp up the normally moderate temps.
Lodging
Finding an (affordable) airbnb that’s centrally located between Downtown, Queen Anne, Ballard and Fremont sounds too good to be true – but we did it. Check out these private guest quarters that overlook a rose garden in a gorgeous walkable neighborhood.
Visit the Troll
Made from 2 tons of reinforced concrete, the 18 foot Troll that lives under the Aurora Bridge clutches an actual Volkswagen Beetle. A tourist attraction through and through, were you ever really in Seattle if you didn’t stop to snap a pic with the Troll?
Click here to view a video!
