I've heard there's good sushi at the Portland airport, but not from a reliable source ;-) .
You like? I'd recommend some, but I've yet to find any up here worth recommending. Some good sukiyaki to be found in little hole in the wall places in Seattle's International District...
What's sukiyaki? Yes, please on the recomendations!
Sukiyaki
Don't know names of addresses of anywhere I go, I'm afraid, and I don't go down to the I.D. as much as I used to (used to work at the Nippon Kan theater down there). Sorry 'bout that. If the place looks small and humble and is full of both Japanese and scruffy NW kids, it's a good sign.
(The world's worst tour guide, am I.)
Sukiyaki is sort of like a Japanese chow mein. Usually made with thin strips of marinated beef and good vegetables, frequently cooked at the table. Really yummy. Your waitress will pronounce it SKEE yah kee.
I thought of a place you
need to see in Portland, Powell's Book Store. It may be the best used book store on the Pacific coast and inhabits several buildings near the University of Portland.
http://www.powells.com/
There is also a home-grown retail and catalog store nearby called Hanna's which has terrific, somewhat costly clothes for children. The main store is near Powell's but there is an outlet in south Portland, Lake Oswego, where you can find really good deals.
http://www.hannaandersson.com
Piffka, My wife and I visited Powell's bookstore. It is HUGE! c.i.
Pdog - What's the ID? Is it a neighborhood? I use that method for picking ethnic restaurants, usually. Thanks for that link, it looks yummy.
I think I saw a reference to that bookstore! Both the mom's I work for are subscribers to the Hanna catalogues.
Wow, patiodog, you used to work in the Nippon Kan theater? Our paths almost crossed--I work in that bldg now, only not for the theater. Often go to Chinatown for lunch with a co-worker who's Chinese and grew up in Seattle. Needless to say, she knows every nook and cranny there and comes up with great ideas for lunch. I'm very lucky!
littlek: ID = International District = Chinatown. Adjacent to Pioneer Square, also worth a walk-through...
Any fabric stores in chinatown?
Oh, I'll have a lay-over at the seattle airport. One is just for an hour, may not have time to roam, but the other is for over 2 hours. Anything interesting in the airport itself?
Re fabric stores in the ID: Not sure (not my area of expertise) but I can ask around. As for SeaTac Airport, well, an airport's an airport, but you may find some regional touches of interest...
Thanks D'Art, I was just looking up ID.
4 stars for Ai! Eek. I've been there. Poorly rolled, bad texture, and way too warm. Granted, this was for lunch. I Love Sushi in Seattle is pretty good, but not fantastic. (You've gotta go to San Francisco or Santa Cruz for fantastic sushi...)
D'Art -- it's wild that you work in the Nippon Kan building. I designed lights for three or four shows for Stepping Stone Productions (don't bother; they're pretty bad) there a couple of years ago, around about when the earthquake happened. Any cracks from the quake in your office there? The plaster in the theater cracked pretty good in a couple of places, and people were monitoring the building shift. (Beautiful park and public garden up there, too.)
Uwajimaya's (Wa gee My uh's) is the largest "department" store in the International District. It sells, food, toys, pottery, clothing & shoes, books, stationery, etc. Fun to browse -- you could easily spend a couple hours there. They might have fabric.
ok, so no to which restaurant?
I was in SF's japantown a few (10? Man...) years ago. It's when and where I fell head over heels for Japanese food (not sushi).
(No to the place called "Ai!", based on my experience. It's in a neighborhood you probably won't have cause to go to, anyway; not much to do or see in Wallingford.)
