Biking to Bakeries in Seattle!!!

My sister-in-law, Carolyn, moved with her family to Seattle a few years ago, and in July my husband Don and I spent a few days in their lovely home overlooking Lake Washington.  Walks from their home led me around the lake and allowed me to see beautiful houses, their verdant gardens showing off colorful flowers in full bloom. I will definitely be enlisting the memories of my family in Seattle to help me write this biking to bakeries post since that wonderful trip was several months ago.

On the way to Edmonds one day, we stopped at The Cottage, a small bakery featuring bread and cookies. I thought the rye cookie was nutty and full-flavored and all of the bread loaves looked legit. Carolyn and I had a good chat with the friendly young women who worked there and they seem interested in my blog. While walking around Edmond’s cute downtown, I discovered a splendid shop, Treasures and Teas, which sells dozens of loose leaf tea varieties. Tea is one of my favorite beverages and it always complements whatever baked goods I am eating.  Thankfully, the shopkeeper was incredibly helpful and I came home with a new favorite, Purple Jasmine as well as my standby, Cream Earl Gray. I continue to order from this terrific store. 

The next day, we set off on bikes: Carolyn, my Don, brother-in-law Tom, and niece Nicole. Our first stop after a rather long, hilly ride (I was on a single speed bike!) was Irwin’s Bakery, where my nephew Hutton works. He had kindly set aside the coffee shop’s best sellers and they did not disappoint. We sat outside in a special spot under an awning, surrounded by trees. Our coffee and tea drinks arrived, piping hot with steamed milk. My London Fog was perfect.  We unpacked the capacious bag of pastries from Hutton and shared them gleefully. Irwin’s is known for its scones and you know that this particular baked good is one of my favorites. Each one had a buttery crumb and the flavors were fresh and bright: marionberry, apple, and cherry. The marionberry was my favorite since this sweet, tart fruit comes and goes so quickly in Santa Barbara. I can never get enough of it. We also shared a moist, subtly spiced pumpkin muffin that reminded me of fall. 

Our next stop was Sea Wolf, where my niece ordered a square slice of pizza with vinaigrette, a combination I’d never seen before. This is her go-to order there, and I could see why. According to Nicole, “The green vinaigrette pizza at Sea Wolf is served cafeteria-style, cut into big squares from a sheet pan. The best thing about it is the bread, which is chewy and may actually be focaccia. It’s simple—just cheese, sauce, and bread—but the green vinaigrette gives it a tanginess that sets it apart from a plain, old cheese pizza. As for the focaccia, Sea Wolf’s version is lighter and more lemony than the other focaccias I’ve had. It has Maldon salt flakes on top and all kinds of olives—black, green, kalamata, —baked into it. My only complaint is that it’s oily and liable to soak right through the brown paper bags it’s served in.”  I enjoyed a very good chocolate chip cookie, also sprinkled with Maldon salt flakes.

Our final stop was Saint Bread (I am not religious but have been worshiping bread my entire life!). We arrived to find a rather long line which gave us plenty of time to peruse the unusual menu. Once again, I am relying on Nicole’s keen memory. She is “pretty sure we had yuzu polenta cake and rice bowls at Saint Bread. The rice bowl, which has pickled seasonal veggies, greens, a hard-boiled egg, and sesame miso dressing, is my go-to there. I’m also a big fan of their chocolate chip cookies, which are salty and dotted with dark chocolate chunks.” I second her views on the chocolate chip cookie there, as it was one of the best I’ve had. In addition, the polenta yuzu cake was moist and tasty. We are  not alone in our feelings about Saint Bread, as the New York Times recently named it one of America’s best bakeries.  

On our final day we set out to visit the locks. En route, we ate at Macrina Bakery. I believe my husband (though it could have been Tom) ordered the sausage breakfast biscuit. This light, fluffy biscuit held a delicately seasoned sausage, a local cheese, and egg. It disappeared quickly and was pronounced “delicious!” I went with a large slice of coffee cake and purchased some of Macrina’s renowned butter cookies for a friend. All in all, we ate ourselves silly during those four days, and I am eager to return in order to see my family in Seattle and to check out more great food spots.