Conscious Choice Seattle: Best by Northwest

December 2004

Best by Northwest

Announcing our first annual winners of the Evvie Awards. Be well. Eat healthy delicious food. Laugh out loud. Think green. Breathe. Act naturally.

The votes are in. We need no recounts or court orders to clear up who won reader support in our first annual Evvie Awards. First, some explaining. “Evvie” is a nickname for Evergreen Monthly. Think of it as a good friend-the one who sees the good in people and tends to look at the positive side-who is recommending good places to find, say, vegetarian food or an eco-conscious garden store.

Another integral point: We here at Evergreen Monthly know that other publications in town do annual “Best of” issues. Like everyone else, we read them and used them when practical.

The Evvie doesn’t presume to replace those other publications’ lists, but we feel confident in our mission of covering natural health, environment, food, spirituality, personal growth and social good. We think the Evvies fill a gap of recognition for local people, businesses and organizations that enhance our daily quality of life.

Our readers who voted for the first annual Evvies helped us select the greenest, healthiest, best-tasting, deepest, most peaceful, most meaningful, most socially responsible and, not least, most fun that Seattle and the Puget Sound area has to offer. We are grateful for those votes and happy to share our first Evvies list with you.

Veggie Votes

There was a tight contest in the best vegetarian restaurant category. No wonder; Seattle is known by veg-heads worldwide for its more than two dozen dedicated no-meat restaurants.

And that’s not even including the dozens more restaurants who know a pattern when they see one and offer more than just nominal vegetarian dishes on their menus. Whether you are a committed vegetarian (vegans do equally well around town) or someone who desires to eat the one or two meatless dinners each week recommended by many health practitioners, the Puget Sound region serves up variety.

To that end, we announce two winners in this category. Café Flora (2901 E. Madison St., 206-325-9100) and Carmelita (7314 Greenwood Ave. N, 206-706-7703) finished in a straight-out tie. We have no win-or-else philosophy here at EM, so both of these excellent vegetarian restaurants get the Evvie. Let’s celebrate with the amazing Oaxaca tacos at Café Flora or a bowl of luscious chanterelle soup at Carmelita.

Honorable mention in this category: Silence-Heart-Nest (5247 University Way NE, 206-524-4008)

To market, to farmers’ market

The Puget Sound area proudly supports more than 30 farmers’ market (get a detailed list at www.evergreenmonthly.com by clicking the August 2004 issue archives). The top vote-getter by estimate of EM readers is the University District Farmers’ Market. Founded in 1993 and featuring more than 50 local farmers, it meets on Saturdays from late May to late November.

Creativity and cuisine

Our sophisticated vegetarian palates prompted EM to ask readers to identify a “most innovative vegetarian restaurant.” Carmelita topped that category. Must be the caramelized pear-gorgonzola-polenta Napoleon with Brussels sprouts, caramelized onion and grapes. Or maybe the homemade pasta with blackened broccoli. Or that pizza crust with white and rye flour mixed with a bit of cornmeal and topped with many surprising but delicious choices.

Coffee, tea or juice?

There are at least a couple of us at EM who like our coffee extra strong, even by Seattle standards. But all of us in the break room agree that we like our coffee organic and fair-trade certified. So we are happy to order a cup at Evvie winner Caffe Ladro (various locations, www.caffeladro.com), leader in the Best Organic, Fair-Trade Coffeehouse category. Seems fitting, since the chain of cafés is the largest user of “exclusively fair trade coffee in the country.” Its coffee is roasted by Tony’s Coffee in Bellingham and certified by TransFair USA.

For tea, readers pointed us to Kuan Yin Teahouse in Wallingford for the winning entry in “Best Selection of Teas.” Be careful; you might start messing with your coffee habit after a time or two at Kuan Yin (1911 N. 45th St., 206-632-2055). You can find an ample pick of black, green, herbal and oolong teas from China, Japan, Taiwan, India, Sri Lanka and Malaysia. The teahouse is warmly decorated, completed by soothing music (live acoustic on Saturday nights) and a fun wall display of teapots and teacups.

If you prefer a smoothie or juice bar pick-me-up, readers recommended the Jamba Juice chain (various locations, www.jambajuice.com). We’re guessing the customization in ordering, fast service and multiple locations created a winning platform for “Best Smoothies/Best Juice Bar.” The option of substituting soymilk for frozen yogurt didn’t hurt the cause either.

Healthy Mexican food

We asked you for the Best Mexican Restaurant/No-Lard Division. Your two most popular answers: Agua Verde Paddle Club and Café (1030 NE Boat St., 206-545-8570) and Gordito’s Healthy Mexican Food (213 N. 85th St., 206-706-9352). Hey, are you going to finish that nutritious burrito or do you mind...?

Garden tooling

We had no clear-cut winner in the Eco-Friendly Garden Store voting. There was in fact a four-way tie among City People’s Garden Store (2939 E. Madison St., 206-324-0737), PCC Natural Markets (various locations, www.pccnaturalmarkets.com), Sky Nursery (18528 Aurora Ave. N, 206-546-4851) and Swanson’s Nursery and Landscaping (9701 15th Ave. NW, 206-782-2543). It seems fitting, since our region has a high per-capita number of gardeners. Thinking green goes right along with the green thumbs at these outlets.

For your (natural) health

The Puget Sound area is a treasure of riches for any of us (studies indicate that would be most of us) who want access to integrative medical care. The well-deserved Evvie winner here is Bastyr University. The nation’s leading natural-health medical school won honors for Best Clinic for Comprehensive Integrative Medicine Approach, Best Place to Learn about Integrative Medicine and Best Local Web site for Integrative Medicine Info. That site, www.bastyr.edu, is a wonderful place to discover Bastyr’s range of services or get a deeper understanding of services available in the greater Seattle area.

Spa-tacular

Europeans are better at “taking the waters” than Americans. Here in Seattle, EM readers rated Ummelina International Day Spa (1525 4th Ave., 206-624-1370) as the Best Spa for Natural Health and Beauty Treatments. One good reason would the chance to relax and rejuvenate in an Oceana tub during the essential oils-infused “Healing Waters” treatment. You might call it “pampering” when someone visits a day spa. We prefer the term “nurturing.”

Yoga yardstick

Tabulating reader voting for awards always comes with measuring the possibility of an intense campaign from loyal followers of a contender like, oh, say, Yoga Centers of Bellevue (2255 140th Ave. NE, 425-746-7476). Believe us, we received the online signal loud and clear that students at this Eastside yoga institution love their studio and teachers. Let us count the Evvie ways: Best Yoga Studio for Beginner Instruction, Best Yoga Studio for Meditation, Best Yoga Studio/Independent and Best Yoga Teacher Training Program.

The Evvie for Best Yoga Studio/Chain goes to the innovative 8 Limbs (locations in Capitol Hill and Wedgwood, 206-325-8221), which offers highly popular prenatal and postpartum classes.

The Evvie for Best Yoga Instructor is a three-way tie among Aadil Palkhivala (Yoga Centers of Bellevue), Sandra Storwick (Yoga Centers of Bellevue) and Connie Zimmerman (an Iyengar instructor based in Carnation who also teaches at Yoga Centers).

Grocery list

EM polled readers for best natural grocery stores and best health and nutrition stores. These days the retail lines have blurred between the once-labeled health food store, natural supermarkets and food co-ops. You can find fresh produce, organic meats, fair-trade chocolate, yoga gear and dietary supplements in the same trip, just a few aisles apart.

Voters picked PCC Natural Markets for both Best Natural Grocery Store/Local Chain and Best Health and Nutrition Store/Local Chain. And, yes, PCC is technically a co-op, which means it also picks up the Evvie for Best Food Co-op. But to rule it out as a grocery store entry doesn’t make sense, especially since readers overwhelmingly categorized PCC as a grocery store.

Whole Foods Markets (with its new 55,000-square-foot store opening in time for some brisk Evvies voting on the Eastside) swept the same two categories in the national chain division. Among independent natural groceries, Madison Marketand Rainbow Grocery tied, while Rainbow Natural Remedies gets the Evvie in the Best Health and Nutrition Store/Independent category. Rainbow Natural Remedies, by the way, is a double Evvie winner on the strength of getting the most votes in the Most Informed/Helpful Supplement Staff.

In related categories, PCC took Evvie honors for Grocery Store with Best Explanation of Seafood Sources and Best Grocery Store for Healthy Kids’ Food.

Hair- and consciousness-raising

Greenest Hair Salon is not a leftover Halloween category or a reference to the best place to get just the right hair dye. It means the hair salon most concerned about protecting the planet from harmful products or services. The winner in this category was Eden Organic Salon in Monroe, which features natural hair coloring, highlighting and perms (115 1/4 W. Main St., 360-863-1565).

Skin care skinny

Voters named plenty of individual favorites in the Best Store for Natural Skin Care Products category. Overall, it added up to an Evvie Award for Whole Foods. A wider selection is one of the chain’s strengths. There are other Evvies in Whole Foods’ holiday stocking.

Olive, oh olive oil

A recent study confirmed what lots of holistic nutritionists have been endorsing for years: The omega-3 fats in olive oil are highly protective for the heart and cardiovascular system. In fact, the federal government has ruled olive oil makers can label their products as a preventive measure against heart disease. So we feel good about popping the heart-healthy question about the Best Place to Buy Olive Oil. The Evvie-winning answer from readers? Trader Joe’s.

Inspiration Nation

Evergreen Monthly readers know an inspirational leader when they hear or see one. The “Spirit” section of the Evvies voting firmly embraced by the Center for Spiritual Living (5801 Sand Point Way NE, 206-527-8801), which gets an Evvie for Best Speakers Open to the Public. CSL leader Kathianne Lewis was voted Most Inspirational Local Spiritual Leader, while the www.cslseattle.org website was deemed Most Inspirational Local Web site. What’s more, the Center for Spiritual Living gets a fourth Evvie for getting the most votes as the Best Place to Meet Singles with a Deep Faith. Inspiration, indeed.

Drive-time frequency

Traffic is not exactly Seattle’s best quality-of-life attribute. We have too much of it for too long on too many days. But National Public Radio’s KUOW 94.9 FM is the choice of the most Evvie voters for Best Radio Station to Get Through a Traffic Jam.

Speaking volumes

There are 107 independent bookstores in Seattle alone. A recent study ranked Seattle-again-as one of the country’s most literate cities. Say what you will about the dot-com influence; we are still a town of engaged book and print-media readers. So asking Evergreen Monthly readers to name their favorite bookstores carries some significant weight.

Not surprisingly, some local heavyweights dominated the Evvie field. For instance, East West Bookshop (6500 Roosevelt Way, 206-523-3726 or 800-587-6002) won in multiple categories for Best Bookstore for Personal Growth Topics, Best Bookstore for Health/Wellness Topics and Best Bookstore for Spiritual Reading. There is no doubt that the personal service and guidance provided at East West goes a long way to earn Evvies recognition.

“We have a very loyal clientele who come to East West because we know our subject area and are ourselves interested in it,” store manager Susan McGinnis told EM writer Silja J.A. Talvi for an October 2004 cover story on independent bookstores. “Customers always tell us that they love the atmosphere here; they enjoy just being here.”

In the Best Bookstore/Independent category, another Seattle standard bearer, Elliott Bay Book Company (101 S. Main St., 206-624-6600 or 800-962-5311), won the readers’ favor. Again, you know the knowledgeable, involved staff boosted the voting, along with a cozy downstairs reading room that attracts local readers and writers alike.

The Evvie nod for Best Bookstore/Local Chain goes to Third Place Books (www.thirdplacebooks.com, 206-366-3333), with locations in Lake Forest Park and Ravenna. You have to love those closing hours (10 p.m. Monday to Thursday, 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 8 p.m. Sunday) along with an always-strong lineup of book events and author appearances.

Barnes and Noble (www.barnesandnoble.com) was voted tops for Best Bookstore/National Chain, while Elliott Bay and East West tied for Best Speakers/Bookstore.

Queue up for qigong

There is no singular Evvie choice in the Best Outdoor Place for Qigong category. But there is nonetheless good “qi,” or energy, at St. Edward’s State Park on the Bastyr University campus, Interlaken Park, Bellevue’s Downtown Park, Seward Park, and Volunteer Park and of course Green Lake.

Making ‘Contact’

The Evvie for Best Radio Show for Socially Conscious Talk goes to the Contact Radio duo of Cameron Steele and Lucia Monetti-Steele, who host a weekday show from 9 to 11 a.m. on KKNW 1150 AM. Their show provides plenty of hope, optimism and, no small thing, humor to brighten our days.

One note: The city’s newest station, KPTK 1090 AM, which is part of the Air America network appealing to progressives or liberals (see Evergreen News, page 8), went on the air about the same time that Evvies voting was closed out. The station could easily have been named Best Local Radio Station to Follow An Election That Defies Explanation.

Walking shoes

EM voters were asked to name Best Place for Exercise Walking. The Evvie winner was undeniably the Green Lake neighborhood. We also wondered about the Best Place to Go for a Romantic Walk. There was no clear-cut winner but lots of good suggestions. Consider them good material for your Things to Do This Holiday Season list: The Arboretum, Seward Park, Green Lake, Golden Gardens, Pepe’s Garden on Capitol Hill, Carkeek Park, Alki Beach, Kirkland waterfront, along Lake Washington, UW campus, Discovery Park, Salish Lodge, Lincoln Park, Bellevue Botanical Garden, Snoqualmie Valley Trail, Olmstead Legacy/Lake Washington Boulevard.

Encouraging words

Evergreen Monthly is dedicated to reporting on the quality of life in Seattle and the Puget Sound area. Our goal with every issue is to help you feel better about yourself and the world we live in. Evvies voters supplied lots of upsides for living in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest. Here are some of the replies received when we asked about the Most Encouraging Thing About Living in Seattle: Gentle climate and community; Environmentally conscious; Socially conscious; Clean; Polite drivers; “We recycle more than most cities”; Tolerance and diversity; Beautiful and green; It’s a blue state; The green; Always green; Abundance of New Thought; The water; Progressive people; All of the trees; Friendly people; Bike lanes; So few Bush supporters; Mountain ranges and lakes; “You can breathe here”; Vibrant elderly people; People talk with one another

Leave ‘em laughing

One of our favorite questions in the Evvies reader survey focused on the Best Public Place to Laugh Out Loud. We included it in the “Social Good” section and can’t think of anything that does any of us any more good. Here are some of the suggestions from readers — we say give ‘em all an Evvie!: Pioneer Square; Green Lake; Discovery Park; “Anywhere”; “Everywhere”; Capitol Hill; Folklife Festival; Sidewalk in front of Zeitgeist Kunst and Kaffee

Tearing up

As an equal-emotional opportunity magazine, EM also asked Evvie voters to name the Best Public Place to Cry Out Loud. Only Green Lake made both the “Laugh Out Loud” and “Cry Out Loud” lists. Here are some of the other recommended locales for having a healthy cry: Carkeek Park, Kubota Gardens, Green Lake, Alki Beach, Arboretum

Wasteland, waste not

Another favorite Evvies survey question around our office: Name the Best Reason to Give Away Your TV Set. Here are the highly intelligent life-forming answers from EM readers: Reality TV; 11 o’clock news; Avoid bad consciousness; Read inspirational books instead; TV aggravates the subtle nerves; Read more; Keeps one from getting outdoors; Create more free time; Create more quiet; More time to play; Fox News; Avoid mass hypnosis; “The Swan”; Face what you have been avoiding; TV is Satan; Deeper conversations; Connect with yourself; “The Apprentice”; Less negativism; Howard Stern; There’s nothing to watch anyway!

The “E” list

The Evvies just keep on coming. Here is a listing of more winners in our first annual awards.

Best natural cooking class: PCC

Best Asian market for hard-to-find items: Uwajimaya

Best bakery for whole-grain breads: Great Harvest Bread Co., Essential Baking Co. (tie)

Best natural bakery: Essential Baking Co.

Best vegan baked goods: Flying Apron

Healthiest muffins that still taste delicious: Flying Apron

Best bike shop: Gregg’s

Best place to learn about biodiesel: Dr. Dan’s Alternative FuelWerks

Best place to walk/exercise a dog/Seattle: Magnuson Park off-leash

Best place to walk a dog/Eastside: Marymoor Park off-leash