A Local's Guide to Seattle's Pike Place Market

CHONA KASINGER
CHONA KASINGER

If there's one thing you have to explain to out-of-towners about Seattle's Pike Place Market, it's that there is more to it than the "original" Starbucks, and its titular seafood slinger (yay, they're throwing fish again!). So much so, that locals are willing to brave hordes of the aforementioned out-of-towers to hit some of the lesser known (but still seriously sweet) spots at the country's oldest continuously operating market.

The best of which we've assembled below in our photo guide to Pike Place Market, starting with...

Daily Dozen
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The Main Concourse

Daily Dozen (address and info)
All day long, inside a tiny stall just around the corner from the dudes throwing fish, miniature rings of dough are plucked from a bath of hot oil by an aging Donut Robot (Mark II!), and served almost immediately, still hot and deliciously greasy.

MarketSpice
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MarketSpice (address and info)
A literal hot tip: if you find yourself dragging while at the Market, sneak into MarketSpice for a steaming tea sample… or check out this fragrant shop's giant selection of way-better-than-Starbucks coffee.

Chona Kasinger

The Sanitary Market

El Mercado Latino (address and info)
Just across the cobblestone street in a building that got its name 'cause it didn't allow horses back in the day, this shop slings some of the city's best empanadas and has a collection of hot sauces this photo only hints at.

Mee Sum Pastry
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Mee Sum Pastry (address and info)
If you serve BBQ pork humbow and supersize potstickers this good, we will forgive you for being on the Market's busiest corner.

Inay's Filipino Food
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Oriental Mart (address and info)
Hearty and vinegar heavy, the authentic Filipino food they serve cafeteria-style at OM -- including pancit, lumpia, etc. -- is some of the best in Seattle.

Ellenos Yogurt
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Ellenos Yogurt (address and info)
Not into yogurt? They'll give you samples of their 100% natural fruit-filled stuff until you are.

Britt's Pickles
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Britt's Pickles (address and info)
Your destination for all things fermented, this boutique purveyor's raw-wood walk-up counter was specifically designed to accommodate the handmade oak barrels Britt uses to ferment pickles in flavors like spicy, half sour, and full sour.

Can Can
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Can Can (address and info)
Absinthe cocktails. Off-kilter burlesque shows. A riotous vaudeville-inspired interior. You can(can)'t miss this subterranean boozer.

The Alibi Room
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Downstairs

The Alibi Room (address and info)
Across Post Alley from one of the Market's other famous (and pretty gross) attractions, the Gum Wall, this dark and intimate underground boozer boasts $5 spicy mac and cheese during happy hour, and one-of-a-kind brick oven pizzas like their Pine ‘n Swine that'll make you happy at any hour.

Old Seattle Paperworks
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Old Seattle Paperworks (address and info)
Boasting kitschy art from times gone by, OSP sells everything from vintage postcards to old magazines, but the highlight is a massive collection of posters that would've impressed the girls you brought back to your dorm wayyy more than that wall of PBR labels.

Zig Zag
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Zig Zag Cafe (address and info)
Located way downstairs (on the steps to the waterfront), this boozer is still one of Seattle's (and the country's) best craft cocktail destinations, even after the departure of famed bartender Murray Stenson.

Golden Age Collectibles
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Golden Age Collectibles (address and info)
Located under the main atrium, it's your destination for knick knacks, comic books, bric-a-brac... and life-sized cutouts of Ron Burgundy and Darth Vader.

RGB
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Post Alley

RGB (address and info)
Started by Seattle's own ginger beer maven, RGB uses said soda to make cocktails like the Dark + Stormy or the El Diablo that you can sip while enjoying one of the sweetest views in the Market.

Whitehorse Trading Co.
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White Horse Trading Co. (address and info)
Step past the nondescript unicorn that serves as the pub’s only signage, and enter a world where you can only get beer and wine (and pretzels in little cups), or if you're smart, their version of a Pimm’s Cup -- a blend of five fortified wines all in one.

Cafe Campagne
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Cafe Campagne (address and info)
One of the Market’s best-kept secrets is Cafe Campagne’s all-star happy hour menu from 4-6pm Monday through Friday. It dishes up mini lamb burgers, pomme frites, and generous pours of Parisian wine at shockingly reasonable prices.

The Tasting Room
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The Tasting Room (address and info)
Washington is America's second largest wine producer for a reason, and that reason is apparently so this vino spot can pour you glasses of a seemingly endless selection of wine -- as opposed to what locals do to some tourist that has taken their secret parking spot over by Cost Plus: whine.

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