We rented a house in the Ballard neighborhood which seemed pretty conveniently located and close to everything. The house was cute and definitely better than staying in a hotel.
We walked a few short blocks to a neighborhood pizza joint, Veraci Pizza. They claimed to specialize in Neopolitan pizza. We started off with a small caesar, which was really nothing special.
Looking over the menu, I was worried that the pizza descriptions were not as traditional as I see at some of the neopolitan places that we are used to like Antino and Double Zero. So I was leaning towards their three cheese. But Josh was firm on the margherita.
It was okay. I definitely prefer a more charred crust and the cheese had barely melted. Their sauce was rich, but rich with not just tomatoes. Clearly they need to bump up their pizzas in flavor because they are not using the highest level of ingredients.
Or I'm just spoiled.
After lunch, we hit the zoo. I'm amazed at the parking situation in Seattle. It seems pretty easy to find street parking if you want to. The lot at the zoo was full, so we pulled off onto a side street, which worked out way better anyway.
We saw lots of things, including a hunting prey show, lions, arctic wolves, and this adorable red panda who was eating lunch right in front of us. Right after I snapped these photos, he ambled back into the brush for a nap.
We didn't get a chance to see the new baby giraffe and only a small glimpse of the new lion cubs.
I love penguins. We stayed to watch the show and spent a good amount of time watching them.
I like this guy.
On Sunday, before we headed over to join the wedding party preparations underway, we headed over to a small French bistro that Josh found nearby. When we got to the area, we found the Ballard farmers market in full force. Blocks of food stalls jammed the streets. I have to admit how jealous I am of all the stalls and also the amount of gorgeous flower stalls (all run by Chinese, I believe). I feel like our farmers markets, which should have way more produce than this, fall short of this awesome site.
There were also some musicians who burst into song as we walked to lunch, playing a selection of ... wooden xylophones? Amazing.
So the place we hit up for lunch is Bastille (bastilleseattle.com).
Josh ordered this burger. I believe it comes with harissa aioli, arugula, pickled onions. I think he liked it.
I ordered this farmer's lunch and was so pleased when it arrived. "Dinah's cheese", which was a soft bloomy rind, delicious. Rabbit pate, also delicious on the toast. Pickled veg, which I think had lots of thin fennel. Delicious. Olives, which were all great but the greens were surprisingly my favorites. Cured meats: genoa salami, I think also a capicola. And grain mustard to go with it all.
This is a lunch that I could enjoy on a regular basis. Just stellar.
I did also get a nice recommendation on a backyard gardening book. That meal was really worth it.
This was the backdrop at the wedding. Gorgeous, even without the love shining between such a happy couple.
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