Volume 16 Issue 1 » 83
W H E N YO U G O
INFORMATION
For useful resources on accommodation and
activities in Eastside, visit BellevueWashington.com,
ExploreKirkland.com and ExperienceRedmond.com.
STAY
Heathman Hotel
heathmankirkland.com
@heathmanhotel
EAT
Lady Yum
ladyyum.com
@ladyyum
For farm-to-fork fine dining, Hearth Restaurant, inside the Heathman Hotel, is a
popular spot for a special meal coupled with distinctive craft cocktails.
D AY T H R E E - B E L L E V U E
Bellevue was our destination on our last day, and a fitting place to begin
was Third Culture Coffee, a new coffeehouse opened by Varun Das and
Radhika Kapur, two techies determined to serve international versions of
coffee, tea, and wine. That means Haldi Doodh, a turmeric latte served
in India, Ethiopian Guji, Guatemala Aragon and a host of other cool
beverages you’d be hard-pressed to find elsewhere. I sipped a heavenly
yogurt and rosewater lassi as Das explained his mission. “We’re trying to
transcend borders and bring together tradition and the history of cultures
with coffee, tea, and wine,” he explained. “Our job is to respectfully invite
people to explore coffee in a different way.”
Later we walked around Old Bellevue, a few streets filled with stores
distinctly different to the city’s newer shopping malls. We stopped to
browse the hand-blown, exquisitely coloured glass votives at Glassybaby
and poked our heads into independent apparel stores and chocolatiers.
The morning sunshine warmed our backs as we strolled through Bellevue
Park, a 20-acre green space where kids play frisbee, dog walkers chat about
their canines, and well-dressed executives take a breather from the office.
The park separates old Bellevue from its newer counterpart a couple of
blocks up the street. Here, Bellevue Square’s 250 stores are connected by
pedestrian corridors to the Westin and the Hyatt hotels, so visitors can
move between food, entertainment, shopping, and lodging without ever
having to brave a cold, rainy day.
Before heading back on the highway we drove to Mercer Slough, a 320-
acre environmental education centre minutes from downtown. Borrowing
binoculars and birding books from the visitor centre, we headed to the
waterside boardwalk, a peaceful place where herons fish in the wetlands
and locals rent canoes in the warmer months. It was a blissful end to
a gorgeous weekend of fun finds, spectacular views and new favourite
places. But the road was calling, so we bade a reluctant farewell to Lake
Washington’s Eastside and hit the freeway for home.
Maison DeLille Wine Lounge
delillecellars.com
@delillecellars
Hearth Kirkland
hearthkirkland.com
@hearthkirkland
Woodblock
woodblockredmond.com
@woodblock_redmond
Third Culture Coffee
thirdculturecoffee.com
@thirdculturecoffee
VISIT
Sur La Table
surlatable.com
@surlatable
Glassybaby
glassybaby.com
@glassybaby
Microsoft Visitor Center
Located at 92-15010 NE 36th Street in Redmond,
the visitor centre is closed weekends but open
varying hours from Monday through Friday.
microsoft.com/visitorcenter
Mercer Slough Nature Park
parks.bellevuewa.gov