20-30JUN10 - Monroe, WA

23JUN we headed into Seattle for lunch at Salumi Salami (say that three times fast). Why drive all the way into Seattle on a weekday just for lunch? Because Salumi’s is a gastronomic destination for foodies from all over the world; & only open Tuesday to Friday, from 1100 to 1500. Turns out Salumi is owned by the father of Mario Batali (an Iron Chef on the Food TV Network). Mr Batali is a retired Boeing engineer, who decided to start a 2nd career in retirement. He went to Italy & studied traditional sausage making, came back to Seattle & opened a small shop (by small, we mean indoor seating for 12!).

http://www.salumicuredmeats.com/

So now the line for his sandwiches & salamis starts forming shortly after 1000, & grows longer thru the day. We found parking for the Toad & walked over to Salumi’s to read the menu posted on the window to see what the choices were. By doing that, we immediately had people forming up behind us to start the line! End result was we were unintentionally the first in line. Also, turns out that all the indoor seating was reserved for Chef Anthony Bourdain (from the Travel Channel) & friends. Bourdain is one of Corrie’s least favorite TV personalities, & this is the 2nd time she has run into him in our travels!
http://theryanrvexpress.blogspot.com/2008/06/31may-01jun08-amarillo-tx.html

Corrie ordered a Salumi salami sandwich, Dan ordered a Salumi sausage sandwich, & we got a pound of Salumi smoked paprika salami for home. We then headed to Waterfall Park for a great outdoor lunch in Seattle’s smallest park. The park was the original location of the American Messenger Service at 2nd & Main. The park was built & donated by the company in honor of Claude Ryan & Jim Casey who started the company over a century ago. As we left the park Dan noticed a large group of individuals sitting on chairs in an alley, watching a giant screen TV. Turns out this was a temporary set up for the World Cup called “World Cup Alley”, sponsored by the Alley Art Organization of Seattle.

http://www.alleyart.org/Alley_Art_Events.html

Trivia – what is American Messenger Service called today?

Since we had some time left on the meter, we walked about Occidental Park & the surrounding shops before heading out on a photo exploration of eccentric sites around Seattle. First stop was the “Hat & Boots”. Opened in 1954 as a Texaco station; after closing as a gas station, they have been moved to a playground & are being restored. The Hat was where the station attendant sat, & the Boots were the restrooms.
http://www.hatnboots.org/

Next was the “Spite House”. In the 1920s there was a nasty divorce. The judge awarded one of the spouses the house and the other the front yard. Perhaps he thought a sale would bring the two back together? Alas, twas not to be. The spouse with the yard took the property and built a house on it to spite the other. From the front the Spite House looks perfectly ordinary, if a little old- fashioned (stucco siding, tiled roof). It's the side dimensions that make it unique. The north end is only ten feet wide, the south only five feet wide.

We then took off in search of Seattle’s Toe (note spelling) Trucks. The toe trucks are owned by Lincoln Towing, which we did find. Corrie went in to talk to someone about where were the toe trucks? The left foot truck is in the State Museum of History & Industry; one of Dan’s favorite museums as a kid & somewhere he plans on re-visiting. Lincoln Towing still has the right foot truck & uses it for parades & other events. Unfortunately, it was in the shop for service.
26-30JUN Dan was in Pueblo, CO, for another consulting job. As usual he spent his free evenings in search of “roadfood” establishments in the local area. This time he discovered “sloppers” at Gray’s Coors Tavern. A slopper is one half of a toasted hamburger bun, topped with a cheeseburger, chopped onions, chopped tomatoes, & smothered in green or red chili, served in a bowl. It was ok, but what Dan found interesting was the history of the Tavern. Dan wondered how a Tavern could use the trademarked name of Coors in their name? Turns out the Coors Brewing Co at one time decided to open taverns selling only Coors’ products. This was a very common practice in Europe, where brewers owned their own pubs or gasthouses. There were only a few Coors establishments, & Gray’s is the last surviving one.

Trivia – what is a taxi dancer?