Stephanie "Space Tiger" P.'s Profile

A cute store! The friend who took us there described it as an "Etsy store," which is a pretty good description -- it's a large, spacious store crammed full of jewelry, soaps, handbags, art, belts & wallets, T-shirts, and gifty items. There's a lot to see, and a wide variety of items, including a fair amount of stuff for guys (lots of neat screen-printed tees and art).

Some of it is expensive, but lots of it is affordably priced, like the lotion and bath products and the upcycled jewelry. I liked the die-cut plastic cityscape necklaces with skylines of London, Paris, Sydney, etc. The back of the store has a sale table, and behind that is a small gallery with original art and reasonably priced prints.

I wish I'd had more time to look at all the stuff they have, and look forward to visiting again next time I'm in town!

We've been really excited to try this place since they extended their hours till 7:00 pm Tues-Fri. The menu is not extensive (four entree choices), but online ordering is very easy and you can choose 15-minute intervals to come and pick up your food.

Their food comes wrapped in brown butcher paper - the sauces come in little plastic containers for you to mix up yourself. Portions are adequate, not especially large, even when you add on the "extra meat and rice" option. The khao mun gai was flavorful and garlicky, not terribly spicy, but they do include a little container of spices so you can boost the heat level. The pad thai was a little hotter, maybe a 2 out of 5? The beef cheeks bao was tasty, but seemed tiny and overpriced for $3.30.

A good choice for takeout if you're headed somewhere with plates (apparently delivery is coming soon), but I'm not sure the butcher paper wrapper would be very practical for actually eating off of. I hope their menu rotates fairly regularly, since there are just a few choices at any given time.

We came here as a backup when our La Tarasca plan fell through. It was cheap, fast, and the food was OK, but not especially great. It's pretty bare bones inside as far as decor (a roll of paper towels on every table, no sauces set out) and wasn't  very well heated - although it looks like most people just come in for take-out, so maybe that's not an issue.

Prices are cheap; the only thing I saw that was over $10 was the fajitas. My boyfriend had the carnitas platter ($9), which had generous portions but tasted pretty bland. The iceberg lettuce salad was covered in jalapeno peppers and cilantro, and kind of blah. My a la carte tacos ($1.50 each) were much better - the abodaba, recommended by other reviewers, was good and the al pastor was excellent.

Other reviewers mentioned the lack of cleanliness. The bathroom was a bit dodgy but I didn't think it looked unsafe to eat there or anything. There are two big flat-screen TVs blaring nonstop, which can be distracting. Overall, a good place to grab a quick bite if you're on the road, or pick something up for takeout, but not a place you want to linger and soak up the ambience. I wouldn't go out of my way to eat here again.

We just discovered 2nd Generation Treasures last weekend while doing a little thrifting in Longview (which has a ton of thrift stores for being so small!). The storefront looks small but it's fairly big inside, especially if you're looking for housewares, cooking appliances, and furniture, which they seem to specialize in. They have adults' and children's clothing, furniture, small electronics, art, seasonal items, books, and lots of cookware. I picked up a small vintage 1960s cookbook for $0.50, a bargain! Looks like they may even have some antiques at times, though I didn't see any on my trip.

The prices seemed good, and judging by their Facebook page, they run frequent sales and discounts. Depending on what you're looking for, the selection can be kind of small, but they're located on a street that has at least three or four other thrift stores right nearby, so it's worth checking them all out if you're there.

They accept donations and will do pick-ups, so if you live in the area and are looking to do some spring cleaning, they can help you out!

I'll level with you... St. Vincent de Paul is not my favorite thrift store chain. The stores I've been to have been run-down and not very clean, with sad-looking merchandise and fairly high prices. Overall, they can be a bit depressing.

The SVDP in Monroe, though, is worth a visit just for the sheer size - and the Cosmic Cloud Cat mural! It's located in a large warehouse, set back from the road and up an inclined driveway, so it's a bit hard to see, but once you get inside, you'll marvel at the square footage.

The selection is much bigger than your typical SVDP, and they do flat-rate prices on clothing (all pants $3.99, etc.), although housewares are individually priced. This store had men's, women's and kids' clothes, accessories and shoes, furniture and housewares.

Clothing prices seemed reasonable, but the housewares were surprisingly high compared to Goodwill or Value Village; I only found one or two things I was mildly interested in, and nothing that I was willing to pay their prices for. But if you're thrifting through Monroe, or if you're a fan of giant cats floating in clouds, this SVDP is decent for a quick stop.

There's not a whole lot to see in Port Gamble's main drag, so I definitely wasn't expecting to find a world imports shop right across from the general store! Located on two floors of a cute historic building, Tango Zulu is packed with intriguing and affordable accessories, jewelry, soap, bags, baskets, and other handicrafts.

I loved the striped cotton scarves with metallic threads ($18), and the colorful ombre silk scarves from Thailand ($20). They have fun handbags made from recycled billboards and packaging and some really cool fiber art pieced together from banana leaves into scenes with rhinos, leopards, and zebras ($8)! There's a selection of handmade scented soaps (local, I believe), traditional baskets, glass bead jewelry, carved figurines, and clothing.

The staff are friendly and chatty, happy to help answer questions or look something up. There are tons of things to see on every shelf and table, so be prepared to spend some time here! You'll find many lovely gifts and home decor items for very reasonable prices. I'd say this is a must-visit if you're spending the day in Port Gamble.

A great tea shop in quaint downtown Snohomish! They seem to have between 200 and 300 types of teas, the majority of which are bulk teas by the ounce ($2 and up per ounce, most under $4). They also have imported teas and boxes of teabags, lots of infusers and tea paraphernalia, and fancy boxes of biscuits and sweets.

I was particularly excited to see several flavors of Harney & Sons, because I'd heard a lot about them but wanted to try it out before committing to an expensive tin. They also have many flavors of Metropolitan Tea Co. I tried some Lady Londonderry and couldn't resist a French caramel brulee that smelled amazing.

Although the tea seems competitively priced, some of the accessories seem marked up rather high (they charge $5.50 for a package of disposable fill-your-own teabags that I get at Daiso for $1.50). But I guess you're also paying for their expertise and helpfulness, and the owner was friendly and helpful, happy to talk about the different kinds of teas with me and the best way to prepare them.

With a wide range of teas to suit every taste, this is a fun place to stop whether you're a beginning tea drinker or a tea expert. They even have kid-friendly herbal/fruit tisanes for non-tea-drinkers! I'd combine it with a visit to one of the several cupcake shoppes just down the street for the full teatime experience.

We did the Yelp Deal omakase dinner and it was kind of a meh experience. The food was fine, not great, but the service was odd. Maybe they're getting burned out from dealing with all the Yelpons? (We came in on a weeknight at 7 pm, when there were only 2 other parties, and at least one other Yelp Deal group came in after us.)

I made reservations, but it doesn't seem like you really need to on a weeknight. Our server came over to ask for drink orders before we had even put our stuff down, so we asked for a minute to think it over - she brought us half-full glasses of water (which were never refilled) and never followed up with us on drinks. Sure, we had the coupon, but we probably still would have gotten something - we're not total cheapskates.

The description of the deal said that the chef would discuss your preferences and create a meal just for you, but from what I'm reading here, everybody gets the exact same thing. Nobody asked us if there was anything we couldn't/didn't eat. The meal was miso, edamame, a sushi/sashimi platter (half a Cali roll, a few nigiri, and some sashimi), some kind of fried mushroom and green onion dish, and a piece of teriyaki tuna with rice. The timing of the courses was rushed, so we often had 2 or 3 courses on the table at the same time, even though there were only a couple of parties in the restaurant - surely they could have paid attention to whether we were actually ready?

Literally the only thing our server said to us after the drinks thing was, "This is your last course," as she set down the tuna. She didn't suggest dessert either, so we never even saw the regular menu! It really felt like they wanted us out of there as quickly as possible and didn't even care if we had a good enough experience to come back. Maybe the omakase is normally a more satisfying experience if you're paying full price, but with so many other sushi options in town that really DO want your business, I don't see much reason to bother returning here.

Our large group stopped here for lunch after a rafting trip with Echo Canyon next door, and I wasn't expecting much - maybe basic bar food and kid meals. But 8 Mile Grill & Bar had some things going for it, even if you hadn't been up since 6 am with nothing to eat.

The tables are pretty much outdoor seating - most are out on a large covered patio, and there's a more covered bar area that still has one open wall facing out onto the patio. It stays shady and cool even during the glaring noon heat, and the ice water is quickly and plentifully refilled.

The menu ranges from about $8-15 for lunch, and includes some sandwiches and burgers as well as more substantial entrees. The buffalo brat was large and flavorful, but a bit overcooked (it's easy to overdo buffalo), although the cheesy fries were savory and good. The grilled trout was excellent - unfortunately, it was supposed to come with sticky rice and mango salsa, both of which the kitchen was out of that day. However, they substituted mashed potatoes and veggies and then comped my meal, which I thought was more than fair. The carrot cake was ridiculously huge, like Claim-Jumper-sized, and had an unusual and tasty frosting and fruit sauce.

Service was friendly but harried. Our server explained that it had been one of those days, and given the heavy amount of large groups from the rafting place, I can understand why. We weren't in a big hurry, so it was not a big deal, but if you're pressed for time and in search of a quick meal, this may not be the best place for that - especially if you have a big group. Overall, they were pretty good, and worth checking out if you're already in the area.

This place truly IS a gold mine for rock hounds and gem enthusiasts. It's right across the road from the Echo Canyon rafting company - you'll see the big, glittering sign from the highway.

Outside, you'll see a "train" of mining-style carts piled high with huge rocks of quartz, calcite, amethyst, obsidian, mica, and many more. The rest of the outdoor lot is just big piles of dozens more minerals. And it's so cheap - many are just $1 or $2 a pound! Tables set up in the courtyard have smaller and more fragile items, like selenite pillars, rock salt votives, and geodes and crystals ($1 and up). There's also a decorative display of impressively large and colorful rocks. I saw some gorgeous blue calcite and even some things I'd never seen before, like chevron amethyst.

Inside are more typical and gift-shoppey items: finished jewelry, polished stones and pendants, carved figurines, and the like. They also have some books and guides and souvenir junk. The staff is friendly and helpful and wrap up your items carefully for travel.

If you like gemstones and minerals, or even if you're just in the area and want to check out a unique store with lots of local flavor, the Gold Mine is totally worth a stop!