Kate L.'s Profile

I called Fiesta to send flowers to my friend in Las Cruces. Unfortunately, I gave an old address, and the flowers were delivered to an apartment manager who took them without mentioning my friend hadn't lived there in years.

It was my mistake, but Fiesta went above and beyond, contacting my friend and arranging to deliver him some new flowers at no charge! Throughout all this, they were friendly and responsive. I just wish I had more friends in Las Cruces so I could patronize Fiesta more often.

The company I work for uses Lake Union Mail occasionally to ship things, and I've always found them friendly and accomodating. When they recently made a mistake, they quickly accepted responsibility and fixed it. Nothing can beat good customer service!

Community Fitness is a new exercise studio in the Ravenna neighborhood (open since November 2007). What makes it unique is that every class is $6, and it's all drop-in. No commitment whatsoever. As soon as I found out about it, I went to check out a class. It's in the daylight basement of a house that's being used for offices, and the space is nice, clean, and new (and ventilated).

When you sign up, you need to either pre-pay cash for 10 classes (which is refundable) or give them your bank account info so they can do an EFT every month (for what you use). The point of this is so that they can efficiently collect money from people without holding up class. You really only pay for the classes you take, which amazes me.

I enjoyed the class I tried, Core Conditioning, and thought the instructor was good. They have classes every day of the week (on everything from cardio to dance to yoga to double-dutch) and I'll probably try more before settling on which one I'll take regularly. Because I'm definitely going back!

Their dry cleaning is good, but what I really like is their alteration service.

I have a habit of getting cool old coats from thrift stores, and they often have holes in the pockets or the linings. I've taken several coats to Highlander for repair and they always do a good job.

Plus, it costs less than I would expect to pay!

I have been going to Kathy Martin to cut my hair for about 10 years now! I keep going to her religiously, regardless of how far away I live from her salon. My hair is curly, which takes special skill to cut right, and she always gets it perfect. The cuts are so good that they grow out gracefully, and I don't have to get it cut as often (maybe every couple of months).

She has done color work for me in the past, and I've always been pleased with the results.

Kathy is very knowledgeable about the latest in the hair cut and color industry. She goes to seminars and conferences to keep up on what's new.

I would recommend her to anyone without reservation!

If only Me 'n Moms were closer to my house! For a second-hand store, it is very nice and clean. It feels more like a regular retail store than a grubby thrift store, and has a big selection of clothes. I've been able to find a ton of nice infant outfits in bright, interesting colors here (rather than demure baby pastels).

Overall, I like Kym's Kiddy Corner because it has so much stuff. It's a great source of things in the largish category (such as exer-saucers, standing play tables, gates, cribs, car seats, etc) because you can save a significant amount of money on these things that tend to cost more new.

They squeeze a ton of merchandise into a tight space, so it can feel claustrophobic. However, if they have what you're looking for (and they often do), you'll get a good deal.

As with most thrift stores, you have to wade through the less-than-nice items for the good stuff. I've found that most of the stuff displayed outside is worth skipping.

They have a nice selection of new toys as well, things more in the "nice wooden European toy" category than the "Barbie" category.

Kym's also buys items, although I'm not to the point yet where I'm selling, so I can't comment on how much they pay.

I highly recommend Lucky Devil for both piercings and tattoos. They are clean and friendly, and have quite a large jewelry selection.

My favorite tattoo artist is Eric Eye - he's skilled, friendly, and open to new ideas.

This is my favorite sushi restaurant in the North End. Their sushi rice is just very well-flavored, and everything is fresh and tasty. Prices are reasonable (although not dirt cheap).

Try the plum wine.

It can get full and crowded at peak times.