Kristel Y.'s Profile

I was visiting from out of town and found this place on accident when I was in the area at another store. The building looked very cute, quaint, so I decided to stop in to see what kind shops were in here.

There aren't that many shops and not ones that I personally would frequent, but it's such a cute place to have a cup of coffee and hang out with a friend at the tables located on the main floor of the shop. I checked out Trophy Cupcakes. The shops here fit a certain demographic (and it's not me and that's okay), but even if the stores aren't for you, the shopping center could be!

I always stop here when I'm in town, whether it's to grab a book for the plane ride home, grab some UW gear (they make great sleep shirts!), or just to kill some time. I feel like half the store has books (they even have children's books) and the other half has merchandise, cards, art supplies. I also think there's a cafe in there?

They have a pretty good selection of UW gear at the back of the store. I was able to get a UW tee on sale for $10.

The store is located in a cute little shopping center. Great place to walk around with the family on the weekend, especially when the weather is nice.

See you when I'm back in town!

My friends gush about Hawaiian Chicken and will seriously start salivating if they talk about it long enough.

I timed it early at the Korean Festival and was able to get a plate within a minute of standing in line, which made me relieved because I know their line can get pretty long. The people who took my order was really nice, very personable.

Even though I was SUPER full, I swear I spent a minute completely mesmerized by the rotating chickens. Almost bought a second plate to take home, but I ran out of cash! Next time!

The chicken is magical, moist and the perfect amount of flavor. The plates come with rice and salad (I think); reminds me of some of the best plate lunches I've had back in Hawaii when I lived there.

I can't tell you offhand where they'll be, but they do various Farmer's Markets  in the greater LA area regularly and you can find out when/where on twitter.

This is THE shop to go to for all your Disney merchandise. There are smaller shops scattered throughout the park and they are fun to visit, but the Main Street Emporium is by far the largest in the park. I also  recommend World of Disney in Downtown Disney, which is huge as well.

This store has everything. Souvenirs, hats, clothes, pins galore, stuffed animals, snacks, housewares, vinyl toys, etc. Some stuff you could find at a local Disney store, some stuff you could find at Disney's online store, and some stuff you can only get here. Kids and kids at heart alike will go nuts here. I live in the area and I still end up buying something just about every time I come here.

Although you might feel compelled to stop here FIRST before exploring the park, I actually recommend against it unless the item(s) you want are to be enjoyed in the park (e.g. hats, shirts, little toys to distract your little ones). If you're buying gifts or items you don't want to lug around, save the trip here until you're ready to leave. The shop closes an hour AFTER the rest of the park closes, so you don't have to worry about rushing there when you're done at the park.

Honestly, if it's between the 1 hour wait at this ride or the 20 minute wait at Buzz Lightyear, I'd rather go shoot aliens with Buzz. Twice.

Now before you flame me and say I hate Star Wars, I don't. I enjoyed the movies (not the new ones), but waiting over an hour for a ride that last a few minutes hardly seems worth it. Sure there are tons of different story combinations, but at an hour (or more) for each one...I could have shot thousands of cardboard aliens by then!

The ride itself feels like you're in a tour airplane in a galaxy far, far away. You're sitting with about 15-20 people other people, strapped in, for this journey. Smoother than the Simpsons Ride at Universal Studios, but if you get motion sickness, this might not be the ride for you.

May the force be with you (while you wait in line).

If you have a choice between a 2 hour wait at Star Tours or a 20 minute wait at Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters (both rides are practically across from each other), choose Buzz! Seriously.  Way more fun than standing in Star Tours' ridiculously long line.

This ride is a shooting game, somewhat similar to Toy Story Mania at California Adventure Park, but there are no 3-D glasses required for this game (which is a relief for glasses wearing people like myself). The concept of the ride is simple--you're helping out Buzz Lightyear on a special mission, shoot away!

You can control the cart to swivel front or back to shoot the targets. You rack up points and compete against your cart mate. There's a large open area where you fight the "boss", that's where they take your picture so don't make the same mistake as me and  have a dopey open-mouthed looking face during the picture.

Highly recommended!

I always make it a point to ride this ride because 1) it's fun, 2) the line is never too long, and 3) I psyche myself out with all the urban legends stuff so by the time I'm about to board the train I'm like huffing and puffing with fear lol It's actually quite fun.

I'm not going to post it here, but you can google it for yourself if you want to scare yourself. I'm really sure it's nothing, it's just kind of exciting to scare yourself sometimes.

Anyway, this ride is surprisingly very smooth (the opposite of the matterhorn). You can fit between 2-3 people in your cart, depending on how big you are and how close you want to smash up against your cart mates.

Honestly, I think the ride feels the fastest when you're sitting at the back of the train. There's a natural adrenaline rush watching the front of the train go over the bumps before you, but I also feel like the train whips harder through the drops than it does when you're sitting in the middle or the front.  

So if you have a choice, try and sit in the back for more fun!

When I passed by Hook Burger Bistro, I admit I scoffed at it, thinking it was another overpriced Burger Joint with mediocre burgers, soso fries, and subpar customer service. That was my mistake and I am sorry.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago, my co-workers and I decided to pick up lunch from this place. I told them I didn't want anything, but they convinced me to look at their menu and I was surprised to see most burgers ran from about $5-8, which is about equal to Carl's Jr.

I had their Bistro Burger and it was delicious. Definitely worth more than the $6 I shelled out for it! The meat was juicy and the bun was light and fluffy. We also ordered both regular and sweet potato french fries. I have to give the edge to the sweet potato fries here, the regular fries were just...okay. Nothing I'd ever crave.

Can't really talk about seating, since I only did take out, but they do have tables both inside and outside. The line to order can get pretty long, so if you're going to do take out, be sure to call it in!

Came here twice for work and had a great time each time. Once we came during lunch, it was practically empty and the other time we came on a Sunday night (which wasn't too bad). Because our party was so large (on both occasions), we had large tables and didn't have to worry about bumping butts with the people next to us. It also wasn't too loud to have a conversation, so I think this place would be good for large parties or even a night out with friends.

A million people will comment on the sushi, but let me say this. I didn't think I'd like the foie gras, but holy hell. It melted in my mouth. When the small filet was set down in front of me, I thought I'd have to order another to be filled up but with the appetizers and drinks, I was actually pretty stuffed. So yes, try all the amazing and exotic sushi....but if you even remotely like steak, do yourself a favor and get the kobe filet with the foie gras. You can thank me later.

There's valet parking. I think it's $7?

Every time I visit somewhere, I try to stop by a used bookstore if it's convenient enough. My parents took me to Half Price books while I was on vacation and while I didn't find anything to buy, I still had a great time perusing the aisles.

Everything is pretty well-organized, but I sadly didn't find 60% of the books I was looking for in the literature section. Guess it was an unlucky day for me!

The kids' section is pretty well-organized and big too, which doesn't happen often in used book stores. I think this would be a good place to buy books for your children, 'cause you know how fast kids go through books! I even saw some classics from my *cough* not-so-distant youth.

Definitely will stop through again when I'm in town. There's even tables outside of the store (and a coffee shop), so you can read your book and enjoy a cup of joe afterwards! Just like a real Seattle-ite? Is that what they're called?