Old Main, Chocolates, and French Pastries

Hello:

I am going to continue my posts about things to do, see, and eat in Bellevue, WA while you are at Vogue Knitting Live.



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If you don't mind a bit of a walk, it is just a bit less than a mile from the Meydenbauer Convention Center to Old Main Street.  This is not a big district, but just one short block of nice restaurants with outside dining (a bit of a rarity here), and some fun shops.

First, a bit about one thing that makes Bellevue such a great city.  Our population has more that 1/3 of the residents born outside the USA.  Bellevue is a really diverse city.  This is reflected in the faces of the people you will see, but also in the types of restaurants.  YUM! 

Old Main Street is a fun stop that is not so "mall oriented."  The above map gives you a route that passes Quiltworks Northwest  where you can check out their huge selection of beads and buttons.  They have generously offered a Coupon with a 15% Discount for people attending Vogue Knitting.

Old Main is just a one - two block section of a much longer street.  There are two restaurants there that I can personally vouch for. Neither are cheap, but if you are looking for a treat, both of these are nice.  Bis on Main  serves American cuisine.  I was going to write "food," but just "American Food" doesn't do this restaurant justice.

This is the restaurant where my neighborhood friends often go for birthday lunches with the girls. 


Monsoon serves Vietnamese food.  It is wonderful.

If you are looking for vegetarian selections, this is a good place.


There are many very yummy restaurants between these 2 and the Hyatt/Meydenbauer.  I can't mention them all, but I did want to give a few where I have personally eaten.  The restaurants at Bell Square and Lincoln Square are perfectly fine, it is just that most are chains (though not all). 

Once you have eaten, and are looking for some dessert, or are just looking for something very Pacific Northwest to either eat or buy for a gift, where do you go?

On Old Main, there are 2 chocolate shops.  I have bought chocolates from one of them.  I usually send my sisters and sisters-in-law a small box of salted caramels from Fran's Chocolates every year for Christmas.

The chocolate from this shop is to die for.  There are only 3 stores, and Bellevue is so lucky to have one of them.  When I was there the other day, taking photos for this post

people kept coming in to buy boxes of chocolates, or Easter chocolates for gifts, but,

in addition to the gifts they were buying, they all left with one piece to eat for themselves.  No one left with an empty mouth.  It was really funny.

Another really yummy stop is Belle Pastry.

Whether you want cookies or croissants,

cakes or tartes,

you want to take your treats with you or eat in,

this is a wonderful stop.

I want to mention 2 more places on Old Main.  The first is Glassybaby.

The Pacific Northwest is know for it's glass arts.  This little shop (there are 3:  Seattle, New York, and Bellevue), and the small votive candle holders they sell are the brain child of Lee Rhodes.  Read her story, and the story of the shops and her product.

The shop is a delight for the eyes, and the heart.

In the little courtyard BEHIND Glassybaby is Cafe Pirouette.

I haven't eaten there, but, this little bistro and creperie was recommended to me by 2 different people.

 It looked like a delightful place to eat.

That's all for today's post.  Tomorrow morning I hope to put up one more that will give some great places to walk in Bellevue. 

I barely got to work on my new socks, Braveheart Socks, today as I was working on my taxes.  Ugh!  I hate how complicated it all is even though I am using TurboTax, and am just filling in the numbers.

Time to take a break from all of that, and do a bit of sewing, then get back to Braveheart.

Peace
f1bercat
shaping the world with almost finished taxes.