AndiPike Place Market is one of Seattle’s top tourist destinations and for good reason! This place is awesome! It’s first and foremost a farmer’s market known for it’s fish throwing, beautiful flowers and great prices on produce. It also has awesome food, a vibrant atmosphere and unique shops.
What to See:
- Gum Wall in Post Alley. This place is unreal. I’ve never seen so much gum in one place! It’s a work of art that is ever changing and is tourist created. It’s also completely gross!!! Don’t forget to bring gum, so you can contribute to the wall!
- All the amazing Seafood!! I’ve never seen lobster and shrimp that huge and that much of it! Come to think of it, I’ve never seen that much seafood period!
- Speaking of Seafood- You MUST watch the fish throwing at the Pike Place Fish Company! This is very much a tourist thing to do, but it’s kinda fascinating to watch. All day everyday, these fish mongers throw fish back and forth to each other. They can package the fish and send it home for you if you’re interested in purchasing it.
- Street Musicians and Street Performers. There will be a variety of people performing in the streets around the market for tips. It’s fun to watch all the different acts. I didn’t see any two of the same performers during the multiple times I’ve been there. And some have incredible talent!
- People Watch. This place is crowded! It brings in all kinds of fascinating people! Mostly tourists, but also some of Seattle’s crazier residents. You never know what you’ll see!
What to Do:
- Take Photos! Make sure to get the big Public Market sign! Plus all the fish, fresh fruit, flowers, food, the gum wall, etc.
- Smell all the flowers and buy a cheap bouquet of flowers from one of the vendors.
- Throw money in the HUGE bronze piggy bank named Rachel. She collects money for the Market social services.
- Take time to wander through the whole area. Experience the sights, sounds, smells and tastes all around! You can spend anywhere from a couple hours to a full day looking at all Pike Place Market has to offer. They have six levels in the main area. I recommend printing out a map to navigate through everything. Here’s a link to a map.
- Better yet, take a tour! Pike Place offers tours and there are several companies in Seattle that offer food tours of the market. I haven’t personally taken a tour, but I plan on it the next time I am here. Click here for the Pike Place Tours.
- Explore the Golden Age Collectibles store. They had Star Wars memorabilia, stand up cutouts, comic books, posters, copies of movie scripts and other movie collectibles. My daughter loved it! She had a hard time narrowing down what she would purchase.
- Take a picture of the oldest Starbucks! I’m not a coffee drinker, so if I was by myself a picture would have sufficed. My daughter had to have coffee though so we waited in line. FYI, the line is almost always out the door and pretty long. They do sell items that you can only get here.
- Book Stores- I’m a book lover so this is a no brainer for me. They have a couple different book stores each with their own atmosphere. One sells only used books, and it’s FILLED! They are stacked everywhere. Decently priced too, if you need to grab something for the plane trip home.
- Buy a unique souvenir. They have several booths in the market place that make and sell items you can’t get anywhere else. Like trinkets made from Mt. Saint Helens Volcanic ash!
What to Eat:
- Daily Dozen Doughnuts- Their cinnamon doughnuts are yummy!!
- Piroshky Piroshky- The smell coming from this place will make you want to indulge in one of these pastry treats! It’s a Russian bakery and offers savory and sweet selections. Be prepared for a long line here!
- Beechers- YUM! They have the best mac n’ cheese ever!! I’ve been told they have amazing grilled cheese as well, but I can’t pass up the other to try it. While you are waiting in line or eating, you can watch them make the cheese right in front of you! They also offer cheese curds.
- Pike Place Chowder- Most famous chowder in Seattle. They have a long line as well. Great reviews! I didn’t get to try it, since no one wanted to wait for me in the line. Next time!
- Honest Biscuit- great selection of sandwiches as well as biscuits and gravy. You can’t go wrong when they use Beechers cheese on some of their creations!!
- Ellenos Greek Yogurt- This place gets excellent reviews! I’ve heard nothing but good things. Unfortunately I over ate at the other locations and was not able to indulge here. Next time!
- Farmer’s Market- Some of the vendors offer free samples of their produce. They’re so good, you’ll want to buy it all!
General Info:
Pike Place Market is home to dozens of local farmers with produce stands, crafts market, bakeries, fish markets, butcher shops, 80 different restaurants and over 200 unique owner operated businesses. The only chain in the area is Starbucks!
Hours: Open every day except Thanksgiving and Christmas. Breakfast at 6:00 a.m. The general market opens at 9:00 a.m. All the other stores open at 10:00 a.m. Everything starts closing between 5:00-6:00 p.m.
This place is busy busy busy!!! Lots of tourists! Expect to wait in long lines for the good restaurants. Least crowded times to visit are weekday mornings, more specifically in the late fall, winter and early spring.
Address: 1st. Avenue and Pike Street
Parking: Public Market Parking Garage located at 1531 Western Ave. or Market Front Parking Garage at 1901 Western Ave. There’s also a Target parking garage fairly close at 1401 2nd Ave.
Depending on how much time you have, you can easily spend a few hours to a whole day checking it out. As you can tell, there’s so much to see, do and eat at Pike Place Market!!
