7 Best Sandwiches in Pike Place Market

If you don't know this, Pike Place Market has more delicious restaurants per square foot than anywhere else in the city. We have eaten most of the food at the market and feel we have curated a beautiful list of the best sandwich fare offered.

Prepare to salivate.

DeLaurenti's Grinder

DeLaurenti's is one of our absolute favorite places to visit in the market. They have groceries, they have wine, they have cheese, and to our delight, they also have a BOMB Italian Grinder. This sandwich is piled with Italian meats, provolone, tomato, lettuce, and mayo. The bread sprays crumbs as you bite down into the crunchy, carby amazing-ness. Grab an Italian soda and a spot at their bar by the window and chow down while you people watch! 

Three Girl's Bakery's Meatloaf Sandwich

Three Girl's Bakery is an institution at Pike Place Market. They opened up shop in 1912 and were the first business licensed to women in the City of Seattle. And man, did these three know how to make a mean meatloaf sandwich. Even if you don't like meatloaf, you'll like this meatloaf by the time you're done chowing down. Ask for the rosemary bread and you'll die in sandwich heaven. 

Dot's Meatball Sandwich 

Dot's is new to the market, but not to Seattle. This butcher and deli shop has been earning its stripes for years and they seem to have perfected a lot of things in the meat department. Our favorite though? The meatball sandwich. When they handed it to us the first time we ordered rays of sunshine spilled out of the middle and the sound of angels singing could be heard. Then we bit into it and blacked out for a minute because this sandwich is so. Freaking. Good. 

Pike's Pit BBQ's Pulled Pork

Pike's Pit BBQ caught our attention about a year ago with a free sample. Food + free = we can be friends. After one tiny taste of the BBQ pork we went in for the real deal. If we are being honest we wouldn't have been able to resist even without a sample because the smell of cooking meat will draw you in from a mile away (unless you don't eat meat, and in that case this list probably isn't for you).

The ordering here is going to either embarrass you or thrill you because you get to say weird things. For example Kristina's order goes a little something like this: "Chopped Pork Sandwich with Medium BBQ sauce. Say Cheese (add cheese), Slaw It Please (add cole slaw) and Wickle It (add pickles)."

Honest Biscuit's Fried Chicken Sandwich

This little shop is a tiny bit hidden (although they are getting a new and exciting location in the MarketFront Expansion), but it's worth the hunt. Honest Biscuit makes all their biscuits fresh daily and don't get us wrong, they are delicious plain, but the real money is in the fried chicken sandwich. We recommend adding pimento cheese. (Our life motto: always add cheese). Pull up an orange chair and enjoy!

Beecher's Grilled Cheese

Oh, Beecher's. You are such an wonderful place. You cover everything on your menu in cheese, you always have free samples, and we get to watch you make cheese while we eat. Truly great. So, if you love cheese as much as we do we recommend stopping here and getting yourself the grilled cheese sandwich. We've tried a few others and the classic is simply the best. Cheese and carbs, who knew? (We did, we knew. That is a recipe for success 100% of the time.)

Lowell's Hot Dungeness Crab Melt

You can't have a list about food in Pike Place Market without some seafood thrown in. Lowell's wins in this category with their Hot Dungeness Crab Melt. They pile dungeness crab on rosemary bread and top it with a buncha mozzerella cheese. (Are you seeing a trend here with cheese? Don't make a sandwich without cheese. Ever.) The secret sauce is their Bacon-Tomato Jam though. This stuff is crack and anything on the menu with it is worth trying! Make sure to sit on the 2nd floor and get your food with beautiful views of Puget Sound. 

Meet the Maker: indi chocolate

We had the opportunity to sit down with some of the ladies of indi chocolate and learn all about what it takes to make chocolate in Seattle!

What is the story of indi chocolate and its Maker? 

Erin Andrews is the genius behind all the delectable chocolate that comes out of this Pike Place Market chocolate shop. When she opened indi chocolate four years ago she was one of the only women in the industry who was making her own chocolate from bean to bar. In those four years a lot has happened: expanded offerings, a Marketfront Expansion project, and a lot of growth within the community. 

Erin's experience in the chocolate business started with a business venture prior to indi chocolate with a bean - bar chocolate operation run out of Belize. She was visiting Belize with her family for vacation and her daughters had been curious about where chocolate came from so they included a tour of a local cacao farm. This ended up leading to Erin partnering with some local businessmen to start a new chocolate company. After a couple years doing this she decided to sell her share in the company and open up her own shop in Seattle. And so indi chocolate was born. 

In the beginning indi chocolate was not the robust store they are now. Erin started out selling her chocolate cocoa butter lotion at a small pop-up shop. This allowed her to raise money for the storefront in Pike Place Market and to buy the pricey machines you need in order to make chocolate.

Cocoa butter lotion

So why the name indi chocolate?

It pays tribute to two things. Erin’s oldest daughter is named India and because of her curiosity before that trip to Belize Erin has been making chocolate ever since. Secondly, it recognizes the nature of the business. It is an independently owned and operated small batch chocolate shop. 

Cacao beans

Roasting the bean in-store

What kind of an operation do you have here?

indi chocolate is direct trade and gluten, soy, and dairy free. Most of the chocolate has three simple ingredients to make sure the taste of the bean is front and center. indi chocolate is one of the only bean-to-bar operations in Seattle. 

All the beans are roasted in the shop, which is why it smells so heavenly. They roast about 10 pounds of beans per day and from there the beans are put into the chocolate maker. Once the beans are in the machine it takes about 3 days of refining to create the chocolate that you buy. 

They also create the lotions and lip balms you see in the shop with cocoa butter and partner with other small business owners for various other products. These partnerships have produced things like the Chocolate Chai Tea from Market Spice and cacao based spice rubs. Other products you can find out in the wild include Old Stove's cacao nib infused beer or Shug's ice cream topped with cacao nibs. 

Where do you get your beans? 

A big mission of indi chocolate is only sourcing beans from farms Erin and her team have visited to ensure good working conditions and high quality operations. At the moment they have beans from Ecuador, Peru, Guatemala, Ghana, Vietnam, and Panama. 

Chocolate spices

Chocolate soap

What are some staff favorites in the shop?

It's always hard to pick one thing you like above all others, but it seems the Mole spice rub and cacao nibs are the two favorites for their diversity in use.

Becca, the Marketing Director at indi chocolate is also the resident chef. She has a long list of recipes that frequently include both of these products. Every recipe will make your mouth water and there is a huge variety. Who knew you could add chocolate to so much?! 

Fun fact: Cacao nibs have one of the highest sources of antioxidants in any food on earth.

What is in the future for indi chocolate?

indi chocolate is set to open their new space in the Marketfront Expansion building by summer 2017. This will be a much larger space which will include a café and chocolate factory, along with their retail space. The chocolate factory is what everyone is buzzing about, which will have large glass windows and a completely transparent display of the chocolate-making process from beginning to end! 

They will also have a place in the new store to host classes on mixology, chocolate making, and tasting classes.

What are some of your favorite places in town to visit for chocolate?

Intrigue Chocolate in Pioneer Square is wonderful and the new Fran's shop in Georgetown is a beautiful experience, with a window where you can watch them creating the chocolates. 

Correction: We originally stated indi chocolate and Theo Chocolate were the only bean-to-bar chocolate shops in Seattle. There are in fact, two more: Fresco Chocolate, and Bellflower Chocolate Co.

Battle of Seattle Chili: Slim's Last Chance vs. Mike's Chili Parlor

Always the right time for chili

In a city where it is gloomy and rainy for 60% of the year certain businesses are going to thrive. People who have the good sense to sell rain jackets, waterproof mascara, and coffee are set for life. Certain things just go hand in hand with rain and cold. 

Which leads us to the point of today's post. 

Chili.

More specifically, where is the best chili in Seattle? Because what goes better with rainy, cold weather than hot, tasty chili? 

Now you can find chili on a lot of menus around town, but only two of those menus count for anything. Slim's Last Chance and Mike's Chili Parlor. Both of these spots have history and a killer chili recipe. Today they face off. 

Slim's Last Chance

Welcome to Slim's Last Chance

Slim's is a bar in South Seattle in the Georgetown neighborhood that is a little dive-y, but welcomes all shapes and sizes to come and enjoy the food, drinks, and atmosphere. They not only have some of the tastiest chili in the city, they have a stage for musicians and a killer patio for nice days. The staff is friendly and decor will entertain you while you wait for your food to arrive. Once it does, you'll only have eyes for one thing! 

Slim's awesome outdoor seating (with a stage!)

Slim's amazing chili loaded up with Mama Lil's!

They have 4 types of chili.

• Texas Red: traditional all meat chili made with choice beef
• Brisket n’ Bean: Pig Iron slow smoked brisket, ground choice beef, fire roasted tomatoes & red beans
• Chili Verde: New mexico green chilies, tomatillos, and slow simmered pork
• Turkey & White Bean: ground turkey, white beans, and serrano chilies simmered in a hearty broth

Slim's chili verde

We love the chili verde. It's got a strong kick to it and the pork adds a ton of flavor. Add "the works" (cheese, sour cream, chives and tomatoes) and get a side of cornbread for the full experience. Make the final decision of whether to get your chili on top of (wait for it) jalapeño mac 'n cheese or white cheddar grits. Obviously, the Texas Red is a good option if you want something more traditional..but if you are a chili traditionalist we think you'll want to stick around for our next review....

Slim's crazy outdoor mural

Mike's Chili Parlor

Mike's is an institution in Seattle. Just walk past it on the sidewalk in Ballard and you can see it has been around to see a lot of changes in the city. The old diner has literally been surrounded by development. The Ballard Blocks, a large commercial mall with an LA Fitness and Trader Joes, left them just enough room on the corner of 15th and NW Ballard Way to continue doing what they do best, make chili. 

Mike's has been serving up their famous chili recipe since 1922. The story as told by Tom Robbins for the Seattle Times is framed in the back of the bar. Four generations ago, Mike opened up his little shop in Ballard and has been going ever since. This spot feels truly authentic and hasn't become a tourist trap, even after being featured on a couple different TV shows like Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives. 

Now, when you go to Mike's you get one type of chili. It's the famous recipe that has been served for almost a century and they have been in business this long for a reason. That recipe is fire. It has the perfect amount of heat. The perfect ratio of beans to meat. The cheese and chopped white onion will take you back to a simpler time. 

Mike's traditional chili

Messy but delicious - Mike's chili dog

Now, they do give you some choices. You can get a bowl of chili, or cover a burger or hotdog with chili. You can also get the chili without beans, which is sort of weird, but also awesome for non-bean lovers or people on first dates. We also supposed you could go and not get the chili (they do have a full menu), but we don't know why you would. 

So, who wins the contest? Well if you want good options and like a little southern spin on your chili, go to Slim's. If you want tradition and the feel of home cooking, go with Mike's! Let us know which one you choose!

Mike's hold its own between the fancy new buildings

Yep.

Meet the Maker: Seattle Granola Company

Welcome to our first edition of Meet the Maker! We are excited to launch this series where we sit down with local creators to learn about their craft.

First up, Seattle Granola Company!

A little about the company.

Emily Dean used to gift her granola to tons of people prior to it becoming a business. Everyone she gave it to raved about the flavors and texture. Her brother-in-law, Chris Field, was the first to encourage her to take it to market. Being a chef, Chris was constantly surrounded by food and knew the good stuff when he tasted it. No surprise that almost three years later Seattle Granola Company is going strong and making plans for future expansions. 

What's the size of the operation? 

Every week they make almost 1,000 pounds of granola. Emily's kitchen is one of the most delicious-smelling places we have ever set foot in. Like Christmas year round. 

What are some secret or favorite granola uses/recipes people should know about? 

The obvious, yogurt or almond milk are great. People also use it for sweets, crumbling it over ice cream, or on top of donuts. Emily even used it as a topping on her Thanksgiving sweet potato casserole. You can add it to a salad for some crunch or to your popcorn for more flavors. Or just snack on it, which Chris points out is one of the reasons their granola is the best, you can eat it plain, and it's just as delicious. 

What about the ingredients? 

The granola is all vegan and gluten free. The oats are from a special farm in Colorado where they don't rotate the crops, which means the only thing that touches the soil are the oats, keeping them free from any traces of gluten. 

They also create their granola with a shelf life of 8 weeks, which is unique to their company. Most are much longer, but after extensive testing they realized that keeping it much longer decreases the crunch and sweet and salty flavor, and they only want their customers eating the best they can make. 

Where can you buy Seattle Granola Company granola? 

Lucky for us, they listed every location out on their website. They are in Central Markets and Town and Country markets around town, and you can also purchase it directly from their website. The first company to buy their granola? New Roots Organics, a Seattle delivery service. You can still find their granola in the bins of fresh produce and goodies being delivered around Seattle. 

When interviewing food people we always have to ask, what are you favorite spots in Seattle to eat?

Chris landed on 2C Thai, which apparently has the best green curry with avocado and Palace Kitchen for the best burger in Seattle.

Emily, being a vegetarian, is not chowing down on the burgers at Palace Kitchen, but she does love Seattle Deli's Tofu Bahn Mi and is a regular at Pho 99. She even knows the veggie pho's number on the menu (#14B). 

What is coming up next for SGC?

Currently SGC has two flavors of granola, regular and coffee, but Emily and Chris are about to launch their new No BS line of granola. It is made without the brown sugar, so if you want ultra-healthy granola this is the way to go. 

Us? We walked out of the interview with 6 bags of the WITH sugar granola goodness, but if you want no sugar, we won't think less of you.