White Center Now: The blog about White Center

That’s one of our personal favorite “Monty Python” TV clips. You got one? Or more? Mosey to Big Al Brewing noon-8 pm Sunday, where they’re promising to play as many classic “Monty Python and the Flying Circus” episodes as possible – and accepting donations for White Center for the Arts.

Dubsea’s Joerael Elliott shares the poster:

Greenbridge’s new Dubsea Coffee has announced its second art show, with a reception for artist Kelda Martensen coming up January 16th.

(Luminarias outside the Highland Park Improvement Club on New Year’s Eve)
Cafe Rozella is open noon-6:30 pm for New Year’s Day coffee; Dubsea Coffee is open 10 am-7 pm.

Two places we know for sure you’ll be able to get your latte on, this Thanksgiving morning — Cafe Rozella plans to be open 8 am-2:30 pm on Thursday (and they’ve got free live music the day after Thanksgiving – details on the CR site); brand-new Dubsea Coffee plans to be open 6 am-2 pm for the holiday.

We stopped by on Saturday morning and this java joint was jumpin’. Beautiful space, as you can see from our photo showing just part of its interior. Today’s the second day of Grand Opening weekend – Dubsea Coffee is on 8th SW in Greenbridge, about a block south of Roxbury. ADDED SUNDAY NIGHT: Someone sent this cell-phone photo of amazing latte art from Dubsea today – wow!

You’ve probably noticed the signs in the window in recent months – now it’s time to open the doors. It’s grand opening weekend this Saturday and Sunday for Dubsea Coffee in Greenbridge. We had the pleasure of meeting its proprietor Sibelle earlier this year; she plans for her coffee shop to be not just a place to get espresso, but also a place to enjoy local art — with a local artist serving as Dubsea’s curator — and a place for youth to gather in a safe space. Dubsea is just a few doors down from the Greenbridge Y/Library complex, at 9910 8th SW. According to the Dubsea website and invitations that have been sent out, the shop will be open 7 am to 7 pm as it swings open its doors on Saturday. ADDED THURSDAY NIGHT: Commenters wondered, and Dubsea responded – Stumptown is the coffee they’ll be using. See you there!

First we spotted the listing online here. Since it said “West Seattle” but its description left us stumped, we took it to the forums on our partner site West Seattle Blog, and asked whether anyone recognized the pool tables in the listing photo. Consensus – it’s The Wall, and now that we think about it, we’ve seen The Wall publicize live music shows as “West Seattle” rather than “White Center.”

The Seattle weekly has a photo series of an afternoon in White Center.

http://www.seattleweekly.com/slideshow/view/14941289

Hung Long

Of all the great Asian markets in White Center, Hung Long Sieu Th! is almost certainly my favorite.  It is distinguished by being directly across from the White Center State Liquor Store.  Some would see this as a convenience and others as a liability.  That aside, this is almost certainly the most well-stocked Vietnamese market.  This is a market in the truest sense of the word: stocking within its tightly knit quarters, all manner of fish and meat as well as a very nice selection of fruits and vegetables, some familiar, some not.  The aisles are packed with sauces, spices and all the accoutrements for fine Asian (or in my case, Mexican) meal.  Indeed, many of the patrons shopping at Hung Long are Latin American, although the overwhelming majority are Asian, attesting to the market’s authenticity.  Most times, I am the only non-Asian at the check-out line, as Vietnamese is thrown around as the lingua franca.

Fresh Fish

My advice for any gringos wishing to venture to Hung Long is to explore and if confused, just ask, the staff are very friendly and more than willing to assist.  Did I mention that the prices are incredibly modest.  You could pack a bag of fruit for under $10.00.  And the fruit would certainly be much nicer than the industrial brand you find at Safeway and other corporate stores.

Fresh meats and vegggies in a typically clean aisle

The seafood is invariably fresh.  No need to trek to Pike Place Market to pick up some fresh crab or halibut.  And you can get some nice black bean sauce to dress the dinner meal.

Fresh Crab

If you feel like noshing while shopping, Hung Long has a small Hong Kong style deli where you can pick up ribs, roast duck, hum bows or other tasty stews and barbeques.

Roast Duck

Fried Fish

My favorite quality of Hung Long is its authenticity.  When I step into Hung Long, I am immediately transported to the wonderful markets of Chinatown in New York City or Hong Kong.  This is the real deal, venture forth gastronomes and lovers of food.   An awesome market, Hung Long.

Asian Drinks

Hong Kong Style Deli

From King County Public Health:

Asian Bubble Tea located at 9835 16th Ave SW … was closed by a Public Health food inspector on Friday, April 24, 2009 at 11:30 am for operating without a valid food business permit.

Seattle Weekly‘s managing editor Mike Seely, who lives in West Seattle, is getting a lot of buzz right now for his new book about the area’s “dive bars.” We asked him about local establishments included in the book, and he listed White Center/Top Hat spots: Marv’s Broiler, the Locker Room, Magic Lanes, The Barrel, and the White Center Eagles Club. In West Seattle, the nods go to Poggie, Tug, Corner Pocket, Admiral Pub, Redline, Ebb Tide Room, Alki Tavern, Rocksport, as well as the Admiral Benbow Inn on the “Ghosts of Dive Bars” list. Seely will be discussing his book during upcoming on-air and in-person appearances, all listed here.

Ok, so I have been a bit deliquent on my lunch reviews as of late. To be honest, I have not been eatin lunch out much. I get a bahn mi from next door, or eat the pizza, that we are now serving.  This past Monday I got out of the shop though. I went down to Han’s in Burien. Yeah, not White Center, but it isn’t that far, and for you folks in West Seattle, really, Burien is not that far, and if you have never been to Han’s it is worth the trip.

Han’s is a deli, the way delis are supposed to be. The have a big case, full of cured meats, wursts, potato salads, and krauts. One wall is devoted to breads, the other to beer. Right in the middle is the dry goods. Spices and canned foods. Candies and chocolates. Even newspapers from the mother land. When you go here though, your focus should first be on that meat case. Most everything is made in house. I asked the woman how long they had been there, and she told me in a thick German accent, “We are new. Only about 35 years.” Yeah, 35 years, and you have never heard of this place.

I have now been in there a few times, and I have to say their sandwhiches, though small, are perfect. Try the Lachsschinken, a smoked ham that seems to be fat free, and full of wonderful smokeyness, or one of the many braunsweiger, or liver wurst. I am not a fan of liver, or pates of any kind but I am a sucker for braunsweiger. My Irish grandfather used to eat the stuff for lunch every day, and he would share chunks of it with his hounds. At Han’s, 4.50 gets you a sandwich with thick slices of braunsweiger, mayo, mustard, German pickles, and Havarti cheese. Try a few things in the case. Make sure you get a side of the German potato salad, and a little bit of the kraut. Skip the mustard/ American version of the potato salad. You can get that at Safeway. The ladies working here are friendly, patient and helpful. They might make fun of you, but only in the most loving way.

After you pick out your sandwich and cured meats, make a left and head over to the beer wall. If you are truly going to have a German lunch, you have to have a beer with that. I counted 43 different beers the last time I was there. Most are German, but there are a few from the newly opened Eastern Bloc. After you have picked out your beer, turn around and pick up a jar of pickles. The have quite a variety. Salt pickles, dills, German style, garlic. It will take me a year to work through the pickle aisle. Now head back to the register to pay and pick up your deli items. This is the time to pick out some chocolate. The have a huge variety of European chocolate, but even though I prefer a dark chocolate, I always end up getting the Kinder Egg. If you have never experienced one of these, think of a Cadbury egg, but instead of sugar goo, the are stuffed with a small choking hazard toy of some sort.

I keep forgetting my camera, but here is the address.:

Han’s German Sausage and Deli

17 SW 148th St # B, Burien, WA‎ –

(206) 244-4978

We always find the cooking works much better when we’re caffeinated: Ricardo says Cafe Rozella will be open in the morning. And Salvadorean Bakery has a sign up saying they’ll be open 8 am-5 pm.

Tall Latte at Half-Price – Rush Hour Special 6:00 a.m. to 7:30 a.m.\

Weary commuters, we know what a grind it is to get in your car and join the mad rush to that beloved job. So Cafe Rozella wants to make your commute a little easier. Pull up to Cafe Rozella, jump out of your car and get a tall latte for half the usual price! Just come in before 7:30 am and say, “I want my commuter special!” While supplies last.
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Keep up on current affairs and latest White Center developments at the WC blog: whitecenternow.com

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Freebie 2.0 download of the day. If you are like me, as you work at your computer, either on the web or while writing, you run into stuff that you want to save for later or merely want to have around for later use (like a software key, an address or a phone number). If you use gmail, you could email it to yourself but that has its limits. Well there is a tremendous freeware download called Evernote that allows you to record, save, copy and generally memorialize anything on your PC and best of all it syncs with all your computers so if you save something on your laptop while surfing at Cafe Rozella it will be in your Evernote clipboard in your home desktop. The download can be found at: Evernote download.

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News and Views:

Get to know potential President Sarah Palin

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Upcoming Events

It took me a while to actually stop into this place. I had been to the Be’s Diner in West Seattle years before, and I kind of knew what to expect, but running an ice cream shop has left little time in my day to go out and eat.

So this morning I gave it a try. The place is huge, bright and clean. I never went in when it was Doc’s or Entourage, but the new owner told me she had to do some remodeling and a lot of cleaning. The food is great. Nothing fancy, and who needs fancy from a diner. I had pancakes and eggs, a giant plate of food for $4. You can not beat that. The pancakes were perfect, and the eggs grease free.

They have a large menu, and are doing breakfast, lunch and dinner. This is just what White Center needed. They have been open a week today, so go check it out.

Be’s just opened on 16th in the old Entourage space. It is the same folks who have the Be’s on California. I will post some pics and a review soon.

So I went down and tried Al’s beers when everything was quiet. At the moment he has two offerings, an Irish Red, and an Abbey Wheat. Both are non-traditional styles, and it is nice to see something different from a Northwest brewer.

The Abbey Wheat; This is not a pale ale. I think it is awesome that someone is brewing something a little different. Personally, I love Abbey beers and I found this one very light and drinkable. By that I mean I could see drinking a lot of them on a hot day.

The Irish Red; I don’t know a lot about this style. It is very malty and seems more like a brown ale to me, but the only other Irish Red that I have had was a crappy Busch version of the style, and the only thing red about that was the label. Al’s beer is big but not over powering. That is a hard line to walk and he seems to have done it just fine.

The outside is pretty much the same as the old Pac Rim. Not that it’s a bad thing. I loved the Rim, and missed having a patio that I drink on. Inside, it is still a little sparse, but I am sure that will change. The lovely wine accent paper is gone. I wished I could have salvaged it before it went into the dumpster.

So all in all I give Big Al a big Thumbs up. He is having his first tap night at Beveridge Place in West Seattle tonight. Go down and ask him when he is going to make an IPA.

Beveridge Place Pub – Brewer’s Night

big al and the crew will be at Beveridge starting at 7 pm tonight, 8/14/2008. This is Big Al Brewing’s first event outside the brewery, and we couldn’t be more excited. We’ll have both of our beers on tap and there will be raffles for big al give aways.

Location : Beveridge Place Pub map
When : 7 pm until Big Al can’t take any more!

That’s Big Al himself, Alejandro Brown of Big Al Brewing, which opened this afternoon at 9832 14th SW in the former home of Pacific Rim Brewing. This is definitely a place for beer lovers, because that’s all Big Al is selling — beer; don’t wander in thinking you’ll find a burger too. Starting at 6 tonight, Grand Opening Night will be celebrated with live music and raffles. Welcome, Big Al!