Spotlight Briefs: January Arts News You Can Use

Local actress and producer Renata Friedman talks about her new one-woman show, "The K of D: An Urban

ARTIST: Renata Friedman, seattle actress, producerCURRENTLY STARRING IN: The K of D: An Urban Legend, a one-woman show in which she plays multiple characters, including young Charlotte, whose twin brother may or may not have imbued her with lethal powers by way of a kiss just before his own death. Friedman has produced and starred…

Brangien Davis

Parental Guidance: January 2010

Seattle mag contributor Kavita Varma-White gives us the scoop on the hottest kids' trends in the cit

Give it a twirlIt used to be that kid-friendly cafés were places where you could get a latte while the kids rooted through a lone box of toys in the corner. But the newest player, Queen Anne’s Twirl CafE (2111 Queen Anne Ave N; 206.283.4552; twirlcafe.com), is a game changer. The contemporary, nearly 2,000-square-foot space…

Kavita Varma-White

Ski Hut to Hut in the Methow Valley

The five rustic Rendezvous Huts outside Winthrop give Nordic skiers a taste of Europe in the gloriou

I don’t mind sleeping in a damp tent or camping on snow if it means getting to enjoy a night in the woods in the quiet of winter. But every year when the snow begins to fall, the Rendezvous Huts in the Methow Valley beckon, offering a wilderness experience with as many cozy comforts of…

Phuong Le

Must List: January

Sing happy birthday to Lake Quinalt Lodge, Lisa Dupar's perfect fried chicken recipe, science fictio

Sing Happy BirthdayLake Quinault Lodge Turns 85Lake Quinault Lodge in the Olympic National Forest turns 85 this year, and it has a present for you: $85-per-night rates from January 2 through March 12 on lakeside and main lodge rooms. For $85 more, you can repair to the Roosevelt dining room and enjoy a dinner for…

Seattle magazine staff

Q&A: Karin Snelson Tells Us What It Takes To Select the Best Children’s Book of the Year

This former Amazon.com book editor Snelson has been reading nonstop for the past year, narrowing hun

Occupation: Children’s lit specialist and Newbery Medal committee memberBook reviewing process: “It’s a physical system; I make piles.” Words to live by: “Falling in love with a book is like falling in love with a person; in the end, the faults don’t matter if they’re slight.” Favorite Newbery winners: Criss Cross (2006), From the Mixed-Up…

Anna Samuels

Hot Button: Why the Circumcision Question Cuts Deep for Local Parents

As state leaders reconsider health policy on circumcision, local parents are left wondering what’s t

J.H. Kellogg, cereal mogul, believed circumcision was a sure-fire cure for masturbation—particularly if the surgery was performed without chloroform so the boy could feel it. In the 1870s, his and similar views on male sexuality and hygiene set scalpels slicing across the United States, where the practice had previously been uncommon. Today, few countries circumcise…

Maria Dolan

New Marketing at Local Hospitals and How It’s Grabbing Your Attention

Seattle hospitals and clinics are touting new facilities and programs in an effort to keep themselve

In the midst of health care reform and institutional consolidation, local hospitals and clinics are touting new facilities and programs in an effort to keep themselves current and comprehensive in the eyes of consumers. Undaunted, ELIZABETH M. ECONOMOU sifts through all the messages and provides the perspective to keep your blood pressure in check. In…

Elizabeth Economou

Editor’s Note: January 2010

Seattle mag editorial director Rachel Hart on going from American to mulicultural in our Comfort Foo

When I sat down to write this month’s column, I was working at home during that early snowfall last November, gazing out the window at our neighbor’s snow-covered fence. It wasn’t even winter, but it was definitely already grilled-cheese-and-tomato-soup weather. The snow will no doubt ebb and flow this season—I’m hoping for flow since I’ve…

Rachel Hart

Day Trip: Kent

Take note, urbanites. There is civilization south of Ikea. Thanks to the draw of Kent Station mall,

Take note, urbanites. There is civilization south of Ikea. Thanks to the draw of Kent Station mall, the busy ShoWare Center and a newly remodeled library, old town Kent has amped up its charm. The four-block stretch running from First to Fourth avenues, between Meeker and Titus streets, is lined with antique shops, restaurants, quaint…

Kate Calamusa

Oysters Rockafeller

Dining critic Allison Austin Scheff discovers bivalve bliss at Shuckers.

Usually, I’m an oyster purist: raw, on the half shell, with nothing but seawater and its own liquor to slurp down. But at Shuckers, the clubby oyster bar tucked ac a corner of the Fairmont Olympic Hotel (downtown, 411 University St.; 206.621.1984; fairmont.com), the old-school mahogany furnishings, plush banquettes and brass accents work their magic,…

Allison Austin Scheff

Street Eats: Where Ya At Matt’s Mobile Tribute to the Big Easy

Allison Austin Scheff has the best gumbo she's ever tasted in Seattle at Where Ya At Matt’s food tru

The best gumbo I’ve tasted in Seattle comes from Where Ya At Matt’s food truck. Chef Matthew Lewis’ version ($8) features the holy trinity of celery, onions and bell peppers, and it pulses with heat from hunks of house-cured andouille sausage and Creole spice. A toasty brown roux gives it a creamy-smooth base. Lewis is…