My sweet mother-in-law arranged me to meet with a CEO to chat about my job hunt in the city. This brought me downtown to meet him for coffee. Because I arrived a bit too early, I stopped in Belle Epicurean for a leisurely breakfast. The bakery specializes in French pastries, and the adorably furnished shop proudly displays Chef Carolyn Ferguson's Le Grand Diplome from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris on the wall facing the display case of glorious viennoiseries.
Belle Epicurean
From all the pastries ranging from fruit-filled or -topped brioches to quiches and various breakfast sandwiches, I picked a simple-looking apricot croissant because I've never seen a croissant with this particular filling.
Apricot Croissant and Coffee
The apricot jam baked into the croissant had cooled and taken on a gel-like texture rather than remaining spreadable. It coated the inner wall of the croissant leaving a large hole in the center. I had hoped that the jam would seep into the tiny pastry air pockets and provide a bright burst of flavor with every bite. Nonetheless, the pastry is buttery and flakey just the way a proper croissant should be. Overall, the croissant is by-the-book delicious but didn't knock my socks off. Next time, I'll have to try the chocolate hazelnut croissant! I think there's a reason why croissants aux chocolats are so popular. Once chocolate melts and cools in baked goods, they tend to retain an appealing melted texture rather than harden back to a chip.
After a filled tummy and some mental pep talk, I headed off to meet the CEO. He turned out to be a really humble, genuine, and generous man! The meeting was not what I had expected it to be, and I think I ended up making a new friend with great knowledge of the area!
Afterwards, I took a self-guided tour of the Seattle Central Library. There's much to read about in regards to the cool though controversial architecture and the awesome library system. But I prefer to let my lens express my experience:
Seattle Central Library Tour
World Language Section in the Children's Area!
Fun Escalators
Angles, Angles, Angles!
Birdseye View of the 3rd Floor "Living Room" from the 10th Floor
A Quick Alternative to Escalators
Red 4th Floor - Meeting Room
Red 4th Floor - Meeting Room
I had a blast here and even sat down to do some reading. I definitely look forward to spending some quiet time at this library when I'm downtown.
For lunch, I met up with a former colleague whom I haven't seen in 2 years! I can't wait to spend more time as friends rather than as coworkers on a stressful project!
As we parted ways, I came upon a gingerbread village sign outside of the Sheraton. It turned out to be Star Wars themed and for a good cause - donations help support Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation! The Gingerbread Village will be on display through January 3, 2016.
Sheraton's "May the Holidays Be With You" Gingerbread Village
(Yup, I rolled my eyes typing that)
Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Episode II: Attack of the Clones
Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
Episode IV: A New Hope
Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
Empire VI: The Return of the Jedi
Hilarious Jabba the Hutt and Princess Leia
Realizing that it may take me a while to walk north towards South Lake Union to meet Mike for dinner, I strolled along Westlake Ave N in search of a café to read and wait. While at Wheelhouse Coffee, I got an update from our agent saying that the buyers for our house had signed all the paperwork and closed. This finally made things official for us. There's no turning back to Madison if things don't work out in Seattle!
We ended the day with a quiet dinner at Duke's Chowder House across from Mike's office, and I chatted away about an amazing day over a bowl of Pacific NW cioppino.
Wild Alaskan Salmon, Halibut, Cod, and Penn Cove Mussels
No comments:
Post a Comment