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Spam Meets Sushi? This Bremerton Treat is Worth the Ferry Ride

This Hawaiian cafe makes phenomenal musubi.

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This article originally appeared in the July 2017 issue of Seattle magazine.

Before you dismiss the culinary appeal of Spam, try it Jamie Cancel’s way. The owner of Bremerton’s sweet, laid-back Hawaiian Cafe Kai is using her musubi—blocks of rice generally topped with Spam (and/or other ingredients)—to popularize the polarizing pork product. She says musubi, which she grew up making for birthdays and beach parties in her native Hawaii, is the best kind of portable snack. I don’t disagree.

My favorite is a brunch lover’s dream, the rice brushed with house-made teriyaki (created by Cancel’s husband, Brandon Sumailo), topped with salty Spam, strips of bacon and egg scrambled with soy sauce, all held together with a little seaweed belt ($3.50). This may not be the comfort food I grew up with, but it’s one I’ve adopted. Bremerton, 2518 Wheaton Way; 360.627.8755

 

Restaurant Roundup: Literary Libations and Tequila on the Docks

Restaurant Roundup: Literary Libations and Tequila on the Docks

Here’s what was served up recently in the Emerald City.

There are still three weeks until Thanksgiving, but the spread of offerings this year at Seattle-area hotels is already impressive. Whether you’re traveling in the city or simply don’t want to deal with dirty dishes, the cornucopia overfloweth. Enjoy a feast at the Four Seasons’ recently remodeled Goldfinch Tavern, or a three-course meal at The…

Best Coffee Shop: Drip Drip Coffeehouse

Best Coffee Shop: Drip Drip Coffeehouse

This women- owned and minority-operated coffee shop gained popularity for its Vietnamese-style coffee and matcha flights. The former is brewed with a phin—a Vietnamese coffee press in which hot water slowly drips through coffee grounds—yielding a bold, concentrated brew. Drip Drip’s phin-brewed coffee comes in sweet and savory flavors, including banana, salted egg yolk, coconut…

Best Brewery: Stoup Brewing

Best Brewery: Stoup Brewing

Like any good craft brewery, Stoup has a little chaos to it. Dogs tuck under tables, kids tear into snacks, food trucks hum in the background, and friends squeeze together at long tables. Husband-and-wife Brad Benson and Lara Zahaba opened the original Ballard brewery with their friend Robyn Schumacher in 2013, amid the neighborhood’s craft-brewery…

Best Bakery: Bakery Nouveau

Best Bakery: Bakery Nouveau

If one pastry can explain Bakery Nouveau’s appeal, it’s the twice-baked almond croissant, dipped in simple syrup, filled with almond cream, and sent through the oven twice. Co-owner William Leaman, who has more than 35 years of experience in professional baking, was named one of the country’s Top 10 Next Generation Chocolatiers and captained a…