Popping up from Capitol Hill, Ethan Stowell ready to hatch ‘pasture raised’ chicken sandwich chain

 

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(Image: Mt. Joy)

Ethan Stowell moved past being small long ago. His company now operates around 20 Seattle restaurants including Tavolata and Rione XIII outposts on Capitol Hill. Now, he’s ready to go super big, with plans being hatched with Seattle telemedicine tech dude Robbie Cape to create Mt. Joy, a 1,000 or so location “pasture raised” chicken sandwich chain that is also somehow environmentally friendly.

The long march to global super green chicken conquest will start on Capitol Hill — but only temporarily. Of course, with plans for thousands of Mt. Joys, odds are Stowell’s chicken sandwiches will eventually be back on the Hill.

But first, an October pop-up at E Pike’s Tavolata. Take it away, Seattle Met:

Mt. Joy chief marketing officer Pat Snavely says the company hopes to expand rapidly: The more sandwiches you sell, the more pastured chickens are out there improving our soil—and, by extension, our atmosphere. But tastiness is key. “If it’s not the best chicken sandwich people have ever had, they’re not going to care as much.”

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Nacho Borracho’s Broadway kitchen now busy with T’Juana Tacos at night, Loxsmith Bagels every day

(Image: T’Juana Tacos)

Sometimes you need to have roommates to make it work on Capitol Hill. At Nacho Borracho, one of the Broadway Mexican dive bar’s roomies has a new schedule that will please fans of its queen and Queens-approved bagels. Meanwhile, a new roommate is taking over the kitchen every night.

Food truck T’Juana Tacos has pulled onto Broadway and made a Día de los Muertos debut taking over the bar’s kitchen and chow counter.

Monica Rodriguez tells CHS the Nacho Borracho crew sought out the truck and made a pitch for taking over the lease to provide a special T’Juana bar menu of taquitos, tacos, tamales, and, of course, nachos.

“Our food comes from Northern Mexico and we are passionate on making traditional family recipes,” she said. Continue reading

Catch award-winning Ben’s Bread pop-ups at 12th Ave’s Southpaw

(Image: Ben’s Bread)

These days, pop-ups, takeout dinner kits, and ordering online are just some options restaurants, and consumers alike have had to navigate in the new pandemic-normal. For Ben’s Bread however, husband-and-wife duo Ben and Megan Campbell have been operating bread pop-ups for almost six years. Last year when brick-and-mortar establishments shuttered temporarily, to later transition to takeout, Ben’s Bread maintained their monthly pop-ups at Southpaw on 12th Ave. throughout the pandemic without missing a beat.

“When we first started . . . I remember having to explain to people, ‘Okay, you just order and you pay for it online, and you show up at this place and time where it’s ready for you. You don’t have to pay once you show up.’” Campbell said. “That was so much of our effort was convincing people that we were real people who weren’t trying to take their money, and they’d show up and there would be bread. Now . . . . People are used to looking online for where to get their food, planning it in advance, going out of their way and making a little extra effort to find something they think is going to be special. We were already set up to do that.” Continue reading

Nacho Borracho gets new roommate as Loxsmith Bagels planning daily run on Broadway

(Image: Loxsmith)

It might not be the first pairing you would think of but perennial Capitol Hill bagel pop-up Loxsmith is getting ready to settle into a long-term relationship on Broadway.

With one more pop-up planned at Broadway’s Nacho Borracho later this month on the 27th, Loxsmith bagel dude Matthew Segal tells CHS he’s ready to take things to a more committed level in March when he is planning for daily openings “into the unknown” future.

If things work out, you’ll be able to enjoy Loxsmith on a near-permanent basis on Broadway as it joins El Xolo’s tacos in the Nacho walk-up counter.

For now, Segal said he’s planning for a faster customer experience in the Nacho setup with a new point of sale system and plans to “bake double so we don’t run out by 12:30.”

But be advised — grab coffee before you join the line. Loxsmith doesn’t have coffee — yet.

Loxsmith will pop-up at 209 Broadway E’s Nacho Borracho again on February 27th before its new daily run starts in March. Keep track and learn more @loxsmithbagels.

 

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Capitol Hill bagel king Loxsmith take over Sundays at the Canterbury in June

Loxsmith is back for June at the Canterbury (Image: Loxsmith Bagels)

19th Ave E was a little too quiet for Capitol Hill bagel king Matthew Segal. So, for June, his royal highness of boiled lye… ness is bringing the bagel pop-up greatness of Loxsmith to 15th Ave E’s Canterbury Ale House. And he’s bringing friends.

Starting this Sunday, the pop-up will take over ye olde 15th Ave E drink spot with its menu of bagel sandwiches, bagel dogs, and the Loxsmith bloody mary bar. Segal is also bringing menu collaborations with locals Raised Dougnuts — the Donut BEC, El Xolo — the blue corn waygu bageldog, and a GariSaba Ume Shiso Uzu Kosho Furkike bagel inspired by By Tae to the weekly menus. Watch for Loxsmith’s special plant dye rainbow bagels for Pride, too. Continue reading

Glossier pop-up set to fill a rare empty space in Broadway’s Capitol Hill Station-boosted core


If a start on a new life for the old Broadway Grill didn’t grab you and the addition of an axe-tossing bar doesn’t convince, maybe the arrival of a project from the hugely hyped cosmetics start-up Glossier will sell you. Broadway retail is looking good these days.

CHS has learned that the make-up and lifestyle brand launched as a style blog and grown into a direct to consumer retail juggernaut by entrepreneur Emily Weiss is sizing up Capitol Hill for its Seattle pop-up, the latest in a string of limited time only Glossier experiences following efforts in stylish cities like Chicago, San Francisco, and London. Continue reading

BadWill kicks off Capitol Hill pop-up shopping season with ‘tailgate’ edition

Get your holiday shopping and your tailgating started early this Sunday. BadWill Market returns to the Rhino Room with a special Seahawks-themed edition of the grandmama of Capitol Hill’s all-star squad of pop-ups markets.

With a rash of retail pop-ups having appeared on the Hill, especially over the holiday season, BadWill is one of the oldest, weighing in at five years. It’s a one-stop shop for crafts, clothing, and miscellany from local vendors.

It’s also a chance to do a little day drinking.

“Five years ago there really wasn’t a market on Capitol Hill that took place inside a bar,” Osiris Navarro, owner of BadWill Market said. “Add drinking to any shopping event, and the results are awesome for the vendors. My friend Phil helped me start BadWill and we approached our good friend Marcus Lalario if we could use his bar The War Room to host a market.”

Though they only post up about once a month, due to limited space and event coordination with bars, Navarro said the scene has been extremely welcoming.

“The reception has been so good, to the point where it’s hard for me to keep up,” she said. “My inbox is full of interested vendors, and I feel bad because I don’t have a market every Sunday to accommodate all of them.” Continue reading

CHS Pics | Central District Holiday Party — Plus, a weekend of Hill area pop-up gift markets

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Scenes from Thursday’s Central District Holiday Party. More here (Images: CHS)

While the Grinch blew away Thursday night’s A Holiday in Volunteer Park event with strong winds (it won’t be rescheduled, either, organizers say), the frosting and sugar cookies were keeping celebrants warm at the annual Central District Holiday Party hosted by Central Cinema. The other key component (besides decorating cookies) of the holidays gets its turn over the weekend and beyond around Capitol Hill with another round of special pop-up markets. Happy shopping!

  • Friday through Sunday: Gay City LGBT Library Surplus Used Book Saleinfo — Gay City Health Project’s Michael C. Weidemann LGBT Library is pleased to announce our next Surplus Used Book sale, featuring surplus LGBT fiction and non-fiction books for sale. It’s a great way to build up your personal library, and the proceeds benefit ours!
  • Saturday — Punk Rock Flea Marketinfo — They said we were getting too big for our britches, and we proved them right! Seattle’s best damn flea market has moved into a BIGGER, BETTER and BALLSIER location. Now located in the Central District’s defunct post office, and with more vendors than ever, we are going to stuff your stocking like never before! The best Punk Rock Flea Market THAT EVER HAPPENED burns the beard off holiday shopping on December 13th, from noon to 10pm at the newly christened “Punk Rock Post Office” on the corner of 23rd Ave. & Union St.MAINFLIERHOLIDAYBIZARRE
  • Sunday — Badwill Market — Holiday Bizarreinfo — BadWill Market is back and we are teaming up with The Rhino Room and hosting “HOLIDAY BIZARRE” a festive pop up market featuring a variety of vendors.
  • Sunday — Ghost Gallery “Vintage Home”info — Stop by for some mulled wine & cookies and browse a wonderful Vintage pop-up featuring local vendors
  • Monday — Public Market Pop-Up Shop at Café Pettirossoinfo — Next Monday, December 15th, at Café Pettirosso we want to help you fight the Mondays and win Christmas at the very same time. Hard, but a totally doable goal! Amiright? Monday is undoubtedly the dullest day of the week; it’s back to the grind with the weekend only a glint in your not-nearly-rested-enough eye. Add holiday shopping and the grind just got stressful.
  • Saturday 12/20 — The Savvy Marketplace at Sole Repairinfo — The last, best shopping experience of the year! Come join us in connecting our local community and donating to the well-being of our furry friends. At The Savvy Marketplace, you can expect to find the highest quality, local vendors, live music, a huge raffle, full bar and much more! Admission is free, but donations are appreciated! All donations and raffle proceeds go to a local no-kill animal shelter.

Looking for more Capitol Hill gift ideas? Check out the Shop the Hill page.

Pixie Pop-up is a magical place sharing raw and baked treats from a 12th Ave doorway

(Images: Pixie Pop-up)

(Images: Pixie Pop-up)

About 10 years ago, Meghan Kroh had a wholesale baking business called Pixie making vegan treats. The business did well, but after about a year and a half, it got to be too much for her.

“I wasn’t prepared for the success,” Kroh said.

But she’s decided to dip her toe back into the baking game with Pixie Pop-up, selling treats and snacks Saturdays in front of People’s Kombucha at 1711 12th Ave.

This time around not all of the goods will be vegan, though vegans will certainly have lots of options, Kroh said. Instead she is focusing on using organic ingredients and cooking “raw.”

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Fairy Fuel truffles

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Fashion pop-up turns former Capitol Hill campaign HQ into ‘a shoppable installation’

(Images: Closed Circuit)

(Images: Closed Circuit)

Now that this guy has finally moved out, the corner of E Pike and Summit is being kept busy with a new retail pop-up:

Closed Circuit Shop: an uninterrupted path of flow, a concept shop at Love City Love

A sensory experience of artful shopping featuring designers Rachel Ravitch, Aleksandra Pollner, Et cetera, Oddinary, Ladies & Gentlemen, Faris, Mia Fioravanti, Kimberly Baker, April Pride, Lu, Gender by Ole Severson and curated products from Cairo, Prism & Nest.

This is Love City Love’s first concept shop in its new home across from Sun Liquor at Pike & Summit. We’ve created a shoppable installation of locally crafted objects & goods.

The installation stems from past and present observation of flow in the digital age and the direction it has propelled us in : towards craft, mindfulness, focus, collectivity, a longing for authenticity and new application of technology.

Things to look forward to: an indoor zen garden, a toast wall, Art by the Love City Love Crew, aromas by Blackbird, apparel, home wear & accessories.

Shop Hours are Saturday 11 to 7:30 and weekdays by Appointment. For appointments email [email protected]

You can learn more on the Lovecitylove Facebook page.

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