Comments on: Fresh Flours expanding to Ballard

By: mizDC

mizDC — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 21:34:43 +0000

I live up on Phinney and Fresh Flours is a regular stop for me (some would say too regular :) ). I'm so glad they're successful and are expanding!. Their pastries are a little bit out of the ordinary and their coffee is excellent .

There are plenty of bakeries in Ballard, but the population is still growing. I think people like having a high-quality coffee-and-pastry shop right outside their door for a quick breakfast or lunch – sometimes it's all about proximity. Fresh Flours should do fine.

By: Silver

Silver — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 19:47:16 +0000

Fresh Flours has some of the best quiche I have ever eaten.

And if you walk there, the calories are free!

(Work with me here…)

By: Silver

Silver — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 19:41:58 +0000

Can't cook my way out of a wet paper bag. My kitchen is my workshop. ;-) the drawers are for storing tools and project parts. ;-)

It will be a happy happy thing to have a pastry place that will be open on Mondays and Tuesdays when Honore is closed. Some mornings the promise of a delicious pastry is the only incentive that can get me out from under the electric blanket.

By: fancynancy

fancynancy — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 10:38:40 +0000

Yes now I will be in bakery heaven. My diet just grew birdy wings and now has flown the coop. Diet go bye bye.

By: Ballardite

Ballardite — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 08:39:46 +0000

This is so exciting. FF is one of my 3 favorite bakeries (the other two being Besalu and Honore). But since B and H are both closed Sundays and Mondays I have been a more frequent patron of FF and now I won't have to leave Ballard! Although parking might suck…

By: stopthebuzz

stopthebuzz — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 02:47:51 +0000

mmm beer

By: NoraBell

NoraBell — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 02:24:33 +0000

I'm home a lot more than I used to be too. When I worked in an office the kitchen was used only for feeding the cat and keeping the beer cold.

By: stopthebuzz

stopthebuzz — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 02:01:35 +0000

Ooh. i've been there on the no counter space front, but i'm sure we've got enough ideas here to help with a no cooking/no counter meal solution. I often find myself without time to cook due to weeknight commitments and long work days and i learned a few tricks (maybe I'll take this to the forums).

By: NoraBell

NoraBell — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 01:58:40 +0000

Ha! Good point. I'm a snacker by nature and only do one actual 'meal' a day so I don't seem to get any bigger. And the simpler the menu item the easier it is to understand the ingredients. And I've only had food poisoning once. ;-)

By: ducksinseattle

ducksinseattle — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 01:49:20 +0000

I find that it's hard to eat out frequently and still maintain good control over the quality of food I'm eating. At least when I prepare the food myself, I know exactly what the ingredients are. Still, eating out sometimes is nice, just not too often. I fear I'd have to buy bigger clothes.

By: NoraBell

NoraBell — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 01:26:37 +0000

I can't cook a meal to save my life, and I also have zero counter space in the kitchen. Mealtime at home is normally cold cereal and grapes.
That's what I mean about bar menus vs regular menus. I can (and sometimes do) eat off of the Bastille bar menu just fine (though have to be careful budgeting drinks). Sometimes, though, ya just want a little grilled cheese action.

By: stopthebuzz

stopthebuzz — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 01:06:51 +0000

If you ate at home a few more days you could afford those places, which aren't all that pricey. Bastille has a lot of good stuff on their Back Bar menu, which is quite reasonable. $5 happy hour Baguette sandwiches! $6 mussels or lamb burger! (that lamb burger is heavenly.)

By: NoraBell

NoraBell — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 00:32:31 +0000

Thanks! Found it on the Phinneywood site just now too. I would rather have a $5 sandwich than a $6 sandwich but I didn't get the sticker shock I was expecting. :-)

By: NoraBell

NoraBell — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 00:30:35 +0000

Well, for a quick lunch option I'm guessing there is room for it. And if they are open later than 3 Girls I can see myself in there at least twice a week, especially if they do sandwiches. Went to the website and saw the menu and prices. Not bad at all.
Fresh Flours folks, please bring the sandwiches and baguettes to Ballard. :-)

By: Alysse

Alysse — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 00:27:01 +0000

Nora, here's there Phinney menu: http://www.freshfloursseattle.com/cafemenu.html

I've eaten there twice now. I thought the price/quantity ratio was a little on the high side, but the food was good. Probably a dollar less would feel better.

By: prudy

prudy — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 00:15:07 +0000

Don't know about affordability but this is great news – great bakery!

There must be enough traffic during the day in Ballard to support this I'm guessing – I live in Ballard but work in Belltown so I'm not too familiar with the Monday through Friday daytime scene…if they are toying with serving sandwiches they must expect a decent-sized lunch crowd???

By: NoraBell

NoraBell — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 23:40:43 +0000

Yeah, we do seem to have more than our fair share of bakeries and restaurants just now. I eat out pretty much daily but my income doesn't support places like Bastille and Matador. Thankfully, there are still plenty of bars and pubs that serve food. You can still get a '$5 sammy' there. :-)

By: NoraBell

NoraBell — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 23:35:49 +0000

So, for those who have eaten at the Phinney version, what's the affordability vs taste factor? I've been getting lunch at 3 Girls most of the time (I rarely ever eat at home, btw) and the price/taste is pretty near perfect. I would love a second option if they're including sandwiches on the menu.

By: gurple

gurple — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 23:33:59 +0000

Great news! Especially if they're open until 9. If they stayed open until 10, or later, even better! But 9 gets them solidly into the “dessert” category, which is key.

By: ZephyrV2

ZephyrV2 — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 23:23:14 +0000

I think that the fact that Ballard is saturated with young professionals now is reflected in the number of prepared food establishments. I guess you could say that I fit that demographic. And while I have a great kitchen that I always intend to use more often, I end up grabbing prepared food more often than I probably should. I do this for two reasons – time constraints and wanting to get out of the house (work from home).

So hearing that there will be another place where I can hopefully grab something fast and healthy (if they do sandwiches) is good news to me!

By: SPG

SPG — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 23:16:24 +0000

This is awesome news!
I'm a big fan of their pastries but Phinney is just a bit out of the way for me.

By: ducksinseattle

ducksinseattle — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 23:07:35 +0000

I'm curious if anyone knows whether there's a certain level of business saturation that corresponds to the demographics of a neighborhood. How many residents of what age & income can support how many eating establishments?

I guess I'm simply overwhelmed by how many places there are to buy prepared food in Ballard, and I'm wondering how people can afford to buy their meals ready-made. I'd estimate I buy meals at a restaurant maybe once a week, usually a light lunch, and maybe a supper out once a month. I think I'm below the average, though.

I did a quick search online, and discovered this report (from 2000) that says “The typical American age 8 and older consumes an average of 4.2 commercially prepared meals per week” (http://www.restaurant.org/rusa/magArticle.cfm?A...)

I wonder if Ballard is reaching a saturation point soon?