Food scene
Besalu has some of the best pastries in Seattle and good coffee, too! Check out the seasonal offerings. Since the pandemic they have pivoted successfully to ordering online for takeout, so place orders ahead!
153 locals recommend
Cafe Besalu
5909 24th Ave NWBesalu has some of the best pastries in Seattle and good coffee, too! Check out the seasonal offerings. Since the pandemic they have pivoted successfully to ordering online for takeout, so place orders ahead!
Ballard Beer Company
2050 NW Market StAnother cool coffee spot on Ballard Avenue.
This is the best bread-baker in town. Their pastries are also killer, too!
49 locals recommend
Sea Wolf Bakers
3617 Stone Way NThis is the best bread-baker in town. Their pastries are also killer, too!
Sightseeing
Hear me out: the Ballard Locks are pretty cool. This American Society of Civil Engineers historic landmark has a great little park and a window into the Locks's salmon ladder (actually cooler than it sounds, I promise). There are free tours that provide great history and context of Ballard, the Locks themselves, and their importance to Seattle and Western Washington.
774 locals recommend
Ballard (Hiram M. Chittenden) Locks
3015 NW 54th StHear me out: the Ballard Locks are pretty cool. This American Society of Civil Engineers historic landmark has a great little park and a window into the Locks's salmon ladder (actually cooler than it sounds, I promise). There are free tours that provide great history and context of Ballard, the Locks themselves, and their importance to Seattle and Western Washington.
An iconic part of Seattle, the picturesque Fremont Troll lives under the Aurora bridge.
583 locals recommend
Fremont Troll
Troll Avenue NorthAn iconic part of Seattle, the picturesque Fremont Troll lives under the Aurora bridge.
Ballard has a rich Scandinavian history, and the newly-constructed Nordic Museum is home to a wonderful slate of (now virtual) events to connect the neighborhood's past to the present.
127 locals recommend
National Nordic Museum
2655 NW Market StBallard has a rich Scandinavian history, and the newly-constructed Nordic Museum is home to a wonderful slate of (now virtual) events to connect the neighborhood's past to the present.