Fremont - Seattle, WA

Annexed into Seattle in 1891, Fremont has wiggled its way into the hearts of the locals by becoming Seattle's most eclectic neighborhood. L. H. Griffith and E. Blewett founded the city and named it after Fremont, Nebraska, their hometown.

Before long, the district became a haven for artists, including fashionistas, painters, and sculptors. Fremont proudly proclaims its motto "De Libertas Quirkas, " or The Freedom to Be Peculiar, on its brochure and websites. The Summer Solstice Parade, which started in 1989 and has become Fremont's primary claim to fame, encapsulates Fremont's unique spirit and enthusiasm.

Fremont's restaurants offer food as art in its own right by blending many ethnic foods together to give locals and tourists a sensational taste experience on par with the quirky art in the area. For instance, Art of the Table made its way to the top of local favorites list with Greek-American cuisine served in seven courses, with each course being an artistic masterpiece. Coupled with its excellent wine pairings, the intimate two-and-a-half hour experience at Art of the Table does not disappoint. For special occasions try the mushroom and kale, eggplant brochette, and Mesa cake dishes to ensure a perfect dining experience.

For a less expensive option, Kylie's Chicago Pizza stands out above all other restaurants as a deep-dish pizza joint with crust like you've never had before. With extra butter for added flakiness, the crust complements all pizzas from the combo to the classic. Don't forget to order the roasted garlic bread, which sports whole cloves of garlic and sourdough crust.

Cafe Turko astonishes with its Turkish and Mediterranean combinations. Here, presentation takes up a large part of the dining experience as everything from the yam hummus to the Turkish coffee comes out on ornate platters in beautiful arrangements. The kebabs have always been a local favorite, and you can choose from a sultan kebab or a lamb kebab.

The bars and nightlife establishments dot North 36th Street. High Dive gives residents a taste of local music every weekend. For something a little more upscale, Nectar Lounge offers live music almost every night of the week along with great happy hour specials and a decadent selection of pizzas.

The State Route 99 along with Fremont Avenue and Aurora Avenue support the brunt of local traffic. On 99, you can zip down to the Aurora Bridge (also called the Washington Memorial Bridge) toward Queen Anne Hill, which carries you into Seattle proper.

By bus, the 5, 26, and 40 are popular options for heading downtown, and the 82 provides night service toward downtown if you plan on being one of the many Seattle night owls. The 5 also drops passengers off at the Woodland Park Zoo and Shoreline Community College.

As with the rest of Seattle, Fremont supports cycling year round. In total, bikers make nearly one million trips over the Fremont Bridge every year. Because the founders of Fremont created a vast network of sidewalks, getting from place to place on foot makes for a great, energy-efficient transportation alternative, especially because many of the shopping centers and restaurants line the main thoroughfares.

Fremont houses one large park, Gas Works Park, which is east of the north shore of Lake Union, as well as two smaller parks -- Fremont Peak Park and Fremont Canal Park -- south of 45th street and north of the Lake Washington Ship Canal, respectively. All three parks make excellent recreational hotspots for runners, bikers, dog walkers, and pedestrians alike. The popular Burke-Gilman Trail, a paved walking, jogging, and bicycling trail, runs through Fremont Canal Park. This is one of the most heavily-used Seattle trails, extending from Golden Gardens Park in Ballard and connecting to the Sammamish River Trail in Bothell.

The Gas Works Park project won landscape architect Richard Haag the American Society of Landscape Architects Presidents Award of Design Excellence and serves as a centerpiece for all of Fremont. Many of the Summer Solstice Pageants make their home in the park because of its unhindered view of Lake Union and the Seattle skyline.

The fun, popular Fremont District offers green hills, a landscaped waterfront, and a charm you can't find anywhere else. As a result, renting an apartment in Fremont can get expensive. It costs 3.5 percent more on average to live in Fremont compared to the rest of Seattle. Because Seattle itself is already a costly city to live in, Fremont's cost of living is 43.3 percent higher than the average of the United States.

The housing costs make up a large portion of the bill that Fremont residents face, since one-bedroom apartments start at $1,200 per month. Otherwise, the majority of the costs for items such as groceries, health care, and transportation match up with what a resident living in any other part of Washington would pay on average.

For all things that uniquely represent Fremont, the Fremont Vintage Mall wins out above all other local shopping. Featuring local book stores, used music stores, and vintage clothing stores, the Fremont Vintage Mall sports styles and fads from the 1940s all the way up to the early 1990s. The local jewelry and furniture available for purchase here are truly one-of-a-kind collectibles that appeal to locals and tourists alike.

For fresh produce and craft beers, check out the locally-owned Marketime Foods on Fremont Avenue. For your other staples visit either the PCC Natural Markets on 34th Street or grab a bus right outside the neighborhood to Safeway, Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, or Quality Food Centers.

The Fremont district also supports the wildly famous European-style Sunday Market, which runs year round both indoors and outdoors. The rotating food trucks as well as the specialty foods from local farmers make the market a primary destination for lunch in addition to shopping. Because it attracts such a wide variety of people, styles, and cultures, the locals refer to the market as an "ongoing experiment," though it actually began in 1990. There, you can find dog walkers and curious browsers scanning the booths with prime selections of artwork and clothing.