If you've ever tagged along at one of the Seattle Astronomical Society's monthly stargazing get-togethers, then you know: Something about gazing at the heavens makes people uniquely generous with their time and expertise, and eager to share their discoveries with the untutored masses. The same welcome syndrome seems to prevail at the Tasco Distribution Center (7818 S 212th, Kent, 253-872-5320), an amazing outlet caged-off in a sprawling warehouse, offering telescopes, gun sights, binoculars, and all other things ocular. Ask after a manual for a Tasco telescope you picked up secondhand and you'll be lavished with photocopied instructions and diagrams, a parts catalog, even a general guide to stargazing and an article on the moon's next occultation of Regulus. You needn't be seeking anything to enjoy peering through the various vision aids, but you'll probably find something -say, a three-way pocket magnifier/microscope/monocular -you never knew you just couldn't live without. Fortunately, the prices are great.
Best drug store
Let's face it: Drug stores are just fabulous in and of themselves. Shelves that are stacked to their very edges with brightly colored packages, all of them promising better health, renewed beauty, and other ways of fulfilling our most intimate needs. Plus there's always a really good candy aisle. And the best drug store in town is, of course, Bartell Drug, trusted around here since 1890, as they tell us. The company is still family run, overseen by George Bartell III, the grandson of the company founder who opened his first store on Jackson Street. There are now more than 40 in the Seattle area. What makes Bartell's the best? It's a place run with care. You're never more than a few steps away from one of the red-vested employees, who keep the place in spotless, well-ordered condition. And the low turnover and high proportion of familiar faces would seem to suggest that Bartell isn't a bad employer, either. The pharmacists are always helpful. There are no stupid shopping cards, just good old-fashioned coupons. And who can resist the little island displays of mixed nuts, Jiffy Pop, or whatever other overstocked item they're trying to unload?
Best cheap menswear
The Bon March鼯B> (Third and Pine, 506-6000; Bellevue Square, 425-688-6000; Alderwood Mall, 425-771-2121; Southcenter, 656-6000; Northgate, 440-6000) is not technically an 'off-price' retailer. It's not part of some factory outlet mall, nor is it a big, disorganized discount warehouse. But you can still get some amazing deals here on some basic men's clothing. Expensive name brands like Calvin Klein, Perry Ellis, Jones Apparel, and Liz Claiborne often are marked down by 50 percent or more, and sometimes turn up ridiculously cheap in a bargain pile. Nicely colored Egyptian cotton T-shirts are less than $10. Basics like socks and underwear are often on sale (and they're not irregulars!). The only brands that never seem to get a serious discount are Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger. Lord knows how -or whether -this place makes any money maybe at the perfume counter? But that's not your concern. For a man who's not overly particular, the Bon is the indispensable, inexpensive place to outfit yourself.
Best anonymous retail establishment
You could call it a junk shop or an antique shop: Curio shop doesn't do it justice -not when, by pressing your nose against the big picture windows at The Treasury (610-612 W McGraw) on Queen Anne Hill (the place is sometimes open for business, but on no discernible schedule), you can savor such dainties as: a bright pastel birdhouse big enough to house a family of bald eagles; a framed pencil drawing of Herbert Hoover, 31st president of the United States; a life-sized papier-m䣨頳uit of armor; and a twice-life-size woodcarving of the Big Bad Wolf.
Best little beer shop
Originally called the Drunken Monk but renamed the Stumbling Monk (16355 E Olive, 860-0916) under the wagging finger of the liquor control board, this diminutive new beer shop just down from Broadway gets kudos for its staggering selection of between 400 and 500 different brews. Exotic bottles from around the world line the shop's cramped shelves and coolers -beers, ciders, meads, French country ale, organic Belgian brew, beers from Russia and Slovakia. Local favorites get their propers, too, including a few you probably haven't heard of, like Moon Ale (brewed in a Seattle basement, the state's smallest brewery) and Walla Walla's Penitentiary Porter. Owners Rob Linehan and Keith Johnson (who both used to work for local beer wholesalers) are making some of these beers available on our coast for the first time ever, with many making their Seattle debut -nonnatives shouldn't be surprised if they stumble across an old favorite from back home. Of course, you can mix and match a six-pack here, and at QFC-comparable prices. Stop in on a Saturday between 2 and 7 for a tasting.
Check out the rest of the critics' picks: beats, spots, wonks, geeks, bites, and acts. Or, go to the 1999 Best of Seattle main page.
