CREME DE LA CREME
(1313 S. Central, Kent, 241-0249)
Robin Laananen
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You only get married once or twice (those celebrating their third or more should just buy a box of Ding Dongs for dessert and focus their time and attention on some larger issues), so you deserve a perfect wedding cake. I couldn't find anyone who has actually had a cake from Creme de la Creme, but those of you who already knew what fondant is seem to approve. This Kent specialty shop is open by appointment only—a clear indication that they do not mess around. Here are some other good signs (according to a recently married person): They offer a wide range of flavors, a wider array of decoration styles, and they only do wedding cakes, thereby increasing the odds that your tower of sugary delight will be delivered and assembled with the utmost care. Hold the Ding-Dongs, please. P.F.
Second place: Remo Borracchini's Bakery (2307 Rainier S., 325-1550)
Best Place to Have Your Wedding
THE RUINS
(570 Roy, 285-7846)
Nobody likes a wedding: Not the people who have to go to them, not the people who have to be in them, not the people who years later have to look at pictures of all the people who went to them and were in them—and not, certainly, anyone who works in a banquet hall where people who throw weddings and people who are invited to weddings and people who are invited to be in weddings all come together on the Big Day and throw rice and develop cake headaches and get cajoled into doing the electric slide with their nieces. Think of those people who have to work in those places—in the down-and-out banquet halls, in the ferry boats that rent by the hour, in the classy private clubs like the Ruins—and think of how much ribbon and white frosting and color coordination their Saturdays consist of. These are God's people. These are our lambs. C.F.
Second Place: Skansonia Ferryboat (2505 N. Northlake Way, 545-9109)
Best Place to Buy Soap
THE SOAP BOX
(1916 Pike Place, 441-5680; 4340 University Way N.E., 634-2379; 4531 California S.W., 932-3747)
Sure, if you don't know what to get that co-worker/baby-sitter/mother-in-law on designated gift-giving holidays, lavender bath beads and one of those mesh shower foofers is the easy way out. But not all gift baskets are created equal; there is a vast chasm between the mall kiosks, with their soaps-on-a-rope and liquid suds smelling of fabric detergent and Skittles, and the subtly scented, gently milled masterpieces at specialty shops like the Soap Box. Now 27 years in the business, the Box's three Seattle locations offer up Pre de Provence bars, which smell like honey, hay, and sunshine in the South of France, as well as cult lines like Dr. Hauschka, Burt's Bees, and the Cadillac of hairbrushes, the Mason Pearson ($70, but worth it). If you really want to smell like Skittles, though, it can probably be arranged; they also custom blend scents on-site. L.G.
Second place: Bath & Body Works (various locations)
