Extreme Makeover Edition

Seattle is a city constantly reinventing itself, from Duwamps to Jet City, from the Soviet of Seattle to the Silicon Forest, from Gold Rush Gateway to Grungeville. This year's Best of Seattle—our 19th annual edition—celebrates our tendency toward extreme makeover. Sprinkled throughout our compilation of what we and you love about the city, we've included a host of people, places, and phenomena that represent the constant of change—from the morphing monorail to the new libraries, from a reviving Georgetown (yes, again) to activist Carl Mack's recharged NAACP. Into the mix we add ingredients that amplify the quality in our quality of life: your picks from our Best of Seattle ballot, some favorites from local big shots (of Stan Boreson, we ask: Yust where the heck do you find the best Swedish pancakes in town?), plus the Seattle Weekly staff's personal "bests." The result is a guide to how to make the most of a city ever on the remake. —Knute Berger

READER BALLOT WINNERS: Complete list, plus winners of our drawing.

PEOPLE, POLITICS, & MEDIA • FOOD & DRINK • ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT • TURF: URBAN LIVING

CONTRIBUTORS: Rick Anderson, Tim Appelo, Andrew Bonazelli, Gavin Borchert, Laura Cassidy, Frank Catalano, Philip Dawdy, Roger Downey, Emily Garland, Mike Henderson, George Howland Jr., Sandra Kurtz, Heather Logue, Michaelangelo Matos, Brian Miller, Melissa Overbeck, Emily Page, Kim Peterson, Michelle Reindal, Neal Schindler, Nina Shapiro, David Stoesz, Samantha Storey, Chuck Taylor, Steve Wiecking. PHOTOGRAPHY: Rick Dahms, Pete Kuhns. COPY EDITORS: Andrea Reyer Cooney, Joanne Garrett. DESIGN: Karen Steichen, Jay Vidheecharoen, Nicholas Brawley, Aimee Ziemer Markham. EDITOR: Knute Berger

People, Politics, & Media

CELEBRITY PICKS AND MAKEOVERS

• RACHEL LOVE-FRASER: Best Real-Life Makeover
• CARL MACK: Best Agitator
• ANNE BREMNER: Best Defender of the Police
• KEN SCHRAM: Best Commentator
• MAGIC BUSES: Best Transportation Makeover
• VANCE, SIMS, NICKELS, GREGOIRE, RASMUSSEN, EYMAN: Best Political Makeovers
• STAN BORESON: Most Resistant to Makeovers

Food& Drink

CELEBRITY PICKS AND MAKEOVERS

• JACKRIS 'GEORGE' KITSONDHI: Best Inadvertent Dinner Theater
• LUIGI DENUNZIO: Best One-Man Dining District
• SPAZZO: Best Restaurant Makeover
• DAVID LEE: Best Grain-Meat Guru
• MIRABEAU ROOM: Best Bar Makeover
• GEORGETOWN: Best Neighborhood Makeover
• BEECHER'S HANDMADE CHEESE: Best Market Makeover
• FREMONT PCC: Best Grocery Store Makeover

Arts & Entertainment

CELEBRITY PICKS AND MAKEOVERS

• SMOOSH: Best Schoolhouse Rock
• PETER BAGGE: Best 'Superhero' Cartoonist
• JOHN MARSHALL AND CHRISTINE DEAVEL: Best Poetry Merchants
• SARAH RUDINOFF: Best Woman in Man's Clothing
• COLUMBIA CITY CINEMA: Best Moviegoing Makeover
• BRIAN FOSS: Best Migratory Booker

Turf: Urban Living

CELEBRITY PICKS AND MAKEOVERS

• JENNIFER DEVINE: Best Olympic Rower/Future Doctor
• HENRY ART GALLERY: Best Museum Makeover
• SEATTLE CITY HALL: Best Municipal Makeover
• PORTER MATHIS III: Best Bus Driver
• SEATTLE PUBLIC LIBRARY BRANCHES: Best Public Service Makeover
• PETER CLARK: Best Bicycle Messenger/Entrepreneur/Evangelist