Readers' Picks

Best Independent Music Store

Edging out Easy Street, Sonic Boom is this year's winner—perhaps because of the chain's new vinyl-only shop, located underneath the Fremont location. Plus: The store has played host to rising rock acts like Stephen Malkmus and the Shins, providing an unmatched intimate ambiance. 3414 Fremont Ave. N., 206-547-2666; 514 15th Ave. E., 206-568-2666; and 2209 Market St., 206-297-2666.

Best Rock Club

Seriously, do we even have to ask? Crocodile Cafe wins again. 2200 Second Ave., 206-441-5611.

Best Nonrock Club

Jazz Alley's high ceilings, dramatic curtains, and low-lit tables will make you nostalgic for that bygone era when Ella and Louis reigned supreme—even if you're too young to remember it. 2033 Sixth Ave., 206-441-9729.

Best Concert Venue

It's not a shocker that the Showbox has this one in the bag; around since 1939, this venue has weathered a lot of music trends—not to mention key punk bands like the Ramones and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. The Showbox consistently enriches the Seattle music scene with diverse acts, art deco decor, and young, energetic audiences. 1426 First Ave., 206-628-3151.

Best Place to Hear Free Music

The doo-wop guys are a popular favorite at Pike Place Market, but there's also that fellow who plays an old-fashioned upright piano, and various guitar-strumming buskers, some of whom are really quite talented. Plus: Where else can you hear five different tunes—hell, five different musical genres—in five minutes or less?

Best Classical Music Group

Maybe the Seattle Symphony is a shoo-in, but it's always nice to give the boys and girls at Benaroya their props. Their January rendition of Beethoven's Ninth was a masterpiece of exultation; with July's Lord of the Rings Trilogy, the orchestra proves itself willing and able to tackle new material with similar verve. 200 University St., 206-215-4700.

Best Theater Company

After staving off financial ruin (for the moment, anyway), ACT Theatre pulled together an impressive 2004 season, beginning with Alki, a Peer Gynt adaptation from local playwright Eric Overmyer. Cynics may call Enchanted April a calculated crowd-pleaser, but works by Tom Stoppard and Jane Martin— coming in August and September—can be relied upon to challenge audiences. 700 Union St., 206-292-7676.

Best Local Actor

A Detroit native now living in Seattle, Tom Skerritt played Sigourney Weaver's shipmate Dallas in Alien, a family man seduced by Drew Barrymore in Poison Ivy, and Sheriff Jimmy Brock on CBS's Picket Fences. He currently stars in TNT's antiterrorism drama The Grid opposite Dylan McDermott and Julianna Margulies. Skerritt narrowly beats out local stage stars Rebecca Davis and R. Hamilton Wright.

Best Movie Theater

Another Paul Allen fixer-upper, Cinerama boasts a screen that measures 2,176 square feet, providing a movie-going experience unlike any other in town. 2100 Fourth Ave., 206-441-3080.

Best Local Independent Video/DVD Store

Call it excessive, but when you need an avant-garde film for a research paper or a cult classic not found at Blockbuster, Scarecrow Video is often your only hope. Where else can you find films made in Burkina Faso, a sizable collection of documentaries about poets, countless swashbucklers, and a section organized by director? 5030 Roosevelt Way N.E., 206-524-8554.

Best Place to Get Adult Videos

Aurora Avenue is the place to seek "accompaniment" for the evening, but if you're looking for thrills of a legal nature, try Blue Video, where the most popular rentals these days include One Night in Paris (aka "the Paris Hilton sex tape") and Weapons of Ass Destruction. 4100 Aurora Ave. N., 206-632-9886.

Best Local Artist

Gail Grinnell's mixed-media collage paintings steal your hearts this year. The native Washingtonian uses a blend of cutouts, acrylic paint, and oil-stick crayons to create works that reflect universal human experience, including many issues facing women. www.gailgrinnell.com.

Best Art Gallery

Free art every First Thursday, a fascinating Van Gogh exhibit, and plenty of fresh, regional food at the cafe—no wonder you choose Seattle Art Museum as the best place to see art. 100 University St., 206-654-3100.

Best Local Novelist

For compelling tales of contemporary Native American life, Seattleite Sherman Alexie can't be beat. He's the author of two award-winning novels, numerous short-story and poetry collections, and two screenplays (Smoke Signals and The Business of Fancydancing). www.shermanalexie.com.

Best Independent Bookstore

The best local place to browse for books is Elliott Bay Book Co.; it's both intimate and insanely well stocked with everything from obscure foreign magazines to the latest best seller. Free author events, a friendly, knowledgeable staff, and Top Pot donuts in the cafe add to Elliott Bay's appeal. 101 S. Main St., 206-624-6600.

Best Used Bookstore