Now that the gray has returned and the visitors have left, we introduce a bi-Weekly Voracious feature in which we send an actual Seattleite to a tourist destination to investigate: Is this local shop for local people as well? Location: Ivar’s Seafood Bar at Pier 54, 1001 Alaskan Way, DOWNTOWN, 467-8063.What I Ate: 4-piece Pacific cod and chips ($6.99), 16 oz. bowl of creamy clam chowder ($4.49).Local Significance: Ivar’s is in the midst of celebrating its 70th anniversary — no small achievement in a town where 20-year-old restaurants are considered institutions. And like it or not, the restaurant’s signature chowder is synonymous with Seattle cuisine. It’s found on ferries, in stadiums and shopping malls, on supermarket shelves, and as far away as Mexico and Japan.Ratio of Locals to Tourists: Surprisingly even, considering. There’s something deeply weird about the Seattle waterfront, something I can’t quite put my finger on. While I ate my meal on a no-frills metal table on Pier 54’s lovely sliver of a deck, I tried to figure out why our waterfront is so different from San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf. We’ve got the same saltwater taffy emporiums and seafood shacks. It’s something missing from the attitude. The aquarium and Elliott’s notwithstanding, waterfront businesses here always feel like such an afterthought. But that could just be me, because there were as many lunching business types at Ivar’s as fanny-pack-wearing, salmon-ordering, cruise ship leave-taking tourists. The deck’s one of the rare democratic spaces along the waterfront, offering up sea breezes and maritime views without the pomp and circumstance that plagues its brethren.Only Locals Know That… It’s so not worth going inside to the cavernous Ivar’s Acres of Clams (also at Pier 54). You’ll pay a buck more for a bowl of chowder and a whopping $13.95 for four-piece cod and clams, plus you’ll have to sit inside. Worth It for Seattleites?: That all depends. Judging from the debates on Chowhound, Ivar’s is a love it/hate it proposition for most locals. I’m squarely in the former camp. Their thick, creamy clam chowder has always been my gold standard — to me, chowder’s one of those foods that’s not suited to fancy presentation. The fish and chips is not the best I’ve ever had, nor even the best in town, but it certainly holds its own. And eaten outside, dunked in the perfectly fine tartar sauce, in view of the seagulls and the cold, deep waters of the Sound, it’s pretty damn close to perfect.P.S. There were a few people at the tables who had brought their own lunches; they were just enjoying the view. I’m not saying I condone such behavior, but it can be done. Do what you will with that information.