What's new (or upcoming)

New coffeehouse enters the scene (but in Madison Valley)

Those missing the old neighborhood Tully's and wishing to find a replacement might do well to check out the Harbour Pointe Coffeehouse, which opened its doors a couple weeks ago in a location (2818 E. Madison St.) where several other coffee shops had earlier failed. Proprietor Zander Natallanni describes his venture as a "European-style coffeehouse that has enough food to fall between the restaurant/bistro category, yet specializes in coffee and select loose-leaf teas."

Zander with employee and patron

The menu includes house-made pizza and eight varieties of grilled cheese sandwiches (including build your own), as well as soups and salads. There's also breakfast, pastries, and a gluten-free menu.

Natallanni tells us that he's planning to have an open-mic night every Wednesday, offer board games for patrons on Thursdays, and---"for a small fee"---provide baby-sitting services (up to 2 1/2 hours) for parents wanting a date night at another area restaurant "preselected by us."  Upcoming: a delivery service to homes and businesses in the general area.

This is Harbor Pointe's second location (the original is at Harbor Pointe in Mukilteo). The mission statement for both is to serve quality food and drinks while providing "an atmosphere at fosters community development," according to Natallanni. "We are community driven and therefore our business model isn't based on how much money we make but how much we plug into the community and give back or bring to it."

Clearly, though, making some money wouldn't be a bad thing for Madison Valley's Harbor Point Coffeehouse, given the history of this particular space.

Planning a party?  Brooke can help!

Madison Park's Brooke Westlund, who has been enjoying a good measure of success as a local artist, is adding another talent to her resume: professional host. She and friend Tanja Nyeholt recently started a business--swah:rey--designed to remove the burdens on a party's actual host by taking on the "little things," tasks such as greeting guests at the door, taking peoples' coats, getting the drinks, serving food, and cleaning up afterwards.

swah:rey is willing to do much more than that, however, including planning the whole event. If the need is deciding the menu, organizing the catering, renting party accessories, setting up a bar, or developing custom cocktails, Brooke and Tanja are ready to fill the breach. "Pretty simple," says Brooke, "it's basically custom high-end service."

Events

The Japanese Garden in the Washington Park Arboretum opened today with a Shinto Blessing and a First Viewing.  Next Sunday, March 10, visitors to the Japanese Garden will have the opportunity to see Autumn Impressions, a juried show of 13 photographers' views of the Garden as captured in the October 2012 Photography Workshop.  The event begins at 1 pm and the photographers represented will be present (admission is free).

Inner Renewal and the Healthy Path, located in Arboretum Court, will be presenting a concert of vibrational healing with traditional Nepalese singing bowls at 7 pm on March 10.

Cafe Parco has an upcoming Washington Wine event on March 22, featuring Guy Harris of Cru Selections (Woodinville).  By the way, the restaurant recently got some favorable coverage for its brunch menu from a Seattle food blogger.

[Japanese Garden photo by matunos on Flickr.]