Nau speak: Seattle: Capitol Hill: Dino's Tomato Pie

Hello again, my dear blog and any readers who may have found their way here! I know, it's been an age and a half since I'd last written, and for that, I'm truly very sorry. It's been a wild ride here at 710 Headquarters, AKA my life, and I've been dashing all around with hardly any time left to plop my butt down and get to writing. On the upside, I certainly have ample new material to share with everyone! All this roaming in Seattle (and various areas nearby) has afforded me a rapid familiarity with the area, and some incredible sights along the way. Did you know there's a park here with a giant pair of cowboy boots? Apparently! It's especially surprising to spot from your peripheral as you wind your way through unfamiliar streets for the first time. This post, however, is about another location, one in Capitol Hill that we found ourselves standing in front of on a cold, hungry night. It's a little grungy, a little divey, with brilliant buzzing fluorescent red lights beaming through the night, guiding you like a moth to the warmth.

I tend to spend a fair amount of time in and around Capitol Hill, whether I'm taking in the farmer's market on Broadway, drooling over the restaurants (and often bookmarking ones like Top Pot Doughnuts, Momiji, The Wandering Goose, Dao Tai House, or Bakery Nouveau), there's generally a buzz of activity and lots to see and do. Naturally, parking can be a bit difficult, which is why we tend to favor finding a spot we can leave our vehicle and go about our adventures walking, biking, or using ride-share. On this particular outing, we'd gone all the way down to MoPOP to take in their limited run Marvel exhibition while it was still going on, and then walked our way back up and then along much of Denny Hill. It was during this uphill slog that we happened upon Dino's Tomato Pie, a dimly lit bar and restaurant slinging up round or square pies in a variety of different topping arrangements. Our tummies grumbling in hunger, and our glutes barking, we opted to take a brief load off and refuel. Our timing was fortuitous, as it was happy hour and we were able to grab a couple of cold brews and some garlic knots along with our slices at a reasonable price. Costs in Capitol Hill haven't exactly remained low over the years, so it's always nice to know there's a place to grab a good meal without breaking the bank. If you want to hop in a time machine, I highly recommend checking out their website, which is a shrine to a bygone era in internet aesthetics. So many blinking items and all the scrolling text! The gifs! It's a site to behold, friends.

You'll have to go up to the bar and flag the attention of one of the employees to place your order, but there's a handy sign to guide you in the darkness. The food was delicious, and we totally enjoyed the dive bar vibe. The crew seemed to have a good banter going, and their menu was pretty extensive, with a lot of different choices for everyone. We kept it simple with our happy hour brewskies, but they had a pretty impressive cocktail menu with some creative offerings if that's more your thing.