Downtown Moscow (pt 2)

There's something really fun about the main area of downtown Moscow. It's an eclectic group of shops surrounded by pedestrian friendly walkways. Parking can be a pain but with patience often comes a parking space. Moscow does not have as nice of a transit system as Pullman but may be worth looking into. Moscow is also very bike friendly and encourages riding your bike to enjoy the downtown area. On the weekends, we often go to Moscow and walk down main street. It's free entertainment if you can resist shopping. But then, a little treat here and there is still an affordable outing.
The downtown "district" is pretty much Main Street from 3rd to 6th. The west side of that block is one long walkway where the east side is broken up by 5th street. (4th street is a small culdesac that ends in the fountain.)
At the far end (near 6th street) on the west side is Wheatberries Bakery.

Wheatberries is a Moscow favorite. Early in the day (they close at 3 in the afternoon), stop in for some of the best baked goods. They offer incredible sandwiches on homemade bread. They do offer espresso and other drinks but you are really there for the bread. In the summer, you can find them at the Farmer's Market with fresh cinnamon rolls and breadsticks. The prices are good but the food is better. They are so good I had them cater my wedding - and the prices were so affordable.
Going down the street just a little bit and you find a little "mall". On the left side is Moscow Pawn - a great place to find good deals on electronics and what not.

On the left side is Mikey's Gyros.

I discovered Mikey's when I was pregnant. I had a coupon for a free gyro and being pregnant made me hungry all the time so this strange food was appealing. I feel in love. A gyro is a warm thick pita (not to be confused with a pita pocket) that has been lightly grilled and wrapped around slices of lamb, lettuce, tomato (etc) and topped with a yogurt sauce. There are variations of the gyro at Mikeys from falafel (a spiced bean patty that is fried to perfection) to other things I can't remember (they don't have a website either). Don't want a wrap - get the pitas with hummus. The pitas are buttery and warm so any way you get them is great. They also have soups and other specials. The atmosphere is very "hippy" and perfect for eating greek food in the Pacific Northwest.
Don't stop there - continue to the back of the store and look for Tie Dye Everything. I didn't think to take a picture of the shop so there isn't one for the blog but the shop is wonderful. They tie dye each item in the back of the store (it's tiny so you can watch them process the clothes if you time it right). They have a strange assortment which makes it really fun or they will tie dye special orders (they buy it or you bring it in). This past Christmas we found tie dyed long underwear. My son wasn't that impressed but he insisted on a pair of tie dyed bamboo socks (he's had a pair of socks from them since he was quite small - it's like shoes, he outgrows them and we have to buy another pair). He loved them so much he put them on that evening and slept in them. It was really funny to find his feet had turned orange so be sure to wash the clothes before wearing them.
Back on Main Street are two fun shops that I can't remember which comes first after Mikey's - Bookpeople and Natural Abode.

Bookpeople is a local bookstore that specializes in being a small bookstore. There are not many around anymore and having one locally is awesome. They have special events and I need to get better about checking them out. They do have some used books but mostly they showcase local authors and local books. I found my copy of Daytripping Around the Palouse there (years ago) which led to me doing this blog so how's that for kismet. I actually bought the book when I worked for a local newspaper (now gone) and had hoped to write about things to do in the area. So stop in - your future may be sitting on those bookshelves.

Natural Abode is a not so guilty pleasure. As those of us in the Palouse move to be more green the Natural abode is there to help us along the way. On one half of the store they sell building supply sort of stuff (flooring, paint, etc) but the other half draws me in. They have children's items (great for drooling over baby stuff), clothing, kitchen items, etc. The store is rather small so the inventory is not vast but still so much fun.
Well that gives you some more ideas of what to do in Moscow. Take the time to tour the downtown. Take it slow and wander in and out of shops you wouldn't have given time to - who knows maybe you'll find your next favorite.