My Home Away From Home

Hi Friends!

Welcome to this every-category extravaganza of a blog: #travel, #food, #chess, #music, #gaming, #sports, and #yoga! The Town Center at Lake Forest Park is truly my home away from home and my favorite place outside of my house. From I-5 N, take exit 177 and stay right to get to Lake Forest Park, the best city out there! You'll take a right eventually into the upper lot you see in the picture below. Coming from I-5 S, take exit 177 again and stay left to get onto Ballinger Way and then right into here.

From I-405 N, take exit 23, stay left toward Bothell, and turn left toward SR-522 W then turn right into the lower lot of the Town Center. You'll likely see a bus stop, a Safeway up ahead, and a Chase Bank and City Hall on the right. From I-405 S, take exit 23B to get on SR-522 W then enter the same lower lot.

The Third Place Commons area on the top floor might be the most magical place on Earth. You just don't find places in today's hustle and bustle to relax, meet people, hear live music, eat great food, play chess on the giant set, and just have a lovely time. I've honestly met so many friends at this place and everytime I go, I see unexpected friendly faces from my past. My favorite restaurant is Gyro Boss where the falafels and cauliflower can't be beat! Honey Bear Bakery makes awesome sandwiches, soups, salads, and warm bevs. Dumpling Generation also hits the spot with their dumplings, noodles, and bubble tea! I've heard so many awesome concerts here and the place is full of dancing, vibing, and joy, including sax ensembles, swing bands, cloggers, drum corps, guitar ensembles, and more! I've also had many fun board game nights and chess tournaments here so no matter what you're into, this is the perfect spot. I've seen knitting clubs, bridge clubs, mahjong clubs, book clubs, scrabble clubs, puzzlers, and more. It's just amazing. Oh there's also a fun claw machine that's not a scam! Both times we played we won!

Perhaps the best part of the Town Center is Third Place Books. This incredible bookstore has new and used books of all varieties, and fantastic author events at The Den! Believe it or not, I've done multiple author events here, for my first book Do Brown Cows Make Chocolate Milk: Family Experiences Around Child-Led Learning with my brother Vivaan, Mom, and Dad, and second book Q&A Chess: Tournament Edition, with my brother and buddy Benji. Speaking about your own work and signing books and sharing stories with neighbors and friends is amazing! Very likely we will do a book event for my third book as well, likely in 2027!

Hey look, there's my signed second book in the children's section! If you want to get into tournament chess, this is the book for you! Before we head downstairs, outdoors on the top floor there's Stretch Lab, for yoga, wellness, physical therapy vibes, Seattle Built PCs for gamers, as well as Everest Kitchen with some awesome Nepali, Tibetan and Indian fusion vibes, Ace Hardware, and Ross Dress For Less, and many more spots to check out. Going downstairs, escalator, elevator, or stairs as you wish, there's tons more to explore!

From the escalator you can see my favorite card shop, Diamond in the Mall, which has a great selection of affordable Pokémon and sports cards and memorabilia. We know Ron and Dan very well so if you go definitely say hi to them and support their awesome business! There's Chocolate Man with amazing chocolate creations and classes, a must go for those with a sweet tooth, and KCLS Library for all you readers. Needles & Hooks is there for all you knitters and Planet Fitness for all you active folks, and more great shops! Speaking of active, note that the Burke Gilman trail is right across the street and you can bike or walk there with spectacular views of Lake Washington.

Heading outside, downstairs, we have plenty more great shops, including Safeway for groceries, Indian family owned Always Summer for amazing ice cream creations, Amped Adventure for bike enthusiasts, Juiceman for smoothies, Wild Birds Unlimited for you birders, and Mud Bay for all of you with furry friends. There's also good chain food like Starbucks, Mod Pizza, and Papa Murphy's, to name a few.

There are so many awesome things to experience at Lake Forest Park Town Center and I've only named a few. It's a blast from the past, a place to be present and enjoy a nice book, a nice coffee, a nice meal, a nice show, or really whatever experience you're looking for. It's conveniently located at the top of Lake Washington near Seattle and near Bellevue. Not going to lie, if you swing by some day, there's a pretty good chance you'll see me, hahahaha! I'm honestly there at least once a week if not every day.

That's all for today! See y'all next time! Sarang out.