Seattle Metropolitan Magazine

Looking for a doctor?
A new list of the Seattle area's top doctors is on newsstands right now.
333 doctors to be exact..chosen by their peers.
The list is based on surveys sent out to 10,000 medical professionals. It's in the new edition of Seattle Metropolitan magazine

And while it's not the end-all list of the best… some of these docs are considered Seattle's medical innovators. Hi-tech is a definite theme.

On the list is Dr. Jim Olson. He created a paint that helps surgeons see cancer cells that normally would be too small to detect.

And Dr. Yoky Matsuoka at the University of Washington is creating a true-to-life robotic hand…that actually listens to a patient's brain in the same way a real hand does. That technology is still about twenty years away.

Mixed in with this hi-tech crowd is Dr. Astrid Pujari. She might be considered low-tech or maybe you'd call her "enlightened". Pujari was a primary care physician at Virginia Mason . But now has a private practice in South Lake Union that blends traditional and holistic medicines. She has degrees in both.

She says her blended approach focuses on the 'complete' patient - mind , body, and spirit. Book an appointment with her - and you won't get rushed out the door. Dr. Pujari spends at least an hour just getting to know each new patient. She treats them with conventional drugs, herbal remedies, meditation and often a combination of all these things.

Because of doctors like Pujari, western medicine is beginning to embrace the power of the mind to heal us and keep us well. To that end, Pujari also counsels cancer patients helping them not only survive the disease but use it to deepen their experiences and relationships.

It's almost impossible to nail down the *one* best restaurant, or the *one* best coffee shop in a city this size.

But our partners at Seattle Metropolitan Magazine broke it down into 6 different categories in the July "Best of the City" issue.

They focus on the new and newly discovered: 183 shops, services, activities and eateries.
In each category is a featured "trailblazer," someone making a significant impact in our community.

We caught up with three of them.
The category: "Family and Pets".

The trailblazer is Grisha Stewart, owner and founder of Ahimsa Dog Training Center in Ballard.

Seattle Metrolitan Magazine calls it a zen dog studio because of her philosophy. Stewart's teachings revolve around compassion for your pet.

She says, “We are trying to build up the behaviors that are already in the dog to be the ones that we want and get rid of the behaviors we don't like not by force or correction but by letting those not be reinforced.”

So it's about individualized training... one dog at a time and about positive
re-inforcement.

In the "food and drinks" section, you may not know his face, but you've sampled his cuisine.

Trailblazer Ethan Stowell owns three restaurants including "Union" in downtown Seattle. His mantra is simple flavors, fresh ingredients, and fine dining without the pretentious atmosphere.

He says, “I think the number one thing people appreciate about us is that we put effort into it but we don't make it feel stuffy.”

Stowell's favorite dishes to whip up? Vegetables, seafood and pastas.

This young chef just received one of the highest honors in the culinary stratosphere: one of Food and Wine magazine's best new chefs of the year!

In the "Out and About" section, Weir Harman is the Executive Director of Town Hall Seattle.

Seattle Metropolitan calls him a trailblazer for the impact he and Town Hall have made on this community.

He says, “There's nowhere actually in the country that has our mix of major national and international figures alongside grassroots organizations. And that's a testament to Seattle's breadth and curiosity i think”

Town Hall Seattle offers events in the arts, politics, science and literature. It hosts more than 90,000 visitors and 300 events every year including speakers like Al Gore and Barack Obama. Harman is proud to have inherited an organization that's so beloved.

Read more on all six trailblazers and everything that's "Best of Seattle” in the July issue of Seattle Metropolitan Magazine.

By the way, the July month issue is in 3-d and includes glasses so you can see the city in a whole new way.

Q13 FOX has teamed up with Seattle Metropolitan Magazine to throw the biggest party of the year by auctioning off dates with local celebrities.

All the money raised will go toward the Moyer Foundation, which helps children in need.
The fun-filled night is scheduled June 21. You can bid on a date with your favorite local single.

Here’s a preview of a few singles up for grabs.

Single Number 1: Restauranteur Ericka Burke, Owner of Seattle's Volunteer Park Cafe.

The former New York City actress and model creates every single delicious recipe at the café. She is looking for a “not too pretty, little rugged, nice, funny” man.

Ericka is open to the possibility of finding love. So, why not be the one to win a date with this gregarious, gorgeous girl with a super, sexy smile.

Single Number 2: Handsome actor Michael Place.

He’s a teacher by day, Washington Emsemble theatre actor by night. His perfect date, however, is *no* drama queen!

He is looking for “physically, superficially, she's small and cute like a pixie, has a great smile, she cares about others more than she cares about herself in terms of compassion towards the world around her.”

When he isn't acting, or cutting up stage props, this self-described: silly, intense, passionate, dedicated young man knows how to treat a lady.

He says, “the perfect date would be an incredible 5 course meal probably sushi involved, it would be lots of something outdoors, maybe Arboretum at night, awesome sunset , great conversation. That sounds pretty cool.”

Single number 3: actress and singer Billie Wildrick.

Q13 FOX caught up with her at Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre where she performs.
Like the rest of us, Billie says dating can be downright terrifying, “it's so difficult to represent the person that you know you are… against the person you want to represent youself as.”

What's more terrifying for Billie than dating? This singles' auction. So gentlemen, don't make her sing the 'swan song'!

She says, “I just don't want to be the one up there, "a dollar, anybody, 50 cents?" I don't want that to be me. So really if I get bid on, I'm just going to be excited and I'll buy that person a drink!”

To see pictures and get info on all eight singles on the auction block, pick up the June issue of Seattle Metropolitan Magazine on newstands.

Tickets are $50 in advance or $60 at the door and that includes food and drinks. Tickets available at www.seattlemet.com/afterhours/
100% of the proceeds from the auction & raffle go to the moyer foundation.