From the Jul 20 – Jul 26, 2000 issue

Pullout

Stores & Services

BEST PAWN SHOP
Best of SeaTac voters dig Pawn X-Change's motto: "Money for your stuff." It just doesn't get any simpler than that, does it? When we find ourselves running short on the cold hard cash necessary for survival in SeaTac, Pawn X-Change--conveniently located on the north end of the strip--is the perfect place to convert our most treasured worldly goods into paper currency. A quick perusal of the "stuff" on display within the copious confines of the shop revealed a typical assortment of pawned items: TVs, CDs, rings, watches, tools, etc. What elevates Pawn X-Change above every other run-of-the-mill, seedy brokerage is straight-shootin' customer service. The staff, besides being uniformly friendly and helpful, is exceedingly well-groomed, and they work hard to make your material sacrifice as quick and painless as possible. 22862 Pacific Hwy S.

BEST TATTOO PARLOR
There is a sign posted on the wall of Tattoo Alley: "No Intoxicated People." Note the absence of a moderating "please" tagged to the end of this stern phrase--it's not a request, it's a warning. All of which is to say that this fine SeaTac establishment, unlike many fly-by-night piercing parlors, is marked by a high degree of professionalism and body-art savvy. That's why SeaTac Stranger readers have named Tattoo Alley Best Tattoo Parlor for three years running. A splendid variety of late-'70s/early-'80s sample work hangs in every available space: death's heads, flaming skulls, Indians, Vikings, spread-winged eagles, and slinky blue-furred panthers. The standard branding price is very attractive ($35 minimum/$100 per hour), so take your pick, sit back, and get needled. 24613 Pacific Hwy S.

BEST CONVENIENCE STORE
Without hesitation, tractable SeaTacians named the well-oiled machine that is All Star Grocery and Video Best Convenience Store. From its strident "Look Only One Minute" porn-browsing policy to the plethora of vinyl-lettered signs pre-empting any unnecessary customer interaction beyond payment, the All Star is a monument to the cold, impersonal efficiency that still eludes this year's runners-up (though the palpable anger is offset slightly by a vinyl-lettered sign thanking patrons for their business). Additionally, the wide selection of fortified wines and inexpensive malt liquors (including Mickey's and Mickey's Ice) secured the honor of Best Booze Selection, making All Star Grocery and Video SeaTac's one-stop oppressive superstore for behavior modification and cheap hooch. 2825 S 200th St.

BEST WINE CELLAR
All the other well-known Washington state wine producers--Hogue Cellars, Chateau Ste. Michelle, Columbia Crest--are shamelessly promiscuous about retail availability, allowing their assorted vintages to be sold at any old place, from Safeway to fancy Seattle restaurants. With this kind of careless attitude, how the hell can SeaTacian sommeliers and wine aficionados develop any kind of taste? For those of you with discriminating palates who are serious about wine, Northwest Passage (Sea-Tac International's one-stop cosmopolitan source for fine culture, art, and fashion) has exactly what you need! Bust out your best crystal and uncork a bottle of Seattle Reserve Merlot ($15.99), a smooth, subtle red with a pleasant finish that's exclusively available at Sea-Tac International Airport. That's right! You cannot get Seattle Reserve anywhere else! But it doesn't stop there: Northwest Passage also offers vino lovers other local superstars, including Hoodsport Rhubarb Wine and elegant selections from Spokane's St. Hilaire Cellars. 17801 Pacific Hwy S.

 

BEST STRIP MALL FOR PICKING UP THE PIECES
Once again, SeaTac Stranger readers overwhelmingly selected the businesses of 20028-34 Pacific Highway South as SeaTac's premier location for the just-sprung to attempt to piece together the shambles of the unjust, all-consuming hell of daily existence. From the underpaid menial labor assigned each morning at dawn at Labor Ready to the twin pleasures of a carton of Marlboros ($28.90) and an issue of Perfect 10 purchased two doors down at Still Smokin', this nameless roadside plaza is just a hop, skip, and a jump from the Federal Detention Center. It also boasts a Pizza Time (large plain: $10.35) and an Advance Til Payday check-cashing service. 20028-34 Pacific Hwy S.

BEST HOTEL HAIR SALON
Mr. Paul of Paul's Hair Fashions is a sweet old guy who opened his salon in the Swept Wing Motel in 1967. The hotel has changed hands a few times and is now called the Airport Plaza Hotel. Mr. Paul's salon looks exactly like a trailer home--it's a smoky, cramped space cluttered with figurines, a TV, pictures of ladies from the '40s, and a screen door that stays shut. "It's been quiet for the last couple of years," says Mr. Paul. "I've been doing people here for the last 30 years.... I used to do everything: electrolysis, cuts, colors. There's nothing new in our business. Hair, going back to the '40s and '50s, it was just more or less finger waves and stuff like that." Mr. Paul, who won Alaska's Mr. Fur Face competition in 1960, says he's keeping a low profile in the industry these days. He no longer goes to the international hair fashion shows, but he still tends to his stable of regulars who loyally return every month for their trims and styles. 18601 International Blvd.

BEST AIRPORT HAIR SALON
In a landslide vote, hair-smart SeaTacians gave an overwhelming "thumbs up" to Hair Lines, the full-service hair salon conveniently located in the Sea-Tac International Airport. It's been a long haul to the top for owner/entrepreneur Kristi Pfaeffle, who began her career at Hair Lines way back in 1993. After five years of clipping for "the man," Pfaeffle took matters into her own hands, and as owner and manager, she's steered Hair Lines boldly into the 21st century! According to Pfaeffle, Hair Lines services a wide assortment of customers, from airport employees to frequent-flying businessmen. In addition to dispensing an average of 50 haircuts a day ($28 for women, $23 for men), Hair Lines offers manicures ($20) and shoe shines ($4--by a white guy, for added comfort). And with the obviously passionate support of her hometown, you can expect Pfaeffle to keep "clipping right along!" 17801 Pacific Hwy S.

BEST PLACE TO REENACT LEAVING LAS VEGAS
Originally known as the Swept Wing Inn, the Airport Plaza Hotel was surely some architect's idea of envelope-pushing. Though named after a kind of Navy jet, the former Swept Wing was designed more as a near-duplicate of the airport directly behind it. Two levels of rooms follow the curve of two separate roadways, one of which is built right on top of the first layer of rooms. These ground-floor rooms may lack charm--unless you like living under a road--but their sliding glass doors open directly out to a parking lot and liquor store, not to mention a convenience store and a Denny's: all your boozehound needs met within stumbling distance of your inexpensive room. 18601 International Blvd.

BEST PLACE TO STEAL HUBCAPS
Crooks and hustlers selected the Doubletree Inn as the city's hubcap theft headquarters, where "900 parking spaces plus minimal security equals easy money," according to one local hoodlum. There are video cameras in the lot as well as an attendant, but the Doubletree's primary function as a hotel prohibits the use of the unfriendly chainlink and barbed wire fences of other SeaTac lots. Pulling to the shoulder of Pacific Highway South and making quick hits on the perimeter is a favorite approach, though a few readers voted for the more insulting method of posing as a hotel guest changing a flat and stealing the whole tire. 18740 Pacific Hwy S.

BEST PLACE TO SELL HUBCAPS
Strolling into the fantastically ornate House of Hub Caps for the first time, you might think you've entered a small, privately owned museum dedicated to America's long-standing love affair with shiny chrome automobile accessories. The vast selection of hubcaps on display gives the impression of a breathtaking shrine erected by a fastidious gearhead. But this is no museum--it's a junk shop, and if you just happen to have a stack of BMW hubs you're looking to unload, this is the most logical stop. 20052 B Pacific Hwy S.