Nestled in the small neighborhood of Fremont sits one of Seattle's most specific bookstores. For the last 11 years, Lara Hamilton has been running Book Larder, which specializes in cookbooks, food-related memoirs, and any other titles that have to do with the art of the delicious and nutritious.
"I've always been a big fan of cookbooks and thought Seattle would be an excellent place for a store like this, because it is a big book town and a big food town," said Hamilton.
"We're all cookbooks and food writing. Yeah, once in a while, there will be a food-themed piece of fiction that we carry, but it is almost entirely nonfiction."
Hamilton was inspired to open the store due to her love of cookbooks. "When I travel, I go to bookstores in whatever city I visit, and immediately go to the cookbook section. I wanted something like that in Seattle, but also a place where people could really engage with the books, meet the authors, ...and really foster a community of people who have a joy of cooking. Bookstores are some of the only places where people can gather without paying for an expensive ticket for something like that."
A full calendar
Book Larder has gained a reputation in the Fremont neighborhood as the place for aspiring chefs to go. Before the pandemic, the store hosted many interactive community events, including cooking classes and author signings. The worldwide pandemic didn't stop Hamilton from sharing the art of cooking with her neighbors, however.
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We've been doing events in person and virtually. During COVID, we were all virtual. The in-person [events have] started to pick up, but we are still doing some virtual events as well. Our events calendar is pretty full," she said.
For those interested in joining in on the fun, Book Larder has a full schedule, with classes starting in September.
"Next week we have a virtual event, on Tuesday, September 6, with Tara Jensen, who wrote a sourdough bread book called Flour Power. On the 8th, we have an in-person talk with Marnie Hanel and Jen Stevenson about their book Lunchbox, which is about putting together creative lunchboxes for kids, really kicking off 'back to school.' We also have a lot of events going on through the fall," Hamilton said.
While people tend to flock to the store for the classes and interactive events, they stay for the books. "Our most popular book this year is J. Kenji Lopez-Alt's The Wok. ...He's a local author [with] a very loyal following and has been very gracious about encouraging people to buy the book from us. It's a great book.
"[Also] super popular this summer is Salad Freak [by Jess Damuk]. It's about eating lighter, which has been quite popular this summer."
Giving back
While Book Larder isn't set up like a typical bookstore, meaning it doesn't have an LGBTQ+ section, "we carry many LGBTQ authors," Hamilton said. "The books are organized by subject and region but carry and host a lot of LGBTQ authors. We celebrate Pride month. I know that's become a little bit of a token, but we hope we are a place where LGBTQ authors are celebrated. That's very important to us," Hamilton added.
Book Larder loves to give back to the community that supports it, and beyond. "Earlier this year, we raised about $14,000 for UNICEF, focused on helping children in Ukraine," Hamilton explained. "We also just participated in Bakers against Racism [and supported] Planned Parenthood, ...and every year during the holidays we charge $3 for gift wrapping and ...match it and donate [all of that] to a variety of organizations, like United Indians for All Tribes and Solid Ground.
"On our birthday, we always donate a percentage of our profits ...to so many organizations that we're passionate about. We usually pick them at the last minute. We'll be doing that again on Oct. 11, although we haven't quite decided who the beneficiaries are yet," she said with a smile.
Whether you're a first-time cook, an experienced chef, or someone just looking to pick up a new hobby, Book Larder is definitely a place to explore.
Book Larder is located at 4252 Fremont Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103 and online at https://www.booklarder.com/.