5 Reasons Seattle Should Be Jealous Of Leavenworth

Photo by Leslie Kelly

Who doesn't love drinking a frosty beer outdoors on a frosty day? You can in Leavenworth.

That's right, the state's faux Bavarian Village has got it going on. And I'm not even talking about its most obvious attributes: America's drunkest Oktoberfest, the town's semi-naughty mascot -- Woody Goomsba -- or the bitchin' putt-putt course just outside the city center.

No, this tourist magnet has got some culinary treasures SEA can only admire from afar. Or, up close, judging by the number of Seattle accents I heard in das beer garten last weekend.

I'm not just sending mad love to the 509 because I spent some of the happiest years of my dysfunctional childhood in L'town. (You can't swing a pair of lederhosen without hitting somebody I'm related to. Hell, my third cousin twice removed is mayor!) For me, Leavenworth's charm begins and ends with sausage.

Photo by Leslie Kelly

The best damn currywurst at the Leavenworth Sausage Garten.

1. Year-round outdoor sausage and beer gartens.

This time of year, I'm like a moth in search of a flame, a heat-seeker who truly appreciates a wood-fueled fire and there's no better place to warm up while sipping a cold beer in the cold than in Leavenworth. There are not just one, but two year-round outdoor beer gartens where you can toast your tootsies while snowflakes drift down.

I've long been partial to Munchen Haus, which serves a stellar lineup from Bavarian Meats, but last weekend, I fell hard for the new kid on the block. The Sausage Garten by Cured has a sweeping view of the mountains and makes a unbeatable place to people watch. Plus, they make their own sausages. I devoured a currywurst while sipping a Black Lager, sitting by a fire. The only thing missing the otherwise incessant om-pah-pah music. Maybe that's a plus.