Familiar with Seattle? Can you help?

[firecat]

A friend of mine and her husband are moving to Seattle very soon, and she wrote me with the following questions:

What are likely neighborhoods to rent a house that feel city-like and that are a reasonable commute to Redmond, where her husband will be working? (My friend doesn't drive, so someplace that's within a few blocks of a shopping/eating area would be best.)

A comfy hotel in the $125/night range, preferably within walking distance of a sushi bar.

Info about the East Side: She writes: "I'm wondering if any of the towns over there would be agreeable. (Bellevue, Kirkland, etc.) I don't want to be out in the boonies, since I can't drive to get anywhere, and I'm hoping to avoid suburbs."

Comments

[red-frog.livejournal.com]

Conveniently, I just asked about this. For city-like feel on the east side, great-grandboss recommended Bellevue--but said that it's not really very city-like, just the best approximation. I'm going to be living in Seattle and just arranging my commute around traffic so far as I can. It's not easy to get around without a car on the east side, and I'm sick of suburbs.