Natalie Compagno

1 week ago | seattlemag.com | Natalie Compagno |Greg Freitas

A memorable meal is one of the best incentives to travel. These three tempt the short drive from Seattle to British Columbia. The reward: a world-renowned Royal Thai experience; a Michelin starred Japanese/Italian fusion; and an impeccable aburi sushi bite — each paired with a complementary hotel — make for a delectable culinary weekend getaway.

2 weeks ago | seattlemag.com | Natalie Compagno |Greg Freitas

Tacoma is our happy place. We have a few scattered across the state, but Tacoma is the closest, the easiest, and the most familiar. When we’re craving inspiration or a meal that knocks us sideways, when our wardrobe needs a jolt or we want to be stopped in our tracks by street art, we head south. Sometimes we just want to kick back with a naughty rum cocktail and multiple (compostable) straws.

1 month ago | seattlemag.com | Natalie Compagno |Greg Freitas

“In Los Angeles, it’s hard to tell if you’re dealing with the real true illusion or the false one.” — Eve BabitzBabitz was one of Los Angeles’ great muses, and her line rings especially true now in the wake of the wildfires that swept through parts of the region this winter. Los Angeles has always been a city of contradictions. The image of the sprawling metropolis as carefree and sun-drenched persists, but the truth — the real L.A. — is tougher than its reputation.

1 month ago | seattlemag.com | Natalie Compagno |Greg Freitas

Last fall we attended a wine party in Quarante, a charming hamlet in the Languedoc region of southern France. The village was tiny. The house was anything but, with three stories, six bedrooms, a pool, and an old barn. A centuries-old olive tree observed the revelry from the interior courtyard, the wine flowed like water from the area’s ancient Roman aqueducts, and we feasted on charcuterie, pâté, and fromage. The crowd was international, with attendees from Zurich, Los Angeles, Romania, Dublin.

2 months ago | seattlemag.com | Natalie Compagno |Greg Freitas

There’s no place quite like Washington, D.C. It’s a city where the world’s fortunes shift by the hour, where history is made just blocks away, and where even the hotel lobby could double as a global chessboard. Walking down its tree-lined streets, a visitor might encounter a senator deep in thought, a foreign diplomat in an unmarked SUV, or someone who responds to “what they do” with the intriguing misdirection of a spy.