"Forget the poker tables and slot machines. When it opens late this year, I'll be in Casino Snoqualmie's gourmet restaurant or lounge.

Tuesday morning I toured the building, still mostly steel beams and open walls, to verify what I suspected when the Snoqualmie Tribe picked the site near Interstate 90. The view alone will be worth the trip.

The lounge and restaurant are going to be built in rooms that jut north, like prows of a ship. The windows will overlook the upper Snoqualmie Valley. The restaurant will be on the northeast with a spectacular view of Mount Si.

"When we had all the snow, you could stand here in the afternoon and watch the sunset reflecting off the snow on Mount Si," said Bob Carr, the construction manager. "The mountain would turn pink. It was beautiful."

The lounge will be on the northwest side. From either spot you'll be able to see parts of Snoqualmie Ridge, downtown Snoqualmie and, on a clear day, Mount Baker and other peaks in the Cascades.

Credit goes to the architectural firm Bergman, Walls & Associates of Las Vegas for taking advantage of the view."

Get the Story:
Sherry Grindeland: Tribal casino site top-notch (The Seattle Times 3/12)