Tiny Maltby a hot destination for foodies, shoppers, gardeners

Visiting tiny Maltby, on the road between Woodinville and Monroe, I learned things I didn't know before, such as:

• Sustainability is not boring, especially when it supports the production of Jack Daniels-flavored ice cream. • A local cafe got its Swedish pancake recipe from the cook's grandmother.

• And the horse Zhivago shares his barn with a wild spirit.

Maltby's very existence was a learning experience for me, since I'd never heard of it before, although it seems everyone else has. Small enough to qualify as a neighborhood, it's become quite the destination for urbanites up and down the Interstate 5 corridor. So far, Maltby manages to retain its rural origins even as it welcomes a thoroughly modern and enlightened business — the Snoqualmie Gourmet Ice Cream Co.

Environmentally conscious

Officially endorsed by the Snohomish County Sustainability Task Force as an environmentally friendly development, the ice-cream parlor and production plant are housed in what looks like a big red barn. In fact, it once was a split-level rambler that owners Barry and Shahnaz Bettinger refurbished, thus eliminating the need to raze existing buildings and then dispose of debris. Right off the bat, a lesson learned: Want what you have.

Other innovations: They got rid of the water-sucking lawn and installed a rain garden that grows plants to flavor some of the ice cream. Heat generated from machines is recycled to warm buildings and water. The nubbly parking lot and walkways are pervious concrete, which lets water seep in rather than run off, and underneath lies 14 inches of crushed rock, allowing surface pollutants to percolate and degrade.

"Our mission is to make things as good as they can be," said Barry Bettinger. "It's our responsibility to our customers, employees and community."

And making life itself sustainable is the glorious, gourmet ice cream. The parlor, once a garage, serves up dozens of creamy flavors. One that's popular with those over 21 is spiked with Jack Daniels.

While the business sells products to many restaurants, grocery stores and cafes, the parlor is its beating heart. A 1950s-era fireplace remains and behind a plate glass window shines the stainless-steel kitchen. That's where kids have birthday parties, making their own ice cream and pizzas, the perfect venue, Bettinger said, because "they can make a mess in there."

There's also a drive-through window. "We thought it would be for espresso," said Bettinger, "but it's usually moms with kids in car seats coming in for ice cream."

A look at the past

Down the street from the parlor stands a reminder of the town's past — the 1907 school converted into a home for the Maltby Gift Shops. Take a stroll up the wood stairs to see vintage photos of school kids in 1909, and a local train wreck in which two steam engines collided.

The shops focus on one-of-a-kind, homemade items, including the store Running Wild Spirit, located in the former boiler room. Wild Spirit's logo, a line drawing of a galloping horse and rider, tells you something about owner Charlene Feetham. She handcrafts her soaps, lotions and creams in a barn that also houses her "wild boy," a horse named Zhivago.

Wild Spirit started small in Maltby after one of Feetham's sons suffered a skin condition relieved by a lotion she created using lavender, buttermilk, oatmeal and other soothing ingredients. When he improved, friends and family got interested. "There's a story and a person behind every product I make," said Feetham.

Now there's a second store in downtown Seattle at Sixth Avenue and Stewart Street, but the mission remains the same. "I try to blend special things for people and do it naturally."

One of her most sought-after products is called Seattle Sunshine, with lemon, lime, orange and grapefruit — luxurious body lotion that wafts a light snap of citrus. "I made it to be uplifting on our long, gray days," she said.

You'll want to eat here

Across the parking lot is the place that put this town on the map — Maltby Cafe. Built in 1937 as a WPA project, it once served as the gym and cafeteria for the nearby school. This June, the three women who own the cafe will have been at it, successfully, for 19 years. Tana Baumler, Barbara Peter and Sandra Albrigh met playing soccer in the 1980s and after games went for breakfast. One day, they happened upon the cafe and soon found it was for sale. Jumping at the chance, they've turned the cafe into a tradition for anyone seeking hearty, plentiful, tasty, down-home meals.

Their Maltby bread is sliced two-fingers thick. Bacon comes all the way from Montana, Baumler's home state. Also scarfed down in large quantities are huge cinnamon rolls, prime-rib omelets and their special Swedish-style pancakes, surprisingly sweet and sour. "The recipe came from the cook's grandma," said Baumler.

Waddling away from my breakfast of red potatoes and Tillamook cheese, I drove the short distance to a regional icon, Flower World, which is both park and nursery. Spring is a great time to take in table after table of every imaginable blossom, plus walk the gravel paths past a rotating water wheel, the lake, a fountain. When I came upon a chicken coop full of fancy fowl, I was amazed. Here were creatures I never knew existed — poultry with spots, stripes, feathery flounces on their heads, on their feet.

To paraphrase, broadly: "There are more things in Maltby, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy."

Connie McDougall of Seattle, a regular contributor to Northwest Weekend, is a writer/editor for Seattle City Light. Contact her: conniemcdougall@yahoo.com.