Oak/not oak?

[evo]

I found a tree in Seattle yesterday. I thought it was one of the west coast live oaks, as it had similar leaves but now I'm thinking I'm very wrong. Like a numbskull I didn't take any photos, nor spend too much time looking at it. The leaf margins were smooth, thick and leathery. Not being very familiar with oaks I picked what I assumed were acorns.
Bark was smoother and dark grey with slightly developing furrows near the base
looking it up today, has me stumped.
Nuts are about large 'shooter' marble size to rubber bouncy ball size (the smaller ones). Thick fleshy husk like a walnut with a funny 'cap'
Taste is bitter and astringant

 

[colb]

Bay

 

[colb]

I suspect Umbellularia californica for starters. I'll let you do the rest...

 

[evo]

I suspect Umbellularia californica for starters. I'll let you do the rest...

Thanks! total slap on the forehead, there were many saplings around the area. The size threw me and I don't recall ever seeing the nuts.

 

[colb]

View attachment 83811
Thanks! total slap on the forehead, there were many saplings around the area. The size threw me and I don't recall ever seeing the nuts.

I grew up with them along a riparian zone behind my house in Southern California. You might have seen that mud slide video that made the rounds three weeks ago - a few hundred yards uphill from that mess. What I'm curious about is that you seem to live a couple hundred miles north of their range on the maps (a range I never had cause to check until today...). Seems like a decent chance it was planted, but I was not aware that they are popular in the horticultural industry... I grab a handful of leaves for cooking (e.g. mushroom wild rice casserole) whenever I can - freeze the ones I don't use right away. They last several days at ambient temperature.

 

[evo]

I grew up with them along a riparian zone behind my house in Southern California. You might have seen that mud slide video that made the rounds three weeks ago - a few hundred yards uphill from that mess. What I'm curious about is that you seem to live a couple hundred miles north of their range on the maps (a range I never had cause to check until today...). Seems like a decent chance it was planted, but I was not aware that they are popular in the horticultural industry... I grab a handful of leaves for cooking (e.g. mushroom wild rice casserole) whenever I can - freeze the ones I don't use right away. They last several days at ambient temperature.

Yes we are, but I grew up in the middle of the oregon coast and lived in PDX for a decade. Looking them up again today some maps show their native range in a pocket up in the northern Willamette valley, now I’m recalling seeing them about 30-40 miles SE of PDX.

I have no doubt the ones I saw in SEA were planted. The woodland park zoo has a very mediterranean with their specie selection