Deep-fried fish ahoySt. Helens cafe is a big restaurant with a small menu. It’s got sizable potential and a few pitfalls. It seats more than 100 people. It serves fish and chips, burgers, pasta and salads.
(Published 1:00AM, April 6th, 2007)
Dinner & ...
“Dinner and a show” need not induce nightmares of Kelsey Grammer doing “King Lear” at Applebee’s.
(Published 1:00AM, April 6th, 2007)
First Bites: Infinite Soups, Taqueria El Antojo
Infinite Soups
(Published 1:00AM, April 6th, 2007)
Nachordinary Mexican food
Servers brag that few can finish Masa’s “Nachordinary” nachos. They’re a monument of corn chips and bean dip – blinged with roasted corn, fried jalapeños, caramelized onions, mushrooms, peppers, guacamole, sour cream, pomegranate seeds and puddles of cheese and cream.
(Published 1:00AM, March 30th, 2007)
Tacoma feels luck o’ the Irish
The snakes followed St. Patrick to their watery graves. Your fate can be much more pleasurable this weekend. Just follow the green dots of the South Sound Pub Crawl as we check out two Irish pubs that celebrate their first St. Patrick’s Day in Tacoma this year.
(Published 1:00AM, March 16th, 2007)
Mainline to Manila
Manila Center Diner resides in a tiny cinder-block building in a neighborhood of metal foundries and machine shops.
(Published 1:00AM, March 9th, 2007)
Surf’s up, food’s down
‘Didn’t this used to be the Beach House?’ our critic asks after a five-star restaurant gets a Baja makeover. From a wobbly table near the fire pit in the bright dining room on a dark and stormy night, I imagined our server had run out to the espresso hut along the highway. My friends and I had ordered coffee and dessert together. Dessert was gone when the coffee came.
(Published 1:00AM, March 2nd, 2007)
You’ll say yum after ‘yang nyum’
I learned a delicious lesson in a bleak strip mall: My tastes in fried chicken and reading material are similar to a middle-age Korean woman’s.
(Published 1:00AM, February 23rd, 2007)
Bullish on good food
You will cheer for this Matador. Rich, spicy flavors meet a sexy Tex-Mexy vibe at Tacoma’s new hot spot. I generally root for the bull. This time, I pulled for The Matador.
(Published 1:00AM, February 16th, 2007)
Romancing your dinner date
Tom Pantley and Deanna Bender cook romantic meals in the kitchens of their restaurants. I asked them to share their tips on how diners can keep romance cooking when they eat out.
(Published 1:00AM, February 9th, 2007)
Breakfast A to Z
ALL YOU CAN EAT
(Published 1:00AM, February 2nd, 2007)
Sizing up the burger bites
Who makes your favorite burgers in the South Sound? Do you like the char-broiled half-pounder at Gary’s Steak Out? Smitty burgers at Don’s Drive-In? The old-fashioned goodness of Pick Quick? Pacific Grill’s sliders? What about Frisko Freeze? McDonald’s?
(Published 1:00AM, January 26th, 2007)
TwoKoi could cater to Sinatra fans
Three constants played every time I dined at TwoKoi Japanese Restaurant since it opened in September: Chef Jackie Koh’s off-the-cuff creations excited me more than menu items; service teetered; Frank Sinatra crooned.
(Published 1:00AM, January 19th, 2007)
TwoKoi could cater to Sinatra fans
Three constants played every time I dined at TwoKoi Japanese Restaurant since it opened in September: Chef Jackie Koh’s off-the-cuff creations excited me more than menu items; service teetered; Frank Sinatra crooned.
(Published 1:00AM, January 19th, 2007)
You can cork any pretentiousness
“I’ll try a glass of the varietal,” my companion said. “I don’t like syrah.”
(Published 1:00AM, January 5th, 2007)
Year-end survey cooking at Ed’s Diner
I know what I liked. I know where I ate. What about you?
(Published 1:00AM, December 29th, 2006)
Local restaurant scene spices up
Three new restaurants with Mexican or Mexican-inspired menus make their way to town. Get a taste of Masa, The Matador and Margarita Beach Café. This is the time of year – cold, dark and rainy – when I’m tempted to commandeer a Boeing 787 to Mexico, where sunny margaritas and warming moles await.
(Published 1:00AM, December 22nd, 2006)
King County considers ban on deadly fat
The fight against trans fat hits a little closer to home this week as the state and King County health departments study whether restaurants should be required to eliminate the controversial cooking oil from its kitchens.
(Published 1:00AM, December 15th, 2006)
Duke’s mostly misses
Did I mistake Duke’s Chowder House for a mere waterfront restaurant with a view?
(Published 1:00AM, December 15th, 2006)
Sapporo gets sassy with sushi
Sushi is eaten raw, not naked. Take a look under your next slice of fish. There’ll be a dab of wasabi. I dare you not to dip into soy sauce.
(Published 1:00AM, December 8th, 2006)
Home sweet Salvador
When the Molcajete Especial arrived, I nearly mistook my dinner for Tazumal, the Maya pyramid that looms over western El Salvador. The meal isn’t just named molcajete, it’s served in a molcajete, Hispanic cuisine’s stone pestal on legs.
(Published 1:00AM, December 1st, 2006)
Crawling Puyallup
Some things you expect from Northwest brewpubs.
(Published 1:00AM, November 10th, 2006)
Happy hours are here again
I clocked my first legal drink almost 21 years ago. Back then, bars and restaurants set aside an hour or so in the late afternoon for cheap drinks and free eats.
(Published 1:00AM, November 3rd, 2006)
Wallaby’s packs a wallop
After joyously gorging myself on Wallaby’s Delicatessen’s heavenly hash browns and groovy gravy, I figured I’d have a hard time finding satisfaction in BLTs and Reubens, even if the former was made with a quarter-pound of bacon and the latter was a study in lean-meat-gooey-cheese construction.
(Published 1:00AM, October 27th, 2006)
Hot nightclub, lukewarm eats
When the owner of the Factory called me a few months ago and invited me to check out the food at his new nightclub, he dropped words like “New York” and “upscale.”
(Published 1:00AM, October 20th, 2006)
Tacoma wraps up good eats
I generally wait three months before reviewing new restaurants. That gives restaurants time to (hopefully) find their bearings before criticism (and stars) are bestowed.
(Published 1:00AM, October 20th, 2006)
Do yourself a flavor
Kokiri Korean Restaurant is alternately pleasing and perplexing.
(Published 1:00AM, October 13th, 2006)
Tiny place, tiny staff, big cheese
A humble wine-and-cheese bar in Tacoma strives to give a positive experience. But its owner would prefer you didn’t visit. Bill Bonnie’s publicity-shyness may sound cheesy. But I sense something refreshing in his reasoning.
(Published 1:00AM, October 6th, 2006)
Eat your heart out, Tacoma
Fall is generally the season things stop growing. Not so with Tacoma’s dining scene.
(Published 1:00AM, September 29th, 2006)
Roll out the schnitzels
Oktoberfest season is here. While it’s widely celebrated as the largest beer holiday in the world, Oktoberfest is about food and music, too. Really.
(Published 1:00AM, September 22nd, 2006)
Food quest beyond Qwest
There’s a new 12th Man in Qwest Field’s kitchen. In the offseason, the Seahawks replaced Pennsylvania-based food services vendor Aramark with Chicago-based Levy Restaurants, promising “a signature food experience” that “matches the glory of the team.”
(Published 1:00AM, September 15th, 2006)
Beyond fair fare
Ever wonder what carnies eat? A steady diet of Fair Burgers, Krusty Pups and Fisher Scones? According to a guy who used to work at Safeway on Meridian, the Puyallup carnies he knew liked to chow down on supermarket sandwiches.
(Published 1:00AM, September 8th, 2006)
Ed Murrieta’s Previously Reviewed Restaurants
A look back at South Sound cuisine offerings.
(Published 1:00AM, September 8th, 2006)
Brickyard still smoking
Location. Location. Barbecue.
(Published 1:00AM, September 1st, 2006)
Pop go the sandwiches
Cabernet with steak. Check. Stout ale with chocolate cake. Check.
(Published 1:00AM, August 25th, 2006)
Get hooked on Fujiya
As neighborhoods evolve and newcomers move in, I wonder about the places and the things that have been around for a while. In my neighborhood, a new McMansion dwarfs an ancient cottage.
(Published 1:00AM, August 18th, 2006)
Ed Murrieta’s previously reviewed restaurants
A look back at South Sound cuisine offerings.
(Published 1:00AM, August 11th, 2006)
A Middle Eastern treat
ShishKabab Mediterranean Grill puts an exotic accent on strip-mall fare. In the suburbs where Northeast Tacoma meets Federal Way, a world of change is on the menu.
(Published 1:00AM, August 11th, 2006)
Now is a good time for soon
At Cho Dang Tofu Restaurant, steaming soon soup is a filling bowl of soul. A Korean soap opera played on the flat-paneled television screen hanging from the wall of the new tofu house.
(Published 1:00AM, August 4th, 2006)
Lasso a seat at Lone Star
Ramblin’ Jack’s Lone Star Kitchen spurs dueling sentiments.
(Published 1:00AM, July 28th, 2006)
On the waterfront
While a few waterfront restaurants show signs of punch drunkenness, the South Sound has many contenders, even a few with class.
(Published 1:00AM, July 21st, 2006)
Fill belly, lift spirit at 6,872 feet
CRYSTAL MOUNTAIN – My knuckles matched the tablecloth and the moon. All were white.
(Published 1:00AM, July 14th, 2006)
Hooked in Olympia
As brewpubs go, Fish Tale Brewpub in Olympia is a keeper. Even though I’ve been tempted to throw a few dishes back into the kitchen, I keep returning.
(Published 1:00AM, July 7th, 2006)
Pizza you can’t refuse
The full moon earlier this month hit my eye like a big pizza pie.
(Published 1:00AM, June 30th, 2006)
Fabulous food in Fife
As fashionable restaurants go, Fife City Bar & Grill is a brown sweater. I like brown sweaters.
(Published 1:00AM, June 23rd, 2006)
Of chowder and chitlins
Duke’s Chowder House 3327 Ruston Way, Tacoma, 253-752-5444
(Published 1:00AM, June 16th, 2006)
Make room for Tacoma, one step at a time
So many restaurants, so little time? Not if you plan it right. Turn Tacoma’s eateries into a progressive dinner of seafood, burgers and delicious desserts. Seven restaurants (Sea Grill, Pacific Grill, Indochine, Courtyard Lounge, Varsity Grill, DjembeSoul, El Toro) opened in downtown Tacoma in the past year.
(Published 1:00AM, June 9th, 2006)
Here’s pie in your eye
I don’t trust anyone who says “I found a great pizza place for you.” It’s like being set up on a blind date.
(Published 1:00AM, May 26th, 2006)
Fine first forays
Doyle’s Public House 208 St. Helens Ave., Tacoma, 253-238-5359
(Published 1:00AM, May 5th, 2006)
Here comes the neighborhood
Over by the pool table, a woman in rabbit fur teased out lukewarm burlesque. A guy in a porkpie hat took pictures on his cell phone.
(Published 1:00AM, April 28th, 2006)
The hickory stops here
Barbecue with a view. Hickory, too.
(Published 1:00AM, April 14th, 2006)
Joeseppi’s will make you kiss Mama, chain restaurants goodbye
Politician, restaurateur, community figure or senior citizen, Joe Stortini minces neither garlic nor words.
(Published 1:00AM, April 12th, 2006)
Just in the neighborhood
This South Sound Pub Crawl was detoured by the International Association of Culinary Professionals fete ’n’ eat in Seattle last week.
(Published 1:00AM, April 7th, 2006)
Varsity Grill: Hip, no hooray
Sportswriters have a saying: No cheering in the press box.
(Published 1:00AM, March 31st, 2006)
Some fine Phillies
“Where you from – New Jersey?”
(Published 1:00AM, March 24th, 2006)
Rise and drink at Harmon
“Would you like a beer this morning?”
(Published 1:00AM, March 10th, 2006)
Blue Bayou? Not in Parkland
A few days before Fat Tuesday, lack of business buried From the Bayou’s nine-month-old Puyallup restaurant. Owner Kevin Roy decided it was time to shut down and sell.
(Published 2:30AM, March 8th, 2006)
Sound of soul
This part of the world is about as geographically removed from Southern soul food as you can get in the lower 48, but here you go: 11 South Sound restaurants specialize in soul food and/or Southern cooking with black American roots.
(Published 2:30AM, February 24th, 2006)
Spam is for musubi, not e-mail
On the dormant edge of the asphalt lava flow that is downtown Federal Way, there is a laid-back isle of eating where Spam is served without irony.
(Published 2:30AM, February 17th, 2006)
A simple bistro by the Sound
La Creme Brulee means you can skip France this spring.
(Published 2:30AM, February 15th, 2006)
The Swiss, The Harmon and Meconi's
The Swiss
(Published 2:30AM, February 10th, 2006)
A sweet little corner
EDITOR’S NOTE: Critic’s Close-up offers occasional tastes of bakeries, delicatessens and other places close to a restaurant critic’s heart. The old-timer spoke through a mouthful of muffin: “Blueberries ward off old-timers.”
(Published 2:30AM, February 8th, 2006)
The wood must be good
Neo Wood Fired Pizza has moxie. Check out the menu’s fine print: “Due to our signature dough, our crust is very thin, and adding extra toppings is not recommended, please limit to one extra topping.”
(Published 2:30AM, January 27th, 2006)
A beautiful meal in the neighborhood
While the opera-diva décor clashes with my Carhartts, there’s no drama or fuss at Il Fiasco Restaurant & Wine Bar, where a handful of visits in the past few months felt familiar, comfortable and welcoming.
(Published 2:30AM, January 25th, 2006)
Torta! Torta! Torta!
Shortly before he died, singer-songwriter-sage Warren Zevon offered a bite of advice to the living: “Enjoy every sandwich.”
(Published 2:30AM, January 20th, 2006)
Far-flung flavors
Peruvian chefs Rafael Lopez Aliaga and Maria Gracia Jeri spoke in accented English, but there was no mistaking the terms of their trade.
(Published 6:48AM, January 18th, 2006)
Don’t cry for Argentina – you can find it in Tacoma
“Asado – isn’t that the place with weird food?”
(Published 2:30AM, January 18th, 2006)
Double the goodness
When Le-Le was reviewed in these pages in 2001, the Tacoma restaurant’s Hilltop location was questioned. It apparently was too urban for some tastes.
(Published 2:30AM, January 13th, 2006)
Bring the grandparents
Oscar’s on Hosmer has been open since October, but there’s nothing particularly new about it.
(Published 2:30AM, January 6th, 2006)
Full load of courses
What the University of Washington Tacoma has done to the southern flank of downtown is something like what that fancy professor did to the frowzy flower girl in “My Fair Lady.”
(Published 2:30AM, January 4th, 2006)
Our restaurant critic's year in repast
Chewing over 2005, our critic finds many bites worth savoring. Did I eat all that? Oh, yeah. And then some.
(Published 6:30PM, December 29th, 2005)
C'mon, get happy
Thanks to pharmaceutical technology, happiness comes in a pill. Thanks to bar and restaurant operators, happiness is served by the hour.
(Published 2:30AM, December 23rd, 2005)
Pints of fresh air
This month’s South Sound Pub Crawl visits two places where it’s been butts-out for a long time.
(Published 2:30AM, December 16th, 2005)
Pardon their French
Pacific Grill evokes a poet and a troubadour. O that the twain meet in Tacoma.
(Published 2:30AM, December 9th, 2005)
Indochine settles down
Lessons rub off whether you’re a visitor or a tenant at the University of Washington Tacoma.
(Published 2:30AM, December 2nd, 2005)
South Sound Pub Crawl
Pub is short for public house, an old British term for a place where people socialize while drinking beer and other alcoholic beverages. Pubs serve food and provide diversions such as billiards, music and sports on TV.
(Published 2:30AM, November 25th, 2005)
Bones of perfection
JT’s Original Louisiana Bar-B-Que
(Published 3:00AM, October 28th, 2005)
Stanley & Seafort’s slip is showing
The view’s still stunning, but the seafood and chop house has seen better days for food, service and décor. In the past year, whenever I mentioned Stanley & Seafort’s, people’s overwhelming response was a gesture: middle and forefingers rubbing against thumbs.
(Published 12:01AM, October 21st, 2005)
Bars in the key of eat
The stage talent at Chopstix, Sixth Avenue’s new “dueling piano bar,” instructed the audience to change the “do-do-do” part of the chorus as they sang Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline.”
(Published 12:01AM, October 14th, 2005)
An old-time cure-all
The drug store! But of course! What ails me, at least in the morning, is a lack of really good breakfast restaurants. The diner down the hill from my house does a steady job, but I like to scramble things up. That is, I like to eat around.
(Published 12:01AM, October 7th, 2005)
Chow for a cause
More than 16,000 restaurants across the country – including about 50 in Pierce County – will raise money today for the American Red Cross’ hurricane relief efforts. Dine for America is an annual fundraiser run by the National Restaurant Association.
(Published 12:01AM, October 5th, 2005)
Comfort meets class
The wooden pier that welcomed picnickers to Dash Point is gone, as are many nearby cottages. They have been replaced by newer and stronger, bigger and fancier.
(Published 12:01AM, September 30th, 2005)
A fine taste of the tropics
When Michelle Micklas says her restaurant’s barbecued ribs, chicken and other Chamorro favorites smell and taste like home, I’m inclined to believe her, even if I’ve never been to her native island.
(Published 12:01AM, September 23rd, 2005)
Deli doesn’t pass mustard
Mustard was the first sign. My financial adviser, Chuck, brought his own. He’s from New York. He’d been here before.
(Published 12:01AM, September 16th, 2005)
Sea-sational Grill
Seattle’s best new restaurant is in downtown Tacoma.
(Published 12:01AM, September 2nd, 2005)
Turning the tables
Servers work hard for the money. But do customers treat them right?
(Published 12:01AM, August 31st, 2005)
Practically perfect in Purdy
This is not a glowing review of a great restaurant. This is an open letter to the guy whose expectations weren’t satisfied at The Beach House at Purdy, the same guy who told his server he’d tell his friends about an awful restaurant.
(Published 12:01AM, August 19th, 2005)
Incomplete Indochine
I’m eager to try six things at Indochine Asian Dining Lounge, the sleek new restaurant in downtown Tacoma.
(Published 12:01AM, August 19th, 2005)
Bring the family to Fondita
Family. Mexican. Restaurant. Google those three words and you’ll find links to about 2 million Web pages.
(Published 12:01AM, August 5th, 2005)
North Beach by Northwest
Charlie McManus envisions his Tacoma restaurant, Primo Grill, as a little slice of North Beach, one of San Francisco’s picture-postcard neighborhoods.
(Published 12:01AM, July 29th, 2005)
Toast of Tacoma
Of all the dreams and schemes to put Tacoma on the map and keep it on people’s tongues, one has been brewing under our noses since the 19th century. It’s not what Frank Zappa called “a garlic aroma that could level Tacoma.” It’s better. It’s beer. Ten years ago this month, Engine House No. 9 became Tacoma’s first brewpub. That was big news then and is worth toasting today. But the real cause for celebration is the birth of one beer in particular – E9’s Tacoma Brew, which taps the city’s rich and hoppy history. “Tacoma was a serious brewing town before Prohibition,” said Dusty Trail, who opened Tacoma’s first microbrewery in 1995. “Tacoma Brew kind of nurtures and keeps that old history alive.”
(Published 12:01AM, July 27th, 2005)
Hold the meat
Of all the hyphenates that demand their own interest groups and followings, vegan-American is the most underserved.
(Published 12:01AM, July 22nd, 2005)
On the brink of greatness
Land use and growth are hot topics in Browns Point. One Browns Point landmark, The Cliff House, could stand to tweak its general plan here and there, but these suggestions are nothing the restaurant hasn’t heard before.
(Published 12:01AM, July 15th, 2005)
Downstairs does it better
Downstairs from The Cliff House, the view is just as good, the vibe’s a lot more casual and the overall dining experience is better.
(Published 12:01AM, July 15th, 2005)
Wood-fired pizza pleasure
The hottest thing in pizza these days is paper. Not thin crust (I’ll get to that in a few inches) but a document certifying that a pizza joint adheres to the pie-making principles of the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, an Old World Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval of sorts.
(Published 12:01AM, July 8th, 2005)
Breakfast, over difficult
If the cliché is correct and breakfast really is the most important meal of the day, then why is it so dang hard to find a restaurant that serves good breakfast?
(Published 12:01AM, July 1st, 2005)
Watching the ships roll in
The Tall Ships! The Tall Ships! If you think you can snag an easy reservation to eat lunch and watch the masted beauties sail into Commencement Bay on Thursday, you might be living on Fantasy Island.
(Published 12:01AM, June 24th, 2005)
A feast for the eyes
Membership, indeed, has its privileges. So, too, does a taste of membership subsidized by pay-as-you-eat surcharges.
(Published 12:01AM, June 17th, 2005)
Sauce, spice and everything nice
Some foods stick to your ribs. Others escape from every pore.
(Published 2:30AM, June 10th, 2005)
Restaurant reminiscing
News Tribune business reporter C.R. Roberts is a lifelong Tacoman who has eaten his way around town a few times. Here are some of his reminiscences of downtown Tacoma restaurants of the past:
(Published 4:18AM, May 29th, 2005)
Downtown dining dozen
I was lunching in downtown Tacoma, grousing about urban eats. “Why can’t you find a simple cafe that serves inexpensive, fresh and healthful food?”
(Published 12:01AM, May 29th, 2005)
Sharpen those elbows
Mark Bleckert, the chef and owner of Tacoma’s Old House Cafe, has shoehorned a big bistro inside a tiny space in a University Place strip mall.
(Published 12:01AM, May 20th, 2005)
First Bites
JT’s Original Louisiana Bar-B-Que moved from Gig Harbor to the western stretch of Sixth Avenue in Tacoma in early April.
(Published 12:01AM, May 13th, 2005)
Flavors waver in Sumner
Things are blooming at Windmill Gardens Garden Cafe. Troy Christian, formerly general manager, has bought the business from his old employer, the restaurant group that operates El Gaucho.
(Published 12:01AM, May 13th, 2005)
The grill from Ipanema
Ipanema Brazilian Grill, a 2-month-old South American smorgasbord that’s revived the colorful space abandoned by Wolfgang Puck Café in Seattle’s Harbor Steps development, is doing something I wish other restaurants would copy.
(Published 12:01AM, May 6th, 2005)
Flavors flow at Vin Grotto
Cities need hideaways: Someplace for a drink and an easy meal. A soft spot to rest. Someplace that’s not exactly a bar, pub, restaurant or club. Someplace in between. Somewhere downtown. Something not named Starbucks.
(Published 12:01AM, April 29th, 2005)
Promising progeny
Three familiar restaurants each have spun off new locations recently. They’re too new to review, but let’s take some first bites.
(Published 12:01AM, April 22nd, 2005)
Soul food sampler
Soul food, as defined by Clarence Major’s definitive “Juba to Jive: A Dictionary of African-American Slang,” is Southern-style cooking done by black Americans: fried chicken and barbecued ribs; collard greens and black-eyed peas; candied yams and sweet potato pie. Old-school soul foodies still simmer chitlins. Throw in catfish and okra, too. And don’t forget corn bread.
(Published 12:01AM, April 15th, 2005)
Five-star departure
Jeffrey Bishop says via e-mail and owner Mark Wambold confirms via telephone: The chef and Brix 25Ëš parted March 31. Both say it was mutual. Bishop was the opening chef for Brix 25 in Gig Harbor last year and at Wambold’s Il Fiasco in Tacoma in 2001.
(Published 12:01AM, April 8th, 2005)
Swank yet so-so
Mexico City’s latest culinary craze includes braised oysters with chipotle bernaise, and volcanic-ash margaritas.
(Published 12:01AM, April 8th, 2005)
A slice of pizza perfection
Puget Sound Pizza is the little restaurant that could. While downtown Tacoma’s “restaurant renaissance” chugs along, this 6-month-old spot has quietly, steadily and deliciously matured into a neighborhood pizzeria, lunch destination and breakfast hangout, all in one tiny location.
(Published 12:01AM, April 1st, 2005)
Hot Diggity!
Of all the new and opening-soon restaurants in downtown Tacoma, the one I’ve most anticipated is Hot Rod Dogs.
(Published 12:01AM, March 25th, 2005)
Smooth, start to finish
State law requires establishments that serve liquor by the drink to have licensed restaurant kitchens that serve food. If that’s why the Tacoma martini bar 21 Commerce serves well-executed Asian fusion appetizers and entrees, bully for bureaucracy.
(Published 12:01AM, March 11th, 2005)
Tacoma's a 'tini town
Tacoma cocktail culture vultures sip in the lap of luxury these days. Thanks to a trio of stylish cocktail lounges and martini bars, Tacoma tops expectations when it’s time to say “bottoms up.”
(Published 12:01AM, March 11th, 2005)
Come and get it
“City and state please.”
The information assistance operator struggled with Roy, Wash.
(Published 12:01AM, March 9th, 2005)
East & West ventures north
When the worst thing a restaurant critic can say about a new restaurant is that the front door needs fixing, you can bet we’re all in for a pretty good meal.
(Published 12:01AM, March 4th, 2005)
Set sail for a different kind of meal
If your dinner date says “meet me behind Hooters,” don’t get hot and bothered. Instead, get into the laid-back swing.
(Published 12:01AM, February 25th, 2005)
Fusion friction
Fusion is tricky cooking. You can’t throw a United Nations’ worth of ingredients together and expect instant palatability.
(Published 12:01AM, February 18th, 2005)
Pick quick because it’s cold outside
That famous Pennsylvania groundhog said spring is several weeks away.
(Published 12:01AM, February 11th, 2005)
Gamble on dining
I don’t gamble with money, but I eat at a lot of unfamiliar places. So I figure my odds of losing or winning are about the same as if I’d laid a bet on a pony or ponied up at pai gao.
(Published 6:46AM, February 4th, 2005)
Expect a winner if Sport fixes kinks
At one end of the bar, some braggarts were betting this would be the hottest sports bar in Seattle. At the other end, two bartenders were strategizing over telling owner John Howie about staffing and service problems they’ve had in the first week of operation.
(Published 12:01AM, January 28th, 2005)
Stop for sweet, spicy and satisfying
With apologies to Mrs. Tsakopoulos, my third-grade lunchroom monitor whose admonishments against being too hasty with the Ho-Hos went unheeded, I often eat dessert first.
(Published 12:01AM, January 21st, 2005)
Authentic Mexican flavors come to life
A recent lutefisk-bashing and subsequent Scandinavian tongue-lashing got me thinking: Don’t you hate it when someone outside your ethnic sphere tells you they know where to get the best (insert ethnic cuisine here)?
(Published 12:01AM, January 14th, 2005)
Brix 25° offers high degree of dining
This is the review I didn’t want to write. It’s the one you shouldn’t have to read.
(Published 12:01AM, January 7th, 2005)
Busy Pour at Four bar makes splash
What’s a good pick-up line at a wine bar? Sip here often? Your Pouilly Fuissé or mine?
(Published 12:01AM, December 31st, 2004)
Flavors, service triumph at Toscano’s
Snaking back roads through Fife into Puyallup, my landlady noted the changes. Industry and warehouses have replaced farmland. Family dining thrives where philandering lovers once secretly supped. And what’s this new place, Toscano’s? It looks like an urbane restaurant got lost in the budding ’burbs.
(Published 12:01AM, December 24th, 2004)
Cozy up to big portions, solid service
“Tanglewood Grill offers a consistently good menu of American food and Northwest specials, a cozy space spruced up like a hunting lodge, and friendly service by a cheerful young staff.”
(Published 12:01AM, December 17th, 2004)
Discover some of city’s best sushi
Before we take one bite of sushi or one sip of bekseju, there’s a Zen koan to resolve: Can one find beauty inside if one does not look beyond the unattractive exterior?
(Published 12:01AM, December 10th, 2004)
Gary doesn’t strike out at Steak Out
If you want to belly up for steaks at Gary’s Steak Out & Bar, be prepared to flash ID. No one under 21 is allowed.
(Published 12:01AM, December 3rd, 2004)
Go for the tacos, but stay for the ‘mas’
When boxer Roberto Duran sighed “no mas,” it was clear what he meant: He wanted no more of the whupping he was getting from Sugar Ray Leonard.
(Published 12:01AM, November 26th, 2004)
Settle in for all-American goodness
The waitress asked a customer at Alfred’s Café: “Do you know what a lady of the evening is?”
(Published 12:01AM, November 19th, 2004)
Blue Olive yet to reach its potential
The customer is always right. Let’s eavesdrop on one as he chats up acquaintances at the Blue Olive, the coolly swank restaurant-bar that anchors Thea’s Landing, the colorfully chic apartments on Tacoma’s Foss Waterway.
(Published 12:01AM, November 12th, 2004)
Whatever Lola has, you’ll want
By now, you’d expect to see Tom Douglas’ name above his restaurants. With three successful Seattle locations – touristy Etta’s, clubby Palace Kitchen and va-va-va-vivid Dahlia Lounge – Douglas has worked his way off the hot line and into the hot zone of food celebrity, as a James Beard winner and host of his own radio show.
(Published 12:01AM, November 5th, 2004)
Savor flavors at tasty Thai restaurant
Maybe my adventurous expectations are too high. Or maybe I spent too many years on the copy desk. Whatever the case, I think I was duped, maybe by my own mind. What would you expect from the following menu description?
(Published 12:01AM, October 29th, 2004)
You won’t go hungry at Hungry Goose
My desk mate and I had competing first impressions of Hungry Goose. She thought we were headed to a greasy spoon. I thought we had walked into a day spa. While she was as wrong as wrong gets, I still maintain my first, non-food impression isn’t far off base.
(Published 12:01AM, October 22nd, 2004)
First Bite: Brix 25°
Mark and Jill Wambold expand on their success at Tacoma’s Il Fiasco (given four stars here in August). Just a month old, Brix 25° has seasonal air and casual grace.
(Published 12:01AM, October 15th, 2004)
Clinkers amid the clanging
Terracciano Ristorante Italiano seemed poised for a Big Night. There was hint of bustle in the year-old restaurant. Italian pop standards struck a bouncy note.
(Published 12:01AM, October 15th, 2004)
First Bites
Pour at Four:
(Published 12:01AM, October 8th, 2004)
Hunting a hot date with barbecue
My barbecue man, Smokin’ Joe Johnson, makes the finest barbecue I’ve had from the West Coast to the Deep South. He has a couple of sayings that go hand in sauce-dripping hand:
(Published 12:01AM, October 8th, 2004)
Your new maxim: The eary bird gets the deal
In lore, the early bird gets the worm. In some restaurants, early birds willing to have dinner between 3 and 6 p.m. get three- and four-course meals at great prices.
(Published 3:01AM, October 1st, 2004)
Gold-standard organic fare at Sterling Café
Don Wilson wants you to know you can eat his liver without worries. I'm here to tell you it's so good you can forget the ketchup, too. But Don's side first.
(Published 3:01AM, September 24th, 2004)
Clams casino pizza hits jackpot for one family
Although my family was a bit dubious about dinner plans to put clams on pizza, they were willing to take a gamble. The result - today's recipe for clams casino pizza - hit the jackpot.
(Published 3:01AM, September 22nd, 2004)
At home in the Garden of Eatin'
(Published 3:01AM, September 10th, 2004)
Moctezuma's fare translates as tasty
Before giving me this plum assignment, my editor set me straight: You will review Mexican restaurants. I'd told him I'd been spoiled by Mexican home cooking and disgusted by south-of-the-border knockoffs.
(Published 3:01AM, September 3rd, 2004)
Seattle's Sterling Cafe now certified organic
The Washington Sate Department of Agriculture announced this week that the Sterling Cafe at 2614 N.E. 55th St., Seattle, has become the first Washington restaurant to become certifiably organic.
(Published 3:01AM, September 3rd, 2004)
Just like home
Before giving me this plum assignment, my editor set me straight: You will review Mexican restaurants. I'd told him I'd been spoiled by Mexican home cooking and disgusted by south-of-the-border knockoffs.
(Published 3:01AM, September 3rd, 2004)
Not quite classic Greek
The Olympics nearly ruin my appetite. All those lean bodies. All that athleticism. Thank Zeus for shot-putters, those beefy specimens who make eating look like a gold-medal sport. I get hungry just watching them.
(Published 3:01AM, August 27th, 2004)
Ultralounge offers martinis with a twist
Owners of the new Blue Olive "ultralounge" on the Thea Foss Waterway are betting that diners are looking for something new and different.
(Published 3:01AM, August 23rd, 2004)
Italian classics - no fiascos
There's a gag in Steve Martin's "L.A. Story" involving an uber-uppity restaurant. Phonetically, the name of the place is "lee-de-o." But it's spelled "Le Idiot." The joke's on the diner.
(Published 3:01AM, August 20th, 2004)
My restaurant reviews, like my stomach, will never lie
Hello, Tacoma. There's a new stomach in town. And I'm about to out myself. Full dishclosure, as it were.
(Published 3:01AM, August 20th, 2004)
True island flavor
Nature asserts itself on a visit to Vashon Island.
(Published 3:01AM, August 13th, 2004)
South Sound restaurants serve outdoor dining experiences
On warm, summer days and nights, Tacomans flock to Ruston Way like sea gulls, cramming onto the decks of familiar waterfront restaurants for some outdoor eating.
(Published 3:01AM, August 11th, 2004)
Order up!
Percy Sledge is belting out "When a Man Loves a Woman" on oldies radio. The weather is toasty warm.
(Published 3:01AM, August 6th, 2004)
Art exhibit features Jewish food customs
"A Sweet Year: A Taste of the Jewish Holidays" will be shown online at www.skirball.org and at Los Angeles' Skirball Cultural Center from Aug. 18 through Oct. 31, celebrating the culinary customs of the Jewish year.
(Published 3:01AM, August 6th, 2004)
My big fat Greek pastries
I'm dangling a thin strip of pastry dough over a pot of boiling oil, mouthing a quick prayer.
(Published 3:01AM, August 4th, 2004)
Mandolin Café serves up European flair with its food and drink
The mandolin is a European instrument, evocative of Italian caffes, passion and great literature.
(Published 3:01AM, July 30th, 2004)
Gone are the salad days for Tacoma's Zoopa fans
My voice mail was lit up and so, too, was the caller who left the message. It was one of those rants that come only in the early morning. She left neither her name nor her number, but she did leave quite an impression. She wasn't angry so much as bemused and amused. OK, maybe a little ticked off.
(Published 3:01AM, July 25th, 2004)
'Best-kept secret'
David Orth likes to stroll around the Prizm cafe, telling his partner's secrets.
(Published 3:01AM, July 23rd, 2004)
Thai to dine for
If you go to Galanga Thai, be sure to try the sticky rice dessert.
(Published 3:01AM, July 16th, 2004)
Haute food to go
Eve Hewitt worked 60 hours a week as a human resources manager, and found herself in deli lines every night at 6 p.m., doing the sushi-chicken-Mexican-pizza shuffle for her family.
(Published 3:01AM, July 9th, 2004)
From brothel to bistro
Like an earnest archaeologist, Dave Meconi excavated through layers of history.
(Published 3:01AM, June 25th, 2004)
Ready for the Taste test
Drop by the Polynesian Grill in Lakewood for lunch on any given weekday, and you're bound to find the place packed with folks enjoying Jamaican smoked ribs, sticks of marinated pork and butterfly barbecue chicken thighs.
(Published 3:01AM, June 23rd, 2004)
Hey, Moe! These guys are out to conquer the Tex-Mex world
ATLANTA - Its name is based on a Three Stooges character. The menu is filled with references to "Seinfeld" and other TV shows. And employees are required to greet every customer with a shout of "Welcome to Moe's!"
(Published 3:01AM, June 23rd, 2004)
Cosmic sampling at Aroma Cafe
The food is Mediterranean, Mexican and New York-style. The music ranges from opera to salsa to The Smelter Rats, a Tacoma Irish-Appalachian group. The murals on the walls are copies after German expressionist Max Pechstein and Dutch master Rembrandt van Rijn, and folk-art masks are from Mexico, Indonesia and Jamaica.
(Published 3:01AM, June 18th, 2004)
Canlis family includes patrons
Canlis is leaning into the future while holding tightly to its past.
(Published 3:01AM, June 11th, 2004)
Restaurant will give Puyallup a taste of the Bayou
The rumors are true: From The Bayou, a popular Cajun restaurant in Parkland, will open its second location in Puyallup in late summer or early fall.
(Published 3:01AM, June 8th, 2004)
Friendly fare from the islands
If you've tried to do Hawaii on the cheap, you might have run across the "plate lunch."
(Published 3:01AM, June 4th, 2004)
Old farmhouse becomes Windmill Village's cafe
Opening Saturday at Windmill Gardens, the Garden Cafe provides the last piece of the village concept that has been in development since 1990. The cafe, which occupies the renovated and expanded farmhouse on the south side of the property, will offer breakfast and lunch daily, as well as Sunday brunch.
(Published 3:01AM, May 30th, 2004)
New Businesses: Harbor Bakery in Tacoma becomes Café dei Pani
Café dei Pani, formerly known as Harbor Bakery and Deli, has changed its name and menu.
(Published 3:01AM, May 27th, 2004)
Clock Tower strikes fresh spirit downtown
The atmosphere is mellow as Sunday morning. But you never know when a spooky Saturday night will creep in, sending wineglasses sailing through the air or dishes winging up from their tables.
(Published 3:01AM, May 21st, 2004)
Neighborly pizzeria provides 'full-value' fare
True pizza lovers are always searching for something outside the cardboard box.
(Published 3:01AM, May 14th, 2004)
New Businesses: Pub 54, where are you? On South Tacoma Way
Pub 54, a restaurant and lounge, opened last month in Tacoma.
(Published 3:01AM, May 13th, 2004)
FareStart serves staff as staff serves diners
Getting a table on a Thursday night at FareStart has to be a premeditated act.
(Published 3:01AM, May 7th, 2004)
New businesses: Taco Del Mar opens first restaurant in Sumner
Taco Del Mar has arrived in Sumner, opening its first restaurant there.
(Published 3:01AM, May 6th, 2004)
Fare healthy - and liberal - at Traditions
Emma, sandwich-maker extraordinaire at Traditions Cafe & World Folk Art in Olympia, emerged from the kitchen with brows furrowed and lips pursed. She came bearing bad news, you could just tell.
(Published 3:01AM, April 30th, 2004)
New Businesses: Thai restaurant opens at Tacoma's James Center
A new Thai restaurant, Arayah Thai Cuisine, has opened at James Center in Tacoma.
(Published 3:01AM, April 29th, 2004)
Tatanka Takeout takes its bison seriously
At Tatanka Takeout, the unshiny ceiling "says it all," according to Rick Hammond.
(Published 3:01AM, April 16th, 2004)
