Tacoma Weekly's Dining Guide

Here are some of the best restaurants for breakfast, lunch and dinner in the Tacoma, Puyallup, and South Sound area. Enjoy.

The Ale House
Mug1.gifIf you like a wide variety of beers AND good food this place is for you. They have 63 different beers on tap. The food is served quickly and they offer nightly and weekend specials. They even have a breakfast special on Saturday and Sunday. The Ale House is located near TCC.
2212 Mildred St., University Place, 565-9367

Bella Nina's Ristorante Italiano
Old-world Italian cooking from family recipes. It's a great place for family dining. The entries are all approximately seven dollars.
6218 6th Ave., Tacoma, 564-7994

Bimbo's Italian Restaurant
Lasagna.gif For 75 years Bimbo's has been serving the best Italian food in Tacoma. Their deep red marinara sauce tastes like it's been cooking on the back burner for days but it's really cooked fresh each day starting in the wee hours of the morning. A nationally prominent author writing about what's "in" and what's "out" in popular culture chose Tacoma as the only "in" city in America and Bimbo's was one of the reasons.
1516 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 383-5800

Brooklyn's
Brooklyn's offers good service and style. They serve lunch. The food's good and the prices are inexpensive.
10404 South Tacoma Way, Tacoma, 581-2564

Salmon.gifCellars Under Broadway
This is a downtown Tacoma gourmet establishment. Cellars provides excellent food and an excellent wine list, too.
1127 Broadway, Tacoma, 274-0162

Clover Leaf Tavern
The Clover Leaf still uses recipes based on Pearl Marzano's delicious pizzas from The Roma of Ponder's Corner in the 50s and 60s. The pizzas are greasy, chewey, and to die for. The Clover Leaf even offers real bacon (not bacon bits) for your pizza topping. The recommended favorite is pepperoni, Italian sausage, real bacon, mushrooms, black olives, and extra cheese. Health concious people need not order here. Eat in, take out or delivery (very limited area).
6430 6th Avenue, Tacoma, 565-1111

Gateway To India
At the Gateway you'll find curry like you've never had it. You'll also get good bread, rice and more. They have a luncheon buffet where you can sample a number of menu items. A favorite is the lamb curry.
2603 6th Ave, Tacoma, 752-5022

The Harmon Pub and Brewery
Glass.gifYou'll find everything from cedar-plank salmon to pizza at Harmon. You'll also discover some original-brewed beer that'll bring you back many times. Located on the main street of downtown Tacoma.
1938 Pacific Avenue, Tacoma

The Hob Nob
The Hob Nob sits across from Wright Park and offers bountiful, traditional and great food, cold beer and friendly service. Breakfasts are really nice.
716 6th Ave, Tacoma, 272-3200

Johnny's Dock
Lobster.gif Moored boats, the new Washington State Historical Museum and the remodeled Union Station complete with Chihuly glass are just some of the views at Johnny's Dock. The food is always excellent. The chowder is great. Try the Bleu Baron Burger or the Chicken Oriental Salad for lunch. For dinner you can't go wrong with any of the seafood selections. You'll find many fine dining favorites here.
1900 E. D Street, Tacoma, 627-3186

Katie Downs Tavern & Eatery
Beer, pizza, fish 'n chips, and a fantastic view are what you'll find at Katie Downs' waterfront eatery. In the summertime you can eat and drink on the deck, but in the winter, you'll want to stay inside. The pizza is excellent, the curly fries are really tasty, and the fish 'n chips comes in halibut or snapper, both good. You can order the pizza for delivery but you can't beat the waterfront view.
3211 Ruston Way, Tacoma, 756-0771

Lessie's Southern Cuisine
Good food and hospitality are the hallmark of Lessie Smith. She's operated three friendly restaurants since 1964 (Smith's Cafe, Lessie's Southern Kitchen, and the current one, Lessie's Southern Cuisine). Lessie grew up in Tuskegee, Alabama and her food reflects her origins. She serves fried chicken, gumbo, fried catfish, pork chops, meat loaf, and her famous chicken-fried steak. Come hungry and leave full from Lessie's.
10105 South Tacoma Way, Tacoma, 588-9528

Luciano's Waterfront Italian Ristorante
This Ruston Way waterfront restuarant features a fresh and lively Italian food, as good as you knew it always could be. Singing waiters and a wonderful view add to the charm.
3327 Ruston Way, Tacoma, 756-5611

Pizza & Pipes
They've been around for years and they'll be around longer. You get great pizzas, including the King of Kings ("everything but the Wurlitzer"). The organ music is good and the kids will love it.
2014 Mildred St., University Place, 565-3848

Planet Burrito
Planet Burrito offers custom made burritos. Choose what you want in your own burrito, all of them big and delicious. The salsa is worth trying, too. Follow up with the fresh and delicious cookies.
Downtown, 6th Ave, Parkland, Tillicum

Pomodoro
This is one of the friendliest restaurants around. During the summer food and drinks are served at tables on the sidewalks and the windows of the restaurant open out onto the sidwalk as well. This must drive passersby crazy with all the great smells coming from the kitchen. At the Pomodoro you'll find original Italian food (from family recipes) served in interesting and friendly surroundings. A great neighborhood drop-in restaurant.
3819 N 26th St., Tacoma, 752 1111

Rock Pasta
Located in the University of Washington-Tacoma area, Rock Pasta offers some of the best, and most unusual pizzas around. Rock Pasta is called the king of Tacoma pizza.
1920 Jefferson, Tacoma, 272-1221

Roof-n-Doof's
Shrimp.gif This place is Cajun. You can have crawfish and fried green tomatoes as appetizers. The jambalaya, catfish and seafood gumbo are excellent. Look for the okra. Roof-n-Doof's even has hushpuppies!
754 Pacific Ave, Tacoma, 572-5113

Sar's Oriental Cuisine
Located on Pearl street on the way to Point Defiance Park in the converted King's burger & fries drive in, this wonderful little gem of a restaurant offers excellent Thai, Cambodian and Viet Namese food. The prices are low, but the quality is high. Sar's hasn't forgotten it's burger and fries roots. You can still order them from the menu. . . but, why would you?
4612 North Pearl, Tacoma, 761-2727

Somewhere in Time
If you'd like to go back in time to the elegance of a hundred years ago, you'll like the atmosphere of high society at Somewhere in Time. Tea with scones and cream are a standard at Somewhere in Time. Take someone you love to share the romance. Reservations are required for dinner.
7716 Pioneer Way, Gig Harbor, 253-851-8199

The Tea Leaf
This is one of the best Chinese restaurants in Pierce County. They feature duck, Shark's Fin Soup and Northern Style vegetables. Located near PLU, it's a fast and friendly lunch.
528 Garfield, South Tacoma, 531-5232

The Vault
It's called The Vault because it has a foot-thick steel doorway. (This was formerly a bank.) Good service, great bread, good food. This is one of "The" places to go in Tacoma.
1025 Pacific Avenue, Tacoma, 572-2933

Wendy's Vietnamese and Wendy's II
Fresh.gifWendy Au's restaurants are havens of fresh cooked vegetables and tasty Asian food. Wendy won the 1994 Golden Fork Award presented by food critic Bart Ripp of The News Tribune. Wendy's restaurants have also been selected at Tacoma favorites by Tacoma Weekly readers. Her Freighthouse Square site is a very busy place for lunch. Her Wendy's II site is a great place for lunch or dinner. Monthly lunch specials available weekdays. Wendy is always friendly and she's a great cook, too.
430 E. 25th, Tacoma, 572-4678 (Freighthouse Square) 5015 Tacoma Mall Blvd, Tacoma, 471-0228 (Evergreen Plaza)

Please, check out our Tacoma Restaurant Reviews for more information on restaurants in the Tacoma, South Sound area.

Wines Northwest

Wine.gifWines Northwest provides facts, maps and listings of wine related businesses to help site visitors choose wineries, restaurants (especially those that serve local wines) and lodging facilities located conveniently enough for personally designed tours. Contact information is supplied, including links to winery Web sites and email addresses when available, so arrangements and reservations can be made when required