Tag Archives: Tacoma Restaurants

Posted in Jack & Mimi's Cheap Date, Tacoma Places

Tagged Pho King, Tacoma Restaurants

Jack and Mimi’s Cheap Date: The Harvester

Posted on May 7, 2015 | 1 comment

There are some places that are so much a part of my life that I forget that there are others who don’t even know they exist. My very first apartment was about four blocks away from The Harvester in Tacoma’s Stadium District. The Harvester is a diner like Shari’s or Denny’s but local and good. I’ve gone there countless times for breakfast, lunch, and dinner over the years. But this time, Mimi and I would be going there and trying to spend less than $20.

We went for breakfast one weekday morning. It was fairly empty. We took a window booth and looked over the menu. We quickly found a problem: Almost every full breakfast was nine dollars or more. This wasn’t going to be easy, but we’d already sat down and we were hungry.

The waitress poured a couple of small glasses of water. Mimi ordered a coffee. I chose a Farmer’s Omelet for $9.79. Mimi decided for Bacon & Eggs for $9.49. The coffee turned out to be $2.39. This put us over our limit.

Our food arrived. I was so hungry that I instantly took a bite of an English Muffin before Mimi reminded me to take a photo for the article. Mimi enjoyed her Bacon & Eggs though the bacon was a bit greasy for her tastes. My omelet was good and the portions were substantial.

The Harvester is a favorite of mine. Hardly a month goes by that I don’t end up there. For the purposes of having good diner food in a great neighborhood, I recommend it. For Jack & Mimi’s Cheap Date, I must give the breakfast a mixed review. The food was good, but the price was a bit too high.

The Harvester is located on the corner of Division and Tacoma Ave. at 29 N. Tacoma Ave., Tacoma, WA 98403.

– Jack Cameron

Tagged Harvester Tacoma, Jack Cameron, Tacoma Breakfast, Tacoma Restaurants, The Harvester

Jack & Mimi’s Cheap Date: Vien Dong

Posted on April 22, 2015 | Leave a comment

Welcome to the latest installment of Jack & Mimi’s Cheap Date. Here are the rules: Each week, my girlfriend Mimi and I go somewhere in the Tacoma area for a cheap date where we spend $20 or less. This does not include tips because service is unique and can’t be universally quantified. This week we take a look at Vien Dong.

I’ve spent most of my adult life living in Tacoma’s Stadium District and the North End, but I grew up on Tacoma’s South Side on South 40^th & Fawcett. A few blocks away on South 38^th Street is an area my parents called ‘little Vietnam’ due to the amount of Vietnamese businesses there. In 1989 Vien Dong opened its doors on the corner of South 38^th & Yakima Ave. and quickly became a fixture of the neighborhood.

I had been to Vien Dong once before many years ago and enjoyed the food. Mimi and I were trying to find a place we wanted to go. I mentioned Vietnamese food. She said, “I’m always hungry for Vietnamese food.”

We parked on the street and walked into a fairly empty restaurant on a Monday afternoon. There was one couple at a table and an old woman at a table by herself. We chose a seat and were given menus and hot tea with two small cups.

Mimi had never been there before and it’d been long enough that I didn’t remember what their prices were like. So I was surprised when I found that there were plenty of options to keep us within our $20 budget.

Given the variety of choices, it took a while for us to decide. Ultimately I chose number 32 Com Chien Duong Chau – Fried Rice with your choice of Shrimp, BBQ Pork, Chicken, or Beef. (I chose beef.) Mimi chose number 22 Bun Cha Gio Tren Khay – Egg Rolls & Vegetables Served in a bowl. Mimi also ordered a Café Sua Da – Iced French Coffee With Condensed Milk. I stuck with tea and water for a beverage.

The food arrived very quickly. The first thing I noticed was that our portions were huge. I took a photo of the table and realized I had to stand up to fit it all in the picture. Mimi enjoyed her food and found it incredibly filling. In fact, she wasn’t able to finish it all. My fried rice was a tiny bit too fried, but still enjoyable.

When it came time to leave, we wandered over to the cash register. Despite seeing the prices on the menu, I was still surprised when it only came to $17.25. This was easily the most food we’ve had so far on our Cheap Date excursions and one that we’ll definitely return to another time.

The South Side has many worthwhile places to discover. After our meal we went across the street to a wonderful shop full of random things and purchased a couple of noodle bowls.

Vien Dong is located at 3801 S. Yakima Ave., Tacoma, WA 98418

Where should Mimi and I go next? If you’ve got an idea, let us know. Email me at jackcameronis@gmail.com.

Tagged Tacoma Restaurants, Vien Dong

Jack and Mimi’s Cheap Date: The Rosewood Cafe

Posted on April 14, 2015 | Leave a comment

Welcome to the latest installment of Jack & Mimi’s Cheap Date. Here are the rules: Each week, my girlfriend Mimi and I go somewhere in the Tacoma area for a cheap date where we spend $20 or less. This does not include tips because service is unique and can’t be universally quantified. This week we take a look at The Rosewood Café.

The Rosewood Café is a quiet little place on the corner of North 26^th and Warner near the Proctor District. They’re primarily a sandwich shop with a relaxed style that’s both comfortable and familiar. It feels nothing like a franchise.

One day last week, Mimi and I stopped by for a cheap lunch date. The Proctor area is notorious for being expensive. The Safeway a few blocks away recently tried to start charging for parking in their lot, but public outcry stopped them. Simply put, the Rosewood isn’t the first place I’d think to go if I only wanted to spend twenty dollars or less.

Mimi and I looked over the menu. She decided on the Rosewood Deluxe. The menu describes the Rosewood Deluxe as “Oven roasted all natural turkey, smoked bacon, Havarti cheese, fresh lettuce, tomato, and red onion. Served on grilled peasant bread with mayo.” It was $8.00.

I chose the Big Tuna Melt for $7.50. We each got beverages. I got a Coke. Mimi got a decaf coffee.

The food arrived fairly quickly. My tuna melt was warm and delicious. It was good sized, but I’m not sure it earned the title ‘Big’. The Coke was from a can, but though I had two, they only charged me for one.

Mimi said that her Rosewood Deluxe was alright. She enjoyed the coleslaw side and felt that the fact that the sandwich was toasted really improved the sandwich.

Between the atmosphere and the sandwiches, our cheap date at the Rosewood was very enjoyable. Unfortunately, there was a problem when it came to the bill. Our sandwiches came to $15.50. Our beverages were each $2.25. Our total before tax was exactly $20.00.

Jack & Mimi’s Cheap Date failed to come in under our twenty dollar limit. So while I recommend people check out The Rosewood Café for good food and a quiet local atmosphere, I can’t recommend it for a Cheap Date.

The Rosewood Cafe is located at 3323 North 26th Street, Tacoma, WA 98407

Where should Mimi and I go next? If you’ve got an idea, let us know. Email me at jackcameronis@gmail.com.

– Jack Cameron

Tagged Tacoma Places, Tacoma Restaurants, The Rosewood Cafe

Jack and Mimi’s Cheap Date: The Red Hot

Posted on April 7, 2015 | 2 comments

The first response I received to last week’s article The Red Hot’s Twitter favoriting it. I took this as an invitation for this week’s edition of Jack & Mimi’s Cheap Date. For those unfamiliar with the concept of this column, it’s fairly simple. One day each week, my girlfriend, Mimi and I go out on a date somewhere in Tacoma using only $20.

This is not the first time I’ve been to The Red Hot. It’s a hot dog bar located on Tacoma’s 6^th Avenue. Their beer selection tends to be a wide variety of craft brews, many of them local. Their hot dogs and sausages are so popular that Cheney Stadium just made a deal to sell them at the Tacoma Rainiers games this season.

The Red Hot was originally located next door in a small space that is now a tattoo shop. When the bridal store moved out, The Red Hot moved into their present space. By comparison, this new location seems gigantic.

Mimi and I sat down to eat and looked at the menu. Since they serve mostly hot dogs and sausages, the difficulty wasn’t finding something within the $20 budget. It was choosing from the many options. After some debate, Mimi selected the Rainier Rueben hot dog described on the menu as “1000 Island dressing, spicy brown mustard, Swiss cheese, and topped with sauerkraut.” And I chose the Big Kahuna: “Smoked sweet & spicy Hawaiian sausage, Saigon sauce, onions, cole slaw, & topped with grilled pineapple rings.” For beverages Mimi ordered a Snoqualmie Root Beer. I ordered a pint of the No-Li Spin Cycle Red.

One of the great things about The Red Hot is that the service is often blindingly fast. It seemed like our dogs were ready in just a few minutes.

They weren’t lying about the sausage. It was sweet and spicy. It might have been a bit spicier than I prefer, but that’s just me. The pineapple rings were nice, but kind of unwieldy on the sausage. Once I really got into it, the combination of flavors along with the Spin Cycle Red made for a very enjoyable small meal. The Spin Cycle is a solid Red. I’m not very familiar with the No-Li brewery in Spokane, but I’ll be keeping an eye out for their brews in the future.

Mimi’s first reaction to her Rainier Rueben was that the sauerkraut was amazing. Lately she’s been on a bit of a Rueben kick, ordering a Rueben whenever it’s on the menu. So her praise of their sauerkraut is well earned. She said the Snoqualmie Root Beer was smooth and not overly fizzy.

A few years ago if you would have told me that you were opening up a hot dog bar in Tacoma, I’d say you were crazy. These days, The Red Hot is one of my go-to locations when I’m looking for good beer and a small meal for a good price. It doesn’t hurt that just a couple doors down, you can get incredible ice cream at The Ice Cream Social.

The Red Hot is located at 2914 6^th Ave., Tacoma, WA 98406.

If you would like to suggest a place for a future installment of Jack & Mimi’s Cheap Date, go ahead an contact me at jackcameronis@gmail.com or send me a message on Twitter.

– Jack Cameron

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Posted in Jack & Mimi's Cheap Date, Tacoma Places

Tagged Tacoma Restaurants, The Red Hot

Jack and Mimi’s Cheap Date: Taqueria Las Torres

Posted on March 31, 2015 | Leave a comment

Welcome back to Jack & Mimi’s Cheap Date. Originally the concept was to have my girlfriend Mimi and I order the two cheapest entrées on the menu and then write about that experience. Unfortunately, this led to us ordering things we didn’t always like and in some cases, there were things that we literally couldn’t eat due to allergies or dietary restrictions. This led us to abandon this column for a while. However, I’ve come up with some new rules and they’re fairly simple:

We go on a date to a local place in Tacoma and try to spend no more than $20 total. This excludes tipping because a tip is dependent both on how much you spend and the quality of service.

First up for this new season of Jack & Mimi’s Cheap Date is Taqueria Las Torres. Taqueria Las Torres is a Taco Truck connected to a small building on Tacoma’s 6^th Ave. and Fife Street. Here’s a photo of the place.

Mimi ordered the three taco meal with marinated pork and a Mandarin Orange Soda. I ordered the Enchilada plate and a Mexican Coke. Our total was $19.97.

The dining area isn’t much more than you might expect in a cafeteria. It’s utilitarian rather than stylish. Televisions play whatever they’ve selected from Netflix. After a few minutes, our order was called out and we took our food back to our table.

For food from what’s essentially a Taco Truck, it’s really not bad and fairly filling. Nothing was particularly spicy, though there’s a condiments area where you can add spice if that’s your thing. Mimi’s dish was more than a little hot by the time she was done preparing it. I ate mine with the provided plastic fork and knife.

My enchilada was tasty and filling. Mimi said that the marinated pork taco plate as authentic and that the vegetables were very fresh.

If you’re looking for a high class Mexican dining experience, this isn’t it. But you know that going in. If you’re looking for authentic, inexpensive Mexican food and friendly service, this is the place.

Taqueria Las Torres is located at 2516 6th Ave, Tacoma, WA 98406.

– Jack Cameron

Tagged Tacoma Restaurants, Taqueria Las Torres

5 Question Friday With Tony, Owner of Little Jerry’s

Posted on February 21, 2014 | 1 comment

Last December my girlfriend suggested we have breakfast at a place called Little Jerry’s. I knew nothing about it. I looked it up and found the address. It wasn’t too far from the South Tacoma neighborhood I grew up in, but even knowing where it was and what I was looking for, I must admit I initially drove by the place. Then I turned around and we walked into a classic diner with an outright obsession with the TV Show, Seinfeld. It also turned out to be one of the best breakfasts I’ve ever had.

Whenever I find an awesome place in Tacoma, I want to share it with the world. And so I asked the owner of Little Jerry’s, a guy named Tony, to join me for 5 Question Friday. Here’s Tony:

1. What is Little Jerry’s?

Little Jerry’s is a breakfast & lunch joint. We serve skillets, breakfast stackers, outrageous burgers and sandwiches. . . COME EAT!

2. What makes Little Jerry’s different?

Little Jerry’s is different because of our perspective. . . we don’t fit the standard restaurant or diner mold. We make food that we love to eat in an environment that we love. . . Seinfeld.

3. Why Seinfeld?

We chose Seinfeld because it is and has been our favorite show. Its content relates to so many people even today, 15 years after its final show. It also has so many correlations with food, and around eating, it all just fell into place.

4. What should someone order if it’s their first time at Little Jerry’s?

Someone should definitely try one of our breakfast stackers for breakfast which takes your home fries or hash browns, topped with an English muffin or biscuit, topped with breakfast meat, eggs, and topped with either country gravy or hollandaise. At lunchtime, “The Mimbo” is by far the most popular, a 1/3# burger, fried egg, bacon, nestled between two grilled cheese sandwiches. . . so good!

5. What would you like to see for the future of Little Jerry’s?

We would like to see continued growth and success within our neighborhood, and grow with our customers and their families. We want to serve generation after generation. I want to hear people say, “I came here as a kid too.”

I’d like to thank Tony for taking the time to participate in 5 Question Friday. If you’re a local or even if you’re just passing through town, you owe it to yourself to stop by. I highly recommend it. Little Jerry’s is located at 8233 South Park Ave. If you’re heading towards 84^th Street from the direction of the Mall it’s on the left hand side.

You can also find Little Jerry’s online at http://www.littlejerrys.com/
on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/LittleJerrys or on Twitter @LittleJerrys_

If you or someone you know would like to participate in 5 Question Friday, drop me a line at jackcameronis@gmail.com.

– Jack Cameron

Posted in 5 Question Fridays, Tacoma Places

Tagged Little Jerry's, Seinfeld, Tacoma Breakfast, Tacoma Restaurants

Jack and Mimi’s Cheap Date: The Eleven Eleven

Posted on July 16, 2013 | Leave a comment

Welcome to a new ongoing column for TacomaStories.com. It’s called ‘Jack & Mimi’s Cheap Date*’. My girlfriend, Mimi and I like to go out to eat. And so once a week, we’re going to go somewhere in Tacoma, order the two cheapest entrees on the menu. We’ll tell you the price, what we thought of the place, and what we thought of the food and service.

For the first installment, we went to Hilltop’s own, Eleven Eleven. Located at 1111 on South 11^th Street, the Eleven Eleven opened almost exactly a year ago by bearded twins Justin and Robby Peterson. This was not my first time at the Eleven Eleven but it’s walking distance from Mimi’s place and I’ve never gone there and been disappointed. It seemed the perfect place to try this little experiment out.

We walked in on a Saturday night. It was a busy but not overly crowded. We found a table for two in the back and were almost immediately handed menus. We ordered our drinks and consulted the menu. The Eleven Eleven serves mostly sandwiches and their sandwiches are amazing. Going to the Eleven Eleven and not ordering a sandwich would be like going to the Red Hot and not ordering a hot dog. You could do it, but why?

Mimi noticed that the hot sandwiches are almost all cheaper than the cold sandwiches. We looked over the list.

Mimi immediately found the grilled cheese sandwich for $7.00. I kind of wanted the Club, but it was $8.75 and there were plenty of options that were $8.50. The more I thought about Mimi’s Grilled Cheese, the better it sounded, but one of the rules of Jack and Mimi’s Cheap Date* is that we order two different things. This way we’re not just talking about one dish. Besides, how boring is it when your date orders the same thing you did?

I ultimately decided on the Ham & Cheese. Mimi’s Grilled Cheese came with tomato soup and chips. I also could have added soup but that would have cost more. Mimi chose the jalapeno chips. I chose original flavor.

We drank our drinks and from my vantage point I could see part of the kitchen where the sandwiches were being prepared. Each plate that went out looked delicious. I’m likely a bit biased. I’m a big fan of sandwiches in general. My first job was at the Antique Sandwich Company. I knew exactly what Warren Zevon meant when he had been diagnosed with terminal cancer and on Letterman he said, “Enjoy every sandwich.” This is a place that Warren Zevon would have loved.

Our sandwiches arrived. Each had a slice of pickle with it. I’m not a fan of pickles so I handed Mimi mine. The chips were small bags of Tim’s Cascade Chips. I opened my bag and ate a couple of chips. For those of you who have not had Tim’s Cascade Chips, they are among the crunchiest chips on the planet. They may very well be made out of potato flavored rocks from the Cascade Mountains. Mimi asked if I could eat them given some recent dental work I had done. I told her it was no problem and hoped I was telling the truth.

For two of the cheapest things on the menu, the Eleven Eleven didn’t skimp on substance. My sandwich was full of ham and hot melted cheese. I bit into the sandwich and tried not to smile. I’d never had the ham and cheese sandwich here, but like all the others I’ve tried, it was incredible. As I put the sandwich down, a tiny string of cheese caught in my beard. Mimi laughed.

Mimi’s first reaction to the tomato soup was to say, “This soup didn’t come from a can.” She said it had hints of garlic and was definitely homemade. The fact that she ate almost all of it even after the grilled cheese sandwich was gone is impressive given that she doesn’t typically like tomato soup on its own. Mimi added, “The soup and sandwich aren’t pretentious and fussy. It’s simple food, done really well.”

Our check came as we finished. The price of the food was $16.97. So for a twenty dollar bill you can have two great sandwiches along with a 15% tip. Not bad at all.

– Jack Cameron

Jack and Mimi’s Cheap Date By The Numbers:

Address: 1111 South 11^th Street, Tacoma, WA 98405

Grilled Cheese Sandwich: $7.00

Ham & Cheese Sandwich: $8.50

Check: $16.97

*Jack and Mimi’s Cheap Date does not include the price of drinks. This is mainly because I’m a bit of a craft beer freak and more often than not, I’m not willing to drink the cheapest beer on tap.

Posted in Jack & Mimi's Cheap Date, Tacoma Places

Tagged Cheap Date, Eleven Eleven, Sandwiches, Tacoma Bars, Tacoma Restaurants

5 Question Friday With Pacific Grill’s Gordon Naccarato

Posted on September 14, 2012 | 1 comment

Seven years ago if you wanted to go to a really nice restaurant in downtown Tacoma, your choices were few. That when Gordon Naccarato opened Pacific Grill. Gordon agreed to join me for 5 Question Friday and tell us a bit about his restaurant and some other things. Here’s Gordon:

1) For those who don’t know, what is Pacific Grill?
PG is my restaurant in the gorgeous Waddell building in downtown Tacoma. We serve contemporary American cuisine, and a great all-day Happy Hr.

2) Why is Tacoma a good place for a restaurant?
When we opened PG 7 years ago I think Tacoma was under-served in terms of quality restaurants, and certainly in chef-owned, non-corporate chain restaurants.

3) What are some of your favorite places to get a bite to eat in Tacoma?
I love the Lobster House on 38th in the International District for good Asian food and next door El Zócalo that serves amazing and delicious tortas (that are enough for 2 meals)– and has an attached bakery. Charlie McManus does a great job at Primo Grill and Crown Bar. And I do love the great breakfasts they are serving at DOA. But I love driving to Seattle or Portland to learn something new and see what is going on. And I just got back from Los Angeles where I went out to eat day & night (and one day had 3 lunches with my daughter cause I had to try so many new places!)

4) What food is highly underrated?
Ramen. I love ramen, pho and Saimin (in Hawaii). But if I could have only one it would be ramen. Although I appreciate how unstructured Saimin can be– in Hawaii it as if Pho & Ramen had a wild child named Saimin that can be quite untraditional and really delicious. Even the cheap-ass ramen is delicious (especially if you add some Vietnamese Curry powder to the base, some fresh grated ginger, cilantro, mint and basil– and even a tablespoon of chunky peanut butter too!)

5) What are your plans for the future of Pacific Grill?
I am working on several new projects. It is hard to say which may come to fruition first. But I am considering shaking things up a bit on the PG menu in the near future.

I want to thank Gordon for taking the time to be part of 5 Question Friday. You can check out Pacific Grill for yourself at 1502 Pacific Avenue.

If you think you or someone you know would be interested in participating inf 5 Question Friday, drop me a line at jackcameronis@gmail.com

– Jack Cameron