Category Archives: Restaurants

Quirky and Tasty – Waterfront Pizza in Port Townsend

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Waterfront Pizza

Originally uploaded by Gexydaf

Because I was traveling, I missed recording a new place of the day on Tuesday. But we went to Waterfront Pizza in Port Townsend for lunch and it was a treat. The two of us had a small pizza and I had a side salad. Pretty much what they have is pizza, basic salads and assorted beverages (beer, wine, soda). The Yelp reviews sometimes complain about the service, but our server was great!

The main level store front area is very tiny and used as a kitchen and a place to buy a slice. The upper level is a small traditional restaurant of about six tables.

951 Water Street
Port Townsend, WA 98368-5732
(360) 385-6629

http://www.yelp.com/biz/waterfront-pizza-port-townsend

Ruby Tuesday, one choice for the holidays

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Ruby Tuesday

Originally uploaded by Gexydaf

Today we went to see the Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader in 3D My dear daughter and I had recently rewatched the first two movies in the series and were looking forward to this recent installment. We really loved it. Much of the movie was set on the ship and the visuals of the sea were stupendous.

Anyway, we had 30 minutes to eat lunch. My dear daughter gets rather grumpy when not feed, so it was important to eat. While large chain restaurants are not our first choice, it was Ruby Tuesday or a Sports Bar and Ruby Tuesday was the clear winner. We had an appetizer each (a single crab cake for me and spinach dip for her) and also sodas. With the tip, it came to $30, which seemed kind of expensive. The food was good, but not that special. Service was pleasant and understanding about our short time frame.

http://www.rubytuesday.com/

There are 890 Ruby Tuesday locations, including several overseas spots (Chile, Iceland, India, Egypt, Hong Kong, and more). The original restaurant opened in 1972 in Tennessee. The chain is named after the Rolling Stones song.
Update 12/12 Both this Ruby Tuesday and the one in University Place have closed.

Traditions Cafe & World Folk Art

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Ever since one of my Flickr friends posted a photo of a lovely pair of earring that he purchased at Traditions Cafe & World Folk Art in downtown Olympia, I’ve been wanting to try it out. The place has two components, the store and the restaurant but there is an easy flow between the two. We ordered our delicious and filling paninis at the counter and the staff brought them out to us. Afterward we shopped a bit and I purchased a green hat that I love and some dead sea salt soap. What struck me about both the store and the cafe parts is how happy every one seemed to be, both the employees and the customers. I’m sure we’ll be back 🙂

Their website is here
http://www.traditionsfairtrade.com/pages/tradhome.html

An explanation of the concept of Fair Trade is here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_trade

Corina’s Bakery

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It must be a weekend for going to nice bakeries, because today’s new place is Corina’s Bakery at 510 6th Avenue in the Merlino Art Center Building. It is a wonderful bakery with cakes, cupcakes, scones, coffee drinks, etc. There are tables and a saw folks visiting, knitting and working on laptops.

http://www.corinabakery.com/

Here is a great article about the bakery.
http://www.michaelyon-online.com/a-piece-of-cake.htm

The building was constructed in 1924 as an Odd Fellows Hall. If you want to see a photo of the building from 1977, look here:

http://search.tacomapubliclibrary.org/buildings/bldg1image.asp?j=2&o=2&n=14172&i=1856#text

 

Affairs Cafe & Bakery

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Today the ladies and I lunched at Affairs Cafe & Bakery and listened to a great program about the Broadway Center. I’ve been coming to Affairs on occasion for years and remember when they had a fire in October 2000 that closed them for some time. They are justly known for their truffles, cheesecakes, catering and delicious breakfasts and lunches.

Oh, and I also included a photo of a cool dinosaur that we discovered today!

2811 Bridgeport Way W # 15
University Place, WA 98466-4602
(253) 565-8604

http://www.affairs-chocolate.com/

4/2013 Update On March 16, 2013 Affairs closed. The owner, Gay, retired. Good for her, but I’ll miss the place! The opened on 12/10/1985.

Flying Boots Restaurant & Spur Room

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Flying Boots Cafe and Spur Room, so tonight I stopped to take a photo and consider it as my new place of the day. Tacoma Public Library shows the Flying Boots Cafe opening in 1930 and the new cafe opening in 1955 after remodeling. The bar part of the restaurant is called the Spur Room, and yes they have Karaoke. At night the neon wings on the boot turn on and off.

Flying Boots Restaurant & Spur
614 South 38th Street
Tacoma, WA 98418-6716
(253) 475-9628

 

Keep Clam

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 One of the few fast food restaurants that I actually like is Ivar’s Seafood Bar. I’m not sure how it got that name, since there is no ‘bar’ at the bar! These little restaurants have good food (mostly fried), extra friendly staff and are clean.

Ivar’s website informs me that there are 26 seafood bar locations, 25 of which are in Washington State and 1 is in Santa Clara, California. In addition there are more refined restaurants and also there are stands at local stadiums.

Per the website, the name Ivar’s Acres of Clams came from the last verse of “The Old Settler.”

No longer a slave to ambition
I laugh at the world and its shams
As I survey my happy condition
Surrounded by acres of clams.

http://ivars.com/

James Center
1820 South Mildred
Tacoma, WA 98409
(253) 565-5196
Sunday-Thurs 10:30am to 10pm
Friday-Saturday 10:30am to 11pm

Amazing Americano at Metro Coffee

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I had heard good things about Metro Coffee, so I stopped in this evening when I had an meeting on the University of Washington, Tacoma campus. It has a small space in one of the historic brick building and an approprately funky coffee shop feel, but mostly I’m impressed with the coffee. It was very, very good. And the service was great too!

1901 Jefferson Ave # B
Tacoma, WA 98402-1611
(253) 627-8152

http://www.tacoma.uw.edu/features/campus-culture/favorite-places-metro-coffee

Here is a fun review of Tacoma coffee shops based on the foam of their tall cappuccino. 
http://i.feedtacoma.com/Erik/blackwater-satellite-coffee-showdown-tacoma/#comments

 

Wendy’s Vietnamese is a family favorite

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It’s my dear husband’s birthday and I went to get him some take out from one of his favorite restaurants, Wendy’s Vietnamese at Freighthouse Square. We got way too much food — the Hot & Spicy Chicken, the Tofu Fried Rice and the Su Dai Beef with Peanut Sauce. There is easily enough left over for our three lunches tomorrow. Both the service and the food were outstanding. It occurs to me that even though this is my first “check in” at Wendy’s, we have been coming here for over 20 years! Yikes!

Freighthouse Square is a two story retail center with an international food court. With the exception of Subway, the food vendors are not ones you would see at a more traditional mall.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/wendys-vietnamese-restaurant-tacoma

http://www.freighthousesquare.com/

  

 

Hazelwood Road Gourmet Coffee

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I knew it was going to be a long day at work and I thought I’d treat myself to an Americano. So I stopped at Hazelwood Road Gourmet Coffee and Car Wash on Sprague Avenue. I was a tad grumpy that it took so long, but to their credit somebody came outside to take my order and they didn’t charge me! And it really was a good cup of coffee. So all my complaints went away and I’ll be back.