Tag Archives: coffee

Borders Books in Tacoma

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I really debated using Borders Books in Tacoma as one of my new places of the day. But today I stopped in to say goodbye. This is the closest bookstore to my house and my family has spent hours here. Its practically a family tradition to go on a rainy Sunday for a cup of coffee and to read the magazines in the cafe. And of course, we’d always end up with a book or two. I’m pretty sure my daughter has never walked out of the store without a book!

But our Borders, which is almost always busy, is closing no later than the end of May. The cafe is closed, items are heavily discounted and some of the shelves are pretty empty. The GIg Harbor and Federal Way Borders are also closing with only Puyallup Borders to remain open in Pierce Co. Across the country Borders is closing 200 of its 643 locations as part of a bankruptcy reorganization.

So, goodbye Tacoma Borders. We’ll miss you.

Starbucks, always reliable

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by Gexydaf
, a photo by Gexydaf on Flickr.

Today’s new place is the Starbucks at the corner of Sixth and Pine (601 Pine Street, Tacoma). It looked much like all the other Starbucks, warm and comfortable. The service was friendly and fast and the coffee especially good for some reason. The breakfast roll was warmed and very delicious. There is a reason that Starbucks has a following.

http://www.starbucks.com/

Update 2/2015 This location has closed, which surprises me since it was always busy when I went.

 

Today’s Soup Tomato Basil

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Today’s Soup Tomato BasilOriginally uploaded by Gexydaf

Forza is a relatively small chain with 23 locations and today I stopped at the Forza at 1202 S Union St., Tacoma, WA 98438. I met a dear friend and we had coffee and visited. Twas a lovely after work event.

http://www.forzacoffeecompany.com/

Update: This Forza location closed in early 2012 and the space is available for lease.

Satellite Coffee

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Satellite Coffee at 2813 6th Avenue, Tacoma

I’ve heard such good things about Satellite Coffee and was glad to stop at their Sixth Avenue today, even though I’m going to be awake way into the night now! (Note to self, decaf after 3!). It was smaller than I expected and really flows into the adjacent restaurant, MASA. Although there is a walk up ordering window, I choose to go inside where it was warm. My Americano was good and reasonably priced (under $3 for a medium sized one). My barista was friendly. There was plenty of parking right out front, but I can see where parking has the potential of being a problem.

Their coffee is Stumptown Coffee, out of Portland, OR. http://www.stumptowncoffee.com/

They get their baked goods from Corinas Bakery. http://blog.firsttries.com/?p=2063

Satellite Coffee Co.’s main web presence is its Facebook Page http://www.facebook.com/tacomasatellite

In addition to this location, there are two other Satellite Coffees in Tacoma, one downtown and one near Wright Park. (Updated note, there is now only one other location, the one in the Stadium (see blog entry http://blog.firsttries.com/?p=5790)

Here is an article about Satellite Coffee, though more about its downtown location. http://www.tacomaweekly.com/news/business/satellite_coffee_combines_with_smooth_and_juicey_on_market_street/

Burger King morphs into Starbucks

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 Today I went to Pacific Lutheran University (PLU), but all the coffee shops and bookstores were closed for the new year holiday.  I needed a book, so I veered off to the Lakewood Barnes and Noble, but I couldn’t count that as a new place.  On the way I went past a yet unrecorded Starbucks.  Good old Starbucks.  This one use to be a Burger King and you can tell by looking at it.  The worker said that Starbucks had been there for about 6 to 7 years and they had originally thought about making a loft area where the burger places’ play area had been.  But in the end they went with the tall ceiling instead.  Starbucks only has half of the building and the rest is available for lease.

10314 S Tacoma Way, Lakewood – (253) 984-0898

Beyond the Bridge Cafe

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2010 was a good year for new coffee houses in Tacoma. One of the best is Beyond the Bridge Cafe at 2717 6th Avenue Tacoma, WA 98406 – (253) 572-9199. My dear daughter and I went thinking at first that it was at the west end of Sixth Avenue near the Narrows Bridge, but it was more towards the center/east end of Sixth. It had a unique art/coffee house feel with plenty of big comfy chairs. A different art bird was painted on to each of the tables and the wall also had a mural. This is the kind of place people come with their laptops and settle in for a while. The art on display made it all the more interesting and was reasonably priced.

We ordered a latte for me, a vanilla Italian soda for the teen and a full monty bagel sandwich minus the bacon to share. They forgot the drinks, but felt bad about it and not only gave us our drinks but a get two free card. In addition to coffee, they offer wine and beer. The sandwich was very tasty and so were the drinks once they arrived.

http://beyondthebridgecafe.com/

http://www.facebook.com/bbc4life?ref=ts&v=info

Note:  I’m sad to say that Beyond the Bridge Cafe closed its doors on May 14, 2011.

http://www.weeklyvolcano.com/entertainment/spew-blog/2011/05/The-last-day-of-Beyond-the-Bridge-Cafe-tacoma-coffee-shop-closes-ben-and-patricia-rubke/

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.

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

 

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.