The Senior Scene

A few blocks north of the hospital district in Tacoma is a surprise.
Tucked into a residential area, with no parking to speak of, is Parkway Tavern, a pub with lots of wooden stools, open areas for standing and talking, a big wooden bar, very accessible bathrooms with designer sinks and subway tiles, lots of beer and walls covered with pictures of owners and patrons.
We went in on a blustery day and found a spacious room with a library feel and a nice server, Emily, who answered all our questions, helped us get seated, and brought everything in a timely manner.
We ordered a cup of Soup of the Day, a spicy vegetable (made by Tina, a deft hand with seasonings) at $3.50 and so good we ordered another cup to go as we left, a club sandwich at $8.50, a Mushroom Swiss Burger at $8.50, and half a quesadilla at $4.50.
The soup had fresh chopped vegetables in a tomato base, not overly peppery, and welcome on this chilly day.
The half-quesadilla was fine but very basic with cheese and tortilla and overpriced in my opinion.
The club: My pet peeve is a “club sandwich” without three slices of bread. That big sandwich at the golden arches happens to be a club. So this sandwich was just a meaty, cheesy sub with lots of ham, turkey, Swiss cheese, cheddar cheese, and mayo — very good, on a soft bun.
The Mushroom Swiss Burger was terrific! A really good hamburger to add to my collection. This was a flame-grilled, thick, large, beef patty with melted Swiss cheese, cut mushrooms, tomato and onion. Very tasty, and worth the money, It came with a salad.
I recommend the Park Way Tavern for atmosphere, burgers and staff. But be aware that parking can be a real problem, and they don’t serve coffee.
IF YOU GO
Park Way Tavern
313 N. I St., Tacoma, Washington (Go to I and Division in downtown Tacoma and turn north on I. The tavern is on the north side of the street. Parking is as it is, on street.)

Carolyn Augustine is a freelance restaurant writer.

Cold and tired? Hungry and looking for something interesting? Greek food! Cute restaurant with blue painted decorations, drive-in window … Yay!
I had a talk with Christine at the window at It’s Greek to Me while we tried to work out an order that had ingredients that my whole family would eat, be tasty, and had generous servings. We settled on the 10-inch Greek Garden Pizza at $9.95 with $3 for added chicken, a chicken gyro at $6.49, and the Souvlaki appetizer which was two chicken skewers with tzatziki sauce at $6.99. Sounds like a lot of chicken, but I wanted to taste the spices and condiments without too much of a challenge, and I was happy with these choices. You could choose beef or lamb for any menu item.
Everything was delicious and made to order. The pizza came to the car flaming hot, loaded with kalamata olives, black olives, fresh garlic, lots of chicken, fresh spinach and sun-dried tomatoes, and dripping with feta cheese. Spices were oregano, pepper and basil. Waiting until it cooled off enough to touch it was a good idea and gave me a chance to taste the chicken skewers.
Each long wooden skewer had four big pieces of chicken breast marinated in garlic, olive oil and spices. The tzatziki sauce is yogurt, olive oil, grated cucumber, garlic and lemon, and was tangy and flavorful.
The gyro, a Greek sandwich served on pita bread, had onions tomatoes, letttuce, tzatziki sauce and browned ground chicken. It was tender and very good.
If you have a taste for Greek-style food and find yourself anywhere near downtown Tacoma, stop in at It’s Greek to Me. The menu has something for everyone, and the prices are reasonable.
(I am dedicating this column to Carole Hobson,a reader from the first column, longtime friend and dining partner. I will miss her.)

Carolyn Augustine, a freelance restaurant writer, writes the Senior Eats column for Senior Scne.

Do something different in the winter. Drive up toward Mount Rainier on Mountain Highway until you come to the brightly colored cabooses, old-fashioned dining cars and steam engines on rails alongside the highway at the Mount Rainier Railroad Dining Company. The cabooses are motel rooms, the dining car is the restaurant, another car is a bar. A small-gauge railroad gives two to three-hour rides on weekends during the holiday season, and daily June to October. Plenty of parking is available on the road.
Sitting in the dining car with tables and chairs, a little bit of elbow room and nice service made us feel as if we were on a cross-country trip. The menu has meats, seafood dishes, pasta, chicken and breakfast items such as waffles and pancakes. Meals range from $10 burgers to $25 for surf and turf.
Barbecue was a featured item, so we ordered the Smoked BBQ Chicken (½) for $18.99, and Smoked BBQ Beef Ribs (5) for $19.99. The side dishes were corn on the cob, barbecue beans, steamed vegetables, and a fresh biscuit. On the rib order, we substituted potato salad for the vegetables.
We found the fragrant smoking gave the tender meats a great base for the really excellent barbecue sauce which was sweet and tangy, with whole garlic cloves in the thick coating. Side dishes were ordinary, except for the potato salad, which was delicious. It was tart, and had hand-cut potatoes, celery, onions and mild seasonings.
We stuck to water to drink, and it was welcome with the tangy meals. Food was excellent, as well as the service, and the train theme is lots of fun.

IF YOU GO

Mount Rainier Railroad Dining Company
54106 Mountain Highway East, Elbe
360-569-2505
Winter hours: 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekends, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays. Open year-round.

Carolyn Augustine is a freelance food and restaurant writer.

Grassi’s took over the building previously operated by Affairs Chocolates in April of 2014, and operate a floral store as well as Grassi’s Ristorante. The decor is upscale country, with a full menu of classical Italian delights, ranging in price from Italian Wedding Soup at $5 for a cup at lunch to Italian short ribs at $26 for dinner. But looking for sweets, we found their large dessert case to be just the thing we wanted.
We decided to indulge ourselves, and our server, Rebecca, was startled at our order of Lemon Cheesecake Pie at $4.95, Reese’s Peanut Butter Pie at $5.95, a cannoli at $6.50, a small berry cobbler at $6.50, and two chocolate truffles at $7.95. We had coffee at $2, and also sampled their rosemary ciabatta bread at $3 because it sounded so good. And it was, soft and warm and fragrant.
Everything tasted delicious. The peanut butter pie was a candy bar in a chocolate cookie crust, and anyone with a taste for extravagance would love it. The peanut butter was not overpowering, and the chocolate chips throughout were dark and delicious. The warmed berry cobbler was wonderful. The buttery crumb topping melted in your mouth, and the mixed berry filling was not too sweet and not too tangy. Just right.
The pastry shell of the cannoli was so hard you had to bash it with a spoon to take a bite, although the mascarpone filling was perfect, not too sweet but tangy and smooth, with a nice glaze containing sliced fresh strawberries. The whipped cream on the lemon cheesecake pie had broken and ruined the appearance, but the filling was a wonderful blend of sweet and tangy, and the crust was tender as a snowflake. Truffles the size of golf balls were dense, and the blend of dark chocolate and coffee and milk chocolate and raspberry were perfect. Sweet treats to delight anyone with a craving.
There is a lot of seating, and a person with a wheelchair might find it tight going, but the wait staff is helpful and accommodations would be made.
IF YOU GO
Grassi’s Ristorante
2811 Bridgeport Way W., University Place. Grassi’s is south of the corner of 29th and Bridgeport. Right turn only from the parking lot.
253-565-0633
Hours: Tuesday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Closed Sunday and Monday.

Carolyn Augustine, who writes the Senior Eats column,

is a freelance food and restaurant writer.