Despite our best efforts, we seem to have produced in one of our children that most dreaded of characteristics: the picky eater. Miss Picky Pants, as we like to call her, has sat through more than one restaurant meal with one or two beige items on her extra plate (we've learned not to actually purchase food for her) pretending to eat them while using them as ketchup shovels.

One of the few things she does like when we go out, is Subway. This is a less than exciting choice for the rest of us, which is why I was very happy to find that amongst the many wonderful local, interesting choices available at the Freighthouse Square food court, is a Subway.

Now she can chow down on her cheese sandwich and fruit roll up, while the rest of us choose from Greek, Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai, Italian and Mexican food. I've had wonderful meals at the Santa Fe Mexican Grill (their chile relleno is wonderful), Palace Mediterranean, and Asian BBQ House. (Just remember to order the bul go gi spicy.) My eldest also loved the Mexican place and devoured her quesadilla with rice and beans when we visited this weekend.

Their hours (10-7 Mon-Sat and 10-5 on Sundays) are a little short on the dinner end, but it's well worth it if you can make it there in time. Freighthouse Square is the perfect spot to catch a quick meal after an event at the Tacoma Dome, or to wait out one of those ridiculous train delays Amtrak is having these days. It's a great place to take out of town guests, too.

Edited to add: also a great place for desert! On the lower level there's Celebrity Cake Studio, in the food court there's the German Haus, and some ice cream options. Also try Peggy's Cinnamon rolls.

Food Courts, American, Chinese, Coffee, Mexican, Thai,
ice cream,
ice cream map, Downtown

Tacoma is home to some great little independent fast(ish) food burger joints.

Yesterday, on our way back from Wright Park, we hiked up the hill to Frisko Freeze, before catching a bus back home. Frisko Freeze is a classic drive in. Burgers, fries, ice cream, and shakes pretty much round out the menu. Frisko Freeze is the kind of place I feel dorky even attempting to mention in this blog; pretty much everyone in Tacoma has either been there or is vegan or a hermit or something. On the other hand, I don't know how to talk about independent burger joints without at least mentioning this American classic, with it's enormous fifties-era sign.

If for some reason you have not been there yet, Frisko Freeze is strictly a drive-in, with a walk up window. Seating is limited to one outdoor bench. The burgers are of the classic fast-food variety, lots of grease and most toppings come standard. The ice cream and shakes aren't quite as creamy as some soft serve, but the experience of the place is enough to give kids the impression they are eating the Best Ice Cream Ever. It's a little slow for a drive in, so don't go when you are trying to get somewhere in a hurry.

Recently we tried a new spot, The 12th Street Diner. (Across the street from the Mandolin Cafe, at 12th and Proctor.) Unlike Frisko Freeze, the 12th Street Diner has a nice little indoor space with classic fifties fast-food decor. I thought the burger was excellent, if the fries were a little on the floppy side. Burgers come standard with everything, which made them Totally Unacceptable to the children, but that would be easy enough to fix by ordering more carefully next time. The kids were really in it for the strawberry shake though, which was terrific. I also noticed chicken strips on the menu, next time we'll give those a shot for the kids.

Next on our list to try: Little Holland Drive In (Home of the Mikeyburger, at Central and Orchard). We've heard from many, many folks that this is The Burger Place, but we haven't gotten out there yet.

dining

Despite our best efforts, we seem to have produced in one of our children that most dreaded of characteristics: the picky eater. Miss Picky Pants, as we like to call her, has sat through more than one restaurant meal with one or two beige items on her extra plate (we've learned not to actually purchase food for her) pretending to eat them while using them as ketchup shovels.

You don't have to trek down to Portland or up to Seattle to find great used books. Tacoma has some great choices right here in town, and the books are a lot less picked over.

Yesterday we set off on a mission to freshen our supply of children's books. Our fist stop was King's Books between 6th and Division on St. Helens. King's is an enormous place with a fairly small selection of books for small children. (Their young adult section is a bit larger) We had no problem finding some great and very reasonably priced choices. They have a small kiddie table with a few chairs and some puzzles for the kids to sit at while parents browse.

This is always better in theory than in practice for my kids, so I didn't have a chance to do much of my own browsing on this particular visit. They have a vast collection of titles, however, enough to keep any book lover occupied for an hour or so of hunting. I've made some kid-free visits there in the past and found some good deals.

The next place on our list was Tacoma Book Center, kitty-corner to Freighthouse Square and the last Link stop, at E26th and D St. This place makes King's look kind of small by comparison. You wouldn't know it from the completely plain exterior, but inside is a thriving store packed to the rafters with used books in excellent condition.

The children's section here occupies the ends of the first three or four aisles. It's a bit haphazard, but if you take the time to look there's tremendous variety. I found beautiful hardcover editions of some of the same titles they sell as beginning readers with junky paperback bindings in the big new bookstores out by the mall. At 1-5 dollars a piece they were a tremendous steal. The kids got a little rambunctious wandering through the maze-like interior, and the proprietor didn't seem to mind at all.

This was my first visit to Tacoma Book Center, and I will definitely be back with the goal of finding a few things for myself.

I definitely recommend stopping by either or both for a bit of weekend exploring. Both have terrific hours (10-6 every day at Tacoma Book Center, and 10-7 Mon-Sat and 10-6 Sun. for King's) and were practically empty this Sunday. If you are tired of the weekend throngs out at the mall or in Lakewood, downtown is the place to go.

Shopping