FUTURE THINGS ARE COMING >>>

Weekly Volcano recently reported that Rocket Records owner Steve Gaydich lost his lease to a Mixed Martial Arts Academy that moved in next door and will expand into his record store space. Gaydich's last day of business at the corner of Sixth and Proctor will be April 30.

Well, now we have some good news. Gaydich has just signed the lease for Rocket Record's new location at 3823 sixth Ave in Tacoma, just down the road from his current location. Opening day will be Saturday, June 1.

But I'm ahead of myself, before we can celebrate the new location, we have to celebrate Record Store Day - an industry-created "holiday" meant to draw attention to the endangered species of brick-and-mortar record stores. At Rocket Records it's a triple-whammy with Record Store Day finds, an in-store live performance and deeply discounted moving sale items - up to 40 percent off.

Heavy-hitters Mico De Noche, Valis and Argonaut will send Gaydich off with style. I'd like to see the MMA students when they hear Argonaut's "The Battle of Pig Hill" blaring through the wall.

Anyway, plenty of reasons to get down to Rocket Records this Saturday people. Just make sure you bring your friends, earplugs and cash.

Rocket Records, Saturday, April 20, 3 p.m., all ages, no cover, 3843 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.756.5186

LINK: Record Store Day in the South Sound

CH-CH-CH-CHANGES >>>

The Phoenix Inn is a downtown Olympia staple. It's the go-to hotel for Weekly Volcano staffer to stumble in after the Best of Olympia party. It also has delicious, fresh-baked cookies in its lobby.

The hotel will undergo a huge remodel this May - one that includes adding a bar and restaurant.

"We plan on remodeling the whole hotel - corridors, rooms, pool, everything," says Janine Condit, general manager. "It's going to be the same feel, just an updated renovation." Condit says rooms will have larger layouts, there will be more conveniences, but no more spa suites - there will still be spa in the pool area.

Condit tells me the bar and restaurant will serve smaller breakfast, lunch and dinner items and bar food and that they will have grab and go morning specials like scrambles and paninis.

What about the fresh baked cookies? Condit assures the staff will still serve guests the coveted treat.

A quick check on the coming bar's liquor license confirms the rumor. PRESS NW is the business name on the application, filed by Aimbridge Concessions, Inc., which does business as the DoubleTree, the full service hotel owned by Hilton Enterprises, with more than 325 locations spread over five continents.

No matter who owns the hotel, a bar in the lobby spells trouble for Volcano staffers needing shut eye after the Best of Olympia party.

GO LOCAL ON A STICK >>>

It seems as though spring has finally arrived. With the warmer weather and subsiding drizzle of raindrops come outdoor birthday parties, baby showers and weddings. Naturally, as it has been for many years now, delectable slices of cake will abound, it is, after all, the celebratory baked good of choice.

In my cake world, I skip the slices and the dirty dishes and scoop up cake pops. These mobile edible morsels make party clean up a piece of cake.  That said, these goodies could be a let down. There's an art to the cake pop and, if not done properly, they can be too small, too dry or just plain ugly.

Terry Dejhonette, owner of the retail space Consignment Queens, on the main floor inside Sanford and Son Antiques in Tacoma's Antique Row, has a winner: Mimi's Cake Pops.

Dejhonette began her cake pop-concocting journey after asked to make some for a church fundraiser. "They were just baked cake on a stick. They looked great and tasted good. Then, I found a cake pop that was pretty good in a hospital lobby that was moist, made different than just baked cake," explains Dejhonette "I started looking around coffee shops and all I saw were the Starbucks cake pops. They were a bit smaller than mine and not as moist. So I went online and learned how to make them moist, yummy, and really pretty."

Having sampled these morsels of baked goodness I can attest to the quality. Her research paid off. First, they are lovely, peppered with sprinkles and swirls. Second, the cake pops are larger than most - with a good three or four healthy bites per pop. Last, and most important, the center remains a moist, sweet treat.

Satisfied, Dejhonette obtained a business license, food permit and off she went. She found happy customers at Sweets n Stuff candy store, Jazzy's Cafe and Dorky's Arcade, as well as many at birthday parties, baby showers and weddings.

Flavors currently include chocolate fudge, vanilla butter cream, red velvet, lemon spice, orange cream, strawberry kiss, dark chocolate mint, peppermint chocolate, key lime and vanilla white chocolate chip. "There's more to come," she says.

Prices are very approachable with a five-piece gift box for $12 and an eight-piece box for $20. Individual cake pops are $2. Catering fees may vary for larger orders.

Has she reached her pops top?

"I would love to be able to participate in the Tacoma Spaceworks program for a retail space. I've recently become a member of the Tacoma Chamber and have enjoyed networking with other business owners. Through those interactions, I'm looking forward to working with local catering services to have my cake pops on their menus. It's really become a labor of passion and love."

MIMI'S CAKE POPS, SANFORD AND SON, 743 BROADWAY, SUITE 222, TACOMA

KICKED IN THE HEAD >>>

For seven years, Rocket Records has sat on the corner of Sixth Avenue and Proctor in Tacoma. With fliers plastered to the walls, and sweet Bruno, the shop dog, spending time at Rocket Records was more like walking into a buddy's house - one that just happens to have an awesome assortment of music and merchandise, including music from local bands.

Sadly, Rocket Records current location is on the chopping block. Owner Steve Gaydich has until April 30 to move out.

When probed about why, Gaydich says, "I don't know and I don't care. I'm out of here."
A new tenant will move into the Rocket Records location, as an expansion on a mixed martial arts academy next door.

Gaydich says he is meeting with a realtor this week for a location a few doors down, and that he hopes to have a moving sale, and not a going out of business sale.

"I'm an onry son of a ...," says Gaydich. "I want to stay around here."

Rocket Records is more than a record store, it's also been a cool all-ages music venue to see such bands as Before Cars, Stone Axe, Bacchus, Kramer, CFA and many others.

Big Wheel Stunt Show will play a free show at 3 p.m. Saturday, April 6 as a promotion for its latest vinyl release. Also, a big event is planned as a final show for this location of Record Store Day, April 20. While names aren't confirmed, expect some loud and heavy local favorites.

"We're going to blow the roof off," says Gaydich.

The Weekly Volcano will keep you posted on the outcome of Rocket Records' fate. In the meantime, go see some live music and buy some records. Bruno will appreciate it.

ROCKET RECORDS, 3843 SIXTH AVE., TACOMA, 253.756.5186

SIPPING OUT >>>

Hundreds of coffee-starved citizens in Olympia's South Capitol neighborhood and beyond are eagerly waiting for tomorrow, their knuckles white around their crappy cup of coffee in anticipation.

The neighborhood folks are waiting the arrival of one of Thurston County's most prized coffee providers - and three-year Weekly Volcano Best of Olympia winner Olympia Coffee Roasting Company  - to open its doors at 6:30 a.m. Thursday, March 28 at its new location at 2824 Capitol Blvd.

Customers aren't the only ones excited about the grand opening of the company's third location, the owners and baristas have been spotted brewing coffee and entertaining would-be customers on the sidewalk in front of the new store, half freezing, half basking in the sun as the northwest shifts into spring.

And like the season's gifts of new growth, expansion and well being, Olympia Coffee Roasters will gift the community with a place to gather, grow, and finally have a decent cup of joe.

Here's to new beginnings!

H MART TO THE RESCUE >>>

For some people, an Asian grocery store can be a bit of a mystery - a misunderstood landscape of often unfamiliar prepared foods and ingredients that can be a little daunting to approach. However, getting past those insecurities to explore these specialty stores can introduce you to new culinary delights and hidden sweet and savory treasures. Such is the case in the newly opened H Mart, a Korean grocery on Lakewood's South Tacoma Way. The 40,000 square foot location is the perfect place to begin your Asian market shopping experience.

With a well laid-out, spacious floor plan filled with abundant fresh fruits and vegetables, meat and seafood, housewares and dry goods, H Mart appears on its surface to be your typical grocery store. On a recent trip there, however, I found a mix of delicious and curious Asian delights to keep my palate guessing. Fresh turmeric (which I've never seen before), kimchi of various sorts, ready-to-eat eggs marinated in soy sauce, bonito flakes that resemble wood chips used for making dashi (Japanese soup stock), frozen flavored mochi, savory shrimp crackers and gorgeous, delicate enoki mushrooms were some of my favorite finds.

The staff is helpful and approachable when asked where and what certain things are.

The prices are some of the best I've seen in the area as far as fresh fruits and vegetables go.

For experienced Asian market shoppers and newbies alike, a pleasurable shopping experience overall.

H MART, 8 A.M. TO 9:30 P.M. DAILY, 8720 SOUTH TACOMA WAY, LAKEWOOD,

FUTURE THINGS ARE COMING >>>

Last December, right after Christmas, Tacoma lost a whole lot of awesomeness when Tricky's Pop Culture Emporium closed down after six years of ensuring Tacomans had plenty of pop culture goodies to purchase. Hair was torn with great sorrow. Tears were shed.

But ... Tricky's is coming back! Next Monday, April 1, Tricky's will reopen at 17 Tacoma Ave. - a mere few blocks from the old location, but now with no leaks and with much more space. Tricky's will have twice the space to be exact, which means twice the awesome.

"I'm right there on North Tacoma Avenue so I'm right on the street, as opposed to the armpit of Tacoma where I used to be," says owner Eugene Kirk. "In addition to more stuff, I have partnered with Northwestshirts.com to be Tacoma's exclusive provider of the coolest new T-shirts and apparel. The additional space means that Tricky's will get just a little bit weirder."

The new Tricky's - trickier? - will have more wall space where Kirk intends to highlight local pop culture artists.

"I'll have a marvelous window display with which to delight and confuse Tacomans," he adds. "New to this location will be a toy boneyard, where random toy parts and accessories will be located."

Expect a soft opening April 1. Kirk doesn't expect to be all the way ready, but will be ready enough to take your money.

FRIDAY, MARCH 2, 2013 >>>

1. Tommy Castro is Delbert McClinton's more talented kid brother. We have been waiting for this San Francisco rockin' blues guitarist to put another one in the ditches. Finally, this past November the blistering "Greedy" / "That's All I Got" (Alligator Records) arrived. Nobody plays roadhouse like this anymore: the rock snarl and the soul heart. His songs don't make us want to sing along; they make us want to scream along. Tommy Castro and the Painkillers will play Jazzbones at 8 p.m.

2. The Bayview School of Cooking in Olympia will pour cider and meads with complementary cheeses from 5-7:30 p.m. The cost is $12 per person. No RSVP is required.

3. Tacoma's first artisan children's clothing shop, Dandelion Wishes, will hold an opening reception from 6-9 p.m. before the store officially opens March 23 at 10 a.m. in the old Corina Bakery space at 510 Sixth Ave. Appropriately, Corina Bakery will provide snacks.

4. Have you visited the Science Dome? At 7 p.m. the South Sound's only planetarium will host an interactive tour of our current night sky, exploring the stars, planets, constellations and other celestial objects followed by a 20-35 minute full dome show.  A question and answer period will follow.

5. As if Horace Pickett's awesome name wasn't enough, the band actually does well at evoking the cheesy party vibe of "Monster Mash." Though the band claims that it often gets comparisons to the Kinks, They Might Be Giants and Beck, to us it couldn't be more perfectly channeling Devo. Stiffly voiced robot-funk, surging electro-pop, concerning topics such as the Milky Way and the weirdness of having a body - and all that entails. Check the band out with The Whorewoods at 10 p.m. inside Le Voyeur.

LINK: Friday, March 22 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

SAD NEWS >>>

Yesterday, The News Tribune reported Affairs Cafe and Bakery in University Place has closed.

Sad news, indeed. The Weekly Volcano would like to thank co-owner Gay Landry and crew for all the good times, for supporting our rag, for hosting our Nosh League and for serving one tasty Monte Cristo Sandwich, among other delights. We will miss you Gay. We wish you the best.

Affairs Cafe's closing does leave a hole in our Tournament of Sandwiches. Affair was schedule to battle Nordstrom Cafe Friday, March 22 in the "Specialty" sandwich region. Checking the rules book, Section 43 states, "If a sandwich drops out for any reason, the next highest vote getter during the seeding process will be added to the vacant spot. In other words, Lakewood's Moon Rise Cafe's Monte Cristo Sandwich received the 65th most votes by Weekly Volcano readers during the February seed voting. Therefore, Moon Rise Cafe's Monte Cristo Sandwich will face off with Nordstrom Cafe's Braised Short Ribs Sandwich Friday, March 22.

BONDING OVER ROOT VEGETABLES AND CANDY >>>

Go Local Tacoma is out to change the world - or at least the community - one baby step at a time. The group focuses on all things local, and often how to connect all the branches of local awesomeness via networking.

The organization's upcoming Local Food Network Night will be an effort to connect local food producers, markets, businesses and consumers. The two-hour evening will be all networking, all the time, in hopes to tighten up community resources and awareness.

The evening will start with 30-second introductions.

"From there, we will break the group up based on interest levels so people can see who is working on similar issues, and then break the group down further into one-on-one discussions so people can get to know each other a little better," says Go Local president Derrick Rhayn. "This process increases the overall knowledge in the network of who is working on specific parts of systems change, and begins to build the skill set of weaving together connections for change."

Go Local will also be networking at the event.

"We are interested in local sourcing of food, supporting food entrepreneurs in all stages from start up to production to market," says Rhayn. "We are also very interested in developing a city-wide commercial kitchen network that food entrepreneurs can use for production. One of our long term goals is to address food equity issues as well."

The event is open to all. If you're interested in local food, you are invited. Bring topics you wish to discuss.

WILLAM FACTORY INCUBATOR, TUESDAY, MARCH 19, 6-8 P.M., FREE ADMISSION, 1423 E. 29TH ST., TACOMA, WEBSITE