C.I. Shenanigans

Where: 3017 Ruston Way, Tacoma, 253.752.8811, cishenanigans.com

Hours: Lunch and dinner daily 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday open til 10 p.m. in the dining room, 11:30 p.m. in the lounge

Cuisine: Pacific Northwest focusing on steaks, seafood and chops. 

Scene: Young adults making eyes in the bar, married folks on date night, birthday celebrations in the main dining room. Classy, cool and comfortable.

Drinkies: Full bar, Ram Brewery beers, specialty cocktails, extensive wine list

Prices: $3-$34

ANNOUNCER: Since it opened 25 years ago, C.I. Shenanigans has been known for many things: finely crafted dishes made from quality ingredients, a stylish plush interior and grand views, live music, dancing and DJs on the second floor, packed bar crowds and a stellar brunch. Obviously passing the test of time, their willingness to adjust to customer demands and trends has kept the fine old gal afloat on Ruston Way. A recent revamp of happy hour, including offerings, hours and overall menu, are more steps in that direction. The boys paid a few visits and were greeted by a packed lounge and the return of live jazz. Old menu favorites are still available and tasty new small plates that cost less than your lunch allowance were added.

JAKE: I felt all swanky Saturday listening to jazz trio Collaborative Works and sitting in Shenanigan's 5 plush half-moon raised lounge booths. I dig that, yeah.

JASON: What, are you channeling a ‘60s hip, cool cat with a black beret and a hand drum all a sudden? Mid-week visits were also nice, though the music does add a certain nonintrusive coolness. We started with edamame hummus - a new thing for me. Think barely-there lemony tang, a hint of garlic and an even balance of saltiness; what a great idea for edamame. A lettuce leaf boat held marinated purple onion slices and roasted red pepper pieces. I squeezed the accompanying lime wedge onto pillowy warm pita bread triangles before ladling on creamy, light gold hummus and scoops of onion and pepper. More pita would have been nice - we ran out with half a bowl of hummus left and just ate it straight.

JAKE: The Ram Brewery folks crafted a seasonal liquid libation for the cold winter months - S'no Angel Winter Weizenbock. With hints of fruit, spice and even chocolate, the brewski goes surprisingly well with the mini slider burger trio. Sadly, the little burger patties were over-cooked and dry. No bueno. Caramelized onions and scant cheddar cheese didn't improve the moistness factor. The fries were of the real potato variety: crisp, hot and seriously plentiful - some redemption there. Bar appetizers are half off during happy hour, so those burgers were only a $5 trip to the Sahara.

JASON: Steamer clams have always been a fave of mine. At Shenanigans, the white wine and garlic broth is salty, buttery and rich - all good things. The accompanying big wedges of toasted bread were coated with herb butter and soaked up broth nicely.

JAKE: Personally, I'm a huge fan of the tuna poke, which is raw sushi-style yellowfin tuna tossed in spicy Sriracha marinade, a Thai hot sauce made with ground red chili pepper and garlic. The presentation was  appealing: tuna cubes studded with black and white sesame seeds came in a little crisped puff with a mound of fragrant sweet white rice. The tuna is part of a separate tapas menu of items that are $4.50 each or three items for $12. Portions are relatively small so sampling a few seemed ideal.

JASON: I like the mix and match option of the tapas, too. In a classic caprese salad, yellow tomato was stacked with fresh mozzarella, basil and a drizzle of earthy balsamic - hard to mess that one up. The real tasty treat is the lamb lollipop. Any time I see lamb on the menu I want it. Two smaller bone-in hunks of marinated meat with a pleasingly strong rosemary flavor were set off by a bit of traditional mint on cucumber slices.

JAKE: I think the best deal for your money is the old favorite $28 dinner combination. We chose Nebraska beef top sirloin and Alaskan steelhead salmon. If you enjoy the actual flavor of your food you'll be glad to know we barely tasted the spice rub composed of salt and pepper, paprika, garlic, lemon juice and Johnny's seasoning salt. Blue cheese crumbles provided a contrasting tang; the huge slab was all the server hyped it up to be. Deep green herbs accented orangey-pink steelhead; béarnaise sauce didn't overwhelm the very delicate buttery taste of the fish itself. The seasonal vegetable, broccolini, retained its snap. Let's hear it for non-mushy vegetables! And the potato au gratin, dusted with black pepper and topped with crispy bubbles of browned cheese, was nicely layered with mildly sweet sliced apple. 

JAKE: New to the menu, Seafood Jambalaya has earned permanency via favorable feedback. It's no wonder why - the Cajun-style dish is made to order and has lots of protein: tender chicken breast, spicy disks of andouille sausage and plentiful medium-size prawns. I will never understand why we're expected to de-shell prawns by hand or with knife and fork at the table. Luckily, Shenanigans took care of that in the kitchen. An island of jasmine rice surrounded by jambalaya was graced by long pieces of green onion and green pepper ribbons. Desserts are served in modern shot glasses, including cheesecakes, mousse, crèmes. That's a whole other reason to hit the waterfront.