Besides being well known for grilling up some morning-time greasy unborn chicken fetuses, WOW’s has one of the best happy hours I’ve ever seen. It also has one of the best nicknames for happy hour I’ve ever seen: “Lush Rush.” Oh, hell yeah. $2 wells and $2 cans from 4-6 p.m. will fill the needs of any local barfly, but I needed a tap beer. Pronto.



What beers are on tap, Steph DeRosa?



Oh, I thought you might ask. As a matter of fact, there are NO beers on tap. I just about wet my pants when the robotic bartender told me that. Do you know what this means? This means they have a cooler literally filled with ice, stashing all the sub-zero chilled golden beer goodness you could possibly imagine — all behind that tiny counter they call a bar. When What’s His Name (the robotic bartender who had no interest in smiling at me or talking to me) propped my beer on top of the bar, I got all giddy in my special spot as I watched the cold ice slide down the side. I had to take a moment to collect myself.



Then he did the unimaginable, something you just don’t find at most dive bars: he walked out from behind the bar, around to the kitchen, and brought me back a freezing cold glass for my freezing cold beer. A single tear departed my eye, and slowly crept down my check. Did I mention all of this beer was freezing cold? I love you, WOW’s etc.



OK, so I spent so much time getting choked up over my dreamy beer that I neglected to tell you about the décor. Rest assured that WOW’s etc. is most definitely a dive bar. Lawn furniture, crappy carpeting, lipstick on the coffee mugs, bad lighting, obnoxious beer signage, dilapidated toilets, middle aged men crooning along to Supertramp on the jukebox, and cheap-ass food specials only a non-dive bar fanatic would snub his nose at.



WOW’s etc has my vote as one of the divey-est dives in Tacoma.

Wow’s Etc.

2704 N. 21st St., Tacoma, 253.759.3882



Food: most often the order comes out wrong

Beer: freezing cold, yo

Service: tactful



Bar Exam Dive Grade: A