I'm thrilled to report former Weekly Volcano scribe Steph DeRosa will grace our masthead again. DeRosa was a Volcano food, booze and dive bar writer from 2007 to 2012. She established an international reputation for her authoritative reviews and in-depth features on the inner-workings of the South Sound food and drink scene. Here's a taste from her first feature, which will hit the street Thursday.

Call me a scaredy cat, a wuss, or a coward - I don't care. I don't like airplanes and how they are all up the air without strings or legs or anything holding them up but fire and gas. I don't like the tube they put you in, the lady hacking up a lung three rows back or the stomach virus that one guy from New Jersey had last night but he still got on the plane today anyway. The four-inch-wide seats are no compliment to my fat ass, and even though I don't smoke, being up in all that anxiety makes me want to take a long, hard drag on a menthol.

Oh, and there's my paralyzing fear of kidnappings, vanishing flights in the Indian Ocean, the Italian judicial system and malaria. Those are all probable forces that haunt my inner traveler's soul. 

LINK: Steph DeRosa's story on the halo-halo dessert has posted.

Over the years, I know I've made mention of this simple (if shameful) fact at least once before: There is nothing so wonderful and so free as riding your bike around Tacoma while loaded on beer. Yes, it is irresponsible and it is dangerous. But so is anything else that is part of your birthright of fun. It is with this moral dilemma in mind that I mention two bicycling and beer drinking events going down this week.

Wednesday, May 28

The Red Hot's "TRH Pint Pedaler: A Bike Map to Tacoma's Craft Breweries" made its debut during Bike Month last year, revealing the best routes for cyclists navigating their way to Tacoma's craft breweries, including the locations of the city's cool bike shops in case your chain slips. If you follow this year's map by numerical order, the route begins at The Red Hot (natch!), then leads to Wingman Brewing, Harmon Brewery and Eatery, Tacoma Brewing Co., Harmon Tap Room, Engine House No. 9, Ram Big Horn Brewing on Ruston Way, ending at the soon-to-open Pacific Brewing Co. on Pacific Avenue. That's a glorious circle of deliciousness. Each suggested brewery and bike shop will carry the maps, too. The map is printed on Rite In The Rain weatherproof paper, so beer spills/rain/sweat/nose bleeds need not ruin your copy.

Read more...

Last time I visited my friend Heide in New York, I stumbled, quite accidentally, upon a great corned beef on rye at one of her favorite breakfast diner stops. Finding a high quality sandwich at a small coffee shop known more for its matzoh brei and blintzes than its meat on bread wasn't really much of a shock. The Big Apple is the unofficial capital of ethnic delicatessens.

Back home again, I wondered how the South Sound's delis would stack up when the urge for one of Manhattan's famed heart-stoppers hits.

Seeing as this endeavor begs the question of sandwich authenticity, let me say that a little research proved that there is much confusion over the, er, Reuben. So many competing parties lay claim to its invention (and therefore proper construction) that it's hard to separate the possibly valid from the surely apocryphal. For instance, to grill or not to grill, that is a question that has bothered many a brisket.

Read more...

What is the one thing that virtually no one wants to do when the South Puget Sound temperatures push into the upper 80s and beyond?

If you guessed slave over a hot stove to cook dinner, you would be absolutely correct.

Who wants to cook when the temperatures are sweltering? Getting hot and sweaty over a stove burner or by the oven is just no fun whatsoever. Even the barbeque grill on some days can be oppressive.

And who necessarily wants piping-hot food anyway when you're absolutely wilting from the heat?

The easy way out is to prepare a simple green salad, a cheese and fruit plate or maybe cold sandwiches, right?

Yet, do those ideas seem a little, well "yawn-worthy?"

Well, it doesn't have to be that way. There really are some terrific, easy and interesting no-cook dinner ideas out there for those warm days (or really any summer day). Many of them take great advantage of the bounty of fresh and seasonal produce available locally this time of year.

We asked local food experts for their takes on easy and delicious recipes that require no cooking at all.

So sit back, chill out and prepare to be inspired.

Read more...

It's spring - but if you don't believe the weather, check your highball glass. You'll find a farmers' market's worth of fruits in seasonal cocktails around the South Sound, including The Forum in downtown Tacoma. The hip restaurant and bar in the historic Olympus Hotel - think Paddy Coyne's with more AC/DC and Arcade Fire - has released a batch of infused booze, perfect for its outdoor patio - which makes for good people watching. You may choose from Black Cherry Peach Gin, Raspberry Vodka, Blueberry Gin, Pecan Bourbon and Cucumber Lime Vodka. Sip the infusions on the rocks, or create a cocktail.

OK, OK, I'm getting to it. Yes, The Forum has a dish full of delicious fat, cream, cheese and nostalgia. The Forum's thick, homemade mac and cheese is gobsmacked with cheddar and Swiss mixed with meaty elbow macaroni. It's not elegant. It's not trying to show off. It's just happy, fun food, served with crunchy garlic bread and Pico de Gallo.

THE FORUM, 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to midnight Sunday, 815 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253.830.2151