DJs L.A. Kendall and Elle Tee spin last night at Tacoma's Tempest Lounge.

Matthew Bornstein-Grove, Kate Monthy, Alexa Folson-Hill and Patricia Rubke enjoy the noshies and ambience of Tempest.

I did not feel like a dumb ass walking into Tempest Lounge alone.
It was a chill atmosphere, a couple of groups sitting, eating, and drinking, and a big bar on a radius, which echoed the radius of the wall beyond the bar, the wall past the bathrooms which I desperately needed. 
After my visit to the bathroom â€" neat handmade wall tiles, great floor tiles, good use of wall colors, and Marilyn Monroe â€" I took up a perch at the bar.  I was That Customer which all barkeeps dread, “I dunno what I want. What do you recommend?” 
While Larry made me up some fabulously light, thirst-quenching and not-too-sweet concoction (I call it “The Mindreader”) I checked out the menu and the bar-top surface.  Both impressed me.  I had hummus â€" homemade and divine â€" with dippers, and added some amazing pickled veggies for a buck.  Mmm, they had just  the right heat, crunch, and blend of salty/vinegary.  Larry informed me the Bloody Mary mix is equally fabulous, and I’ll take him at his word.
Best part of the night: Girl DJs.  Elle Tee and DJ Kendall spun the mellow-cool tunes that ignited conversation.  There was the mild argument from the rummy-playing pair across the bar about whether Barbra Streisand was great or not.  There was the amped-up tune I recognized from "Garden State" that made the guy next to me irritated, “I hate soundtracks!” he griped.  There was "How Soon is Now," encapsulating my entire life as a young hip cool person (hmmm, must work on a theme song for This Phase) and then there was The Cure, "Pictures of You," encapsulating so many other elements of life.
Or maybe all the philosophical stuff was the liquid happiness flowing through my system.  All I know is, great atmosphere, great tunes, great night. â€" Jessica Corey-Butler