STEPH DEROSA: ONE HEALTHY, FRESH SALAD >>>

Antique Sandwich Company
Tuna Salad
Price: $7.75
Rating: Three out of four croutons

The table of men, obviously retired and out for a friendly lunch, all turned and gawked at my tuna salad at Antique Sandwich Company. “They sure do take care of you here, don’t they?” one of them asked. I happily agreed as I dove into one of the healthiest and freshest salads I’ve conquered in a long time.

Description: A fresh-cut mix of greens including spinach, romaine, and green leaf supported hefty helpings of even more fresh-cut veggies in my Antique Sandwich Company tuna salad. Large slices of tomato, cucumber, mushrooms, and green peppers cradled the aforementioned greenery while cheddar cheese shreds laid beneath a homemade mound of tuna mixed lightly in mayonnaise. Blanketing this natural salad, and completing an extra-ordinarily healthy salad, were two of my all-time favorite toppings: sprouts and sunflower seeds.

Taste: There’s no need to hide any part of this salad in dressing or fancy toppings, it’s all fresh and it’s all delicious, no matter what. A full-balanced meal was right at hand, setting my mid-day munch right on track and leaving me with no guilt whatsoever. No cut veggie was brown or had the appearance of being pre-prepared and sitting around. Everything crunched when it was supposed to, and every flavor had an untainted taste of normalcy.

Conclusion: The Antique Sandwich Company’s tuna salad is exactly what a salad should be: not covered in man-made flavor (otherwise known as dressing), and not wearing a lame coat of croutons. And the fact that they sliced the stuff right in front of me just proved how high the standards of natural eating are there at this historical Ruston area restaurant. And all for only $7.75. This is a no-brainer â€" I love this place.

Dressing on the side

Repeatedly I’ve had Mr. DeRosa, Bandito Betty, and The KAke remind me that this shit only happens to me:

1. Homeless man verbally accosts me as I take my foot off the brake in a coffee drive-thru. I didn’t even have my foot on the gas as he jumps out from behind the building and flamboyantly accuses me of “trying to kill a homeless guy with no insurance.” Yes, those were his screaming words.
2. Man in over-sized Ford truck (obviously compensating for something) parks inches away from my driver’s side door to block me in. As I shimmy out of my car, he jumps out of his, runs around to my side and begins screaming, “It’s your fault! It’s your fault!” over and over. Confused and bewildered, I tell him I hope his day gets better and then move my car to another spot far, far away.
3. The KAke and I witness a yelling match between restaurant patron and restaurant owner. Patron doesn’t want mayo on her BLT, so she sends it back. Owner wipes the mayo off the bacon and makes new sandwich with wiped bacon. Owner makes a brand new BLT and comps it, yet the angry patron wants both the old BLT and the new one to take home (for free), and then notifies the owner that if she has to go to the hospital for mayonnaise ingestion, restaurant owner will be receiving the bill.
4. Over lunch, friend tells me she won’t be attending my birthday party because Pampered Chef lady will be there. (Some friend, huh?) Yet invites me to not one, but two “sell your wares” parties in the past three of weeks: Mary Kay and Candle Lite. WTF with the hypocrisy, yo?

Strange shit with Steph DeRosa, happening daily whether I like it or not.

[Antique Sandwich Company, 5102 N Pearl St, Tacoma, 253.752.4069]

LINK: Tossing Salad archive

MICHAEL SWAN: AND MORE CONCERTS ON SALE THIS WEEKEND >>>

On sale now
The Ventures, The Fabulous Wailers Seattle. April 10 (all ages) 8 pm. $29.50-$100 (Moore Theatre, tickets.com).

On sale Friday, 10 am
The Shins Seattle. May 4-5 9 pm. $34.99 (The Showbox, Ticketmaster).

Ben Folds Seattle. May 14 8 pm. $26.50-$36.50 (Paramount Theatre, tickets.com).

On sale Saturday, 9 am
Tommy James & The Shondells, Herman’s Hermits starring Peter Noone, Felix Cavaliere’s Rascals Puyallup. Sept. 22 7:30 pm. $20-$45 (Puyallup Fairgrounds, Ticketmaster).

On sale Saturday, 10 am
Daniel Tosh Seattle. May 9 7:30 pm. $28.50 (Moore Theatre, tickets.com).
Jonas Brothers Tacoma. June 28 7 pm. $29.50-$89.50 (Tacoma Dome, Ticketmaster).

Xavier Rudd Seattle. June 29 (all ages) 9 pm. $22.50-$25 (The Showbox, Ticketmaster).
Dave Koz, Brian Culbertson, Peabo Bryson Puyallup. Sept. 24 7:30 pm. $15-$40 (Puyallup Fairgrounds, Ticketmaster).

On sale Saturday, 11 am
Death Cab For Cutie, The New Pornographers, Ra Ra Riot Redmond. July 18 6 pm. $35 (Marymoor Park Amphitheatre, Ticketmaster).

JENNIFER JOHNSON: DINING AT SEA GRILL IN MARCH >>>

Sea Grill is an airy room with floor to ceiling windows all around and a clear view straight into the kitchen. The inviting look of the restaurant is mirrored by the staff.

“Are we celebrating anything this evening?” general manager Mike Neumann warmly asks of a couple he’s just seated.

Neumann wants everyone’s evening to be memorable and as perfect as possible. Dining at Sea Grill in the month of March ensures one will have just such an experience. March heralds in the Royal Order of the Flying Crustaceans â€" lovingly called the Cult of the Crab â€" a month-long celebration of crustaceans and an exploration of their versatility in dining.

A singularly special crab-focused menu designed by Executive Chef Matt Brandsey showcases eight types of crab in 11 wholly different dishes.

Saturday night I nestled up to several crab dishes at Sea Grill. Read my review on the Weekly Volcano Web site

PAUL SCHRAG: ARMED TO THE TEETH >>>

Sorry to keep doing this. But we’re screwed â€" especially homeowners with adjustable-rate mortgages in the South Sound. At least that’s what’s indicated in a report issued recently by the Washington Budget and Policy Center. The report, titled The High Cost of Subprime Lending in Washington State, suggests that this damn mortgage crisis could actually get worse, and that its effects will fall particularly hard on poor and minority communities. At one time believed to be slightly insulated from the mortgage woes troubling other states, Washington is expected to see rates increase on a flood of adjustable-rate mortgages this year, and those mortgages will have higher rates of prepayment penalties than nearly any other state in the nation. Translation â€" people who couldn’t get their hands on a standard loan and opted for a risky, adjustable-rate mortgage will see increases that many simply won’t be able to afford. During the coming year, it is expected that interest rates will reset on 23 percent of adjustable rate mortgages in Washington. That’s a higher share than nearly every other state.

The likelihood of a spike in foreclosure rates is profound, especially in Pierce County, which posted the highest foreclosure rate in the state earlier this year. Foreclosures in Pierce County more than doubled in 2008 â€" from 3,088 in 2007 to 6,669 in 2008, according to foreclosure listing service RealtyTrac.

“Many families who are already struggling during this recession will also face unaffordable increases in their mortgage payments in the next couple years,” says Jeff Chapman, author of the report. “The state must consider ways to boost federal efforts to ensure that people can pay fair prices and stay in their homes.”

What’s more interesting is data that suggests minorities and people from low-income neighborhoods are paying more for mortgages. Analysis of data from the Federal Reserve suggested that the income level of the neighborhood where the home is located played an important role in loan pricing. Mortgages in lower-income neighborhoods were almost twice as likely to be high cost. In Pierce County, 44 percent of high cost mortgages were sold to the lowest income neighborhoods, compared to 24 percent in higher-income neighborhoods. What’s more alarming is data that shows African Americans and Latinos were more likely to have high cost loans regardless of their income level. More than 40 percent of mortgages lent to African Americans and Hispanics were high cost, compared to an estimated 22 percent for non-Hispanic whites and Asians. Among borrowers with high incomes, 37-39 percent of African American and Hispanic borrowers had high-cost loans, compared to 18 percent for whites. Even when using a mainstream lender, people of color were still much more likely than whites to pay higher costs for mortgages. The choice of lender does not fully account for disparities in mortgage pricing by race and ethnicity, according to study authors.

“What is especially troubling about the findings in this report is that it appears people of color with higher incomes are getting high-cost loans,” says Alexes Harris, assistant professor of sociology at the University of Washington.

So what does all this add up to? Washington Budget and Policy Center says it means we need to put pressure on legislators to improve education and regulation of subprime mortgages, and an aggressive approach to casting a safety net under thousands facing foreclosure this year.

“All consumers, regardless of their race, should have access to fairly priced goods and services,” says Dorry Elias-Garcia, Executive Director of the Minority Executive Director’s Coalition.

PHOTO: Flickr/Peternamara1

MICHAEL SWAN: SCARY STUFF >>>

Here are a few photos snapped by the Graham Firefighters of the two-alarm fire in Graham last Thursday morning.

Thankfully, no one was inside the residential fire on 196th Street Court East.

More remarkable â€" the other houses didn’t catch on fire, too. Check out how close the houses are to each other in that neighborhood. You can see the neighbors' vinyl siding burn and melt just from the heat.

Watch â€" the county is now going to require that every home with a side yard setback of less than 5 feet will be required to install sprinkler systems.

BOBBLE TIKI: DINNER WITH BOBBLE TIKI >>>

Today show co-host Matt Lauer hurt after close encounter with deer.

BOBBLE TIKI: BREAKFAST WITH BOBBLE TIKI >>>

“Look Dave, I can see you’re really upset you left that running passengers behind. I honestly think you ought to slow down, take a stress spill, and think things over.”

Take that Illinois! Washington state jumps up one notch in State Crime Rate Rankings.

President Obama on the boob tube tonight to try and sell the public on his economic plan … again.

Bailout for Bobble Tiki? Senate considers bill to provide relief for Bobble Tiki’s excessive credit card debt.

Space balls: Shuttle dodges space trash … again

Finally, Totally Stylin' Tattoo Barbie â€" complete with toy tattoo gun and more than 40 tattoos you can place anywhere you want on Barbie's plastic physique.

There are simply not enough men dressed as unicorns doing video game reviews these days.

JAKE DE PAUL: TUESDAY FOOD LINKS >>>

The Red Hot hosts the Dry Hop Fest tomorrow.

Critics are Snarkilicious over the ads.

Goodguide.com analyzes fats, sugars, sodium, and additives in some 30,000 packaged foods.

Bourdain spills details on next book, predicts “Apocalyptic Shakeout.”

Today’s South Sound Specials

Tightwad Tuesdays with $2 tacos, $2 beers, and $2 wells, Hell’s Kitchen, 3829 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.759.6003.

Wine Tuesday, 20 percent off bottles wines on regular list, Toscanos Cafe and Wine Bar, 437 29th St. N.E., Puyallup, 253.864.8600.

El Gaucho offers a dinner for two â€" tableside Caesar, 16-ounce Chateaubriand and 8-ounce lobster tail, baked potato, and veggies â€" paired with one of eight Washington wines for $150 for two. Reserve your spot at this fancy downtown restaurant at 253.272.1510.

LINK: Visit a dive bar today