OH SWEET SUGAR TROPHY >>>

I felt as if I damn well earned the giant peanut butter cookie.

After traveling south on North Union Avenue, throwing my back out on every pothole, giant dip, bump and crack, then struggling to find parking once I hit Sixth Avenue, I grabbed one of the giant cookies right next to the cash register - the size of an infant's head - at Metronome Coffee as a reward for my effort.

Corina Bakery bakes said massive cookies. The peanut butter cookie achieves the perfect salty-sweet balance and maintains a crumbly edge around a softer center. My other options were chocolate chip, snickerdoodle, oatmeal raisin and molasses - all ringing in at $2.

And the rewards kept coming. After ordering an Americano, the handsome barista asked me to choose a bean. The coffee house offers three espresso bean options. Today, it was chocolate organic, Metronome'smokey-chocolate-ish house blend -- and one that leans to the citrus side. Metronome's bean hit the spot.

Metronome Coffee

6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday-Thursday
6-1 a.m. Friday, 7-1 a.m. Saturday
7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday
Sixth Avenue and Union, Tacoma
253.301.2375

SIXTEEN SPACES AND 51 PROJECTS >>>

Over its six-month lifespan Spaceworks Tacoma has introduced and reacquainted the community with local artists, tremendously improved the aesthetic of many downtown storefronts and been a popular subject of discussion at many a Tacoma party. This month the program releases its third installment, which includes 16 spaces and 51 projects.

City of Tacoma Public Art Assistant Rebecca Solverson, who runs Spaceworks for the city, the Tacoma Chamber of Commerce and partnering nonprofit Shunpike, says the program (and many like it around the country) have been wildly popular because of the limited effort required and the great overall gain. Spaceworks Tacoma aims to "activate empty storefronts in downtown Tacoma with art and creative enterprise," according to the official website, spaceworkstacoma.com.

"Essentially we're just using what we have (open space and willing artists) to make something better with it," Solverson explains.

To read the full story click here.

GRAND SLAM THIS! >>>

Babblin' Babs Bistro has done it again. The tiny gourmet spot in Tacoma's Proctor District introduced another round of breakfast dishes no one in the South Sound comes close to matching. Chef William and his better half, Shannon, emerged from their laboratory with six new dishes without a pigs 'n' a blanket in sight.

After the jump are Babblin' Babs Bistro's new breakfast dishes taken directly from the menu so you may receive a taste the sense of their humor.

Read more...

This week ...

What: DeRosa's fish taco de-virginization

Where: Mazatlan Restaurant, downtown Puyallup

When: During happy hour

Happy hour days: Monday-Thursday

Happy hour times: 3 p.m. - 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. - close

All day happy hour: Sundays

Happy hour located: In the bar

Was I happy: Oh, you betcha!

For more than an hour: HELL. YES.

For the full story, click here.

ONLINE CHATTER >>>

Today's comment comes from Del Anderson Jr. in regard to Matt Driscoll's 2010 feature on Tacoma band Post Stardom Depression.

Anderson writes,

PSD....Lots of retro, boot cut, Horn rimmed "non-script" no doubt glasses, half ass machismo, mid grade groupies and headlining gigs at bars......But, sadly...No songs....Which is what a band needs to be any good...

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 9, 2011 >>>

1. Do you remember the scene in "Titanic" when Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet go down into the servant area of the ship where everyone is drinking, gambling and dancing with reckless abandon? That is exactly what a performance of Erev Rav is like - minus the famous actors. These Olympia-based performers have the whole gypsy, klezmer thing down to a well-rehearsed science, and watching them go at it is more fun than a bucket full of shiksas. It wouldn't surprise us in the least if an unsuspecting spectator was lifted into the air by spontaneous revelers onto the dance floor when they perform at 8 p.m. inside Northern.

2. The Kittredge Gallery at the University of Puget Sound hosts an opening reception for Abby Williams Hill: Wanderlust, Works on Paper, 1895-1927 from 5-7 p.m. in the Small Gallery. The exhibit, which explores the artistic impulse to mirror or recreate nature, will be on display through April 9.

3. Unique story stylist Mitch Nelson is the featured teller at 7 p.m. when the South Sound Story Guild hangs out in the Olympia Center lobby. Nelson tells tales with the theme "In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb" followed by a story swap/open mic.

4. Pub trivia nights can either ignite the party or stifle the mood. McNamara's Pub & Eatery in DuPont does everything possible to avoid being a major buzz kill. Every Wednesday McNamara's Pub starts team trivia at 7 p.m. Irish-inspired food helps trivia players stock up on brainpower before the trivia starts. Beer and drink specials happen at trivia intermission. Because everyone knows a good buzz makes trivia that much easier. What's the capital of Kazakhstan? Take a drink and think.

5. Last month Weekly Volcano readers picked The Brown Edition as the Best Band in Olympia. Self-described as "all the soul, funk and jazz your ass can handle," the Brown Edition's music keeps listeners happy because it keeps them glued to the dance floor, especially at their regular 9 p.m. Wednesday gig at The Royal Lounge.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

LINK: Half-priced bottles of wine night

BEER, WINE AND MOVIES >>>

You already know the Capitol Theater has the best movie popcorn in Olympia (and if you didn't, the Volcano told you so in the Best of Olympia issue).

But what are you going to wash that down with?

The Olympia Film Society has a new answer beginning Saturday, March 12, when screenings of Blue Valentine and Slammin' Salmon will offer a mezzanine beer and wine garden, as many of the society's special events long have.

"There'll be certain Saturdays or Fridays where we'll have beer and wine gardens for films," says Helen Thornton, the society's film programmer. "We are just starting that."

In other words, if you really want to watch the film in a slightly altered state, check the society's website before you head for the theater.

Saturday, March 19, the expanded beverage selections - only for those of legal age, natch - will be available during screenings of Nenette and Made in Dagenham.

OFS also raised ticket prices recently. Films are now $8.50, $5.50 for society members, $4 for kids, and matinees are $5.50, $4.50 for members. Plus extra, of course, for the beverages, popcorn and other accoutrements. The society also allows you to bring your own snacks or even dinner to the films - which means snack prices are much more reasonable and you won't have to bring a big purse or smuggle things in a la Kramer -  who wins cafe lattes for life after burning himself while sneaking one into a movie theater in his pants .

Capitol Theater

206 Fifth Ave. S.E., Olympia
360.754.6670 or www.olympiafilmsociety.org

SO MUCH MATERIAL, SO LITTLE TIME >>>

There's a lot of stuff out there in the world of art that I will never be able to cover in my column.  The following are some suggestions of a few things in the South Sound you might want to take a look at.

Local students are being highlighted in the latest show at the Kenneth J. Minnaert Center for the Arts Gallery at South Puget Sound Community College. The exhibition featuring local high school artists begins today and runs through March 23 with a special closing reception March 23 from 6-8 p.m. The gallery will feature extended hours for the exhibit. The exhibit will be open Monday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m. As a cool added feature, the show is part of a state art competition, and if you go you can vote for your favorite pieces. Your vote just might be the one to start some future art star on the road to fame.

Also in Olympia, M.W.Lindenmeyer will be showing Olympia cityscapes in pastel and watercolor at the Lieutenant Governor's Office, Room 220 in the Legislative Building on the Capitol Campus. The show opened March 7 and continues through May 5. Lindenmeyer has been painting West Coast cityscapes for more than 30 years in a variety of media. In 2004 he began visiting Olympia looking for a fresh inspiration, and the works in this show have been done since then. He e-mailed me a couple of images from the show. They're kind of fun and playful. I enjoyed them a lot.

In Tacoma, photographer Jim Oliver is having a show at The Tahoma Center Gallery called Your Table is Waiting. I previewed photos from the show and was very impressed with their formal simplicity and elegance. There will be a reception March 17 from 5-7:30 p.m. Gallery hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday. The gallery is located on the 2nd floor of the old St Leo's School at 1323 S. Yakima Ave., Tacoma.

Also in Tacoma, Sandpiper Gallery is having a show called Round in Circles with painter J. Neils Harvey and bead sculptor Indian Owen. Curator Lynn Di Nino said of Harvey, "Inspired by the pointillist paintings of Georges Seurat and a fascination with mosaics, (Harvey) has pioneered a unique style. Harvey layers ‘bubbles' of bold colors creating a spectacular optical effect. Using acrylic paint as her preferred medium, (she) uses a self-taught technique to juxtapose thousands of precisely placed colors."

The show runs through March 26. Sandpiper Gallery is at 2221 N 30^th St, Old Town Tacoma. They're open every day except Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. or by appointment. Call 253.627.6667.

Finally, there's the Artisan Tile NorthWest show at Handforth Gallery in the downtown Tacoma Public Library featuring tiles by Claudia Riedener, Debra Bacianga, John McCuistion, Steve Moon, Allison Moore, and many more tile artists. The show runs through April 12. There will be an opening reception March 12 from 1-3 p.m.

EXECUTIVE CHEF KING HEUN WAIN COMES TO LAKEWOOD >>>

Just over a month ago, a Pacific Northwest culinary celebrity set up shop at Macau Casino in Lakewood. Chef King Heun Wai has won local and national awards, repeatedly been distinguished as one of America's top 100 Chinese Chefs, and earned House of Hong in Seattle's Chinatown a place on King 5's Best of Western Washington list of the top five Chinese restaurants. Now he brings his talent and more than 30 years of experience to Lakewood's Macau Casino as executive chef.

Macau Casino Marketing Manager David Feldhammer stresses that intense focus is placed on authenticity in the kitchen. The Chinese menu has 87 different items. "Our clientele is probably over 60 percent Asian," Feldhammer says. "This isn't Americanized Chinese food, they wouldn't put up with it."

Feldhammer says quality and fresh ingredients are used at Macau Casino. Live lobster and crab are supplied by Seattle's Lucky Seafood.

Since opening in 2007, the menu at Macau has been expanded beyond common Chinese dishes. Chef King will continue to expand the menu,  please palates and entice visitors to the eye-catching building replete with dragons and Chinese architecture. While making customer favorites like Mongolian beef and pan-fried squid, Chef King holds himself and his staff to a high standard. King will add Japanese and Thai dishes in the near future.

An American menu is also available for those just dying to try a clubhouse sandwich or two-egg breakfast.

[Macau Casino, 9811 South Tacoma Way, Tacoma, 253.983.1777]

HAPPY, HAPPY, JOY, JOY >>>

The annual SXSW music festival is quickly approaching. Every year thousands upon thousands of music industry types (hopeful bands, promoters, label folks, music journalists, sometimes Matt Driscoll) converge on Austin, Texas for one of the largest and most hyped happenings of the year.

Once again this year the Weekly Volcano is proud and honored to be one of only 40-or-so alternative press papers around the country chosen as an official co-sponsor of the 2011 SXSW Music festival. Next week the venerable Rev. Adam McKinney and Jason Baxter will both be travelling to Texas, no doubt to partake in too many Lone Star Beers, and also (hopefully) to report back all the SXSW action to you -- from a local perspective.

Catch the buzz at weeklyvolcano.com.