JAKE DE PAUL: YOU CHOSE THE BEST >>>

Below are the results of the Weekly Volcano's Best of Tacoma 2008 Readers' Poll for Food and Drink. We published the Best of Tacoma issue on July 31, but I thought you might want a reminder.

BEST SCONES: Corina Bakery
BEST CEVICHE: Vuelve a la Vida
BEST CUP OF COFFEE: Black Water Cafe
BEST BAR SIGNATURE DRINK: Pink Pussycat at the Tempest Lounge
BEST NACHOS: Harmon Brewery and Restaurant
BEST SUSHI: Twokoi Japanese Restaurant
BEST BUFFET (BRUNCH): Lobster Shop
BEST DINNER SALAD: Stanley & Seafort’s
BEST HAMBURGER: Parkway Tavern
BEST CHINESE RESTAURANT: Happy Dragon
BEST PIZZA: Puget Sound Pizza
BEST FOOD LIKE MOM USE TO MAKE: Rosewood Cafe
BEST LOCAL CHOCOLATE: Johnson’s Candy Company
BEST PICNIC SPOT: Point Defiance Park
BEST ICE CREAM: Stone Cold Creamery
BEST CHEESECAKE: Corina Bakery
BEST SOUP: Infinite Soups
BEST RESTAURANT THAT LIKES KIDS: Spaghetti Factory
BEST FOOD TO EAT ON THE RUN: Taco Bell
BEST OUTDOOR DINING: Katie Downs
BEST LOAF OF BREAD: Corina Bakery
BEST CATERER: Pinwheel Catering
BEST WINE BAR: Pour at Four
BEST RESTAURANT IN TACOMA: Asado

LINK: Best of Tacoma 2008 Food & Drink (who we chose)

RON SWARNER: BEST OF TACOMA >>>

Hey folks, our yearly Best-Of issue, in which your humble and helpful Weekly Volcano staffers â€" and readers â€" show some love for all the things that make the City of Destiny so nifty â€" is now online.

It's broken down into six categories: Gritty City; arts and entertainment; bought and sold; food and drink; sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll; and this year’s Best Tacoma Legend.

Hop on over to the Weekly Volcano Web site for the Best of Tacoma.

MATT DRISCOLL: HEAR YE! HEAR YE!

The time has finally come.

Maybe you filled out the Weekly Volcano’s Best Of survey and maybe you didn’t. But either way the super-sized, all inclusive, coolest-shit-you’ve-seen-in-a-long-time Weekly Volcano Best Of edition hits the streets tomorrow.

That’s right, yo! It’s like Christmas but better. It’s like a trip to Disney World, only not lame.

Every year the Weekly Volcano produces Tacoma’s, shall we say, best Best Of reference guide. Where’s the best burger? The Weekly Volcano fills you in. Where is the best place to buy organic produce? The Weekly Volcano tells you. Where’s the best place to buy a bong? The Weekly Volcano even tells you that.

For the total Weekly Volcano Best Of package, you’re just going to have to wait until tomorrow. But here’s a snippet of the goodness in store. 

Best Convenience Store: Choosing Tacoma’s best quickie-mart or corner store is kind of impossible. Not because there’s probably not a best one out there, but because everyone’s favorite convenience store depends on where they live. The point of a convenience store is convenience, after all â€" and no one is likely to drive, walk or ride their retro scooter across town simply because they prefer a particular 7-11. With that in mind, I must say my favorite convenience store is the 7-11 at Sixth and Alder. They have most of the things I look for from a convenience store: like Vitamin Water, beef jerky, tall boys and scratch tickets â€" plus I just really like the crew at 6th and Alder. Those people put up with more 2 a.m. shit from Sixth Ave’s spilling out drunks than most bartenders â€" and they don’t even make tips. That deserves commending. â€" Matt Driscoll

Put on your thinking caps, and tell the Weekly Volcano what you think makes the City of Tacoma tick.  Your answers will be disclosed in our upcoming Best of Tacoma 2008 special section, a guide that offers a savvy glimpse into the real lives of the real folks who live in our ever-changing city.

Click on the link below and fill out the survey online. You must include your name for your ballot to be valid.  Only one online ballot per person.

All ballots must be completed by Friday, July 18 at 5 p.m..  Those that arrive before the deadline will be eligible to win a dinner for two at the Pacific Grill and overnight accommodations at the Hotel Murano.  Winning ballot will be chose at random.  Watch for the results in the July 31 issue of the Weekly Volcano.  

Cast your vote here today!

The Weekly Volcano's Best of Tacoma issue will hit the streets July 31.  Yes, that seems like an eternity.

While you wait we will periodically tease you with one of last year’s Best of Tacoma winners.  This week â€" The Best Microbrew Selection in Tacoma:

Parkway Tavern
We here in the Pacific Northwest take microbrews seriously, and just when I think I have knowledge of all of the best ones in my little head, The Parkway sneaks in and schools me. I rarely have an agenda when I go to the PDub, so I just let the bartenders pick for me because every beer on tap is worth the education. I’m eternally indebted to the Parkway for introducing me to Stevenson Brewery’s Walking Man Homo Erectus IPA. That’s the best gawd damned beer I’ve ever had in my whole freakin’ life. â€" Natasha Gorbachev

[The Parkway, 313 North I St, Tacoma, 253.383.8748]

Be part of the Best
Thanks to each and every one of you who filled out the Best of Tacoma ballot last year. If you have a category suggestion for this year’s issue, send us a e-mail here.

If you would like to advertise, kick us in the butt here.

The Weekly Volcano's Best of Tacoma issue will hit the streets July 31.  Yes, that seems like an eternity. 

While you wait we will periodically tease you with one of last year’s Best of Tacoma winners.  This week â€" The Best Service in Tacoma:

El Gaucho
Giving El Gaucho the nod for anything is like finally ceding the Florida vote count to Bush: at this point, it’s not as though this fine-dining treat needs some official stamp of approval. But that’s precisely because its popularity remains richly deserved â€" thanks not least to a waitstaff that’s every bit as gifted in its bailiwick as the chefs are in theirs. From the hostesses to the bartenders to the servers, everyone strikes that crucial balance between fuss-free formality and agreeability rather than familiarity. â€" Jake de Paul

[El Gaucho, 2119 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253.882.0009]

Be part of the Best
Thanks to each and every one of you who filled out the Best of Tacoma ballot last year. If you have a category suggestion for this year’s issue, send us a e-mail here.

If you would like to advertise, kick us in the butt here.