Manic Meatballs — Restaurant in Lakewood

I have been waiting to try this place for a while. When we walked in the doors, it felt kind of empty for 12:30 on a Saturday but I am guessing most orders are take out. They did well when a customer arrived another person came from the back area to help for a total of two but since you order similar to a cafeteria line I don't think any more could fit if there had been another customer but there wasn't anyone behind us to see what would happen. The young gentleman seemed to be the primary serving person. There was a girl that came out to help and is who we got to help us. I think she was having a bad day because she was short with us in my opinion, and did not fully answer questions without us needing to ask follow ups and what appeared as absolutely not ready to provide minimal customer service today. I ordered one of their meatball salads with lingonberry vinegarette (it still sounds delish and looked great in the pic), she left the area and came back and quickly said there aren't anymore salads what else can I get ya' as she was grabbing a to go container. Which is fine except she was moving to grab the other things and I had to ask what she said because I didn't hear it all the first time. Her demeanor gave off an I can't be bothered vibe and that she was in too big of a hurry to help us. :( We wanted to try this place for a while so we still stayed, they won't have to worry about that again. We were moved through the food line. It is not the type of place I frequent so it was hard to understand the cafeteria style line at first. Then I asked for a side of lingonberry vinegarette. And was told just no. She saw the look on my face, I think. I tried to hide my confusion about my experience but it wasn't working. Then she said the vinegarette is for salads only. Where I could say ahhh, and you are out of salad. So I asked if there was another salad I could buy to get the vinegarette, you know the answer I got but then since we were at the register both employees shared shared we could buy some lingonberry jam. I said sure! They asked how many, i still didn't see what they were talking about and they said they would sell how many ever we wanted and it would come in 2 oz cups. We took two (didn't realize it would cost $2.00 per). We went to a table. The dining area was clean and had a little table for kids and a little bench thing for them to sit on too. I liked that vibe. Now to the food. My favorite thing was the cucumber salad. My spouse liked the devil eggs. We both got mashed potatoes and they weren't bad, shells and cheese weren't our favorite. We tried the manic meatballs, they were ok, the chicken and apple not one I would order a second time the flavor did not feel very chicken and apple, we also tried a bite with lingonberry jam, it might taste better in a sandwiche but I could get past the flavor. We also tried the bacon wrapped meatballs out of all the meat balls that was the best but average would be the best rating. the flavor of the meatball was a little lacking and the bacon where it was touching the other pieces was way undercooked. They had coconut balls for dessert and they were decadent, my spouse and I split one and it was more than enough for the both of us. The overall rating for the food was a mehh to average, the service made it taste less than average and an experience we will not go back for. That was $70.00 (well $57.00 on food) that did not feel worth it. We had more left in our to go containers...

Manic Meatballs ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

On 9/15/22, I visited Manic Meatballs in Lakewood, Washington for the first time. Located in a former bank near Joint Base Lewis-McChord, this business offers a 10% military discount.

This business opened in late December 2020. Owner Carrie Stalder’s husband is of Swedish descent. Accustomed to making Swedish meatballs and delicious side dishes for large groups of people over the years, Carrie and her husband were often told “We wish we could buy these.” Recognizing the need for quick, healthy, homemade, affordable family meals, the Stalders decided to give it a go.

This was my first time trying real Swedish meatballs. The experience far exceeded my expectations. I can’t imagine ever driving anywhere close to Lakewood, Washington and not stopping at Manic Meatballs. Seriously, it was that good!

I ordered a Manic Meal ($14.50), which consists of six meatballs over mashed potatoes, egg noodles or rice, with two sides. Meatball options are traditional Swedish meatballs made of pork and beef served with a homemade brown gravy, Chicken-Apple meatballs with a creamy homemade gravy, or Impossible meatballs with a vegan gluten-free brown gravy.

I chose the traditional Swedish meatballs and mashed potatoes, but asked if one of my six meatballs could be Chicken-Apple so I could try them. They kindly accommodated my request. For my sides, I chose Green Beans and Shells & Cheese. I also ordered a small side of everything else except the Seashore Fries. The additional sides ($3 each) were: Cucumber Salad, Coleslaw, Baked Beans, Deviled Eggs, and Applesauce.

The meatballs were generous in size and delicious, as were the homemade mashed potatoes and gravy. The Chicken-Apple meatballs were very good but my personal favorite or the traditional Swedish pork and beef meatballs. I couldn’t believe how good the mashed potatoes were.

The Green Beans were fresh vegetables that had been perfectly cooked and seasoned. They were delicious!

The Shells & Cheese were delicious! On the menu, they are noted as being vegan. If so, I don’t understand how they made them so incredibly tasty. I liked that the pasta was almost al dente. 

The Baked Beans were delicious! Some of the best I’ve ever had.

The Applesauce was delicious! Some of the best I’ve ever had.

The Cucumber Salad was good. If you have had cucumber salad before, you know what to expect. Most are very similar.

I liked the Deviled Eggs, but thought they could use a little more seasoning.

The coleslaw was unlike any I’ve had before in that it was very vinegary. Flavor wise, it was a lot less complex than any others I’ve had. I did like that it was made with red cabbage.

I probably won’t be through this area again until next May, but I’m already counting the days until my next Manic Meal with extra sides.

Manic Meatballs offers a family size meal that is supposed to serve up to five for $35.  Highly Recommended!!! — at...

As i drive i5 I always see this establishment and its always piqued my interest. Today I finally had some time and decided to go out of my way to try it and to be honest I have mixed feelings. It seems like for every good mark, there's also a negative.

You enter and it's very big and clean, until you refocus and see a family of flies swarming around the main lobby. Thankfully the precooked food is covered but it's not quite appetizing with that sight. The service is friendly but with only 1 person working the counter, it was a bit longer than I would have liked and he seemed pretty burnt out. Friendly but tired. While waiting in line for my order to be taken I got a full rendition of "Hamilton" preformed by flies which was a nice touch.

The food itself is hit or miss. What I will say is the price is very fair for the amount. I got the manic meal for just around $13 and it came with 6pc meatballs, a basic foundation of which I chose the mashed potatoes, 2 sides, and a drink. A lot of food for such a generous price. The fries were better than expected, can't really go wrong with frozen fries but they were definitely better than your average fast food fries. The mac n cheese, or the "shells and cheese" as they call it, leaves much to be desired as it was extremely bland and incredibly regrettable. The main dish, potatoes and Swedish meatballs, was delicious upon first bite, but unfortunately after consecutive bites you quickly get fatigued with the bold flavors. The bold intensity of the meatballs, the strongly seasoned mashed potatoes, smothered in the salty brown gravy, it just became a little too overpowering and salty. I definitely should have requested a side of coleslaw to refresh my palate.

Overall it has outstanding portions and well worth the money if you love salty foods. Maybe I picked an off day, maybe other sides are better, maybe I should have gotten the meatballs sandwich instead, all I can say is it's all a bit average. Not great but not inedible....