Lucky Penny Cafe — Restaurant in Tacoma

Literally happened upon this place because the cafe down the street that i wanted to try was closed. Im visting from San Diego and dropped off my car rental a few blocks down and just found this place through yelp by its good reviews. Every review about this hidden gem is 100% accurate.

Tied for #1 is both the food and the service. They go hand in hand because Penny is the sweetest lady you have ever met who wants to take care of your food eating experience. It was my first time there and she treated me like i was family and wanted to make sure her cooking was the best. You really felt welcomed and that a lot of effort and love went into her cooking. The food itself is out of this world, i ordered the combo fried rice and i am a big boy and i couldnt finish half of it because there was so much she packed in there. But its not just the quantity, it was the best fried rice ive ever had. So much flavor, not overly oily or greasy just really good comfort food.

The ambiance is a bit weird because its a super small shop in the bottom floor of an office building but when you walk into the shop you feel welcomed

Overall the best surprising experience ive ever had. Im saving this place and making note to come here again every time i visit Tacoma. Plus one more kudos to Penny she really left a lasting impression with how sweet and caring she is to each of her customers if i could give more...

I’ve lived directly across the street from this place for 2 years and only just now decided to walk in and see what they had. I wish I would’ve come in a lot sooner. This place is incredible. I believe the owners are husband/wife (not 100% though so don’t quote me on that) who are so friendly and nice. I’ve been there 3 times now and he seems to be working the front counter while she is making the orders and her food is amazing. I’ve spent hundreds or thousands ordering disappointing DoorDash from various place and I always regret it every time. Her food, which is just simple breakfast and lunch items, are still killer compared to any other locations around here that I know of. The location is a very small kind corner of a building entrance, part convenience store, part deli/cafe. You can tell a lot of love went into the creation of this business. If you’re in downtown Tacoma looking for a lunch location (to go only, there is no seating) give the Lucky Penny a try, you will be so glad you did! I’ve gotten the iced caramel macchiato, the iced lucky penny special and a BLT on...

I love this place with one exception. More of that to follow. So, this is a small cafe ran by a great older couple that serves great sandwiches and some Asian (Korean) food (just a few dishes of Korean). I usually get the tuna or BLT at lunch and the service is extremely good. Penny is a cute Korean lady and we chat every-time. The only exception is the price. The BLT w a drink and tip comes out to almost 17 bucks. For the same thing 100 yards down, I can actually get a better sandwich with a lot of variety of breads for 9 dollars with a drink. I still go to Pennys at least once a week but I’ve cut back from my 2-3 times and hit the other sandwich place or the Vietnamese place. Otherwise, I say GO! They won’t disappoint w the American and Asian lunches and the customer service...