Pacific Southern — Restaurant in Tacoma

It's like someone read a book on Southern cooking and figured that was all the background they needed to actually cook it.

The atmosphere is a little strange - it looks like they wrote down a bunch of ideas after visiting a Cracker Barrel and then threw everything they could come up with at the walls of an old diner, and called it done. It's not uncomfortable, just unfinished, dirty and a little confusing.

Everyone in the front of the house was incredibly pleasant and accommodating, despite being short-staffed for how busy they were. Their dedication to their jobs was evident and appreciated.

I had the fried chicken, and having spent my formative years in the south, I can say with authority that what I was given wasn't even close to "southern". The chicken is deboned and cut entirely too thin - presumably so they can cook it to order. The way it is prepared, there is no hope for maintaining any of the natural textures and juices, and it eats painfully dry. It's a nice gesture, particularly to help Chicken and Waffle eaters keep their fingers clean, but they've completely lost the soul of what good fried chicken should be.

Chicken aside, where this place really fails to connect with the south is with its side dishes. In the south, if the sides aren't good, the meal isn't good...and these side dishes are a bit of a disaster. My collards were swimming in what smelled like dirty hot dog water and the greens themselves had been prepared completely wrong without even an effort to season them. Similarly, the baked beans were served in flavorless brown slurry - the beans were undercooked, the liquid had no seasoning, and none of it had been reduced enough. Like everything else, the cornbread was undercooked and under seasoned.

There are signs all over the restaurant that say "Good food takes time", but apparently no one told the kitchen staff that, because everything tastes like it was made last minute, or scraped off the bottom of yesterday's warming dish and then just soaked in tap water to try to stretch it for another day. Good Southern food needs to marinate, braise, reduce and thicken...maybe the kitchen skipped that chapter in the book and just figured they could try to follow the recipes?

I will say, the breakfast food looks pretty on point, and I'd probably go back to give it a shot (though I'm nervous about ordering biscuits or gravy given the lack of skill behind the cook line). In terms of lunch and dinner though, the poor quality and craftsmanship doesn't legitimize the...

Ray and I first ate here shortly after they opened. The food and service were phenomenal. We came several more times and then brought out of town guests. It was one of the worst meals ever.

Today, following PT and before farm errands we decided to give them another chance. I am so glad we did.

We were greeted almost immediately and given our choice of tables. We requested water and coffee. I was happy to learn they had French Vanilla creamer. They also have Hazelnut. The coffee was hot and good flavor.

They now serve breakfast all day. I don’t recall that being an option before.

After looking at all of the menu choices Ray decided on the PacSouth omelette with wheat toast. After a few minutes of indecision he chose the red potatoes over the homemade hash browns.

I chose the chicken and waffle. The waffle comes 4 pieces of chicken. The standard choices are one wing, one thigh and two tenders. I was a wing fan back when wings used to be the throwaway piece of chicken. When I was given the option of 4 wings my choice was a no brainer.

Meals are made to order, which means there is a somewhat longer than normal wait. Signs are posted as a reminder that good food is worth the wait. It is well worth it!!!

Ray was very impressed with his omelette. It was definitely different with pork, rice, green and red bell peppers, tomato, onion, cheese and topped with barbecue sauce. The red potatoes also had red and green bell peppers and onions. Ray raved over them and the way they were seasoned.

I was very impressed with my breakfast!! I didn’t just get 4 wings; I got 4 WINGS!!! They were huge. My waffle was hot, light and fluffy. While I did consume the entire waffle, I made it through one entire ring and part of the second one and then I was stuffed!! A dry rub was used on the chicken. It had excellent flavor but no heat, for anyone wondering if it was hot.

After our last experience, I am so glad we decided to give them another chance to redeem themselves. We will definitely be back.

The staff was friendly and attentive without being obtrusive. They helped make our dining experience pleasant and enjoyable.

I saved the chicken wing bones for my Blue Fronted Amazon, Sam. Yes, birds are omnivores. They eat just...

I'll start by saying my family and I have been frequent patrons of this establishment, and have had amazing experiences prior to last night. It has been an incredibly tough few months, so I decided to go visit. I had a couple of drinks at the bar and ordered the chicken dinner which was listed for $25.95. I subbed my baked beans for red beans and rice at no additional charge; the meal also comes with collard greens and cornbread.

Once I received my food, I noticed the collard greens were missing, but I just gave them the benefit of the doubt, and was thinking I should take a look at the menu again, or just ask if collard greens still came with the meal, but when I got the receipt, it was evident that not only did it come with collard greens, but the chicken dinner was $30.94 before taxes instead of the listed $25.95 on the menu.

When I asked the server about the price, she said suggested that it was taxes, but once I pointed out that the taxes are listed below, she went to the computer and she said the computer rang it up for $30.94. I simply suggested alerting management to update the price on the menu. It’s listed as $25.95 on the menu, so I asked if she would alter my ticket or something to bring it out to the $25.95 that’s listed. She said no, so I asked for a supervisor. She claimed there were no supervisors in the evening time.

I know it’s only $5, and I don’t care about the money aspect- it is the principle of the matter! If it’s listed for $25.95, I expect to pay $25.95. I inquired why I wasn’t told that the meal would be $30.94 versus the $25.95 that is advertised. Next thing I know, the server came back with five dollars cash and abruptly stated, “Here’s the five dollars!”

If the computer is charging people $5.01 more, I am almost certain people are not realizing that when they are paying their bill. How many other people has this happened to?

I mentioned my collard greens were missing, and she did bring them to me. I feel like I need them to run the receipt from Thursday because my goddaughter ordered the same meal. Did y’all charge me $30.94 for that too? If you all are charging more for that, what else are you...