Puyalapabs Cafe — Restaurant in Tacoma

For all its airs of being a higher-end restaurant, Puyalapabs Cafe is not without some disappointing yet easily corrected missteps that drag it back to lower-tier cafe status. Ultimately, it’s clear the cafe relies on very hungry gamblers or visiting one-time customers to actually require any change for the better.

First the unfortunate. My two siblings and I needed a place to meet for a private memorial for our mother who’d just passed the night before. Having been to Puyalapabs before, I knew a Monday afternoon would be fairly slow and made a reservation through OpenTable. Without knowing the table numbers, I was very specific about describing one of the round-top standalone tables against the rear rock wall; just in case we became emotional, we wouldn’t bother other diners as much.

My sister arrived first. I’d not mentioned the table preference to either of my siblings because I’d put the request in OpenTable. My sister had been seated alongside other customers against the continuous wall bench tables. I was annoyed, but my sister was already settled, so I let it go hoping things wouldn’t get too emotional. Foreshadowing.

Don’t expect much from the bar. I believe drinks are delivered from the casino bar. From our experience, they aren’t well-stocked or even terribly knowledgeable on the craft of cocktails. My brother ordered a Gentlemen Jack and I asked for an Old Number 7 and cola. Our server returned empty-handed. The bar claimed to have no double-barrel whiskeys, or even simple Jack. I rephrased my order to a Jack and Coke, and suddenly, the bar did have Old Number 7. Again, think of the Emerald Queen bar like you would an overwrought wedding bar: low-shelf, limited knowledge, and no time for complex drinks.

The food at Puyalpabs is typically excellent. This is one of the few places that remain in Western Washington where one can get war shu gai and a few other 60s-era Chinese-American dishes taken seriously. The war shu gai (almond chicken with gravy) is done particularly well, but not without some cautions. First, the chef does not take the time to remove the tendon bits of the chicken breasts, so there are inevitably at least three bites that are disgusting and have to be removed from the mouth and stashed somewhere on the plate. An A+ dish reduced to a C. Despite the name on the menu, there is also an obvious lack of almonds (or even peanuts) on the dish when presented.

Our server was the highlight of the entire experience. She was top-notch and hugely empathetic. Fast, accurate, and communicative, she made our meal pleasant despite the glares we received from the surrounding tables that cramped our location when my brother became very emotional. Solid note to the host manager: Do not train your hosts to seat consecutively with guests packed into the same area when you have an entire empty restaurant. Break this obnoxious habit. Also please properly train your hosts to respect all information in OpenTable. Guests know best.

Will I be back? I’ll likely not recommend Puyalapabs for any future dining events no matter how convenient. There are other options for dining far better in the area with Silk Thai Cafe being top of the list for amazing food, atmosphere, service, and value...

Today (Thursday - July 1st at 2:45pm) I came to place a to go order. I was next in line to order and a lady working walked over placing 2 people in front of me saying they had been there but waiting in the wrong spot to place a to go order. Though I had been waiting in the correct place to place my order. Those 2 guests took 15 minutes to place their order. The lady behind me was also commenting how weird is was that they placed them in front of us and how long they were taking to order. I myself had once gone to the other podium to place a to go order and the tall male manager told me to get in the back of the to go order line. So that was strike one. You need to be consistent either place people who don't know what their doing in front of the line or in back of the line.

I order my sweet and sour chicken and was not given my players card discount though I used my card to pay. I paid the difference though there wouldn't have been a different had they given my discount. At this time I tip cash after I placed my order. after waiting an hour for my food I talk to a manager about not receiving the discount and he offers me a piece of cheesecake. The food is for my husband and he doesn't eat sweets and I'm eating keto.

I wait a few more minutes outside the restaurant and see a lady picking up a huge order, I see her order number is 510. My order number was 504. I ask her if she waited over an hour for her food and she said "not at all." At this point I leave. So I'm out my $25 food credit, cash tip and the difference I was charged. Needless to say I will not be going back. You would think places that you spend a ton of money at would care a little more about keeping you around.

Maybe if I hadn't had all of these issues in the same day it wouldn't have been such a big deal. The front of the restaurant really needs better policies and procedures so it runs smoothly and doesn't make customers upset.

I have worked in food and beverage at MGM Grand, Caesar Palace, Palazzo and Snoqualmie casino. Had anyone ever had an experience like I did at EQC today I would have been embarrassed. I would have made it right before they threw in the...

I took my son to the MMA fight at the Emerald Queen, and I thought it would be nice to go early and have dinner. As a result, we decided to go to the Puyalapabs Café. This place was truly one of the worst restaurants I have ever eaten at. My son and I passed by several times, and our order was not taken for almost 30 minutes. There were people that came after us and were being served before us. I hate calling the race card, but I can only wonder why my son and I (the only two black men in the restaurant) were passed by as if we were invisible. It wasn’t until one waiter came to our table and asked if our order had been taken yet that someone finally took our order. Might I mention there were waitresses with water bottles that skipped our table several times and went to fill up water at another table. Wow! You would think this day and time and state that profiling people would be a thing of the past, well it isn’t and that is exactly what happened here. Now the food. After all that wait, you would think the food would be worth it. What a joke. I ordered the Chinese sampler, and we got wood, freezer food that was microwaved and hot mustard. For dinner I ordered the garlic fried chicken and my son ordered the General Tso’s chicken. Wow, where do I start? My chicken tasted like TV dinner chicken with no flavor. My son took a few bites of his food and that was it. The best thing about this food was the glass of water. We paid the check, got to-go-boxes and threw the food in the nearest trash can. Look, save your time, money and taste buds and go somewhere else. This place should be shut down immediately. What a joke! All the money the Emerald Queen makes from gamblers, you would think they could afford a descent restaurant. I will never eat at this place again and I would highly encourage anyone else not to waste money or time. In closing, I probably have more money in my bank account than all the patrons that was there put together, so don’t profile...