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Media Credit: Ray Quero Photo by Ray Quero acoma's Black Water Café attracts an eclectic group of customers promising consistent, quality coffee.

Hours: 5 a.m. to 4 p.m. (ish) Monday – Sunday

It’s like falling through the rabbit hole and finding Wonderland: a feeling of warped time and controlled chaos. It’s not just in the storybook though; it’s here in Tacoma at the Renaissance Café. Originally established as Psyche Deli, the café has been a part of the Pacific Avenue streetscape for the past 5 or so years when plans for the new Convention Center built over the former location. The new name, "Renaissance" literally means "rebirth" and corresponds to the city’s own state of regeneration. Owner Keith Flowers says the café is a constant work-in-progress: it started as a blank canvas and has evolved with the people and places brought back to the downtown.

Some things haven’t changed though, like the commitment to home-cooked food and serving UWT students. In fact the café offers a daily "starving student special," an all-day breakfast menu and fresh espresso to carry you through class. Keynote items on the menu include: BBQ/Philly cheese steak sandwiches, hearty chowders, warm chocolate chip cookies, real fruit smoothies, and above all… scrambled eggs. More than the variety of scrambles, it’s the method of scrambling that is truly unique. Instead of the traditional frying pan, Keith Flowers uses his own method of cooking eggs with the steam wand of his espresso machine: it’s fast, fluffy, and never over cooked!

It’s hard to say what to expect at the Renaissance Café, it’s a special something to discover on your own because Keith and his café exceptionally defy the predictability and blandness that you’d otherwise find at franchises. So if quality and community are important to you, skip the lines at Starbucks and "Support the Little Guy" next door at the Renaissance Café.

Hours: 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday

What’s in a name? The "Black Water Café" may be symbolic of some certain thing, eg. Black Water = coffee, but to me it is a direct reflection of its sense of place. It’s a place of contrast. It’s a new café (it opened just one year ago) with an old spirit; the colors are bright reds, oranges and greens accented by dark wood fixtures.

There’s Wi-Fi access and laptop hookups yet old typewriters on the side tables. Baristas use a brand new espresso maker but coffee is served in vintage style cups and saucers.

Located on Fawcett and Ninth Street, the Black Water Café attracts a wide variety of patrons from students and artists to retirees and business professionals alike. The café is growing in popularity and expanding its menu selection yet it’s sticking to the basics when it comes down to its beverages: Consistent, quality coffee. In fact, Valhalla Coffee Co. produces a Black Water Blend of beans for exclusive brewing and resale at the café.

Quality measures are also taken to offer mostly organic baked goods delivered fresh every morning, Luxe loose leaf teas, the best selection of flavored syrups and the most personable Baristas.

Quaint as it might be, the Black Water Café is less concerned with conforming to café clichés and more concerned with creating a place for customer service, for coffee, for the community.

The Renaissance Café

1746 Pacific Ave

Tacoma, WA 98402

(253) 572-1029

747 S. Fawcett

Tacoma, WA 98402

(253) 404-0000

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