The Homestead Restaurant Review

Submitted by Don Doman.

The Homestead Restaurant looks like a small red barn. The Homestead is kitty-corner from the B & I Shopping Center on South Tacoma Way and just a few blocks shy of being in Lakewood. My favorite dining experience at the Homestead was several years ago when we took two granddaughters to dinner there after walking in Relay for Life at Mt. Tahoma High School. Peg had the opportunity of introducing this small offering of our clan to cancer funding icon Pat Flynn at that time. Those memories floated to the top of our thoughts as we sat down for breakfast, since our dear friend Pat only recently passed away.

The Homestead Restaurant looks like a small red barn.

There is a surreal rural feeling at the Homestead that almost defies modernity . . . almost. The rough-looking wooden plank walls and the rock-a-billy music filling the air just scream Mayberry RFD except for the little flat screen video viewers on the walls at each four-person booth, which alternately show images of early Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash with food item offerings thrown in for color. As I listened to There Stands The Glass after already ordering, I nearly changed my mind three times because of the food pictures.

There is a surreal rural feeling at the Homestead that almost defies modernity . . . almost. Although it wasn’t on the menu the happy and pleasant waitress told Peg they would be happy to make her a BLT.

Although it wasn’t on the menu the happy and pleasant waitress told Peg they would be happy to make her a BLT. Peg ate half or her sandwich and all of her fruit. The other half of the BLT went home for Peg’s lunch. It must have been good . . . I was never offered a bite even after sharing a sausage link.

I ordered a single pancake (unfortunately), link sausages (4), and fried eggs (2).

I ordered a single pancake (unfortunately), link sausages (4), and fried eggs (2). It wasn’t until I saw my photographs later that I realized that I had forgotten to order corncakes instead of pancakes. Dang it! I’ll be hornswoggled. The Homestead doesn’t have pancakes as part of a meal. You have to order them separately. My self restraint kept me from ordering the homemade cherry pie, which I saw several times on the TV screen. I have recommended several times to different clients the use of small video screens carrying images of their services . . . to no avail. My hair stylist (yes . . . my hair stylist) used to have a video screen constantly playing images of her family, which I would watch as my hair was being cut. I think she wore out several screens before retiring the entertainment.

I combined my pancake, my eggs, and a sausage or two onto one plate, making a pancake sandwich. With a little syrup I was very pleased with myself and my breakfast. The cost was about half of what we paid on Sunday morning at the Original Pancake House in Tacoma. That OPH’s extra cost was well worth it, however since we had fresh berries (strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and loganberries) from Puyallup’s Spooner’s Farm. There’s room for both kinds of breakfast places, so don’t get me wrong. As we left the Homestead I walked a straight line towards the door with my face turned away from the pastry offerings in the lobby. They offer . . . oh, just forget it . . . I don’t need to make myself hungry again.

I combined my pancake, my eggs, and a sausage or two onto one plate, making a pancake sandwich.