Seattle’s Chow Foods bringing a restaurant to Tacoma’s Proctor neighborhood
Peter Levy, the longtime restaurant owner of some of Seattle’s top destinations for neighborhood dining, has looked for 15 years in Tacoma for a building that would be suitable for a restaurant. He found it in the Proctor neighborhood.
He doesn’t have a name yet, but in May, he purchased a building at North 26th and North Alder streets (the one that previously housed the dog grooming and nail salons from 3201-3205 N. 26th St.). Not much has happened with the restaurant other than demolition, which is well underway. The building will be gutted.
Don’t expect an opening before 2016, Levy said by phone.
“We just started demolition this week. I typically like to get inside my spaces and have it whisper something to me in terms of what we should do. Right now it’s whispering, ‘Are you out of your mind?’ ” said Levy.
He ticked off a list of what needs to happen next, and it’s a long list, but Levy said the old building has remarkable bones and he’s looking forward to turning it into a neighborhood restaurant.
“It’s beautiful, it’ll provide a really comfortable neighborhood gathering place,” he said. “It’s got its challenges with some structural issues, but I’m a sucker, I love old buildings. I got myself a doozy here. It was built in 1925.”
Levy has operated several restaurants since the early 1990s. His restaurant company, Chow Foods, owns the Hi-Life, a Ballard neighborhood joint built in an old firehouse; the 5 Spot, a Queen Anne restaurant specializing in regional American food; Endolyne Joe’s, the West Seattle cafe serving updated American classics, and TNT Taqueria, a tiny taqueria in Wallingford. Like those restaurants, he expects his Tacoma restaurant to be open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner. But first, he has to come up with a name and concept. Stay tuned for details in the next several months.
There’s quite a bit of movement happening with Seattle restaurants opening in Tacoma. Take a look:
Vostok Dumpling House: Opening this summer in downtown Tacoma, Vostok Dumpling House will be a duplication of the Russian dumpling restaurant in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood. The Tacoma restaurant will be located near Mad Hat Tea on Commerce Street. Read more about the opening here.
Rhein Haus Tacoma: The Seattle outfit that owns the Bavarian beer hall and bocce emporium, Rhein Haus, is duplicating that restaurant in Tacoma. Expect a 2016 opening for Rhein Haus, which will share owners with Seattle restaurants Bastille, Poquitos, Stoneburners and MacLeod’s Scottish Pub. Read more about the opening here.
This story was originally published June 5, 2015 at 4:23 PM with the headline "Seattle’s Chow Foods bringing a restaurant to Tacoma’s Proctor neighborhood."