Longtime Tacoma pizza parlor has a new owner. Here are 4 things that (sort of) changed

After more than two decades with the Almonte family and their partner group, Spud’s Pizza Parlor in Tacoma’s South End has a new owner.

Tracie and Josh Paul officially took the reins in early September.

Lisa Almonte navigated the pizzeria through the darkest days of the pandemic and the unexpected death of her husband Dave in 2020. Spud Hansen, who opened it as a Pizza Pete’s franchise in the early 1960s and changed the name 10 years later, died in early 2021.

“It was my goal to keep the place open because it’s such an important South Tacoma establishment, and a piece of my heart,” said Almonte, whose son Nico continues to work in the kitchen. “It was really important to me that we find somebody local, and Tracie couldn’t be any more local.”

With restaurants in her blood, Tracie Paul hopes to continue the legacy of an iconic community watering hole of a variety that has become increasingly hard to find.

The purchase makes her a third-generation restaurant owner. Her mother Marcia Crelling runs Marcia’s Silver Spoon Cafe on South Tacoma Way, and her aunt Kathlyne Carr operates Lucky Silver Tavern next door.

“Restaurants is really what I know,” said Paul, who you’ll now find at Spud’s on most days — maybe even behind the bar.

Spud’s has been buoyed by its in-the-round bar in that stuck-in-time lounge, with elevated seating indicative of its era and decades of sports memorabilia adorning the wood-paneled walls.

“The menu is still the same as it was in 1989,” continued Paul, who attended Stewart Middle School and Lincoln High School. “It’s the vibe and nostalgia factor for me. It’s such a cool place and it has so much potential.”

After many hours at Marcia’s and then a brief stint in real estate while her kids were young, she bought the business because “it was too good to pass up — it really struck me as a perfect opportunity.”

For Almonte, a schoolteacher of more than 30 years, “It’s a huge relief, and it couldn’t have worked out any more beautifully. I’m looking forward to just going in and relaxing and not having to wash the dishes!”

With such an old-school place, though, comes the challenge of what to adjust and what to leave alone. Here’s a look at the changes Paul has made, what else she has planned and what absolutely will be recognizable to anyone who, as she said, “has lived within 10 miles” of Spud’s Pizza Parlor at any point in the last 60 years.

THE PIZZA — CHANGED (for the better)

“It’s nerve-wracking changing that kind of stuff,” said Paul in a text message when I told her that her version of Spud’s signature thin-crust, square-cut pizza had drastically improved. My last (and admittedly only) experience with it was subpar, a malfunction of flawed dough preparation that lent a stale taste and toppings that slid right off.

“We changed it on Day 1,” she said.

So: new dough, new sauce, similar toppings — yes, Spud’s special Canadian bacon remains.

The default style is square-cut, which creates several corner pieces that highlight the crispiness of this updated crust. Paul said staff is now pressing each pie to order with semolina flour to ensure a sturdy, crispy bottom.

No one seems to know for sure how the thin-crust pies here came to be cut in squares, which is characteristic of Midwestern “tavern” pizza and unusual elsewhere. (Perhaps a relic of Dave Almonte, who was born in Chicago?) You can request traditional triangle slices, said Paul.

“My husband hates the square,” she laughed. “It’s just the way they’ve done it here for years. Everyone in the kitchen wants to cut it a different way.”

You’ll find that Canadian bacon on the Formula Four, layered also with pepperoni, Italian sausage and seasoned ground beef, and the combination which adds onions and mushrooms. Do you love pineapple on your pizza? Try the Aloha Supreme.

Other house favorites include the BBQ Chicken with bacon and onions or the classic Triple Crown with pepperoni, sausage and mushroom.

In the coming months, Paul anticipates further upgrades to the ingredients — notably bringing in cupping pepperoni, spicy sausage and different cheeses.

THE CANADIAN BACON SANDWICH — SAME(ISH)

Fear not: the Canadian Bacon sandwich, first on the menu and first in your heart, is very similar to its past self. It still has that ham, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, pickles and tartar, served with a side of the restaurant’s locally famous Spudder Chips — thick fried potato slices.

Paul has changed the bread. She is now ordering the same rolls that her mom uses for sandwiches at “the cafe,” as Paul affectionately refers to Marcia’s Silver Spoon.

She has also upped the meat quantity on this and other sandwiches, in an effort to fill ‘em out and fill you up.

You’ll also find Canadian bacon on the Submarine with salami, pepperoni and the revamped pizza sauce as well as the Italian club, available cold or hot, which adds lettuce and tomatoes.

THE SHRIMP SALAD — SAME(ISH)

“Regulars have known about the transition for a while,” said Paul.

They all ask the same question.

“‘You’re keeping the shrimp salad???’”

“We’re keeping all of it,” said Paul, but just “dialing it in a little bit.”

That pile of simple green lettuce still arrives under a mound of house-shredded mozzarella cheese so dense you can’t see anything else. Somewhere in there you’ll also find black olives, tomatoes, croutons and, of course, baby shrimp. Paul said she has increased the quantity of shrimp because, well, it is “the shrimp salad.”

“It’s four ingredients,” she laughed. “It’s just the dumbest thing ever but it is so good — it is all cheese. I’ve been eating that salad since I was 9 years old.”

Need Canadian bacon on your salad, too? Find it on the Super Salad also with bacon, pepperoni, olives, tomatoes and, yes, shrimp.

THE BEER — BETTER

Spud’s was one of those bars where the draft list felt like it, too, was stuck in time. Paul has upgraded the kegs to include regional craft brews, including several IPAs that she said, perhaps surprisingly given the bar’s built-in audience, have been consumed pretty quickly.

You can still get plenty of domestics, including Bud Light and PNW favorite Rainier, in bottles and cans.

THE WHOLE VIBE — 100% THE SAME

Pointing to the wood paneling, the green stools, the carpet in the parlor, the awesome orange “PIZZA” sign, Paul said: “Gonna keep that.”

“It’s just fun,” she continued. “There’s a whole market for that, and people like those kinds of places. We want to be the dive bar with the good food.”

The restaurant has also returned to seven days a week, and breakfast is back on weekends.

SPUD’S PIZZA PARLOR

▪ 7025 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253-475-3366, spudspizzatacoma.com

▪ Open Monday-Friday at 11 a.m., Saturday-Sunday at 9 a.m.

▪ Details: improved thin-crust pizza, sandwiches and salads with retro vibes; full-service dining in family-friendly front parlor, back lounge 21+

Reporter’s Note 9/30/2022, 11 a.m.: This story has been updated with comment from former owner Lisa Almonte.

This story was originally published September 30, 2022 at 7:30 AM.