Welcome to the Olive Branch Cafe & Tea Room

After walking around the LeMay car museum, I exited into a typical Tacoma downpour. Tired, cold, getting wetter by the second and desperate for caffeine, I wandered downhill. I saw the Freighthouse Square building, which looked semi-deserted but had a sign for a food court. Fine, I thought. A food court must at least have a cup of coffee or tea.

When I entered the building, I saw rooms full of sumptuous Victorian furniture and a man playing a grand piano! Was something in the Tacoma rain making me hallucinate? Was this the type of mirage only the most tea-starved mind could conjure?

Brian plays the grand piano six days per week.

The Olive Branch Café & Tea Room turned out to be real. The hostess showed me to the tea closet – an antique wardrobe stuffed with loose tea – and I picked out chocolate mint. Then she sat me at a comfortable little table in this extremely civilized establishment.

My server was Elaine, who keeps people filled with tea and goodies on the weekdays, and sings with her band the Jazz Rays on weekends. Sometimes they even play the Olive Branch. As far as I could tell, the whole staff is friendly, welcoming and love to hug people.

Elaine said the owner, Terry Waller, is an avid decorator. She collected the furniture, china, lamps and figurines at garage sales and second hand stores. The tea room is currently on its third incarnation. They’ve been at Freighthouse Square since March of 2015, and finally have enough space to really spread out. Elaine told me that the Amtrak, which currently stops about a half mile away, is moving its depot to Freighthouse Square. Stepping off the Amtrak and into the Olive Branch will go a long way in restoring elegance to train travel. I expect they will gain lots of business.

The menu features tea time foods, like mini sandwiches, scones, egg salad and delightful-looking chocolate and cream cakes. But I was thrilled to notice a special vegetarian section on the back page. Vegetarians can join tea time with a grilled veggie pesto or a cucumber sandwich. And the grilled veggie sandwich appears to be vegan. Stop by from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays, and 11 to 7 on Saturdays. Tea party reservations gladly accepted.