I drove by the Giggling Greek a month or so ago and noticed the downtown Puyallup restaurant was closed on a night when they should have been open. There was a note tacked on the window saying there had been an emergency.

I drove by again, during the December storms –closed again. The streets were crummy, so that explained it. Another drive by after the ice mostly cleared, but they were closed again.

I dropped in again last week and found them open – and surprised at a new, lower-priced menu and a scaled-back Greek approach. Tacos, steak and meatloaf are daily specials. Probably half the menu is still Greek, but items like burgers and nachos also now are offered.

What gives?

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Gloria Martin, owner of Tacoma’s Southern Kitchen, is worried after she dished to local bloggers and news outlets that the television crew from “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” will be filming this weekend at her restaurant. (You might recall the producers of the show called me in November, asking TNT Diner readers for possible locations).

"It’s been really exciting and also kind of confusing," said Martin. She’s worried that her Sixth Avenue restaurant will be mobbed, which will interfere with the filming of the segment for the Food Network show.

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In case you missed it, John Gillie of our Business team wrote that Fujiya Japanese Restaurant is for sale.

Bill Mertz enjoys a Miller Lite and a conservation with the bar tender during happy hour at Game On Sports Grille on Sixth Ave. S. in Tacoma, January 13, 2009. Janet Jensen/The News Tribune

EDITOR’S NOTE: Here is today’s Drop-In Dining, a restaurant dining report published Fridays where reporters drop in unannounced and sample the food, on TNT’s dime, then report what the scene and the food were like. Have a suggestion for a Drop-In Dining feature? E-mail us at tntdiner@thenewstribune.com.

Game On Sports Grille
Where: 6409 Sixth Ave., Tacoma; 253-460-1400
Hours: 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. most nights, closed early when slow
Price range: $-$$ (Entrees under $30)

By Ernest A. Jasmin
ernest.jasmin@thenewstribune.com

I’m a hopelessly addicted NFL junkie. And with the playoffs in full swing, I had the perfect excuse for both scoping out a new sports bar and for spewing out all those color commentary clichés I’ve soaked up from years of vegging out in front of ESPN.

So I dropped in on the new Game On Sports Grille, which kicked off its first season in Tacoma in late 2008 at 6409 Sixth Ave. S. But honestly, this is a restaurant that didn’t bring it’s A game to the big dance.

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Tiffany Adamowski wants you to have your cake and eat it too – with beer.
She and husband Craig, who own the 99 Bottles beer store in Federal Way, will have their second annual Beer & Cake fest Jan. 20 (details on the “read more” button).
Stop rolling your eyes and shaking your head. Beer and cake do so work. So there. I buy it. Tiffany does, too. Customers, however, were skeptical when she hosted the beer and cake pairing/tasting last year.
"Beer? With the cake? Oh my god. Everyone was scoffing at me. They said, ‘I’m not sure about beer with cake.’ By the time they had the hazelnut (Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar), they said I’m never having milk again with my cake," said Tiffany.

Photo by Drew Perine/The News Tribune

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A few months ago, a reader of this blog asked where he could get a decent gluten-free meal at a South Sound restaurant.

So many of you responded to the post, that we turned the idea into a story in today’s SoundLife food section.

We’re wondering if you know about any gluten-free restaurants, or restaurants with gluten-free menus, that we haven’t written about.

Comment here if you do.

After reading Sue’s post on cheese this morning I ran out to chat with the folks at the same wine and cheese shop. They were great. Paz Morris told me about her favorites and pointed to some good cheese for beginners to try.

The cheese case at Vinotique has between 40 and 50 imported cheeses, and a few domestics.

I lamented in my good, bad and ugly list of 2008 that Tacoma needs more cheese stores. TNT Diner reader Mandy Kaplan suggested I pay Vinotique Wine Shop in Lakewood a visit.

Wine shop? With cheese? I’m there.

With a selection that fluctuates between 40 and 50 imported cheeses (and a few domestics), Vinotique caters to cheese enthusiasts. Manchego, aged gouda, aged cheddar, English stilton – the cheese case at Vinotique is intensely interesting. And Paz Morris, co-owner with husband Thom Morris and Christian Rubio, is the woman behind the counter, eager to slice off a sample of whatever you eye in the case.

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