By Sue Kidd and Craig Sailor
Staff eaters

Along Martin Luther King Jr. Way, a lively blend of restaurants turns the Hilltop neighborhood into an eating destination like no other in Tacoma.

The restaurants are an outgrowth of the eclectic and transitional nature of the Hilltop: The longtime institution Bob’s Bar B Q Pit shares a block with 1022 South, a young and edgy lounge producing some of the most interesting cocktails in the region.

The 20-plus-year-old Fish House Cafe flanks the restaurant’s eating district with southern down-home goodness at 19th and MLK, while several blocks away, the effortlessly cool newcomer Tempest Lounge bookends the area.

Up and down side streets, visitors will find Vietnamese, Thai and some of the city’s fluffiest doughnuts. We delve into the MLK neighborhood of the Hilltop for our latest installment of 10-in-one, a review of 10 restaurants in a single neighborhood. Read more »