Northern Pacific Coffee Co. (104 Good Days in Tacoma: Parkland, or Cambridge Mass?)

After Garfield Book Company, we took a walk down Garfield Street, an area near PLU that has become a very nice little shopping district. We stopped into Northern Pacific Coffee Company, a very not-Parkland-like space lined with used books, comfy couches, a small bar, and the sort of feel you'd expect in Cambridge, Mass., or Dupont Circle in DC.

They've also got great coffee. I tend to order a soy white mocha and find that it's either two sweet or two bland with no coffee flavor at all. At Northern Pacific, I could taste just the right amount of smooth Cafe D'arte espresso with a hint of white chocolate in the background, just like the drink that originally got me on the white mocha kick at Cafe Vivace in Seattle.

In addition to coffee, they sell beer, wine, and a nice assortment of sandwiches and salads. We were there on a Tuesday, and there was a placard outside announcing $2 pint night.

Northern Pacific Coffee Co.

401 Garfield St S

Tacoma, WA 98444

(253) 537-8338