Vin Grotto on Pacific Ave. (22. January 2006, 22:49 by Derek Young) ~

Instead of hanging out at the Tacoma Dome in a show of support for the NASCAR track, we chose to spend our Thursday night finding paint for the inside of our house. We went to one paint shop, discovered it closed, and went to Vin Grotto on Pacific instead. The word on the street was that the menu had grown and there might be a wine tasting event that evening.

We arrived to find that the restaurant has finally expanded out into the front of the space. For a while there was an art gallery and framing shop in the front while the restaurant was in the back. It seemed to be an odd fit and the pairing didn’t seem natural. The latest arrangement seems to be the best so far.

We chose the Burgundy tasting flight for our wine. It wasn’t spectacular, but it wasn’t a disappointment. This was the tasting event for the evening, so it was what it was. In the past we’ve been extremely happy with the wines on the wine list. Plus there are all the wines in the wine shop available for a small corkage fee. This place is about wine after all and it has never disappointed.

Our table ordered a few salads, the crab cakes, and an absolutely amazing cheese plate. The salads have always been good. The crab cakes were stunning. The cheese plate’s presentation reminded us of a sashimi platter at a fine sushi restaurant with its array of cheeses, nuts, and fruit beautifully presented on a square dish. The new chef seems to have an amazing eye for presentation. Relatively simple dishes are coming out just about perfect to both the eye and taste. The menu is greatly expanded and we’ll be back soon enough when we have a bit more of an appetite.

The most curious part of the evening was realizing how much Vin Grotto has become a central part of the arts scene in Tacoma. At least on this evening, there were three board members from a couple different organizations, two executive director types, and a few current and former development (fundraising) folks. Is this a normal evening? Kris, the owner, did come from development. Or does this just reveal a lack of good places to go in downtown? This is a good place and we seem to find ourselves here regularly. With its new menu and increased seating, we’ll be back more and more.

As a slight aside – we’ve decided that we need to expand our horizons and try a few more wine bars. Bill at Tacoma Wine Merchants opened his new place recently. Kris at Vin Grotto has a good thing going. A few more have opened recently down Sixth Avenue and in the Proctor District. I haven’t been to Cafe Da Vino in a long time. Isn’t there one in University Place, too? I think it’s time for a little side-by-side review.