Tempest Lounge

Tempest Lounge is a cute little Portlandy sort of bar in the Hilltop neighborhood… I heard about it through
as a lesbian owned bar… we decided to check it out… easy side street parking right in front of it, it’s hard to miss unless you can see its picket fence border… but it’s easy to find once you realize it’s just next to a mural and across the street from a small park.
The inside reminds you of those small mess halls/​venues you go to in a summer camp or retreat park… it’s pretty simple and looks run down although is a blank canvas for whatever you need it to be… that evening they were planning for a crowd for some birthday party.
The bar area is small yet comfy and has that retro feel to it with its old furniture seating. It definitely is a small divey neighborhood bar… has several beers on tap although not much drink specials… they do have a food menu and we tried their tostadas and quesadillas, not the best food in the world but it was good enough esp for happy hour. I heard this place can be off the chain with the music and unfortunately we didnt stick around long enough for the party to get going so will definitely make a return trip back to satisfy my curiosity.
I don’t think this is really a true gay bar a la The Mix or Silverstone and I’m glad it’s not trying to be… it is an LGBT friendly environment but I like that it appeals to a broad crowd.

This place is a treasure. Please rename it to that. :) Based on the burnin’ DJ sets by DJ dAb and his posse, I will be back many times. :)
GREAT bartender too, BTW.
Cheers!

Great little place. The food and the service was really good! They had one of my favorite local artists (Raymond Hayden) playing there with his ‘special guests’ and that made the evening even better! I will definitely be back!

Very Cool!
An alternate kind of vibe. You know… Cool.

I love Tempest. It’s upscale yet unpretentious. It has a sexy ambiance and it’s laid back. Drinks and food are great. Bathrooms are always nice and clean.

Unique, laid-​back lounge on MLK in the Hilltop. Excellent food and cocktails, soothing lighting and music, interesting and comfortable seating arrangements… This place is something else!

Went there twice in the last week and they were closed. Short hours and I guess they close when it’s slow. A couple nights ago, we called to verify that they were open. The woman said, «Yes we are, come on down!»
We showed up 6 minutes later (as verified by the time of the call on the cell phone) and were greeted by a Security guard that really didn’t give a $@#* what we were quoted.
No, «Sorry, we made a mistake» or nothing. Just got the door slammed on us. Do you really think we’ll EVER be back after that treatment?

I came to visit a friend for my birthday, I mentioned to her that it would be nice to go to a chill lounge, drink and people watch.
With nothing planned, me thirsty for a martini bar we head out to the waterfront. Then it hits her, «We should stop by Tempest first, last time i went it was a diverse group of lesbians having a chill time…»
We arrive to the sound of a booming bass system blessing the intimate crowd with sultry soulful sounds. I immediately felt welcomed to this space.
The bartender made excellent (by this i mean strong) drinks, the mixed crowd of creative heads made up a great night. And i absolutely loved the DJ, may go back tonight!

The Tempest is a great place to hang out with friends. We always have a great time there and go there often. It has a friendly vibe and it’s big enough to hang out with a group but small enough to be intimate. And I love the location in Hilltop.
I have to complain about one thing: the food. A few things are okay, but some things are terrible. I got pasta with mushrooms and literally could not eat it because it was so bad. Don’t order it! And it’s not well-​priced, either. The menu needs to be revamped. And some happy hour special drinks would be fun. OMG, I have also had the worst wine there, served with an attitude.
But I will be going back to my beloved Tempest… probably this weekend!

First time there on Friday. This place was just what the doctor ordered to wash away the horrible experience at the first bar we went to. We came in early so we had a seat right away. It was starting to pick up so service was a little slow until he hit his groove. Perfect atmosphere, good tasting food (from what snagged of a friend’s plate), great prices. We will be returning here, numerous times! Thank heavens Tempest saved the Friday night.

The last time I went there the food was a disappointment. I ordered the shrimp tacos and was shocked to find out I paid $ 9.99 for 4 shrimp, a dollop of pico de gallo, 2 small corn tortilla and maybe a teaspoon of cheese. It tasted good — but had I known that I was getting so little for so much I would have ordered differently. This is the first time I’ve ever been disappointed in a visit to the Tempest. I hope it was just an off night.
So my suggestion is order anything but the shrimp tacos.

Reggae DJ, Great
The Food is Really Awesome
A Great Local Bar.

Décor is Super Cool. The owners are Super Cool (the «staff» too!).
Food, music, the smart crowd from all parts of town — All the best is at the Tempest. People here just seem to mix more and be more conversational. Maybe because the sign out front openly welcomes all (except closed-​minded A-​holes or something like that). The Tempest makes me LOVE Tacoma.

Just returned from an evening out and — as usual — wound up at Tempest. It never ceases to impress me how they can mix mellow and happening at the same time… let’s just call it «hip» in the best sense.
One of the owners, Mz. Tempest hence «Tempest Lounge», hand poured my 7&7 tonight (worth every penny at a reasonable $ 6 — and closer to a double than a single — viva hand poured!). She always makes you feel so comfortable, like a million bucks, when you go in. The whole bar staff is very personable. Usually the bar is filled with regulars having a good chat with whoever’s on.
Such a comfortable, unpretentious place. Low lights, great food, pleasant crowd.
Tempest is definitely at the forefront of the Hilltop revival — may they pour many more for me in the years to come!

One of the more original bars in Tacoma, and I enjoy going there. I love the Pin Ups and other ephemera that are sealed inside the table tops.
I really like the fact that if you go there during the day you have a 50% chance of having live gospal entertainment going on at the park across the street.
The food is pretty decent. Fabulous if you happen to be ordering it at 11:30.

Very comfortable place to enjoy the night with your friends. You don’t have to be hip, young, gay, etc. at all because they have all kinds of customers going in and out. But you have to be open to all kinds of crowds. People seem to behave and it’s not a meat market. Good drinks, even mocktails. Actually adding vodka in mocktails makes awesome drinks. Food… some are good, others… too much butter (e.g. shrimp tacos, pork chop).
Freshly baked cookies are to die for!

I love this place! As far as bars in Tacoma go, this is my favorite!
I’ve only been on weekends but that bartender, somehow when I don’t know what I want she does.
Everything I’ve had here has completely kicked my ass. I’m not one to ask for a mojito, I hate being THAT person who starts the chain but she showed me the fresh mint she had and offered, so I decided that’s what I wanted. Oh man, it was perfect! And strong!
The atmosphere is quite nice and very relaxing. And the bathroom, well, a clean bathroom in a bar/​lounge is hard to come by but it has happened here.

Oh, how I do love the Tempest. Although I do not get to go there as much as I would like, I adore their drinks, their décor and their bathrooms. Their potato wedges are delightful, and on a good night they might either have performance artists in residence or be playing a nice black and white movie on a t.v. in the corner.
The overall theme seems to be an homage to pin up girls, with Bettie Page as the focus. All I know is that I love the low lighting and intimacy that you have there.

Love this place!
Nice bartenders, great atmosphere (minus the excessive number of old people), and most of all AMAZING DRINKS!
I had the BLT and my best friend had the Sweet Tea, both of which we recommend. Hit this place up! Funky beats!

I have been here twice and both times were after art shows. It seems to be one of the Seattle spots, in Tacoma. Friendly hip crowd. The venue is nice, I was pretty drunk but I remember the drinks were tasty and they have a Betty Paige table.
Any establishment that has good lighting and a table adorned with Betty Paige gets my vote. In Seattle I would more then likely frequent this place quite often. It’s in Tacoma though so I will have to love her from a far.