I don't sing but this place has a fun atmosphere for a smoky bar. I loved it, friendly staff and customers. Only thing I didn't try is thier food but maybe next time. Cheap drinks and fun atmosphere, what else you need? Come try it. We were here on a Thursday karaoke and it was fun watching people sing and having a great drink for reasonable prices. read more

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First time coming here, and my experience was absolutely amazing. The staff are very attentive. I didn't have to ask once for a refill on my water or my coffee. The staff were very friendly. The food also came out quick and fresh was very good when it was time for me to go the kind Staff not only bagged my order up for me, but also gave me a to go coffee, the pricing was amazing was very surprised when I got my bill. All in all I'm gonna give this place a 10 out of 10. We'll definitely be coming back. Thanks again to the staff for being so kind and attentive to your customers. I also wanted to say I liked how you can sit yourself and they come to you as of many places you don't get to choose your seating read more

Check your bank statements after you leave this place. I have a weird $6.00 charge I never authorized. My boyfriend was charged almost $300, not sure where the extra $194 came from. He called to ask them about the charges and the manager was conveniently not there. Called the next day then suddenly they were on vacation. He got a hold of their "accountant" and said he ordered things he never signed or ordered. We had a large party and did not cause any issues. They need to get the sewage outside checked because it smells like it's backing up. With all the money they charged us maybe they can afford to get that fixed. My other friends also have weird charges. Do not go to this bar, they charge whatever they want. read more

When I first visited Thunderbird, you ordered at the register then sat down at a table. Now, it's a more traditional restaurant service where you're seated and order from the table. Heads up- the restaurant does smell of cigarette smoke and you'll leave smelling like so. I ordered the taco salad which was great and quite loaded with toppings. You also get salsa, sour cream, and guacamole on the side. It was quite tasty. read more

Visited the restaurant for our weekend breakfast and it has greatly improved. Waitstaff was pleasant and food is back to being good. Keep it up! read more

Great food, friendly staff and a local must visit if you're visiting from outside the area.

Karaoke Cigars Darts or something with big round wheelie whatever I didn't pay attention Just go read more

Driven past this spot for nearly twenty years and finally decided to stop in. Restaurant was smaller than I expected unless there was another section I didn't see. The service was great. The waitress was extremely friendly and attentive to our needs. The food reminded me of an old diner that prepared their food on the spot, not frozen. Will definitely come back. read more

Thunderbird Lounge - Dive Bars Near Me - Tacoma, Washington

I am an elder and I always bring my own water to drink with me when I order the food and I have eaten here before with my family and today they refused to allow me and the kids to bring our own waters in so we left. It's a shame that they now don't allow you to bring your own waters to drink. Our family will unfortunately not be returning to this restaurant again because of this. read more

Best for the nostalgic back in the good ol' days folks. Food is mediocre. Love the staff, very personable and attentive to customers. Nice remodel done to the interior. read more

Went into the place for the first time in three years and PHEW! The stench of old smoke assailed my nostrils. It was like someone dumped a dozen ashtrays all over the floor, and was so overpowering to the point I almost walked out. But I decided to stick it out and order food. You order at the counter now instead of a server giving you menus and taking your order. No problem. I ordered fish and chips, my friend with me got chicken fried steak. Neither dish was anything to write home about, my fish was about half batter and his steak looked like it came from Costco. Bottom line, the food was just ok but shoooey! they've got to air that place out, my clothes still reek 4 hours later. 2 stars because at least the server was friendly and gave me a free soda refill.. read more

This place isn't for everyone as it is on tribal land and exempt from the indoor smoking ban. For me, as a smoker, I view that as a plus. For a smoking friendly bar, they have good air circulation and it's never hazy or dirty. In fact, it's one of the cleanest bars I've been to locally. They have From time to time the staff can get a little overwhelmed, though I've never had anyone treat me rudely - mostly just that sometimes service can get slow during peak times, but that's to be expected in any place that fills up and is popular. Overall, great staff and nice patrons and very entertaining when Karaoke starts. read more

We've been to this place a few times. The customer service is HORRIBLE - during our last visit we were there until close (which we didn't realize they close so early) and didn't hear a last call, finish your drinks, anything. The security guard came over and ripped my moms drink directly from her hand before mentioning they were closing. It was very bizarre, not to mention assault. Other than that, the staff is very rude and short in the way they speak with guests that aren't regulars. The regulars are also an.. interesting crowd. We saw a man literally put his head up a woman's dress on the dance floor?? To which the staff said nothing. Very weird place. read more

Just a good old diner nothing fancy not pretty but has good food! There burgers are good!

It is a pretty good place to get a solid burger (thunder burger) & fries. Price was just right and service was great. Great casual place. I will be back. read more

Thunderbird Lounge - Dive Bars Near Me - Tacoma, Washington

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A coworker of mine recommended this diner and really hyped up the place so I put it on my "to try" bookmarks. I wasn't disappointed. Thunderbird Lounge is kind of in a small strip mall where everything seems to involve the name Thunderbird. There is a bar, a shop, a cigar shop and a restaurant. Steve and I only did the restaurant which was diner style. The waitress had a great personality and we really enjoyed her serving us. For our meals we both got burgers. I had the Batgirl Cheeseburger which was good. Steve had one with mushrooms. Don't go in inspecting seriously gourmet burgers but for what they are they are solid diner fare. They also have fry bread on their menu. It's something at least in our ventures around something you don't see often so we tried the Thunderbird version of it. It was deep fried and in most cases that always makes something more unhealthy and more tasty. They had whipped butter and raspberry jam to go with it which made it even more addicting. They have a good happy hour menu and a full bar. Again, don't expect a gourmet experience but for what it is Thunderbird Lounge is solid when it comes to diner fare! read more

Great interior! Solid service. Ash trays at the tables. Once inside (thru the entry way) you hardly notice the cigarette smell unless someone near is smoking. We popped in for a late dinner, they were still serving from the restaurant menu. Green beans was the seasonal vegetable...ugh... Salad was good Coleslaw no so much. Bacon wrapped meatloaf lacked any bacon flavor...like the bacon had no flavor. The meatloaf itself wasn't to my liking but you may enjoy the flavors. Mushroom burger had the perfect bun to meat ratio but was simply burger mushroom and cheese. No lettuce or tomato garnish. Drinks were good Music tonight was a great selection. Trivia night (get the app) was a nice distraction. Will have to pop in for happy hour and perhaps try the bar food next time. I'll be back. read more

I have absolutely no complaints about this place. The food was good. The atmosphere was calm and well suited for adults. Sports games on the TVs, lounge was ventilated for us cigar smokers, and drinks...they were exquisite. As always, your experience may vary but I say you have nothing to lose by stopping by for a smoke, a sip and a smile. read more

I'm in love with this place. The selection of Cigars are top shelf. I travel East and West; this place has the best collection period. Cigars are fresh and reasonably priced. Drinks also are reasonably priced. Yes they have slots also. read more

Thunderbird Lounge - Dive Bars Near Me - Tacoma, Washington

Still love this place , good food, good drinks, great people. One of my favorites in Tacoma. Only drawback is the smoking allowed.

The Thunderbird is the kind of place you only find out about through word of mouth or because you live down the street. I'm pretty sure it qualifies as a dive bar. I found out about this place through a karaoke buddy who told me that the KJ, Lonnie, would record my song and email it to me! I had to check this out. Lo and behold, I told the host who had sent me and asked that he record my song. I saw that he did, but I never received the email with the song (bummer, maybe it got lost somehow). They have karaoke here every night of the week, though I have only been there in the beginning of the week. Pretty sparse crowd, but the regulars welcomed me into their group and duets and it was pretty fun. Some seriously good singers come here, I almost felt like I was at a show. This bar was on the edge of being too sketchy for me, but I kept going back anyway. Maybe you'd have more luck with your recording! read more

Thunderbird Lounge - Off their website - Xmas 2009 - Dive Bars Near Me - Tacoma, Washington

Awful. the worst service I have ever experienced. They need to fire the girl Dominique. The most unprofessional disrespectful human being I've ever encountered in the service industry . she was so eratic and rude it was down right creepy. I'm hoping for the well being of their business they can find someone else. read more

You DO NOT want to work for THUNDERBIRD TRADING POST. These people are horrible, horrible people to work for. They lie to you and use you to their benefit. They called me up and I went to work for them on Christmas Eve and worked thru to New Year's Day. The lazy HR DIRECTOR called me the day after New Year's and came up with all sorts of bogus excuses as to why Iam no longer employed there. I could care less. They suck big time!!! Management is the worse I've ever witnessed. They're nothing but bar flies that hangout every day and talk crap about all the employees. read more

This place is not clean, and they do not treat people with respect. The people were out of control, and I saw the bartender being ATTACKED by a drunk guy, like with a broken bottle saying he would cut his throat! I wouldn't feel comfortable going back to this place between the grime and the out of hand patrons and the lack of concern from management obviously read more

Dominique was, well, suppose to be, our bartender. Her, the male security guard (who often makes my friend feel uncomfortable in a creep way) and this other female who, I'm not sure what her job was aside from standing around and telling us Dominique will be back from the bathroom soon and telling us to wait when trying to order food were all extremely unprofessional. I have never in my life experienced such unprofessionalism, unkind interaction, and lack of really just basic knowledge of service in my life. Words can't express what happened yesterday. My friend and I walked in to order a drink and grab some lunch as we just finished exercising. We invited a dear friend from Seattle to join us and as we waited it was already a strange experience but we figured she (Dominique) may have been overwhelmed with the phonecall as we walked in of someone ordering food from the restaurant but accidentally called the bar. We waited quite literally 10 minutes at the bar as she aggressively and with visible anger took the phone order with her back turned not acknowledging our presence (which we figured she's a one task kind of person) so we waited. Then she turned around and with anger asked us what we wanted, we ordered and she corrected my way of ordering and then we paid and sat down. As we sipped our drinks she went over to the table in front of the entrance along with the "security" and the other female worker and gossiped as people waiting for drinks, service, a bartender. When we were ready for another drink we sat patiently thinking she would check out us and after about 10 minutes figured that was a lost cause, I looked over at the bar where she wasn't and looked back to see her still gossiping with her coworkers so I sheepishly got up and asked if we could get another drink and an appetizer, she gave us an eye roll and asked us with still an aggressive tone what we wanted. I'm still not sure what the other workers purpose was, she seemed to bring out food for the table of 3 older men and type in orders on the outer bar screen but didn't acknowledge us either. Our friend arrived and ordered a drink where she encountered the same service. The bartender was rude and as she sat down she asked us if the bartender seemed off, we both told her how she was aggressive towards us and unkind and she agreed but we figured she may just be having a bad day? When we were all ready to order food the bartender, from the middle table with the security and other worker had literally said, "I heard you talking shit" where my friend had replied, "I was honestly just saying you seemed a bit rude" to which then she told my friend she has the right to refuse service to anyone she chooses (erratically power tripping) and told her to get out. Then she followed up as soon as my friend was in shock with, I'll pour out your beer, get out. My friend tipped her the price of the beer thinking she was just stressed and left. The bartender aggressively picked up our beers and told us she would check the kitchen for our food which she angrily brought to us in a to go box. We left feeling confused, shocked, and in disbelief this Dominique, the voiceless security had such audacity to be so rude and seemingly ignorant to any form of professionalism. It's a Native bar which I am a strong descendant but it seems only if you're older, 65+ or a regular you will get decent service. I will never hire the 3 of them in my profession and I was appalled by how ignorant and rudely my friends and I were treated. This business does not seem well staffed in any way and I highly suggest a reform of the staff. Great location, chill atmosphere, absolutely terrible unkind humans working here. When 3 people have their happy day turned around into sadness because of some power tripping, unprofessional aggressively angry "tender" who is sitting down no where near the bar? Well. read more

i gave this place 3 stars because the food is good but to expensive....also i feel like when they do karaoke on friday & saturday's that they favor their regulars rather then giving everyone else a chance....i waited at the bar for 10 minutes one time and finally just gave up found our server and ask her for some drinks she got them to us within 3-5 minutes...which was awesome.... they need different kinds of food for the after hours menu....maybe some chicken strips or something else....something filling if that makes sense....i have been here 4 times.......i like going here just wish they would change something's.. read more

I use to stop here almost every weekday morning because the food was adequate and the service quick. Unfortunately, I have not seen the server I like and the result has been awful service. The food is still adequate, but given the poor service there it is no longer worth visiting. From what I've observed, it's not the staff or kitchen, but appears to be due to poor management read more

I checked out the karaoke here because of some other positive reviews I saw on Yelp and I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it was. The drinks were very reasonably priced and the service was superb. The overall karaoke experience was great. A top notch sound system made the singing seem almost effortless and the song selection was quite extensive. When I asked about a version of a song that wasn't in the catalog, Lonnie, the host, wrote it down for a future addition. The rotation of singers was managed with the precision of a German train station with each singer listed on the monitor with their start time, name and song. It was a weeknight with about 12-15 singers. If you can stand a little bit of second hand smoke, it is well worth a visit. read more

My wife came in for food and the bartender refused to serve her.(food!) She was rude and then just ignored her until she left. We came here with my nephew on his 21st birthday and the same bartender took two drinks off our table and dumped them out because she thought my nephew looked too drunk. The manager kindly replaced one of the drinks. read more

Always enjoy coming in ! Everyone is always so nice . It's really relaxed & a cool place to have a beer or a cigar !

I had originally decided I'd never visit place again ( restaurant) due to terrible service. I actually felt ignored and waited at a table for 20 min without any service , while others around me were acknowledged and served but after a year or more I decided it was time to give it another shot. I'm glad I did! The food was delicious! Service was slow but only one server was working and she was unbelievably nice, definitely made up for my previous experience. So if you want a quick in and out this is not the place but if you want a good meal I'd recommend giving it a try. read more

Great singers here...good place to chill...my fav spot!! :) read more

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Every time I come here for food it literally takes an hour and a half or longer to get my food. Each time I come I think there's no way it will take that long this time, but it always does. Sitting here now for an hour a half and just heard the food is frozen and needs to thaw out? The restaurant is garbage. Cathy is a gem though. She deserves the world. read more

I am happy this bar could operate during the rough times. I'd say it's really annoying and hard as a customer and a restaurant worker to walk in and order a drink with the bartender not even wearing the mask. With the amount of people she helps during her shifts I didn't drink the drink I had ordered due to the virus. read more

Awesome Kathy bartender. Great atmosphere.. Awesome crepes too....Great cocktail... friendly place

Good food, great drinks, and a great staff, they have a ton of dart boards so there's always something to do and you can smoke in the bar. One of my favorites! read more

Went there for dinner on a Sunday night. Service was poor, food was barely tolerable. We ordered a wide variety, all terrible. We waited a long time for our food, and the special was the last to be served. They need a bigger kitchen or more cooks because they are trying to accommodate the restaurant and bar with the same kitchen staff. Probably won't go back. read more

The food here tastes worse than dog food probably tastes. I ordered nachos. I didn't know if was possible for someone to mess up nachos. The smoke was stifling. It smelled like a homeless camp. read more

The best hidden gem in Tacoma! Amazing food.. serving breakfast, lunch, dinner all day! It's my families go to bar for a chill, relaxing atmosphere. Smoking is allowed here if you are a smoker, and connected to the bar is a super posh cigar lounge with comfy leather chairs. They have remodeled and made this a staple place! My friends and I always gather here once a month to hang out! Ask for Kathy or Ken! They are the best servers!!! read more

We have gone to this place several times and had less then satisfactory service each time have been treated poorly by the staff and ignored half the night when went up to ask for more drinks and or to ask for server the lady with curly hair behind bar was snarky and rude told us to go sit down and wouldn't wait on us herself first time went there there was a broken piece of glass in drink that my friend almost swallowed and then they treated us like we did it second time lost my card this time ignored its a horrible place to go I wouldn't recommend it to anyone unless you are a regular read more