Legendary 6th Ave breakfast place with definite personality. This place feels very lived-in, and staff are always busy keeping up with the constant flow of customers on Saturday mornings. The menu may not be the most unique, but Shakabrah doesn't have to be adventurous; the food is good, and the atmosphere is homey. I've always been into the huevos rancheros here, but today I had the bacon avocado omelette, which I'd heard was good. I wasn't disappointed: it was stuffed with loads of creamy avocado, a generous amount of diced bacon (halfway between chewy and crispy), and sauteed mushrooms. The potatoes are simple, basically just cubed and fried crispy-brown. I like that they leave out the coffee thermoses so I can just go get as many refills as I want on my drip coffee. Another unique feature is the two separate seating areas: one where you sit down, wait staff takes your order, and you pay after the meal; and another where you order at a counter and pay up front, but they still bring the food to your table. read more

The food is delicious. Pancakes So huge and light. Try the corn beef hash with their potatoes. Its the real deal. Make sure you get there early if you don't wanna wait in line. read more

Shakabrah Java - Pancakes Sooo BIG, fluffy and light. Bigger than the plate. Good breakfast eating at its best. - American Near Me - Tacoma, Washington

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Good stop for breakfast. They have a wide variety of breakfast food but I particularly like the skillets. I had the Chrissy skillet which had a variety of vegetables, sun dried tomatoes and two different types of cheeses. They also have their potatoes that come with almost every dish, they are alright. It can get busy on the weekends. I would recommend this breakfast spot. read more

Okay, I have four things to say about this place: 1) MYSTERY GENRE: It's location is mysterious. There is no large sign telling you that you have arrived in the correct place. I have passed by Shakabrah a million times and never knew it was there. Luckily, I was with a friend who had been here before. Look for a neon sign that says "breakfast." 2) FANTASY GENRE: Mmmmm, "magic potatoes". Those were good--something like home fries with lots of veggies mixed in. 3) COMEDY GENRE: The herbal tea was tasty, but it was funny, too. I was eating in, ordering food, the whole restaurant thing. I ordered tea. I was served a small mug and a giant paper takeout cup with steaming hot tea in it. Got any teapots back there? I managed to skillfully pour the tea from the big paper cup into my little mug, but I didn't get it. I'm not complaining, though; I'll be back for more! 4) HORROR GENRE: Food was so greasy on my most recent visit it was almost inedible. That was the skillet made with tofu instead of eggs. It did have a nice flavor though. read more

I love a good, hearty breakfast. The kind that stays with you most of the day. The kind that my mother called "stick to your ribs". The kind that an anorexic dietician would run screaming from. Shakabrah delivers. I'll admit that I hadn't really noticed the place in the past, but I've only been driving by it daily for two years. My only excuse is that I'm driving by very early in the morning and haven't had enough coffee. We went in the late morning on a Saturday. Not the brightest move....what were we expecting...to walk in and sit down? It was worth the wait. Decor is early Goodwill. Decoration is ... eclectic? (I didn't know there were so many places to do Yoga in Tacoma). Coffee was good. First test passed. Menu showed plenty of hearty entres, as well as a smattering of selections for the vegetarian and vegan crowd (that way you can bring your friends who are taking notes off the posters for the yoga studios). I had a bacon/avocado omelet. Delicious. Potatoes were excellent, too, but I was too full to finish them. Partner had the sun-dried tomato scramble. That was excellent, too. We'll be back! (Maybe at a little better hour). read more

Ok so we wondered in here for breakfast, the five of us were seated within a reasonable time considering how busy it was. However, just like a doctors office moves you from the waiting room to the exam room where it's like purgatory where we wait for an eternity to get the food we ordered 25 minutes ago. At this rate I don't even care if the food is good or not because I'm so peeved about the wait. Making matters worse the waiters and waitresses aren't even stopping to check on us or acknowledge that we've been here an uncomfortable amount of time without food. The OJ and coffee we ordered in the beginning is all gone. Geez! At least stop by to apologize for the long wait. The only thing keeping us here is the fact that we are so dang hungry! read more

Shakabrah Java - One pancake is enough! Took them 40 min to make that bad boy though. - American Near Me - Tacoma, Washington

They use to be good before covid but their service has gone down since than. I went there on a Saturday and ordered a breakfast sandwich. I waited outside just like everyone else. However after 20 minutes I noticed that two folks that order after me got their to go order before me. I ask the cashier if mine was almost done and she said mine was next to be done. After waiting for another 10 minutes I noticed the other people (ordered after me again) got their order before me again. I went back to the cashier and she said "the cook is making mine now". At this point I was waiting for about 35-40 min for a damn breakfast sandwich and I just said canceled my order and requested for a refund. What really upset me is when I asked to talk to the manger the cashier said she is not in and the cashier seemed like she did not really care about my concern and my wasted time waiting. No apology at all. I used to love coming here but with they way this was handled, I will take my business elsewhere and support another local business that cares read more

This is my second time here and I love the atmosphere! Its very busy on a Saturday morning but I expected it. The wait area is a little crammed but the wait wasn't long so I didn't mind. We sat down within five mins and were greater promptly as well. I work in a restaurant and I am super particular about service and it was spot on. The food is amazing!! Mimosas were perfect, no tiny little champagne shoots but nice big glasses. I will definitely be back again. I can't wait to pass on this place to my friends! read more

Shakabrah Java - Beautiful sized mimosas!!! Mmmm mmmm - American Near Me - Tacoma, Washington

Bar is open again!!!!!! Love it so much. My server Ryan KILLED it. I will be back soon!!

Great breakfast options. They can be busy on the weekends but what place isn't. We have been a few times and always get a side of magic fries. Biscuits are really amazing here as well. read more

One of the best breakfasts you will find in Tacoma. Their potatoes are excellent, and their corned beef hash is unmatched.

Grabbed two menus and sat at our table. Girlfriend points to the shelf to the left of me...a cockroach making his (or her!) Way towards me. We left with haste. No thank you. read more

This has to be some of the worst service I have ever experienced. Also, the food was below average. Finally, on top of that, the servers accepted this and didn't say anything about the wait or about the terrible service. I pray for anyone that takes on this... read more

Had no idea this place has been in Tacoma since 1993. I lived in the area and had no idea it was there. Man I missed out. I got the Chrissy- very good. Big servings. Waitress was very nice and didn't bother us very much. The one thing I have I hada problem with was..... The potatoes. Great reviews about them, but there average. Good yes but not amazing. Got black coffee, no complaints. All in all I had a good time. read more

Went there for the first time this morning. Had the juevos rancheros and it was so good. My sister had the french toast and it is so great. The atmosphere is fun and plenty of seating. A perfect neighboorhood spot that everyone should check out. The main area is for ordering at the counter, you clear your own plates but its super easy. They also have a back area that is full service so it can suit all you lazy or ambitious needs. read more

We went yesterday morning for a spur-of-the-moment family time breakfast, and I was really pleased with our overall experience. It was fast, our waitresses were extremely acoomodationg with our 14-month old son, and the food was really good. My only issue is that I seemed to have gotten an old menu. The prices were outdated, so our bill was more than we were expecting. Tip - the earlier, the better, that way you'll get good service and not have to wait for a table. read more

Shakabrah is a great place to go after a long night of drinking. The portions are good and menu items hearty. That said, there's nothing that stands out about the place. While way above and beyond chain breakfast places like IHOP, the dishes aren't that memorable. The restaurant is large and while there can be a wait on the weekends, the turn around time is quick. I also appreciate that they seem environmentally conscious (ice tea is served in a compostable cup) and they buy local produce. Something fun for kids is their customizable menu. Add a variety of items like coconut and pineapple to your french toast or pancakes. read more

We love this place. Two big dining rooms. Kids are welcome. Hipsters, too. The coffee is hot, the food is great (and often in big portions) and the service has always been outstanding. This is the perfect breakfast place to start your busy weekend. Yes, they're open on weekdays. I drive by and see people in there, casually enjoying a lazy breakfast M-F and I'm super jealous. But it makes my weekends all the mo betta. read more

It was my first time here and let me say it as a very homey place. The staff are a busy bees but they're all pretty friendly. The food portions are pretty large so share or be prepared for some left overs! I sat in the area where you just go up and order rather than having full on service, but it was nice regardless. I will eventually be back to try more. read more

Shakabrah Java - Veggie omelette with shaka-potatoes and english muffin. - American Near Me - Tacoma, Washington

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It had been a few years since we ate here. Wow- the food was way better than I remembered. I would recommend pancakes and the Chrissy with a biscuit. Big portions. It is very open and loud. Lots of families with young kids. Service was excellent and friendly. Food was delivered very quickly read more

The food is good, get pretty much anything and you will be satisfied, unfortunately the great experience ends there. Let me get this out of the way, I love this place, I just never felt compelled to leave a review before. It has come to my attention that it is only great to eat here when the main dining room is open or it is not hot outside. Shakabrah stops serving in the main dining room at about noon or one, I'm not sure. I don't see the time posted anywhere, just know that if you ever plan on going in the afternoon, don't. The cafe area is mostly self service, I'm not sure why they don't have full table service in this area and I'm not sure why they close the main dining area. Get ready to grab your own drinks and bus your own table! Also, don't rule out the servers glaring at you if you're not sure how do something. Personally, I think it's proper to tip less in this area because you receive very little service. I'm not sure why, but there's no A/C. It makes no sense. Everyone in Tacoma goes here. They can afford A/C. If it's hot outside, go somewhere else, it'll probably be 10 degrees or more warmer inside. To pull it all together, the food is awesome! We love it! But always go in the morning. It will be busier, but servicing and busing your own table will ruin your experience, mostly because they expect you will already know how to do everything. It's worth the wait to sit in the dining room. Also, remember, do not go when it's hot! You will be sweating over breakfast. Go when it's nice and cool or you will regret it. Enjoy! read more

Place was packed. Coffee was great and served hot, our cups were always refilled promptly. We waited over 30 minutes for our food but when we got it the food was fresh and delicious. Great local place with good food and music~ read more

Completely disappointed with the staff. Arrived with my party of 5 during phase 2 of Covid. Let the Staff know that we were expecting more of our friends that also each had 5 ppl to their party, so a total of 3 tables. I understood that we were not aloud to eat together due to restrictions and was already expecting to sit separately but just wanted to have the tables ready for our friends that were also planning to have breakfast here. The person, who I believe is the owner or manager was extremely rude about our big group. I had to tell her 3x that I understood that we were unable to sit together and just wanted to enjoy breakfast with our own parties and she just assumed that we were going to be walking around going to their table. She made it such a huge deal about it when in reality all we wanted to do was sit at own table and enjoy our breakfast and we were completely aware of the restrictions and the fact that she made the assumption of us just "partying" at her establishment was completely out of line. She made us feel completely unwelcome. Will not be giving them my business no longer. read more

Second time in a row that my pancakes have been burned. On both sides. That's a serious amount of inattention. They didn't provide silverware when the meal came so I went up to get it next to the cooks window and there were 3 more pancakes there, two of them burned.This happened once before when they changed cooks and I stopped coming for quite a while till they sorted things out. I guess I know what to do now. read more

Came here on labor day and it was so packed there were about ten people outside waiting, i finally got a table right behind the door which would sometimes swing to far open and hit me in the foot. I ordered an americano and a farmer omlet, got the americano in less than five minutes and was very satisfied with it I then wait 45 minutes to get my food It was the most amazing omelet ive ever had, the ingredients all tasted so fresh despite the high volume of people, and the home fries were perfectly cooked and seasoned All in all slow crappy service on a busy day, but the food remains a ten, easily my favorite breakfast place in tacoma. read more

Food is fine here, wait staff is super slow. Bathrooms are scary read more

Shakabrah Java - This is after they "filled" my coffee cup... - American Near Me - Tacoma, Washington

Just went there yesterday using an expired Groupon. I saw the reviews (and pictures) and didn't care if I was only getting face value of what I paid for the Groupon. I'm glad I still used the Groupon as the breakfast sandwich and corned beef with potatoes, scrambled eggs, and the toast was amazing. Also, on the side, I ordered a single pancake with macadamia nuts. (I wasn't confident in ordering just one pancake but... as you can see in the picture, it was worth it.) From how it was prepared (from scratch) to the taste, I highly recommend Shakabrah. They've got the whole diner thing perfected. read more

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Omgosh, best breakfast ever...Big Country Breakfast w/ of pancakes...yummy...not what I thought when pancake came out...it was yummy in my tummy...didn't finish it ....it was so good... read more

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Food was good. Cool place to hang out, it's a local mom and pop place to eat breakfast. They only serve food till 3 PM so come earlier in the day if you want to eat. read more

Just moved to Tacoma and I HEART this place. Shaka Potatoes are my go-to with added sausage and an egg. If you want a tasty breakfast you can either go semi-healthy (I eat primarily gluten-free) or full-on grease-machine at this place. Plus, a $6 mimosa in a pint glass truly is the perfect treat for a Sunday morning. This place is perfect for the price and value. read more

Had the Denver omelet and a cup of coffee, neither was earthshaking. Place was packet at 10 on a Friday and I guess they were short staffed. It was a 40 minute wait on the food but it's a lively environment so I didn't mind too much. If you want descent food in a cool atmosphere and are not in a hurry this is a good place to go and, hey, the place is kind of a Tacoma institution. read more

I went here knowing it wasn't gonna be extra amazing and i wasn't disappointed. The food was good and the service awkward but still polite. Don't get the coffee, I'm not offended by diner coffee but you could tell that it was sitting there too long. The price was right down the middle. Overall a meh experience. I could tell that the staff works hard but maybe the food could use a little overhaul. And the place smelled like moldy cleaning supplies. read more

It's not a full service type of place like your traditional restaurant but the food there is amazing. Whether your a meat lover or not, the breakfasts are great. This trip involved a sun dried tomato tofu skillet. The food was great. It was served within minutes of seating myself and boy was it full of flavor. Meals like that don't make me miss meat one bit. Don't get me wrong, I love a side of bacon like any other God loving American but this meal does it. The layout isn't exactly set but it will do for any lunch excursion for two. I say that because there isn't too much room for family style seating unless the other room is open. A must stop Tacoma spot. See and review for yourselves fellow yelpers but I promise you won't be disappointed. read more

The food here is excellent, but I also picked up on some weird vibe. Nothing of note happened while I was here, but I just didn't feel comfortable in this setting. We had a hard time getting parking: beware, it LOOKS like there's a lot of street parking around, but once you read the restriction signs, you'll become a little desperate to pull into someone's garage. If you walk in and don't feel uncomfortable, try the the omelets or huevos. Their hot chocolate was SMALL- they filled almost half of the coffee cup with whipped cream so there wasn't much to drink. read more

My boyfriend has been raving about this restaurant since I met him. He hadn't been there in over a year and was super excited to take me there for my first time. I was IMPRESSED. We sat in the corner on the service side and had fun peeking out the window at the passerbys who were slipping around on the icey sidewalks. We were pretty much ignored until everyone in our section's order was taken at once about 10 minutes once we arrived. Our food came about two minutes after that, winning the award for fastest service ever! Although it did beat our coffee to the table. The magic potatoes were amazing. My boyfriend can't eat onions, so he was sadly disappointed when we were informed it was a mix so he couldn't have the magic potatoes. We were HOWEVER allowed to request that he get the mushrooms and tomotoes in his potatoes, so he was still happy, albeit, sans zuchinni. The scramble I had was good, and I liked that they had unprocessed sugar available for your coffee. The bacon and avocado omelette however was FANTASTIC, I would definitely reccomend that. I will be here again, once my tummy rumbles can justify a drive down to Tacoma. read more

This place is known for its simply good and healthy breakfasts. A friend brought me here some weeks back. It's a small hole in the wall private restaurant. I forgot to take a picture of my meal. You can order at the counter where you can view a menu. There coffee is organic, local and quite flavorful. The environment is very casual. The decor is tossed together with a few booths but mostly tables and chairs are a mish mash if mixed styles old and worn in. It can get crowded in no time which means the place has a good reputation. I like relaxed environments like this one. The price is competitive with all other bfast joints. If you come to Tacoma...enjoy!! read more

Finally tried this Tacoma brunch staple! I've seen the mixed reviews this place gets on Yelp, and must say I was impressed over all. It was an incredibly busy Saturday morning, and we were seated within 10 minutes of waiting. Things were a little slow, but the service ranged from good to great and the food was also good (not great). I got the pequena huevos rancheros, which comes with their signature potatoes. The huevos rancheros was good, but I wasn't a fan of their potatoes. They had good flavor, but lacked texture. They needed some crispness or their skins or something. They were just meh for me. My fiancé's Tina Sandwich looked good and he gobbled it up. He got it with a fried egg instead of scrambled. I think we'll return for a solid breakfast in the future! I gave them 3 stars because I LIKED Shakabrah Java, but I didn't REALLY like it. :/ Ya. read more

There are a lot of things I miss about living in Tacoma, and I love it there very much. I love all its weird specific museums, i love its blue collar roots, i love the waterfront, i love going on evening walks through the stadium district, and the way the trains sound at night when you're right on the precipice of sleep. I also love 6th Ave, and I miss breakfast at Shakabrah on the weekends. Their potatoes are amazing, the coffee is strong, the scrambles are satisfying and tasty. Much like the city it resides in it's a little rough around the edges, and the asthetic is hodge podge, but that is part of its charm. Most importantly there is a beautiful and busy energy that runs like a currant through the space, and you can feel good about supporting one of the many small businesses along 6th Ave that make make up the fabric of that neighborhood. Shakabrah is #1! read more

This place was great. The pancakes are massive, and everything was good. You can't miss the Shakrbrah potatoes. They've got not spice and are nice and soft. Amazing. Great food moderately priced. A must go to brunch place in Tacoma. read more

Their food is great, but it takes SO LONG to get an order. I've eaten in probably 4 times and it took long each time; we kept going back thinking it was the time of day or an off one, but the service is just consistently poor (they also forgot to bring coffee and charged us for it). Today we ordered take out and it took an entire hour to receive our order after waiting inside for a half an hour. read more