TACOMA, Wash. — Judging by the lines of people waiting to get in, it seems like everybody wants a piece of Tacoma's Side Piece Kitchen.
"I started Side Piece just as a pipe dream," said Hailey Hernandez who, burned out by her last job took out a $2,000 pay day loan in 2022 to start a take-out only operation.
"100% of our biscuits are made from scratch," she said. "Actually everything here is made from scratch."
Within a year demand for biscuits and cheesecake was so high, Hernandez convinced her husband, Dante, to join Side Piece. They found a brick-and-mortar location in a run down pizza shop near the Tacoma Mall. That's when Hailey Hernandez went to work with the help of YouTube videos.
"It's crazy how much you can look up on the internet these days," she laughed. "You can even build a restaurant with the help of the internet I guess."
"She has drive, " Dante said. "She has passion, and she's going to get it done no matter what."
"I can do whatever I want and that's important to always remind myself," Hailey said. "I can do anything I set myself out to do."
The food here is amazing. There are days when the biscuits sell out by noon. The restaurant's goofy '70s vibe is a reflection of the couple who started the joint.
"We're born and raised here and we are 100% unapologetically Tacoma," Hailey said.
"We're not beating around the bush," Dante added. "We're having a good time while we're doing it kind of thing and I think that shows."
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