TACOMA, Wash. — Step inside the Olive Branch Cafe and you enter a dream come true for Tacoma's Terry Waller. Waller spent 25 years working at Western State Psychiatric Hospital. She pooled all her money, googled tea rooms around the world, bought some fancy furniture and has brought a Victorian tea room to the west end of Freighthouse Station.
"Every penny. I jumped off the cliff," she said.
She's also hired friends like Lottie Gillam who greets every customer with a hug.
Pianist Brian Ingoldsby plays for tips.
"He comes over here, and he goes, ‘If you let that piano come here, I'll play it every day for free,’” said Waller. “He's been here every single day. He turns on the lights. He vacuums. He's like this angel."
There is also a Princess Tea Room, popular with little girls and their grandparents. For a touch of enchantment and a spot of tea, try the Olive Branch Cafe.
Olive Branch Cafe | 2501 E D St, Tacoma, WA 98402 | Daily 11 AM to 4 PM
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