Chicken Basket

The Chicken Basket was a little “hole in the wall” cafe across from the church we attended. A little place in Tacoma, WA., on So. 11th st. between J street and K street.

It was operated by a couple from the south named the Vines. His specialty was chicken, and it was delicious, but Mr. Vines made a great burger with curly fries and delicious sandwiches that were very simple, but made just right, they were delicious.

Occasionally our parents would go out for the evening and bring back a hamburger and curly fries for us from the Chicken Basket. That was like the highlight of all times to get that food. Mr. Vines would package the burger and fries in a white shoe-box shaped container. I remember taking the box, carefully opening it to view that delicious burger. We would always eat it very slow, savoring every bite.

My mom was a great cook and had a wonderful from scratch recipe for German Chocolate cake. The Vines’s hired her to bake that scrumptious cake for their cafe. So when you entered the cafe you would walk straight ahead to the counter where my moms cake would be on display on a pedestal dish with a glass cover. And the cake didn’t last very long, it was so rich moist and delicious.

The building where the Chicken Basket was still stands, but the cafe is long gone, only memories of a simpler time when happiness was not hard to achieve.