Dirty Oscar's Annex

Where: 2309 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.572.0588

Hours: Monday-Friday 4 p.m. to 2 a.m., Saturday-Sunday 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. Breakfast served until 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday only

Cuisine: Internationally-inspired American comfort food made with quality ingredients - locally sourced and organic when reasonable. Grilled burgers, flatbread, sweet potato fries, fried chicken, salads, sandwiches, Asian-style hot wings, sliders, entrees and more.

Scene: 21+ only. Neighborhood bar with great eats, pool table, jukebox, live music, leg wrestling. Completely casual.

Drinks: Full bar, nightly drink specials, happy hour.

ANNOUNCER: In the building that housed Sax Restaurant & Lounge on Sixth Avenue, Dirty Oscar's Annex remains a bit of an insider's secret in Tacoma. Named after Sesame Street's Oscar the Grouch, it's typically referred to as DOA. What distinguishes DOA from similar neighborhood bars is the food. Since opening over four months ago, head cook Kyle Wnuk has tweaked his original menu of appetizers, flatbread, salads, burgers and entrées only slightly. Surprising ingredients elevate the typical bar food. Wnuk uses chipotle chicken breast and fresh herbs in nachos; hummus with roasted red peppers is made in-house. Specials like fried soft shell blue crab crostini with roasted shallots and rémoulade keep it interesting.

JAKE: When I first saw the sign I thought, "This is a joke, right? What idiot names a restaurant Dead On Arrival?" Then I realized it was a bar with live rock bands and the name made more sense. Where Jason and I come in is at the table for eats, though, not necessarily for drinks at the bar. But we enjoyed that and pool, too.

JASON: Personally, I appreciated the low-key atmosphere and the no-BS  attitude of the staff. There is table service, but it's typically the bartender making a trip over to get your order. Everyone knows bartenders are good at making drinks and not waiting tables; just ask a bartender if they're a good server and almost all of them will tell you "No, I'm a bartender. I make good drinks." This is absolutely the case at DOA, so we didn't get bent out of shape when service stalled or took a while because the bar got busy. We did get excited over the food, though. That Wnuk guy is kicking A in the kitchen.

JAKE: Yeah, what bar do you know that offers pulled elk sliders on Hawaiian sweet rolls or Baby Back Ribs with habañaro pepper, whiskey and molasses barbeque sauce? During multiple visits we sampled these and much of the menu. Dragon wings - pineapple-sambal-hoisin chicken wings - came six to an order for $6. Non-breaded wings were plump, the skin a bit crisp under the house-made sambal sauce. Carrots and white daikon radish provided a quality crunch.

JASON: A pile of beer-battered asparagus resembled puffed five-inch long spears. Sweet lemon aïoli dipping sauce provided a vibrant flavor contrast to artful zigzags of brown sugar balsamic reduction across the asparagus. DOA uses Facebook to alert fans of drink specials. Thanks to that, we stopped in for $5 You-Call-Its a few weeks back while we watched a game and powered down a hearty plate of crisp sweet potato fries with chunks of garlic and herbs sprinkled about.

JAKE: The lure of the grilled pretzel bun on DOA's signature dish, the Dirty Burger, was too much to withstand. Knowing it was made with hormone-free, 100 percent Certified Angus Beef sourced from Oregon farms made it taste even better.

JASON: That and the crisp bacon, melted Tillamook cheddar and savory grilled onions. I'm clicking the "LIKE" button spasmodically on increased use of tomato jam versus regular ketchup. Caesar salad earns big props; I love me some anchovy dressing. House-made croutons? Yes, please! Wnuk's are made from baguette, tossed in bacon fat and then fried. They're hella good.

JAKE: Is this Fast Times at Ridgemont High? Even I know no one says "hella" anymore, Jason. A dish called beef bresaola consists of thinly sliced, salty (almost tangy) air-cured meat stuffed with goat cheese and roasted asparagus. Sweet balsamic and fried basil leaves really set it off.

JASON: Whatever. Hella hot bartender chicks suggested shots as dessert on all our visits. I liked their persistence and the easy way they let us off the hook when we declined. None of that cutesy cajoling crap that resembles begging or badgering (depending on who is doing it) took place. Good on ya, girls. We'll be back.