Crafty Beaver joins Tacoma’s local beer and pizza scene

“I’ve always wanted to run my own business and do my own thing.”

By Drew Dotson For the Tacoma Daily Index • August 5, 2024 1:30 am

A new bar and restaurant opened its doors to the downtown Tacoma community in January and has been serving up local beers and housemade pizza.

“The Crafty Beaver is a small cozy space. We serve beer, wine and pizza. I try to do as local as possible on the beers,” owner Jeremy McDonald said.

The name for the bar and restaurant comes from the “craft” beers the restaurant sells along with the icon of the large semiaquatic rodent found in the Pacific Northwest, according to McDonald. He said the bar supplies 6 rotating taps, ten or more can and bottle varieties and around 5 wines for the thirsty customer.

Like a beaver, McDonald said he also built the wood bar seating in the space himself. The space was previously home to a gym, Organically Grown Muscle, and had to be transformed into a dining space.

To accompany a drink, the main food option at The Crafty Beaver is homemade pizza.

“The pizza, I haven’t really put a style to it,” McDonald said. “It’s kind of like a flatbread-style. It’s 7 inches by 12 inches, but it’s not flatbread bread. It is kind of artisan.”

The pizza menu includes classics like cheese and pepperoni, while also featuring some more unique combinations like chicken bacon caesar and arugula pear.

McDonald said he has never owned a bar or restaurant before and was excited about the new challenge.

“I was kind of fascinated with business and loved seeing all the new businesses popping up in Tacoma,” McDonald said. “I’ve always wanted to run my own business and do my own thing.”

The Crafty Beaver is located on Tacoma Avenue, only a couple blocks away from Wright Park. He said he was excited to be a part of the growing downtown scene in Tacoma and loves the location.

“We get a lot of locals who have been walking to the bar. We have really good neighbors, Medzo Gelato,” McDonald said. “That’s kind of why I picked the location. I figured it would make a good dinner and dessert on one block. I just saw how busy they were and the quality of the product they put out.”

McDonald said he grew up in Lakewood and went to the University of Washington Tacoma, which also drew him to the downtown area.

“Another reason that I love downtown is seeing UW Tacoma kind of revitalize the city, bring a lot of business, buy up a lot of land and do a lot of good things for downtown,” McDonald said. “I’m just really proud of Tacoma.”