RJ’s Burger Joint

R J’s has consistent excellent customer service and the food is great. As a vegetarian for almost ten years, I love finding a good vegetarian burger. Their vegetarian burger is, hands down, the best that I have ever had before. I have also been here for breakfast, and their wraps are perfect in the morning. We frequent this joint often, and are constantly impressed by their service and food. Great food, and awesome customer service, what more could you ask for?

Ive only came in here for breakfast so far. What keeps me coming back?
The Customer Service and the food. As early as I arrive they are friendly and ready to serve us with a great conversation as well. My go to items are the sausage or ham croissant or the sausage wrap. The prices are above reasonable. I always grab my coworker the bacon wrap and she can never finish all of it. I cant wait to try the oh so delicious burgers that i keep hearing about. And its sort of a full menu all day type of thing.

I got the chicken strips and fries. The chicken strips were good, but the fries were unseasoned and really gross!

RJ’s definitely satisfied our late-​night burger cravings. I appreciate that they offer a gf bun! Our burgers were fine, not great. And the fries were kind of boring. As is the custom in Freighthouse, the employees were very friendly! This place is a «maybe-​return» for me. Maybe I’ll get my fries from a different vendor though.

Nestled in Tacoma’s historic Freighthouse Square, RJ’s is one of many food establishments that seem to be keeping the Freighthouse Square in business. I made it a point to seek out this restaurant and give it a try because of the reviews they already had on Unilocal.4 stars is usually a pretty good bet but this place is only 2 at best in my opinion.
I went all in, I ordered the monster burger add bacon and made it a combo with onion rings and a drink. I also ordered a side of fries just to check them out too. The staff is friendly and brought my food to me at my table. I was supplied with ketchup for my fries and what I believe was tartar sauce for my onion rings however it was more like eating straight mayonnaise than tartar sauce. You can tell that everything is delivered frozen and they cook it up and serve it here. That being said, the onion rings were pretty good. The fries were meh. I’ve had better but I’ve also had worse. The burger looked really good but after getting into it, I didn’t taste much flavor. The beef didn’t seem seasoned and I should have been able to tell as the monster burger has 4 patties on it. Their signature sauce, the «not yet famous sauce» didn’t add much to the sandwich. My bun was really good but fell apart quickly as it absorbed the grease from the meat and the pickle juice.
My overall opinion of RJ’s is that it’s a middle of the road burger joint. Not too good and not too bad. If you’re a transit rider looking for a quick burger, then this place will suffice. I say this because the Freighthouse Square is located directly across the street from the Tacoma public transit hub where the Sounder train, the Greyhound buses and the local and long range buses all stop to pick passengers up.
Would I eat here again? Probably.
Thanks for reading.

Great Food and Bomb burgers, the only reason I wouldn’t give them 5 star is because they did overcharge me for some drinks. When I went to try and get the situation fixed, she kept saying there was no problem. Needless to say she did fix it and actually tried to get us some extra goodies, so this place has great food and great service.

Another great Freighthouse square gem I frequent… not to much into «burger joints» my asian side calls for a more exotic palette but ALL my guy coworkers order from here and as Im sitting there with my rice or curry or mexican order, I almost always can’t help but steal a bite of that juicy looking burger they are munchin’ on.
RJ’s offers a lot more then just burgers– They have all the all-​american good goods –chili cheese fries, different kinds of panini sandwiches & wraps, the ciabatta bread they use is really good and moist not like most places all hard and dry, the best BLTs, Everything for b-​fast breakfast burritos, full-​on b-​fast eggs and the whole nine-​pancakes, ect etc, they give you a lot of fries so make sure to ask for extra ketchup-​we always run out. Burgers are good, hot dogs are even better. Like I said my coworkers eat here EVERYDAY, lol I don’t see how some people can eat burgers and fries like EVERYDAY when theres so much more the world has to offer… LIVE ALITTLE!
Customer service here is phenomenal, theres this Indian lady who works here and she is the nicest sweetest person that always has a smile on her face… even on my worst days she can get me to crack a smile with her warm personality and believe me you-​it is HARD to get me to crack my face of a smile when not in the mood. There is nothing better then great customer service I guess thats why I feel the need to write these things cuz if they are mean YOULL BE CALLED OUT! lol JK (well maybe a little called out)

Really good burgers and fries served by pleasant people with good attitudes and actual smiles!
You can’t beat RJ’s!

Great burgers. The lady always remembers how each of us likes them. We always ask for extra crispy fries, nice! The venue is a pavilion of small mom n’ pop operations. Not a date place but a good place to get a decent burger if you’re in the neighborhood. Haven’t had anything other than the bacon cheeseburger. It’s my go to here.

grassy flavor not so friendly

Breakfast croissant! Ham, Egg and cheese. Warm fresh and gooey! The owner wouldn’t let me pay! He said it was a man’s way. Good food. Quick. Good customer service. Great location and a lot to choose from on the menu!

had the lamb burger today and it was yummy! she even gave me a few fries for free claiming they had extra. II discovered that i can call in an order if in a rush. and next time i’m on the early train (as it only goes to tacoma), I might just do that!

Had the Bison Burger here, and I thought the burger was real goof, had fries with it but their wasn’t to many fries there and I tossed out probably about 6 of them.
Wife had the Lamb Burger and that was also pretty good (but not as good as the Bison Burger IMO)
Wish they still had the Pepsi machine– specially after viewing Dave’s photo, but now its just a Coke machine with crap selection so for drink went with the Strawberry Lemonade which was ok.
So for being skimpy with the fries, and not having Pepsi products or the Coke freestyle machine cant give them 4 or 5 stars.
I did thought the service overall was very good, and she did come out and asked us how our food was.

This place is wonderful I, got dinner to go tonight and it was delish. They serve yummy food and the service is always with a smile. Can’t wait to go again.

This is a solid lunch spot. Good for kids or to break the fast-​food chain rut.

Nope. Never again. What a horrible, lowly experience! Maybe this wasn’t the best choice for our first time in Tacoma, cuz it truly epitomized all the bad things we’ve heard about the city. I would rather the gossip be proven incorrect!
Hubby couldn’t even eat half his burger, it was so disgustingly greasy, and my chicken burger might as well have been from the value menu at jack in the box. We both felt truly sick the day after. Not pleasant at all. The one good thing was the girl at the counter was very sweet. Props to her in such a depressing atmosphere.
(visited Nov 2012)

They guys are simply the BEST burger makers in Tacoma. Always friendly, always quality. I have been coming here for over 2 years weekly. I love burgers and I have tried a ton of different burger restaurants in the 253 — 206 area. Rjs burger joint make the best burgers hands down: D

RJ’s is in a great location for regular commuters and visitors alike at the Freighthouse Square. It is situated right next to a major entrance/​exit point to the platform of the Sounder train. The breakfast wrap is a steal at $ 4.69 (after tax). It consists of eggs, bacon, cheese and hash browns. I have a tough time finishing it! However, the best item is the Mushroom/​Cheese Burger. It has been voted best hamburger in Tacoma by the Tacoma Weekly. It is EXTREMELY tasty! Do not miss out on this item! The staff is very warm and friendly and when they get to know you, you are treated like family. I strongly recommend!

These guys take such good care of my kids. My kids think that they are best friends with the lady that helps them. lol Sweet, sweet, sweet.
My kids just want to feel important, and they do a great job, and it helps that my kids love their food, and they tell me every time that they like it better than McDonalds…

UPDATE: We decided to head to Freighthouse Square for lunch today and had the goal of ordering something we’ve never tried before… what a pleasant surprise was in store.
RJ’s has recently (last week!) added a 3-​piece fried chicken lunch (served with potato wedges) to their menu ($ 8.95). OH MY GOD!!! This was simply the best fried chicken I think I’ve ever had in my life, including multiple trips to Georgia where fried chicken is cooked to perfection. It was melt-​in-​your-​mouth delicious.
I had to ask the chef — was it marinaded? Yes! For many hours — the seasoning and flavor went clear through — even on the breast, which typically is just a lump of chicken. Not here — every bite carried the flavor of the delicate seasonings — and it just fell off the bone — utterly tender and juicy at every point. Amazing.
The seasonings are very unique — just a HINT of Indian cuisine (Raj, the owner, is from India) — but don’t think «Indian Chicken Tikala» — this is NOT INDIAN CUISINE! It’s «Georgia style fried chicken» with just a delicate hint of the flavors of India — I really can’t describe it better than that.
Just try it… in my very honest opinion, this is absolutely the very best fried chicken I’ve ever had in the greater Tacoma/​Seattle area, and trust me — I’m a fan of GOOD fried chicken. I’ve never touched any around here that even comes close to this.
Lastly, the service was wonderful! The young blond girl at the counter came around often and asked about drink refills, do we need any dunking sauces for the fries, etc… service you just don’t expect in a food court. VERY nice touch!
Disclaimer: I have NOTHING to do with Raj and his burger joint… other than I got to meet him today. My opinion above is truly honest and not exaggerated… truly what I felt about his chicken.