The Antique Sandwich was originally a grocery store built in 1916. The upstairs of the building was an Oddfellows Hall with dances and wedding parties, later it became a little movie theater.

In 1973 Arlene Herridge convinced her daughter Tamie, son Doug, and daughter-in-law Shirley to move from Seattle to this little corner of Tacoma. Arlene opened an Antique shop in the building (hence the name!) while Tamie & Shirley made sandwiches and brought in the very first espresso machine to Tacoma. Doug started Sound Starter Rebuild two doors down. Both business have been running for 51 years and counting.

Many of the Antiques you see around the restaurant come from Arlene's collection. The statue, Colombo, was carved for the 1893 Columbia Exhibition in Chicago using marble from the Italian Carrara quarry, the same marble used by Michelangelo. The back bar in the restaurant was originally in a saloon in Alaska during the gold rush of the 1890’s. Arlene found it and had been a part of the restaurant since the beginning.

In 1983, the Antique suffered a severe fire but the community came together and with countless volunteers and rebuilt the space as it stands today with so much love.