Tacoma's waterfront restaurant Harbor Lights will commemorate its 50th anniversary this Thursday. The evening party will spill out onto the restaurant's 2761 Ruston Way street front in celebration from 5 to 7 p.m.

Local dignitaries such as elected officials, restaurant staff (past and present), longtime customers and the Ruston community will take part in the private, invitation-only festivities. Regular, dinner service will continue in the dining room.

"Harbor Lights brings Tacoma a dining legacy synonymous with quality seafood and a friendly, relaxed atmosphere," Lane Hoss said, vice president of marketing for Anthony's Restaurants, which owns the eatery. "We're proud to celebrate the restaurant's 50th year with our valued community, guests and associates."

Harbor Lights opened in 1959, just north of the Old Tacoma Dock. Its main dining room was constructed on pilings over Commencement Bay, overlooking Mount Rainier and the Cascade Mountain Range views.

Founder Anton Barcott, a Yugoslavian immigrant, was succeeded by his daughter, LeMoyne Hrea who worked for many years alongside her father. She sold the business to Anthony's Restaurants in 2000, insisting as a term of her sale that the Harbor Lights name, menus, staff and traditions be left intact.