Poulsbo, WA

In the early morning hours of May 30, 2006, a very popular local eating establishment in Poulsbo WA was gutted by fire. When the landmark restaurant, Mitzel's, went up in smoke, area residents lost a dining tradition they have enjoyed for over 20 years.

Fast forward to 2008, and the grand opening of "Taprock Northwest Grill."

Recently, I offered my son, Ben, and his friend, Josh, a lunchtime reprieve from their house-building efforts, and treated them both to a meal at the new Taprock Northwest Grill.

As is usually typical of newly opened restaurants, the place was packed with plenty of local business people and assorted patron patiently awaiting a seat.

The hired help was extremely friendly and gracious throughout our meal. On several occasions, the Manager, Steve Hancock, came up and personally greeted us, and inquired about our meal/service.

Yours Truly enjoyed a plate of Pan-Fried Totten Bay Oysters, while both Ben and Josh manhandled the Mountain High Tillamook Cheddar & Bacon Burger.

Trust me when I say that "Mountain High' is an adequate description!

The food was very tasty, the service prompt and attentive, and the prices kind to your wallet/purse.

The decor was classic Pacific Northwest, appointed with generous use of wood and stone, giving you the sense of an upscale hunting lodge or ski resort, but only next to a strip mall. It wasn't too high-end. Ben and Josh felt right at home in their work boots and bibs.

Overall, a very pleasant experience, and one that will no doubt more than adequately fill the shoes left behind by Mitzel's.

Located at 760 NE Liberty Road, Poulsbo, WA 98370 * Phone: 360.697.2215

Hours of Operation
Sunday - Thursday: 11am - 10pm
Friday and Saturday: 11am - 11pm

So much has been happening in my life lately, it makes me dizzy just thinking about it!

My oldest son, Ben, proposed to his girlfriend over the Christmas Holidays, and the wedding is planned for June 14th.

Ben recently started a new job in construction. Along with his good friend, Josh, they're building a house up in North Kitsap, off Gunderson Road. The house is for Josh's Dad, a local commercial builder.

I thought it would be fun to chronicle their progress through a series of articles.

So, without further adieu, the Ben and Josh Story!

Laying a Good Foundation..... .....Here's Ben the Builder!

....and here's Josh on the Job!

.....Men at Work!

Boys like playing with Big Trucks!

Please keep in mind that it's the first month of a new year, so the year-to-date numbers may be quite variable compared to last month. Statistics we refer to are for that part of Poulsbo encompassing the downtown core, from the head of Liberty Bay southeast to Ne-Si-Ka Bay, including parts north to Sawdust Hill Rd. The market for other parts of Poulsbo and its suburbs should have approximately similar trends. Homes in Poulsbo were selling for a median price of about $349,500 at the end of January, down about 4% from a year ago. Kitsap County median prices fell less than 1% over the past year. The number of closed sales YTD has fallen 29% compared to last year, and the number of YTD pending sales has increased 17%. This compares to a drop of 24% since a year ago for Kitsap County as a whole. A large portion of the currently pending sales is from presales at one moderately priced new construction development - homes that never appeared as active listings. The Poulsbo listing inventory (146) has risen by 47% compared to a year ago and is 24% higher than it was at the end of December. The inventory turnover (total homes on the market divided by number sold last month) is 8.6 months. Calculating inventory turnover in this manner is artificially low since a number of the new construction homes closing did not show as active listings. Of 42 current pending sales, 33 are new construction. Using only the 80 non-new construction active listings in Poulsbo and the 5 non new construction sales closed last month, the inventory turnover would be 16 months.

Homes in Poulsbo were selling for a median price of about $355,000 at the end of December, up about 1.4% from a year ago. Kitsap County median prices were up 6% over the past year. The number of closed sales YTD has increased 13% compared to last year, and the number of YTD pending sales has increased 31%, though a large portion of that increase is from presales of one moderately priced new construction development - homes that never appeared as active listings. The Poulsbo listing inventory (118) has risen by 17% compared to a year ago. The inventory turnover (total homes on the market divided by number sold last month) is 6.6 months. Calculating inventory turnover in this manner is artificially low since a number of the new construction homes closing did not show as active listings. Of 45 current pending sales, 40 are new construction. Of 63 non-new construction active listings in Poulsbo, only 7 closed last month, making the inventory turnover rate 9 months.