POULSBO -- If you're lucky enough to hit a clear day on your drive to Poulsbo, prepare to be dazzled as roadside trees give way to a stunning vista of Liberty Bay backed by snow-capped Olympics. It's like a little piece of Norway.
Early immigrants thought so, too, and turned this scenic settlement into an ethnic enclave where, for a while, the official language was Norwegian.
Those days are long gone, but the spirit of Norway lives on in Front Street's historic downtown shopping district, in shops such as The Nordic Maid and the legendary Sluys Bakery, home of Poulsbo Bread and platter-size doughnuts.
Front Street is a charming throwback to small-town America. With holiday lights swooping above the narrow, shop-lined street, you almost expect to see Jimmy Stewart loping along the sidewalk yelling, "Merry Christmas, everybody!"
I've shopped here countless times and love the mix of galleries, antique shops, boutiques and restaurants. The other day, it struck me just how many good shops Poulsbo has -- and how reasonable the prices are. Geez, I thought, I could do nearly all my holiday shopping right here on one, long, picturesque block.
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MERYL SCHENKER / P-I |
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Pedestrians make their way across Front Street, a charming throwback to small-town America. Holiday lights swoop above the narrow street.
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Which makes Kitsap County's "Little Norway" the perfect December day trip.
"Probably 50 percent of our people on the weekends and some during the week are from Seattle," said Sue McCarty, manager of the Kitchen Karousel, which specializes in creative cooking gadgets and cookie cutters. "The thing is, Poulsbo is a great getaway for a day. It still has small-town character."
You'll find a large, free parking lot between the shops and the marina, with additional parking along the street. (To avoid a ticket, you'll have to move your car every two or three hours.) The next step is easy: Pick a starting point and loop your way down one side of Front Street and back up the other.
If your shopping list includes foodies, be sure to stop at Kitchen Karousel and the nearby Rocambole Garlic Shop. The kitchen shop is crammed with clever and useful items, from specialty rolling pins to colored-glass spice jars. I found a couple of great stocking stuffers right by the cash register.
The Flexicado is a flexible, plastic loop that scoops and slices avocados, sparing you the messy-knife approach. It's made in Seattle and sells for $5.95.
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MERYL SCHENKER / P-I |
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Holiday candles welcome customers to The Nordic Maid in Poulsbo's historic downtown shopping district.
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Even better is the Progressive Six-in-One Multi-opener, the kitchen equivalent of a Swiss Army knife. With a quick flick, it'll open pull-tab containers, slit a bag of chips, peel cardboard seals on spice jars and more. At $9.95, it's a hot seller.
Another nifty idea: Mix or match four, decorative cheese spreaders ($2.95 each) and display them in a little, wooden holder shaped like a butcher block ($6.95). It makes a great hostess gift.
I arrived at Rocambole a little too early and encountered a "Cloved -- Crushed that we missed you" sign. Suffice it to say that Rocambole carries all things garlic, from braided wreaths to sauces to funny aprons. I'll be back.
At Rubber Soul, an emporium of artsy rubber stamps, I got to talking with sales clerk Gayre Magnusson. She pointed out that, in the space of a block, Poulsbo boasts two yarn stores, a quilt store, a bead store, a pottery-painting shop and the rubber-stamp store.
"It's like a little crafter's paradise here," Magnusson said.
Even if you're not handy, they're fun places to visit and can yield some offbeat gifts. At Amanda's Art Yarns, for instance, I cooed over a tape measure disguised as a fleecy sheep -- a clever little gift for $9.95.
The shop is tucked up a flight of stairs, but it's worth a stop, if only to admire the brilliantly hued fleeces displayed in cubbies at the back of the shop, next to a spinning wheel and a loom that also are for sale.
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MERYL SCHENKER / P-I |
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Marcella Rebar, 7, spends an afternoon with her mom, Martha.
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Fiber artist Amanda Richardson buys a lot of her wool from local breeders and dyes it herself, hand-blending colors to create exotic, swirly effects. It sells for $1.50 an ounce. Richardson said some of her customers are fly fisherman who twist off little wisps for tying flies.
You'll find Northwest art on display at a couple of local galleries. Potlatch Gallery features fine paintings, carvings, jewelry and lovely glass work. My favorite piece was a dramatic set of four wavy-edged, nesting bowls in alternating shades of turquoise and golden-brown. They were backlit and displayed on their sides like exotic shells. At $1,400 they were out of my league but a pleasure to behold. (The shop carries many lower-priced items as well.)
Across the street, on the water side, lies Verksted Gallery, a local artists' cooperative with a lively mix of affordable arts and crafts -- everything from handpainted silks to carved-wood wine stoppers (a great find at less than $20).
For an unusual gift with regional roots and modern appeal, consider one of the wooden "tine" (TEE-na) boxes made by Al Anderson, a third-generation Norwegian American. The lidded boxes are made of birch, maple and alder and range in price from $28 to $85.
Tine boxes, jokingly known as Norwegian Tupperware, were the brownbags of their day, said Leon Cotey, a woodworker on duty that day at the co-op.
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MERYL SCHENKER / P-I |
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Pedestrians walk past Kvelstad Pavilion on the Poulsbo waterfront. The town and its Nordic heritage make a great stop for holiday shopping.
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"They would carry this as a lunch pail," he said, "and open it up and flip it over and eat their lunch on the tray."
You'll find that Poulsbo's specialty shops cover a wide range of interests. Nautical gifts? Cargo Hold has it covered, with fine-quality brass lamps, model boats, clocks and collectible lighthouses.
Girly-girl collectibles? Try Hiding Place for porcelain dolls, mini-music boxes and Christmas ornaments, or Timeless Heirlooms for pretty china and retro-style tablecloths and cards.
For sweets, join the holiday crowd at Boehms Chocolates, where you can handpack a pretty nostalgic tin with chocolates made at the Issaquah factory. (Psst -- they give out free samples.)
At this point in the tour, your energy may be flagging. Fortunately, there are many, many eateries where you can rest and refuel. Bowing to the enthusiastic urgings of two shopkeepers, I tried the lunch menu at Mor Mor Bistro and Bar, a sleek, upscale restaurant with big-city food.
The owners, John and Laura Nesby, are only 26 but they have formal training in food and wine and years of experience. (Their monthly, fixed-price wine dinners are booked two months in advance.) What I especially liked was their strong sense of community and family ties.
I didn't get to meet Laura, the wine expert, but I spent quite a while talking to John, the chef. He's a real sweetheart -- the third generation in his family to run a Front Street business.
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Len's Cafe, owned by his great-grandfather, was a hot spot in the 1930s and '40s, and Ralph's Supermarket, owned by his grandfather, was a downtown fixture until the 1980s. Mor Mor honors that heritage in framed newspaper clippings and stylized blowups of family photos -- and in its very name, which is Norwegian for "grandmother."
"Every single picture on the wall is our grandparents' or one of our close relatives," Nesby said. "Oddly, enough, until yesterday they were all living."
His paternal grandmother, Lorraine Ray, an energetic businesswoman once named Poulsbo's "Man of the Year," had died unexpectedly the day before, and her doting grandson was struggling to keep things running smoothly as he mourned her loss.
It's easy to see why Poulsbo regulars love this couple -- and their food. I could have tried a modest item, like the $8 burger dip or a $7 salad of Belgian endive with champagne vinaigrette, toasted Marcona almonds, fresh chives and Danish bleu cheese.
But no. Egged on by local tipsters, I sprang for a $14 lunch entree -- fresh Dungeness crab fettuccine tossed with a light, lemon cream sauce and Parmesan cheese. It was tasty and (not too) filling, with a couple of big chunks of crab. And yes, I succumbed to dessert -- a small but tasty, chocolate mousse tartlet for $6. (The menu changes daily.)
If that's too rich for your wallet, don't worry. Front Street has many restaurants and cafes, from Casa Luna, an alleyway Mexican restaurant, to That's-a-Some-Italian Ristorante, by the parking lot.
But don't get too comfortable. Remember, the sun is waning, and there are lots more stores to explore before heading back to the Bainbridge Island ferry, and home to Seattle. You wouldn't want to miss anything, would you?
If you go
Getting there -- From Seattle, take the Washington State ferry to Bainbridge Island. Crossing time is 35 minutes, and you'll find schedule information at www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries/ [1] Poulsbo lies about 13 miles from the Bainbridge terminal, straight up state Route 305. Turn left at the first Poulsbo traffic light and follow Northeast Hostmark Street down the hill toward the water. The road curves sharply to the right at the base of the hill, where the shops begin, and becomes Front Street. Park on the street or turn left into the waterfront parking lot.
The following stores are all found on a one-block stretch of Front Street:
* The Nordic Maid -- www.nordicmaid.com [2]; 877-355-5791
* Sluys Bakery -- 360-779-2798
* Kitchen Karousel -- www.kitchenkarousel.com [3]; 877-449-9590
* Rocambole Garlic Shop -- 877-779-2415, www.garlicgal.com [4]
* Rubber Soul -- www.rubbersoul.com [5] 360-779-7757
* Amanda's Art Yarns -- 360-779-3666
* Potlatch Gallery -- www.potlatchgallery.com [6]; 360-779-3377
* Verksted Gallery -- www.verkstedgallery.com [7]; 360-697-4470
* Cargo Hold -- 360-697-1424
* Hiding Place Antiques -- 360-779-7811
* Timeless Heirlooms -- 360-779-6265
* Boehms Chocolates of Poulsbo -- www.boehmscandies.com [8]; 360-697-3318
* Mor Mor Bistro and Bar -- www.mormorbistro.com [9]; 360-697-3449
* Casa Luna -- 360-779-7676
* That's-A-Some-Italian-Ristorante -- 360-779-2266
P-I reporter Cecelia Goodnow can be reached at 206-448-8353 or ceceliagoodnow@seattlepi.com.
Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company
