West Seattle restaurants: The Lodge Sports Grille finally close to opening

With a recent wave of restaurant openings in West Seattle, there’s a new WSB inbox leader for the question “when will it open?” – The Lodge Sports Grille in The Junction. More than 14 months have passed since we first reported in June 2015 that The Lodge would open a location in the east building of Junction 47; the space seemed idle for so long, some wondered if the plan had been scrapped. Our questions went unanswered for a while but recently, an unmistakable sign of life appeared: The liquor-license application. Then today we reached proprietor Shawn Roten by phone, and he told us yes, The Lodge is very much still on the way to West Seattle and probably “five to six weeks” away from opening. He also invited us to stop in and check out the interior work – so we did, for the photos you see above and below:

So what’s taken so long? The city permitting process, Roten said, ruefully – it’s added four and a half months to the buildout. But now things are at full speed ahead, with all the work being done on-site, to the point where, as he explained, “it looks like a wood shop”:

As the original announcement last year explained, Roten is “a former home-builder who custom designs and builds all his restaurants to complement the neighborhood, (and) builds bar tops that range from 50 feet to 70 feet in length.” The Lodge is described as serving American-style food and craft beers, in a family-friendly atmosphere with HD TVs showing sports events. Roten says he expects to be up and running in time for most of the Seahawks season.

Dana August 16, 2016 (4:22 pm)

I’m excited to see that there’s some progress finally! I enjoy the Lodge, and was starting to get worried that this one wasn’t going to happen for some reason

Jort August 16, 2016 (5:02 pm)

“Five to six weeks” is about-to-open business owner-speak for, “seven, maybe 10 more months.”

John August 17, 2016 (1:21 pm)

@Jort….I agree. They look much further out then 5 – 6 weeks.

SpaceDust August 16, 2016 (6:22 pm)

I sure hope they have on site parking for patrons.

Ryan C. August 19, 2016 (3:20 pm)

There is the 3 hour lot a half a block away.

Beckyjo August 16, 2016 (7:03 pm)

Well if they do have parking, I sure don’t know where it’s going to be.

WSB August 16, 2016 (7:16 pm)

The Junction 47 buildings share an underground garage. I don’t know how many spaces are set aside for its businesses; it’s been many years since we covered it in design review. If I can find the number, I’ll add it.

Added: According to this 2011 story, the developer said the city only required 11 retail spaces for the building but 73 were planned.

I have not been in that garage … we drive to The Junction all the time, in all dayparts, and almost always find space in one of the 3-hours-free lots. – TR
Jort August 17, 2016 (9:49 am)

The parking lot underneath Safeway at Jefferson Square is a 300 foot walk away from the restaurant.

The parking lot at Jefferson Square usually has hundreds and hundreds of open spaces.

There’s plenty of parking in the Junction, it’s just that people either don’t want to walk or don’t want to pay.

Mel August 16, 2016 (9:43 pm)

I’ve had nothing but indifferent service from this particular local chain (their servers apparently float from location to location a lot, which I’d think would prevent getting to know the regulars). The food is just okay (I’ve had enough issues that I avoid them in their other neighborhoods), but I guess people go for the huge beer selection, which is the one thing they do right.

They do seem to be expanding to a lot of locations quickly, which reminds me of another growing local chain that did a long custom build before moving in…hopefully they don’t suffer the same fate as A Terrible Beauty.

JVP August 16, 2016 (9:58 pm)

Huh, looked them up. Locally owned with a chain of 6 restaurants (probably 7 when this opens). I coulda swore they were a corporate outfit based on the look and feel. I guess I’ll have to temper my scorn.

Andy August 17, 2016 (4:56 am)

I’m anxious for these guys to open. It’s just exactly what West Seattle has been missing, some good old American food.

Be mAma August 17, 2016 (8:57 am)

Any word on filling the retail space on the 3200 block of California?

Gene August 17, 2016 (8:45 pm)

Hundreds & hundreds of parking spaces at Jefferson Square garage?? Wow- had no idea!

WSB August 17, 2016 (9:12 pm)

I think they meant the surface lot. Nonetheless, if you look via Google Street View, it seems to be more like dozens than hundreds. I don’t have time to count them all but if anyone wants to try, this should work.

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