Recharge at this cider-soaked, outdoor oasis after a day exploring near Mount Rainier
After a day exploring the trio of waterfalls on the Bud Blancher trail or the plentiful views at Mount Rainier National Park, you need sustenance and refreshments.
At Mill Haus Cider Co. in Eatonville, you’ll find a little bit of both, but what you’ll fondly recall after leaving is an oft-elusive sense of relaxation and human connection, even as a visitor.
Cidermaker Steve Schmidt, with his son Caleb and childhood friends, brothers Nick and Justin Baublits, created this bucolic getaway at 303 Center St., opening the doors last November. It’s a place to eat and drink, yes, but the real impetus for putting so much care into the built environment here lies in a desire for good old-fashioned community building.
Late afternoon on a spring Saturday, the largely outdoor restaurant buzzed with that laid-back energy. We ordered a dry house cider — Newtown Pippins from Eastern Washington fermented in a production facility across the street — and an IPA from the impeccably friendly staff behind the counter. Through open doors, we wandered into the expansive garden and settled into a picnic table near one of several fire pits and a grassy knoll with cornhole boards awaiting players.
Despite an impending light drizzle, fellow customers found refuge in the ample outdoor seating, with covered options including an over-the-pond gazebo and a pavilion with long communal tables and built-in fire pits.
We eventually yielded to the chill and took shelter in a corner table inside the lodge. From the food menu, we chose a pepperoni flatbread with “haus” marinara, snackable slices served on a wood board, and burnt end sliders, the beef swapped for pork belly with a crispy bark, dressed in a gochujang sauce with housemade coleslaw.
Both are satisfying, as is the signature brie and apple flatbread layered with caramelized onions, sliced almonds and shaved scallions. Under-$10 salads are sizable enough to have as an entree, leaving room for the summertime dessert of a triple-chocolate mousse cake plated with macerated berries.
A flight allows for carefree tasting of the cidery’s six varieties, from the violet-hued Prickly Pear to the local love of Huckleberry. On the sweeter side falls the Apricot Peach, which received recognition in SIP Magazine’s Best of the Northwest along with the dry Haus varietal. Have fun with the Ginger Lemongrass, subtle in its zing but quaffable for that reason.
“I like to call it customer friendly cider,” said Schmidt, who got into the craft more than a decade ago. His son, after graduating from college, convinced him to launch the cider business, which has more than two dozen wholesale accounts in the region.
The taps also feature root beer from Mukilteo’s Diamond Knot Brewing Co. and a housemade Huckleberry Lemonade, both nonalcoholic.
It is, above all, the atmosphere that will lure your return — and clearly has captivated the town.
MORE THAN A BAR & RESTAURANT
“Outside is busy pretty much regardless of the weather,” Schmidt said in July. “We are trying to honor the experience of days gone by, when the community got together, and the history of logging in this town that was incredibly ingenious.”
He nodded to the steam donkey replica above the stovepipe fireplace, built by a friend and fellow Eatonville resident.
Such is the case for just about everything you see at Mill Haus. Schmidt is a 32-year Eatonvillite who studied zoology but became a glass sculptor and then a foreman before patenting steel manufacturing attachments. He developed the master plan for the property after purchasing it four years ago.
“I like design, I guess,” he said.
The steel chandelier in the lodge, lights affixed to the exterior walls and throughout the wavy landscaping, the clever pot rack hanging above the tiny galley kitchen — they are all Schmidt-made.
Dan Baublits, father to Nick and Justin Baublits, and his friend in construction helped with the build-out. (Another Eatonville note: Mayor David Baublits, elected last November, is Dan’s brother.) A local electrician wired the 200-plus outdoor lights, glistening as the sun sets.
All of the woodwork, including the landmark water wheel, features rough-sawn timber, “right off the saw mill” — belonging to a friend of course.
Schmidt describes the aesthetic as somewhere between Craftsman and folk crossed with a European pub and a mountain lodge. An echo of steampunk blends with the addition of barbecue smokers in an outdoor cooking area. Resembling a train depot, this nook will be called Mill Haus Junction. A long, communal high-top table and stools with umbrellas already welcomes guests.
MILL HAUS STILL GROWING
The families also plan to build a new 3,200-square-foot production facility and taproom that will accommodate a bigger kitchen, converting the current lodge into a private event space. A distillery is another ambition.
School field trips to Mount Rainier, said Schmidt, have “nowhere else to go.” He envisioned showing kids how to press apples into fresh juice, the machine powered by the water wheel.
Mill Haus wanted daily live music if possible, and they have “pretty much achieved that,” said Schmidt. Musicians have since flocked to his inbox and voicemail, the list growing to more than 60.
On this evening, Steve Moore and Tod Lemkuhl, also Eatonville residents, prepared for one of many appearances on the built-in stage, shadowed by an 80-year-old heirloom apple tree that inspired the grounds.
Since opening, the restaurant and taproom has been “crazy busy,” according to Schmidt. Like 1,200 gallons of cider a month, 500 pints on a Saturday busy.
“It’s been really good,” he said.
MILL HAUS CIDER CO.
▪ 303 Center St. E, Eatonville, 253-487-7065, drinkmillhaus.com
▪ Wednesday 4-8 p.m., Thursday 4-9 p.m., Friday-Saturday noon-9 p.m., Sunday noon-8 p.m.
▪ Details: family friendly restaurant and taproom with sprawling outdoor seating
▪ Menu: shareable apps, sliders and flatbreads, $8-$15; house ciders and Washington beers, $7 for a pint or $9 for quad of 4-ounce pours
This story was originally published July 15, 2022 at 5:05 AM.