‘Knapp’s really needs to stay Knapp’s.’ New owner shares plans for Tacoma diner

In June 2024, rumors swelled around the Proctor District that Knapp’s Restaurant and Lounge, established 1938, had been sold, and that meant it would close.

Sound Restaurant Family, the owners since the early 2000s, insisted at the time that Knapp’s wasn’t closing, but it turns out they had been trying to sell the business. Brothers Dan and Jonathan Tweten also own The Hob Nob in Tacoma, The Poodle Dog in Fife and Burs in Lakewood, as well as Mio Posto in Seattle and Brewery City Pizza locations in Thurston County.

Nearly a year would pass until Maple Valley resident Billy Brewer expressed interest in buying the Tacoma icon. The deal was finalized in August, he told The News Tribune in an interview.

“It’s kind of a crazy story,” he said of his stumble into becoming the new proprietor of a nearly 90-year-old restaurant and bar. “I was going through my own transition as Knapp’s was going through theirs.”

He had been working in tech and IT sales, he said, but “all of a sudden I wasn’t anymore.” In seeking a career change, he started a food-focused, brand-building business called Foraged Foods. Meanwhile, he started hanging out at Knapp’s, trying the food and acquainting himself with some of the regulars.

“Ultimately, I just really fell in love with the place, like everybody does at Knapp’s,” Brewer said. “The people are really great. The regulars here kinda make the place.”

When he first walked in as the owner, staff — some of whom have worked there for decades — didn’t realize who he was, he recalled in recent interview at the restaurant. The ensuing conversations affirmed to him that buying Knapp’s was the right move.

“They kept this place open by the effort that they’ve put forth,” he said. “Knapp’s means family.”

Robyn Nielsen, marketing director for Sound Restaurant Family, confirmed the sale in October.

“We’re so grateful to the wonderful Tacoma community for many great years of support,” she said by email. “It’s been an honor to be part of such a special neighborhood, and we’re excited for the new owner, Billy Brewer, to carry on Knapp’s tradition of warm hospitality and good food.”

The company’s other restaurants are not impacted by the Knapp’s sale, she added. Pierce County property records show that the almost century-old Gamble Building, 2701-2709 N. Proctor St., remains under Gamble Building LLC, which is affiliated with Todd Clarke and Drew Frame of Kidder-Matthews.

Knapp’s story began with a little delicatessen. Over several decades, Ned and Corinne Knapp expanded to the adjacent dining rooms. They sold it to Ski and Helen Sulkowsky in the late 1960s, according to history Brewer has pulled together, who added the bar, then known as Knappsack Lounge. It changed hands again to the Loomis family and then the Twetens.

While Knapp’s held strong, neighboring businesses have come and gone, from a drugstore and furnishings store to a jewelry shop and real estate office. Today, FoxFire Salon and Spa holds the corner unit, and an apothecary opened this year at 2703 N. Proctor. There are also 13 apartments on the second floor.

Are changes coming to Knapp’s?

Changes will be mostly subtle but, Brewer hopes, meaningful.

Because the business was in a state of for-sale limbo “for a really long time,” according to Brewer, staff maintained the status quo. Since he officially took the helm late this summer, he has worked with the kitchen crew to improve some recipes and pitch new ideas.

He cited the chili as one example.

“It wasn’t inspired,” Brewer said. “You could find this chili everywhere. So we worked on it, and we got an actual recipe put together that we built in-house.” He described the updated version as a hearty cup with “that homemade-type feel, that you’re kinda expecting from a diner.”

They are tinkering and tightening here and there: trying bacon jam on a burger instead of just bacon, creating new shareables like spinach-artichoke dip and sandwiches such as a “supreme” grilled cheese with turkey, bacon, avocado and tomato.

“The vision is really keeping Knapp’s the same, just elevating the experience,” explained Brewer.

While breakfast feels locked in, he and his team will focus on creating a distinct personality for the other two meals of the day, especially dinner. He also wants to harness the energy from the bar into the dining room at night — extended hours are possible in the future.

“It’s siloed. People that want to drink go to the bar, families go to the dining room,” Brewer said. “We have so much space that it doesn’t have to be that way.”

Happy hour has long been exclusively offered in the lounge, just 4-6 p.m.: “That’s going to change very soon. That cool experience that you have in the bar — I don’t think it’s going to be the same experience that you have at the bar, but slightly different. People who frequent this place get to decide what that vibe is.”

Starting later this month, happy hour will start at 2 p.m. and run through close. In addition to the full menu, snag Knapp’s house burger and a Monte Cristo for $12, a chicken sandwich for $10, and snacks including that dip, onion rings and a small Caesar salad for $7. Save a buck on all beer and well drinks, $2 off the house margarita, plus other discounts on select wine and spirits.

At its heart, Brewer emphasized that Knapp’s is and always will be a diner.

Through months of familiarizing himself with the business, he continued, “I realized that Knapp’s really needs to stay Knapp’s. It’s just such a cool story being around for so long and being so many different things for different people. … Everybody I met in Tacoma had a Knapp’s story. That showed me that I don’t really have to create the story of Knapp’s, I just have to get it out there — tell the story that already exists.”

Knapp’s Restaurant & Lounge

• 2707 N Proctor St., Tacoma, 253-759-9009, knappsrestaurant.com
• Dining Room: Monday-Saturday 7 a.m.-8 p.m., Sunday 7 a.m.-6 p.m.
• Lounge: Monday-Thursday 10 a.m.-9 p.m., Friday 10 a.m.-11 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m.-11 p.m., Sunday 9 a.m.-9 p.m.
• Details: new owner for ‘30s-era Tacoma diner and bar; look for menu tweaks and extended hours

This story was originally published November 18, 2025 at 5:15 AM.