Business Community

New owner to operate Locust Cider taproom; Gig Harbor Wine Co. moves downtown

After five years, the Locust Cider taproom in Gig Harbor has changed hands and will be run by food truck operator Joysticks of Auburn.

Locust Cider owners Jason and Rebecca Spears will still produce the cider, but they will not operate the tap room. Joysticks bought the tap room in September, Jason Spears said.

Customers will still find Locust Cider on the shelves of stores in Washington and 12 other states, Jason Spears said.

Late last year, Locust closed tap rooms in Seattle, Spokane and Woodinville. Keeping the Gig Harbor location open remains a priority.

“We have been winding down our taproom business to simplify operations,”  said Spears. “The economics of running a restaurant or bar have changed so significantly, from wages and other costs, that it didn’t make sense anymore. That said, as a Gig Harbor resident, I wanted to keep this space alive for  the community. I feel it has become a favorite place for all types of Gig Harbor folks, and so I worked hard to find someone who had a similar vision for the space and wanted to keep it going.”

Harbor Hideout

In time, the new owner will rename the tap house the Harbor Hideout, according to a statement on the Locust Cider website.

Art Rodenhauser, who operates a restaurant in Auburn called Joysticks, is the new owner of Locust Cider pub in Gig Harbor. The pub will carry Locust Cider and other brands, as well as beer. It will continue to host games and have arcade games available for customers. Photo by Suzanne Roig Gordon

“The plan is to continue with what they were trying to do with creating a neighborhood hangout spot, with the arcade, the games and the live music,” said Arthur Rodenhauser, the owner of Joysticks and now Harbor Hideout. “We’re gonna bring some of the elements from Joysticks, but since there’s an arcade there, I didn’t want to take away the name.”

Rodenhauser will bring in food from his Joysticks restaurant at The Outlet Collection in Auburn. Joysticks has a similar format, with food, arcade, collectables and mini golf.

The tap room, located on 57th Street Court in Gig Harbor is tucked away next to the Inn at Gig Harbor. The Spears opened it in 2021.

The tap room sale is one of several business moves in recent weeks.

Gig Harbor-based Fondi Pizza closed its location in Tacoma’s Procter District on Saturday, Oct. 3. The location opened in April 2025, but “Unfortunately, the fresh, made-from-scratch ingredients that go into all of our products are both expensive and labor-intensive, and we have not been able to achieve the financial profitability necessary to continue operating the Proctor location,” according to a statement on the pizzeria’s website.

The Gig Harbor Fondi remains open.

Gig Harbor Wine Co.

Meanwhile, Gig Harbor Wine Co. is moving its wine bar from Kimball Drive to 3202 Harborview Drive in the coming months, said Robin Egeland, a co-owner of the winery. Egeland and her husband Ben opened their tasting room in 2024 on Kimball Drive.

But she said they always wanted to be part of the downtown businesses community.

Bob Egeland holds a bottle of Gig Harbor Wine Co. at the couple’s shop on Kimball Drive. The store will be moving to downtown on Harborview Drive after renovations are complete.(Photo by Suzanne Roig)

“Moving closer to the heart of downtown Gig Harbor has always been a dream of ours,”  Egeland said.  “We love being part of this community, and when the opportunity came up for a space on Harborview Drive, it felt like the right next step for Gig Harbor Wine Co. We’re excited about being in a more walkable location where people can stop in while spending the afternoon downtown before heading to dinner, or while enjoying everything the waterfront has to offer.”

The couple is waiting for the city to process permits that will enable them to make changes to their new space, including addressing some plumbing issues, Robin Egeland said. The building is adjacent to gather Gig Harbor and across Harborview from Dolly Mama.

“We don’t have a firm opening date just yet,” she said. “We’re hopeful that we’ll be able to open by the end of the year, but for now, our timeline is still TBD.”

Business challenges

The move to downtown and the investment in the property is a testament to the strength of the business community in Gig Harbor, said Gig Harbor Chamber of Commerce CEO Miriam Battson.

“The best thing we can do is continue to intentionally support our local businesses, not just when they open, but throughout the year,” Battson said. “Whether they are downtown, Uptown, Gig Harbor North or elsewhere in greater Gig Harbor, every purchase and every visit helps strengthen the local economy.”

When businesses change hands or close, those actions leave a wake of lost jobs and owners and customers who have invested in the Gig Harbor community, Battson said.

“There is no question that operating a business today comes with significant challenges, from rising costs and workforce pressures to an increasingly complex tax and regulatory environment,” Battson said. “Washington’s business tax structure, including a business and operation tax based on gross receipts rather than profit, is one of the realities our businesses have to navigate. Yet we continue to see entrepreneurs willing to invest here, expand here and take a chance on Gig Harbor.”