Whatcom Roundup: Cafe closing; Herald Building update; beer garden goes on hiatus
Here’s your weekly roundup of the latest retail and restaurant activity around Whatcom County:
Downtown Bellingham restaurant temporarily closed
German restaurant and beer garden Schweinhaus Biergarten is temporarily closed for maintenance, according to a social media post from management.
The post was published Feb. 2, and no reopening date has been announced.
Schweinhaus Biergarten is at 1330 N State St. in Bellingham.
Herald Building update
The Herald Building may have new tenants coming soon, as a building permit was filed for the construction of 23 offices on the second floor of the building. The permit was filed Jan. 27 with an estimated cost of $136,000, and had not been approved as of Jan. 31.
The Herald Building is at 1155 N. State St. in Bellingham. The Bellingham Herald moved its local headquarters out of the building in 2019.
Downtown bar reopening
Starla’s Tavern has announced a reopening date following a temporary closure last month.
The natural wine bar and restaurant closed for about a month to add HVAC and a large pizza oven in order to expand its menu offerings. The business is set to reopen Tuesday, Feb. 11, according to its Instagram bio.
Starla’s Tavern is located at 1149 N. State St. in Bellingham.
Narrative Coffee closing permanently
Narrative Coffee, an Everett-based coffee company and cafe, is closing its Bellingham location Saturday, Feb. 22, according to previous reporting by The Bellingham Herald. The company announced the closure on Facebook.
“Industry wide, the last handful of years have been tough times for businesses like ours. Our cafe in Bellingham is a small, neighborhood spot (which we love), but simply put it has not been able to garner enough support to make keeping the doors open up north sustainable for us,” the post states.
Bellingham’s Narrative Coffee will remain open until Saturday, Feb. 22 from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at 1400 W. Holly St.
Bellingham events, trivia nights and live music
Bellingham is full of local events, markets, festivals and other events during the month of January. Here’s your guide to this month’s events, trivia, live music and more. For an extensive list of local events, visit our new Events page at www.bellinghamherald.com/events/#.
Discover Whatcom
If you’re looking for some fun things to do in Whatcom County, new restaurants to visit, or stories on what makes our area unique, subscribe to our free weekly “Discover Whatcom” newsletter below.
This story was originally published February 7, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
