09/18/2026
KITSAPāS CHEFS: Meet the People Feeding the Peninsula! It's Chef Appreciation Week and we wanted to celebrate some of the men and women who make Kitsap a delicious destination! From internationally recognized chefs and world-champion pizza makers to neighborhood restaurateurs and rising culinary talent, these are some of the people feeding the Peninsula.
*featured photo is Crabtree Kitchen + Bar
~ TRINH & THAI NGUYEN | Ba Sa Restaurant | BAINBRIDGE ISLAND
Siblings Trinh and Thai Nguyen bring Vietnamese heritage, family tradition and serious culinary chops together at Ba Sa, one of the West Coast's most talked-about modern Vietnamese kitchens!
Thai trained at New Yorkās Institute of Culinary Education, while Trinh studied pastry at Ferrandi Paris. Together, theyāre introducing a new generation of diners to Vietnamese cuisine... right here in Kitsap County!
~ WILL GRANT | Sourdough Willy's Pizzeria | KINGSTON
Internationally celebrated Chef Will Grant is the Master Pizzaiolo and mastermind behind Sourdough Willyās. He's competed on the international pizza stage while building his pizzas around a sourdough culture with roots stretching back more than 129 years.
~ BRENDAN McGILL | Hitchcock Restaurant Group | BAINBRIDGE ISLAND
For over a decade Chef McGill has helped define and elevate Bainbridge Island's culinary scene. His cooking is rooted in an intimate relationship between chef, farmer and place ~ sourcing from local farms, ranches, fishing vessels and producers and exploring the ingredients of the region. Thank you, Chef Brendan, for feeding the Peninsula!
~ MAYNARD āJ.J.ā MELAND | Maynard's | SILVERDALE
For Chef J.J. Meland, cooking isnāt simply a career, itās something heās been around nearly his entire life.
The son of an executive chef, J.J. went on to become a certified culinary educator, certified culinary administrator and executive chef, as well as a mentor to the next generation of culinary professionals. He was named Washington State Chef of the Year by the American Culinary Federationās Washington State Chefs Association.
~ NATHAN RYAN | fafokitchenanddivebar | SILVERDALE
Tiny restaurant. Biiiiig personality! Chef-owner Nathan Ryan created FAFO Kitchen as a place where he could cook his food, his way, and Kitsap diners have flocked to this tables.
From Wagyu smash burgers to intimate prix fixe dinners built around a tableside-carved tomahawk steak, Ryan has turned his small Silverdale kitchen into one of Kitsapās most distinctive dining experiences.
~ ANTHONY HERNANDEZ | Molly Ward Gardens | POULSBO
At Molly Ward Gardens, the distance between garden and dinner plate can be measured in mere footsteps!
Chef Anthony Hernandez helps carry forward the restaurantās longstanding commitment to local, organic and sustainable food, with an ever-evolving menu inspired by the seasons and ingredients grown in the gardens surrounding the restaurant itself.
~ JOHN HALL | Restaurant Lola | BREMERTON
Before opening Restaurant Lola in Bremerton, Chef John Hall cooked in some extraordinary kitchens ~ including Gramercy Tavern, Per Se and Momofuku in New York.
But his cooking also carries something much more personal: his Alabama roots and Southern culinary influences. At Lola, Chef Hall utilizes the ingredients of the Pacific Northwest to create stunningly delicious locally sourced cuisine.
~ CHEF MORGAN | Crabtree Kitchen + Bar | POULSBO
Chef Morgan helms a restaurant known for its commitment to fresh ingredients, stellar service and scratch-made food ~ from breads and buns to much of what arrives on the plate.
To say Crabtree has helped elevate Poulsboās growing food scene is an understatement, you simply MUST visit for in-person dining to discover for yourself what the fuss is about!
~ ALAN DAVIS | Hound and Bottle | BREMERTON
Great restaurants donāt just feed communities. They help create them! Chef and co-owner Alan Davis spent some 20 years working in Seattleās restaurant scene before bringing that experience to Kitsap and helping create Hound + Bottle in Bremertonās Manette neighborhood.
Together with co-owner Jodi Davis, Alan has helped make Hound + Bottle the kind of restaurant every neighborhood yearns for...with seasonal PNW cooking, crazy-good crafted cocktails and a strong sense of community.
