One Ten Lounge seeks to create an intimate feel

With the hope of giving Port Orchard an alternative place to kick back and relax, the Lew Miller family is going retro.

And customers now can, too, in South Kitsap’s newest cocktail bar, the One Ten Lounge located at 110 Harrison in downtown Port Orchard.

“We wanted to do something a little bit different, something you wouldn’t really be able to find here in Port Orchard,” Stu Miller said. “We’re trying to make it where you can go out for a nice night on the town and you don’t have to go to Seattle or Tacoma. You can just come downtown and have a nice night out.”

More specifically, the Millers, who migrated to Western Washington from South Carolina, are hoping to give the area a place people can go to relax in a more laid-back atmosphere than most regular bars.

The One Ten is small but comfortable, with an atmosphere that encourages normal daily conversation, as opposed to many bars where patrons have to yell over the noise to be heard.

There are no televisions and no jukebox blaring some song you’ve never heard. The Millers will pipe in some old Motown classics on the bar’s sound system, along with plenty of jazz and blues from years past.

Stu Miller, who has been a bartender in Seattle for quite some time, will manage the day-to-day operations and work behind the bar his younger brother Chris built. In fact, Chris helped reshape the entire building.

(My parents) always wanted to own a bar,” Stu Miller said. “So they figured one son could build it and the other son could run it.”

While the atmosphere and selection of drinks is ample — the house specialties are martinis, Stu Miller said — it’s also the location that should have the bar filled on a regular basis.

The fact that the lounge is located in between JJ’s On the Bay restaurant and the Puget Sound Wine Cellar is no coincidence.

“When we found this place, we just thought it would be the best location,” Stu Miller said. “We wanted to have it downtown and we thought we could fall somewhere in between those two. We’re kind of shooting for the same cliental.”

Miller said he will have some of the Puget Sound Wine Cellar’s wines available in the lounge and while the One Ten is not affiliated with JJ’s, it could be used as a waiting area for those interested in dining at the neighboring restaurant.

Cindy Miller, who owns the bar with husband Lew, said customers will be free to order from JJ’s and relax in the One Ten while waiting for the orders, which will be delivered to the lounge.

The Millers are also hoping the lounge will become a central meeting point for groups getting together before dining at JJ’s or any other downtown restaurant.

The One Ten will not serve food per say but will offer of some small bar fare, especially on Friday evenings during happy hour. But for the most part, the One Ten is a place to gather and enjoy some fine imported beer on tap or in a bottle as well as many selections of mixed drinks and wines.

The One Ten Lounge is open Sunday through Thursday, 3 p.m. until midnight and Friday and Saturday 3 p.m. to 2 a.m.

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