In the heart of Fairhaven, you will find a little, family-owned restaurant called Lovitt.
New to Bellingham but familiar to Washington, Lovitt Restaurant was previously located in Colville, Washington. It opened its doors last month.
Owners, Norman Porter Six, 45, and Kristen Six, 42, decided to move their restaurant to Bellingham because of their love for the culture.
“I wanted to be on the coast and Bellingham has a really nice blend of urban and rural,” Norman said.
The couple is excited about their new location.
“Bellingham has the best of both worlds; it has that small-town feel but a big population. We hope to bring something different to give people another choice,” Kristen said.
Norman wanted to open a restaurant in the state where he grew up. He was also attracted to the local meat selection.
Lovitt only uses whatever meat is available during each season to cook with. They also offer many vegan and vegetarian options, and make all their food from scratch – from their ketchup to their ice cream.
They use local brewery companies such as Kulshan, Aslan, Wander, Chuckanut, Stones Throw and Boundary Bay for their beer and have a selection of imported wine.
Along with being the owner, Norman is also a chef of Lovitt.
“My favorite thing about being a chef is the food that I get to eat regularly, to feed myself and my family,” Norman said.
In 2002, Norman moved to Chicago where he met Kristen and they opened the first Lovitt location. Kristen and Norman later married in 2004. In 2016 they closed the Colville restaurant.
“I believe in the product we use. We use what we call ‘project meat,’” Norman said. This means the animals are raised in 4-H projects.
The people who work with these animals have been doing it their whole lives in the land they grew up on.
“The herds are treated similar to pets, so they’re very, very happy. It’s one of the reasons I became a chef. That, and it’s a great deal of fun,” Norman said.
His grandmother owned a restaurant in McCleary, Washington. “We learned about cooking growing up,” Norman said.
“My favorite thing about being a chef is the food that I get to eat regularly, to feed myself and my family."
Norman Porter Six
Kristen said she loves owning a business with her husband.
“We like being together all day. We are good at different things and we both balance each other out. If we were doing another job, we wouldn’t see each other,” Kristen said.
Kristen’s favorite dish on the menu is their lamb.
“You can’t get lamb at a lot of places. It’s not only unique but my husband does it very well,” Kristen said.
Sophomore Alison Stevens is a hostess and chef at Lovitt. Before moving to Bellingham, she lived in Colville where she would go and eat at Lovitt.
“I love what I do. I love hosting and Kristen and Norman have extended an opportunity for me to work in the kitchen as well,” Stevens said. “I would be happy to work here for the rest of my college career.”
Joseph Kensok, 33, is the one and only bartender at Lovitt.
“They are an amazing couple to work for,” Kensok said. “They make you feel like family. They are very supportive of how I want to run stuff.”
Lovitt opened the doors to their Bellingham location on March 10. The restaurant is now located at 1114 Harris Ave.
