Small Business Spotlight: Ron Swarner & Peaks & Pints
- 22 hours ago
- 6 min read
This month’s spotlight is incredibly special to me. I had the privilege of sitting down with a very good friend of mine and an absolute staple of the Tacoma community: Ron Swarner.
Many know Ron from his decades as the publisher and editor of The Volcano, where he spent years capturing the grit, soul, and culture of our city. Today, along with his partners Robby and Justin Peterson, Ron is the co-founder of Peaks & Pints in the historic Proctor District. A cozy, mountain-themed taproom, bottle shop, and eatery that has become a true neighborhood hub (and the broadcast home for the Grit & Grain podcast).
Ron has a tremendous heart and an endless passion for cultivating community here in Tacoma. We talked about his leap from journalism to hospitality, the reality of building a neighborhood "living room," honoring old friends, and what makes Tacoma’s spirit so resilient.
📍 3816 N. 26th Tacoma, WA 98407
📞 (253) 328-5621
Here is our Q&A with Ron Swarner, but first, let's follow Ron to the location itself.
Q: The Leap: You spent decades in journalism and media, most notably with The Volcano, telling Tacoma's stories. What was the exact moment you decided to stop just writing about local gathering spots and actually build one yourself?
Ron: "Around 2014, print media felt like standing on melting ice, but writing my craft beer column for The Volcano made me fall in love with the Northwest beer community. The brewers, the regulars, and the way a good taproom draws a neighborhood together. The exact spark hit during a tap takeover in Sumner when Rob Brunsman casually mentioned wanting to open a craft beer bar, and I heard myself say, 'I want to open one, too.' Eighteen months later, alongside Robby and Justin Peterson, we opened Peaks & Pints in Proctor. I didn't stop telling Tacoma's stories, I just traded a reporter's notebook for a taproom where those stories happen in real time every day."
Q: The Publisher’s Playbook: How did running an alternative newsweekly prepare you for the daily madness of running a high-volume taproom and restaurant in Proctor? What skills translated seamlessly, and what completely caught you off guard?
Ron: "Running an alternative newsweekly taught me that every day starts with a blank page and usually ends with a surprise. A busy taproom isn't much different. You listen, solve problems on the fly, tell stories people actually care about, and build a community that wants to come back tomorrow. What caught me off guard was how deeply personal hospitality is. Readers might forgive a typo, but guests remember exactly how you made them feel the moment they walked through the door."
DHG Take: Hospitality Over Transaction: Ron hits the nail on the head here. In real estate, just like in hospitality, people might forget the minor details over time, but they will never forget how you made them feel during the process. Creating spaces and experiences where people feel genuinely welcomed, heard, and cared for is the true bedrock of any lasting business in Tacoma.
Q: The Building Nightmare: Your space has incredible history, going from a 1900s movie theater to a 1940s five-and-dime. When you were tearing into those old walls and floors during construction, what was the single worst, most painful surprise you ran into?
Ron: "Most of the surprises were actually gifts. Every layer we peeled back revealed another chapter of the building's story. The biggest challenge came when the City required us to remove the original brick walls and retrofit the building. That work created a leak during the rains, soaking the original 5 and Dime wood floor and forcing us to replace it with concrete. The silver lining? We salvaged that beautiful wood and turned it into the backdrop behind our Western red cedar tap log. Around here, even the setbacks get a second life."
Q: The Pod Effect: Grit & Grain has become a real staple for PNW beer nerds. How has pulling back the curtain on the brewing industry through the podcast impacted the physical energy and culture inside Peaks & Pints?
Ron: "Grit & Grain has made the invisible conversations of craft beer visible. Brewers, maltsters, hop growers and beer lovers were already crossing paths at Peaks & Pints; now they're sitting down together, microphones on, telling the stories behind what ends up in the glass. It has made Peaks feel less like a bar that talks about beer and more like a living newsroom for Northwest beer culture."
DHG Take: Elevating Local Culture: What Ron and his co-hosts have done with Grit & Grain is brilliant. It isn't just about promoting their own spot, it's about celebrating the craft, passion, and people behind the entire PNW beverage scene. When a local business takes the time to lift up an entire community of artisans, it elevates the cultural fabric of Tacoma as a whole.
Q: The Schedule: Between curating the beer selection, running the shop, co-hosting Grit & Grain, and hosting events, be honest, do you ever actually sleep, or are you strictly powered by hops and espresso?
Ron: "I spent decades as a newspaper publisher, editor, creative director and, when necessary, paperboy, living on constant deadlines and late nights, so apparently I trained for this lifestyle long before I knew I needed it. These days I'm powered by coffee, hops and deadlines, just with considerably less printer ink."
Q: Vulnerability on Display: Publishing a newspaper means sharing your thoughts, but opening a physical door means sharing your taste, your aesthetic, and your daily hospitality. How has running Peaks changed the way you experience vulnerability or public critique compared to your journalism days?
Ron: "Journalism gave me a pretty thick skin. Publish enough opinions and eventually somebody will explain, with tremendous enthusiasm, exactly why you're an idiot. Peaks & Pints feels more personal because every beer in the cooler, song on the speakers, event on the calendar and sandwich on the menu is a little vote for what we think belongs in the world. When someone loves the place, it feels wonderfully personal; when they don't, you learn to listen, adjust when they're right, and keep trusting your taste when they're not."
DHG Take: The Courage to Build Authentically: Putting something you created out into the world takes real courage. Whether you're opening a restaurant, running a local business, or pouring your personality into your home, leaning into your authentic taste and standing by it is what gives a space true character and warmth.
Q: Tacoma’s Ghost: Tacoma has evolved so much over the last 20 years, but it’s always kept its grit. What’s one piece of "Old Tacoma" that you miss, and where do you still see its spirit alive inside Peaks & Pints?
Ron: "The piece of Old Tacoma I miss most isn't a building, it's Barry Williams, a lifelong Tacoman, longtime wine steward and our very first employee, hired a year before Peaks & Pints even opened. Barry could make a stranger feel like the most important person in the room, never missed a shift, had Tacoma stories for days and possessed an almost spiritual need to make the outside of our beer cooler look beautiful. I still see Old Tacoma, and Barry, whenever a bartender remembers a name, starts a conversation or quietly straightens the cooler because, dammit, it should look good."
Q: Tacoma’s Secret Corners: You’ve spent decades discovering and writing about the soul of this city. Outside of Peaks & Pints, what is one under-the-radar or hidden Tacoma spot that you love and secretly hope never changes?
Ron: "Proctor Gulch. I've written in it, trained in it, wandered it endlessly and returned to its trees for more stories than I can count. It's this wonderfully untamed little seam running through the neighborhood, somehow both hidden and right there, and I've even searched nearly every inch of it for the elusive Skoog, unsuccessfully, which is probably exactly how the Skoog prefers it."
DHG Take: The Charm of Tacoma's Hidden Nature: One of my absolute favorite things about living and working in Tacoma is how wild nature and historic neighborhoods sit side-by-side. Pocket spots like Proctor Gulch give our communities so much texture and character. It’s proof that you don't have to leave the neighborhood to find a little quiet escape.
Q: Community Contribution: When you look out at a packed room on a Friday night, what do you hope Peaks & Pints ultimately contributes to Tacoma’s soul long-term?
Ron: "I hope Peaks & Pints becomes, and remains, one of Tacoma’s living rooms. A place where you walk in without a plan and somehow find your people. Long after anyone remembers what IPA was on tap that Friday night, I hope they remember the conversations, friendships, celebrations and wonderfully ordinary evenings that happened here. Beer may fill the glasses, but community is what I hope we’ve been pouring all along."
Visit Peaks & Pints
Whether you're stopping by for lunch, picking up a hard-to-find bottle from their massive cooler wall, or pulling up a stool to catch up with a neighbor, make sure to visit Ron and the incredible crew in Proctor!
📍 3816 N. 26th Tacoma, WA 98407
📞 (253) 328-5621
🎙️Podcast: Check out the Grit & Grain podcast wherever you listen to audio! We listen on Spotify.
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