Twin Peaks Location – Breakfast Meeting with the Norwegians in the Twin Peaks Pilot

In the Twin Peaks pilot, several scenes at The Great Northern Hotel were filmed at Kiana Lodge in Poulsbo, Washington. I have previously examined locations such as the fireplace, the Concierge desk, and the moment when Sheriff Truman informs Leland Palmer about his daughter Laura. Today, I’m examining the breakfast meeting with the Norwegians in The Great Northern Hotel dining room.

WHERE IS THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL DINING ROOM IN THE TWIN PEAKS PILOT LOCATED?

The Dining Room scenes was filmed at Kiana Lodge, located at 14976 Sandy Hook Rd NE in Poulsbo. The approximate coordinates for this spot are 47°41’59.3″N 122°34’56.8″W.

This location served as both the Blue Pine Lodge and The Great Northern Hotel’s interior in the Twin Peaks pilot. The structure was built in 1929 and first opened in 1937 as Edgewater Beach and Country Club – a vacation destination for nearby Seattleites looking to get away from the city. The Suquamish Tribe purchased this private wedding and meeting location from Bob Riebe in 2004.

While visitors are welcome, please call ahead to check their schedule – (360) 598-4311. They prefer visitors give paying clients privacy and to plan a visit when no events are happening.

The breakfast scene was shot on March 18, 1989 on the second to last day of principle photography.

BREAKFAST MEETING WITH THE NORWEGIANS IN THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL DINING ROOM

The first of two scenes in the dining room take place just after Benjamin Horne and Leland Palmer discuss the Norwegians by a fireplace. The scene then cuts to a dining room with 13 Norwegian businessmen seated at two long tables. At the front of the room, Leland Palmer is seen sitting in a chair by a roaring fire in the fireplace. Ben is standing to address the Norwegians while a seated translator shares Ben’s thoughts in Norwegians. Two servers stand idly by as Ben makes his pitch.

The script by Mark Frost and David Lynch from December 8, 1988 describes the scene:

INT. HOTEL DINING ROOM – MORNING
Benjamin Home stands at the head of a table, addressing the fifteen Norwegian businessmen. Beside him, an INTERPRETER translates each sentence into Norwegian. Leland Palmer sits at Horne’s right hand.

Kiana Lodge is special to me as it was the first Twin Peaks film location that I visited on August 10, 1996. I was so overwhelmed at that moment that I did not capture an exact shot of the dining room image. I did, however, take a photo of stacked chairs in the corner of the room which are the same chairs from the pilot.

Jared Lyon, long time Twin Peaks fan and organizer of the Twin Peaks Fan Festival during the 2000s, captured this photo of the dining room on August 19, 2002. The interior was basically the same as what was seen in the pilot.

I returned to Kiana Lodge in January 2020 following a more than 23 year hiatus. Based on my research, this room and the adjacent kitchen area which was the scene between Pete and Catherine Martell (“Gone fishin'”) were remodeled sometime after September 7, 2006. The wood paneling on the wall and flooring were updated along with the wooden chairs.

I returned again in February 2023 to grab another photo of the dining room. This time, the space was mostly empty.

LELAND PALMER GETS A PHONE CALL

The scene continues with Great Northern Hotel employee Julie Duvic, played by the late Diane Caldwell, crossing the dining room to speak with Leland Palmer. The name “Julie Duvic” is a nod to the late Washington state location manager for the Twin Peaks pilot and Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. The script describes the action:

After the translation, the group all nod good-naturedly and SVEN turns red.
During which a HOTEL EMPLOYEE enters and discreetly whispers something to Leland Palmer.
Palmer nods and rises.

This is the view of the similar spot from January 2020.

As Julie speaks with Leland, you can see a painting of Snoqualmie Falls hanging next to the fireplace. Most likely, the painting was added by the set decorating team. I’ve been unable to locate the original but it’s on my list of things to find one day.

Leland excuses himself from the meeting. As he stands up, you can see a giant bronze sculpture of a dog.

The flagstone fireplace is still in the dining room and it appears to be similar to what we see in the pilot.

During one visit to Kiana Lodge, I spotted this historic photo of the dining room. It appears the fireplace once looked different while the ceiling beams seem the same as today.

Leland then follows Julie Duvic out of the dining room. The camera pans to follow Leland walking toward the exit. I again combined the photos to get this wider shot.

I also combined several shots of Leland walking behind Julie out of the dining room. He passes the giant wooden carved bear by Don Wells Keys.

When I visited in August 1996, the carved bear was located next to the fireplace. In 2017, the former Kiana Lodge Manager Luther “Jay” Mills from the Suquamish Tribe shared the carved bear was affectionally called a “honey bear” by Lodge staff.

On December 20, 2024, Jim Munn posted the following item in the spam-filled Facebook group – TWIN PEAKS (1990-2017) THE OFFICIAL FACEBOOK FAN CLUB. He states he obtained the carved bear “from a friend of mine after he passed away. He owned the restaurant it was filmed in.”  He posted this information in the Twin Peaks: Between Two Worlds Facebook group on December 27, 2024.

“I was given this by Bobby [Riebe] the owner of Kiana Lodge about 15 years ago,” said Munn in a follow-up to his Facebook post. “He was living in Quilcene, Washington. I think he kept it for a reason. I only knew him for a short time before he passed away.”

Riebe passed away on Friday, April 10, 2009 at the Messenger House Care Center on Bainbridge Island. He was 71.

The scene concludes with Ben Horne saying, “So, here in Twin Peaks, health and industry go hand in hand.”

The translator follows with, “Så her i Twin Peaks går helse og industri hånd i hånd.”