Irving Street Kitchen
{{Short description|Defunct restaurant in Portland, Oregon, U.S.}}
{{Infobox restaurant
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| name = Irving Street Kitchen
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| logo = Irving Street Kitchen logo.png
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| image = File:Irving Street Kitchen, Portland, Oregon, 2020 - 1.jpg
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| image_caption = The restaurant's exterior in August 2020, after closing during the COVID-19 pandemic
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| established = {{Start date|2010}}
| closed = {{End date|2020|06}}
| current-owner =
| previous-owner =
| head-chef = Sarah Schafer
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| food-type = American
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| street-address = 701 Northwest 13th Avenue
| city = Portland
| county = Multnomah
| state = Oregon
| zip = 97209
| country = United States
| coordinates = {{coord|45.528076|-122.684644|type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-OR|display=ti}}
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| mapframe-zoom = 13
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| website = {{URL|irvingstreetkitchen.com}}
}}
Irving Street Kitchen was a restaurant serving American cuisine in Portland, Oregon's Pearl District, in the United States. Conceived by Doug Washington, Mitch Rosenthal and Steve Rosenthal as their interpretation on American cuisine with a Southern influence, it opened on May 6, 2010. With executive chef Sarah Schafer, Irving Street Kitchen added to their serving hours over the years, opening up for lunch and brunch. The restaurant also shifted towards casual dining in 2019, revamping its menu and ambiance. Irving Street Kitchen ultimately closed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
History
File:Breakfast_at_Irving_Street_Kitchen.jpg
Irving Street Kitchen was opened by restaurateurs Doug Washington, Mitch Rosenthal, and Steve Rosenthal.{{Cite web|date=2010-05-06|title=Renowned restaurateurs opening Irving Street Kitchen on Friday in Portland|url=https://www.oregonlive.com/dining/2010/05/renowned_restaurateurs_open_ir.html|access-date=2020-08-13|website=The Oregonian|language=en}}{{Cite web|last=Russell|first=Michael|date=2020-06-05|title=Swanky Pearl District Southern restaurant Irving Street Kitchen has closed for good|url=https://www.oregonlive.com/dining/2020/06/irving-street-kitchen-the-swanky-pearl-district-southern-restaurant-has-closed-for-good.html|access-date=2020-08-13|website=The Oregonian|language=en}} Washington and the Rosenthal brothers knew each other from working at Wolfgang Puck's restaurant Postrio, and had previous success with other restaurants they operated in San Francisco. Wanting to expand their restaurant group, the three partners sought out another city to expand to. According to Washington, he settled on opening a restaurant in Portland because he felt like the city's atmosphere matched with his and the other owners' tastes.{{Cite web|last=DeJesus|first=Erin|date=2011-06-16|title=One Year In: Irving Street Kitchen Owner Doug Washington|url=https://pdx.eater.com/2011/6/16/6674583/one-year-in-irving-street-kitchen-owner-doug-washington|access-date=2020-08-13|website=Eater Portland|language=en}}{{Cite web|date=2010-01-28|title=Dining news: Lucier to reopen, Fenouil's chef moves on, new Pearl District project coming|url=https://www.oregonlive.com/dining/2010/01/dining_news_lucier_to_reopen_f.html|access-date=2020-08-13|website=The Oregonian|language=en}} Originally conceptualized under the temporary name of Crane Tavern,{{Cite web|last=Brooks|first=Karen|authorlink=Karen Brooks (food critic)|date=2010-01-20|title=San Francisco restaurateurs negotiating to take over Bay 13 space in Pearl District|url=https://www.oregonlive.com/dining/2010/01/san_francisco_restaurateurs_to.html|access-date=2020-08-13|website=The Oregonian|language=en}} Washington and the Rosenthals envisioned a restaurant that had "a local-farmer bent, Southern undertones and a taste of American regional food, with our sensitivities". The three of them signed a minimum ten-year lease in the Pearl District in 2010, taking the place of another restaurant that had closed. Chef Sarah Schafer, who was chef de cuisine at the Washington and Rosenthal–owned Anchor & Hope, was persuaded to move from San Francisco to become the new restaurant's executive chef.{{Cite web|last=Beck|first=Byron|date=2010-06-22|title=Irving Street Chef Getting to Know Portland — and Vice Versa|url=https://pdx.eater.com/2010/6/22/6728917/irving-street-chef-getting-to-know-portland-and-vice-versa|access-date=2020-08-13|website=Eater Portland|language=en}}
With its name changed to Irving Street Kitchen, the new restaurant opened on May 6, 2010, with an opening-day menu consisting of items like smoked short rib, fried chicken with collard greens, and charcuterie.{{Cite web|last=DeJesus|first=Erin|date=2010-05-10|title=Irving Street Kitchen Makes Auspicious Debut|url=https://pdx.eater.com/2010/5/10/6734199/irving-street-kitchen-makes-auspicious-debut|access-date=2020-08-13|website=Eater Portland|language=en}} The next month, Irving Street Kitchen unveiled a barbecue lunch menu.{{Cite web|last=DeJesus|first=Erin|date=2010-06-08|title=Irving Street Kitchen Launches Lunchtime BBQ Menu|url=https://pdx.eater.com/2010/6/8/6730629/irving-street-kitchen-launches-lunchtime-bbq-menu|access-date=2020-08-13|website=Eater Portland|language=en}} They also began serving brunch on August 7, 2010,{{Cite web|last=DeJesus|first=Erin|date=2010-07-06|title=Pinot Commits, Tarboush Debuts, Irving Street Brunches|url=https://pdx.eater.com/2010/7/6/6727637/pinot-commits-tarboush-debuts-irving-street-brunches|access-date=2020-08-13|website=Eater Portland|language=en}} offering items like a smoked shrimp club sandwich, sourdough flapjacks, and scrambled eggs with lobster and mascarpone.{{Cite web|last=DeJesus|first=Erin|date=2010-07-29|title=Irving Street Kitchen's Upcoming Brunch Menu: Revealed!|url=https://pdx.eater.com/2010/7/29/6724779/irving-street-kitchens-upcoming-brunch-menu-revealed|access-date=2020-08-13|website=Eater Portland|language=en}}{{Cite web|last=DeJesus|first=Erin|date=2010-07-08|title=MenuWatch|url=https://pdx.eater.com/2010/7/8/6727171/menuwatch|access-date=2020-08-13|website=Eater Portland|language=en}} Irving Street Kitchen began serving lunch on June 6, 2016.{{cite web|last=John|first=Mattie|date=2016-06-03|title=The Pearl's Irving Street Kitchen Gets Into the Lunch Game|url=http://pdx.eater.com/2016/6/3/11852522/irving-street-kitchen-lunch-pearl-district|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160911221540/http://pdx.eater.com/2016/6/3/11852522/irving-street-kitchen-lunch-pearl-district|archive-date=2016-09-11|access-date=2016-09-06|website=Eater Portland|publisher=Vox Media}}
File:Game_hen_from_Irving_St._Kitchen.jpg
In 2019, Irving Street Kitchen announced that it would be revamping its decor and menu to give off a more casual atmosphere.{{cite web|last1=Frane|first1=Alex|date=June 4, 2020|title=The Pearl Permanently Loses Casual Southern Restaurant Irving Street Kitchen|url=https://pdx.eater.com/2020/6/4/21277623/irving-street-kitchen-closure-covid-19|access-date=June 4, 2020|website=Eater Portland}} Schafer, by now the co-owner as well as the head chef, stated that the change "[was] a response to our diners" who, according to Schafer, did not currently care for the "pomp and circumstance" that the original concept provided.{{Cite web|last=Henderson|first=Shannon|date=2019-07-19|title=Southern-Leaning Stalwart Irving Street Kitchen Overhauls Its Restaurant and Kitchen|url=https://www.pdxmonthly.com/eat-and-drink/2019/07/irving-street-kitchen-overhauls-its-restaurant-and-kitchen|access-date=2020-08-13|website=Portland Monthly|language=en-US}} In addition, the restaurant would also host pop-up restaurants by guest chefs, as well as give yoga classes to its staff and other restaurant employees after work to promote a healthy work–life balance.{{Cite magazine|last=Wayne|first=Julia|date=Summer 2019|title=A Healthy Pour: Taking Booze out of the Beverage Industry|url=http://www.digital.sipnorthwest.com/Summer2019#&pageSet=30&contentItem=0|magazine=Sip Northwest|volume=9|issue=2|page=58|access-date=2020-08-13}} General manager and co-owner Anna Caporael elaborated on this, saying that they "[wanted] to have a space that [was] stimulating for our next generation". According to a 2020 report by the Portland Monthly, Schafer and Caporael owned 30% of Irving Street Kitchen.{{Cite web|last=Brooks|first=Karen|date=2020-01-28|title=Irving Street Kitchen's Sarah Schafer to Open an Ambitious Italian Food Hall in June|url=https://www.pdxmonthly.com/eat-and-drink/2020/01/an-ambitious-italian-food-hall-from-irving-street-kitchen-s-sarah-schafer-will-open-in-the-pearl-district-in-june|access-date=2020-08-13|website=Portland Monthly|language=en-US}} It was also mentioned by The Oregonian that Moana Restaurant Group owned the establishment.
In June 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Schafer and Caporael announced that Irving Street Kitchen would permanently close, citing the pandemic along with landlord disputes as the reason for the restaurant's closure. Earlier that year in March, it was reported that when the restaurant halted operations due to Portland's measures to combat COVID-19,{{Cite web|last1=Dake|first1=Lauren|last2=VanderHart|first2=Dick|date=2020-03-16|title=Oregon Orders All Restaurants And Bars To Restrict Access, And Bans Groups Larger Than 25|url=https://www.opb.org/news/article/gov-kate-brown-orders-all-restaurants-and-bars-to-close-and-bans-groups-larger-than-25-/|access-date=2020-08-13|website=opb}}{{Cite web|last=Russell|first=Michael|date=2020-03-16|title=Oregon orders restaurants, bars shut to all but takeout and delivery service|url=https://www.oregonlive.com/coronavirus/2020/03/oregon-orders-all-restaurants-bars-shut-down-to-all-but-takeout-and-delivery-to-prevent-spread-of-coronavirus.html|access-date=2020-08-13|website=The Oregonian|language=en}} Caporael gave equipment and perishable items to Stone Soup, a local nonprofit providing food service training for those at risk of homelessness.{{Cite web|last=Russell|first=Michael|date=2020-03-27|title=Portland chefs team up to feed nearly 500 homeless people daily at new county shelters|url=https://www.oregonlive.com/coronavirus/2020/03/portland-chefs-to-feed-more-than-500-homeless-people-daily-through-new-county-program.html|access-date=2020-08-13|website=The Oregonian|language=en}} The restaurant also temporarily opened on March 17, 2020 to give away food to those in the service industry who needed it.{{Cite web|last=Jackson-Glidden|first=Brooke|date=2020-03-18|title=Portland Food Carts and Restaurants Are Giving Out Free Meals In Response to Food Service Industry Layoffs|url=https://pdx.eater.com/2020/3/18/21185735/free-meals-food-industry-layoffs-coronavirus|access-date=2020-08-13|website=Eater Portland|language=en}}
Reception
In 2010, The Oregonian{{'s}} David Sarasohn gave the restaurant a "B" rating, stating that "the kitchen's Southern skills make Irving Street a considerable gain for the neighborhood and the local dining scene."{{cite web|last=Sarasohn|first=David|date=2010-08-19|title=Restaurant review: Irving Street Kitchen|url=http://www.oregonlive.com/dining/index.ssf/2010/08/restaurant_review_irving_stree.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160825062753/http://www.oregonlive.com/dining/index.ssf/2010/08/restaurant_review_irving_stree.html|archive-date=2016-08-25|access-date=2016-09-06|work=The Oregonian}} Chris Stamm of the Willamette Week liked the poultry dishes on his 2015 trip, citing the "perfectly cooked, falling-off-the-bone" confit duck leg, "smooth, livery" duck sausage, and fried chicken as standout items.{{cite web|last=Stamm|first=Chris|date=2015-09-24|title=Dish Review|url=http://www.wweek.com/portland/article-16316-dish-review.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160923224317/http://www.wweek.com/portland/article-16316-dish-review.html|archive-date=2016-09-23|access-date=2016-09-06|work=Willamette Week}} Karen Brooks of the Portland Monthly enjoyed Irving Street Kitchen's brunch, calling it "one of the best brunches in the city, led by attention to details, a high level of craft, and some memorable flavors."{{cite web|last=Brooks|first=Karen|date=2011-03-16|title=Wake up Call: Brunch at Irving Street Kitchen|url=http://www.pdxmonthly.com/articles/2011/3/16/wake-up-call-brunch-at-irving-street-kitchen-march-2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160915173516/http://www.pdxmonthly.com/articles/2011/3/16/wake-up-call-brunch-at-irving-street-kitchen-march-2011|archive-date=2016-09-15|access-date=2016-09-06|work=Portland Monthly}}
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|http://www.irvingstreetkitchen.com}}
- [http://www.pdxmonthly.com/restaurants/irving-street-kitchen Irving Street Kitchen details in the Portland Monthly]
- [http://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-guide/portland-oregon/restaurants/irving-street-kitchen Irving Street Kitchen details on Travel + Leisure]
{{Defunct restaurants in Portland, Oregon}}
{{Pearl District, Portland, Oregon}}
Category:2010 establishments in Oregon
Category:2020 disestablishments in Oregon
Category:Defunct restaurants in Pearl District, Portland, Oregon
Category:Restaurants disestablished due to the COVID-19 pandemic