Irving Street Kitchen

Irving Street Kitchen was an American restaurant in Portland, Oregon’s Pearl District. It was conceived by restaurateurs Doug Washington and brothers Mitch and Steve Rosenthal as a Portland interpretation of American regional cooking, combining a local-farmer orientation with Southern influences. The partners had previously worked together at Wolfgang Puck’s Postrio and had operated restaurants in San Francisco before looking for another city in which to expand. Washington said Portland’s atmosphere and dining culture suited the partners’ tastes, leading them to select the city for the new venture. The restaurant was initially imagined under the working name Crane Tavern. Its owners secured a minimum ten-year lease on a Pearl District site formerly occupied by another restaurant and recruited Sarah Schafer, then chef de cuisine at the partners’ San Francisco restaurant Anchor & Hope, to become executive chef. The concept opened under the name Irving Street Kitchen on May 6, 2010. Its opening menu included smoked short rib, fried chicken with collard greens, and charcuterie, establishing a format centered on substantial American dishes with regional and Southern references. Irving Street Kitchen expanded its service schedule during its first years. A barbecue-focused lunch menu was introduced in June 2010, followed by brunch in August of that year. Brunch offerings included a smoked shrimp club sandwich, sourdough flapjacks, and scrambled eggs with lobster and mascarpone. The restaurant later added regular lunch service on June 6, 2016. Its food attracted favorable attention from Portland critics, particularly for its poultry, duck, brunch, and Southern-influenced preparations. Coverage highlighted items such as confit duck leg, duck sausage, fried chicken, and carefully executed brunch dishes. By 2019, the owners believed that the original dining room and service style had become too formal for changing customer preferences. Schafer, by then both co-owner and head chef, described the renovation as a response to diners’ reduced interest in the restaurant’s earlier level of ceremony. Irving Street Kitchen therefore revised its menu and ambiance to create a more casual experience. The business also planned guest-chef pop-ups and offered yoga classes for its staff and other restaurant workers, reflecting an effort to make the venue more collaborative and supportive of restaurant-industry well-being. General manager and co-owner Anna Caporael described the goal as creating a stimulating space for the next generation of hospitality workers. Ownership information reported near the end of the restaurant’s operation indicated that Schafer and Caporael together held a 30 percent stake, while Moana Restaurant Group owned the establishment. In March 2020, when Portland’s pandemic measures interrupted restaurant operations, Caporael donated equipment and perishable food to Stone Soup, a local nonprofit that provides food-service training for people at risk of homelessness. Irving Street Kitchen also briefly reopened on March 17, 2020, to distribute food to members of the service industry affected by the shutdown. In June 2020, Schafer and Caporael announced that the restaurant would close permanently. They cited the COVID-19 pandemic and disputes with the landlord as contributing factors. Irving Street Kitchen therefore ended its operations as a single-location Portland restaurant rather than continuing as an active multi-market brand.

Irving Street Kitchen was established in Portland, Oregon, by Doug Washington and brothers Mitch and Steve Rosenthal. The three restaurateurs had worked together at Wolfgang Puck’s Postrio and had previously operated restaurants in San Francisco. Seeking a new city for expansion, they chose Portland because its atmosphere and food culture aligned with their preferences. Their initial concept, temporarily called Crane Tavern, was intended to combine local-farmer sourcing, Southern undertones, and a broader interpretation of American regional food. The partners signed a minimum ten-year lease for a Pearl District location that had previously housed another restaurant. They recruited Sarah Schafer from their San Francisco restaurant Anchor & Hope, where she had been chef de cuisine, to lead the kitchen. After the concept was renamed Irving Street Kitchen, the restaurant opened on May 6, 2010. The opening menu featured dishes such as smoked short rib, fried chicken with collard greens, and charcuterie. A barbecue lunch menu followed in June, and brunch service began on August 7 with items including a smoked shrimp club sandwich, sourdough flapjacks, and scrambled eggs with lobster and mascarpone. The restaurant developed a reputation for polished but accessible American cooking. Critics particularly noted its poultry and duck preparations, Southern-influenced dishes, and brunch. The business expanded its operating hours over time, adding regular lunch service on June 6, 2016. Reviews described the restaurant as a positive addition to Portland’s Pearl District and praised both its technical execution and memorable flavors. A strategic repositioning took place in 2019. The restaurant revised its décor and menu to create a more casual setting, with Schafer explaining that the change reflected diners’ reduced appetite for the “pomp and circumstance” associated with the original concept. The updated direction also included guest-chef pop-ups and yoga classes for staff and other restaurant workers. General manager Anna Caporael characterized the initiative as an attempt to create a stimulating workplace for the next generation of hospitality professionals. By this stage, Schafer was both executive chef and co-owner, while Caporael was general manager and co-owner. Reporting in 2020 indicated that the two together owned 30 percent of the restaurant and that Moana Restaurant Group owned the establishment. The COVID-19 pandemic brought the restaurant’s operation to an end. In March 2020, after Portland measures interrupted normal restaurant service, Caporael arranged for equipment and perishable supplies to be given to Stone Soup, a nonprofit involved in food-service training for people at risk of homelessness. Irving Street Kitchen also briefly distributed food to service-industry workers on March 17. In June 2020, Schafer and Caporael announced that the restaurant would close permanently. They attributed the decision to the pandemic as well as disputes with the landlord. The closure ended Irving Street Kitchen’s ten-year presence in Portland and left it as a defunct, single-location restaurant brand.

• 2020

  Permanent closure

  [1]Irving Street Kitchenen.wikipedia.org

  The restaurant closed permanently during the COVID-19 pandemic after its operators cited the pandemic and landlord disputes.

• 2019

  Concept repositioned toward casual dining

  [1]Irving Street Kitchenen.wikipedia.org

  The restaurant updated its menu and décor and introduced plans for guest-chef events and hospitality-worker wellness activities.

• 2016

  Lunch service expanded

  [1]Irving Street Kitchenen.wikipedia.org

  Regular lunch service began on June 6, 2016.

• 2010

  Restaurant opens in Portland

  [1]Irving Street Kitchenen.wikipedia.org

  Irving Street Kitchen opened in the Pearl District on May 6, 2010, serving American food with Southern influences.

• 2010

  Barbecue lunch menu introduced

  [1]Irving Street Kitchenen.wikipedia.org

  The restaurant added a barbecue-focused lunch menu shortly after opening.

• 2010

  Brunch service launched

  [1]Irving Street Kitchenen.wikipedia.org

  Brunch began on August 7, 2010.

A chef-driven Portland restaurant presenting American regional food through a local-farmer lens and with noticeable Southern influences. Its later positioning became more casual and community-oriented, with revised décor, a less formal menu, guest-chef pop-ups, and hospitality-worker wellness activities.

• American cuisine · 2010

  American regional dinner menu

  The core menu interpreted American regional cooking through a Portland restaurant’s local-farmer perspective, with clear Southern influences. Known dishes included smoked short rib, fried chicken with collard greens, charcuterie, duck preparations, and other substantial, chef-driven plates.

• Lunch · 2010

  Barbecue lunch menu

  Introduced soon after the restaurant opened, the barbecue lunch menu extended Irving Street Kitchen’s American regional identity into a daytime offering centered on barbecue-style food.

• Brunch · 2010

  Brunch

  The brunch program began in August 2010 and became one of the restaurant’s most favorably reviewed offerings. Its menu included a smoked shrimp club sandwich, sourdough flapjacks, and scrambled eggs with lobster and mascarpone.

• Lunch · 2016

  Lunch service

  Regular lunch service was added in June 2016, complementing the restaurant’s dinner and brunch operations and broadening its presence as an all-day dining venue.

• 2020Service-industry food distribution

  Portland, Oregon

  During the early COVID-19 shutdown, Irving Street Kitchen briefly opened on March 17 to distribute food to service-industry workers affected by the interruption of restaurant operations.

  Outcome. The initiative was temporary; the restaurant later closed permanently in June 2020.

  Source
• 2020Stone Soup donation

  Portland, Oregon

  The restaurant donated equipment and perishable food to Stone Soup, a nonprofit providing food-service training for people at risk of homelessness.

  Outcome. The donation redirected usable restaurant resources to a local social-service and workforce-training program.

  Source

• 2020

  Permanent closure during the COVID-19 pandemicOther

  Background

  Pandemic-related operating restrictions disrupted the restaurant, while the operators also cited disputes with the landlord.

  Action taken

  Sarah Schafer and Anna Caporael announced that Irving Street Kitchen would close permanently in June 2020.

  Aftermath

  The Portland restaurant ceased operations and the brand became defunct.

  Source

• 2019

  Repositioning toward casual diningStrategy

  Background

  The owners believed diners were less interested in the formal atmosphere and ceremonial style associated with the restaurant’s original concept.

  Action taken

  Irving Street Kitchen revamped its menu and décor, planned guest-chef pop-ups, and introduced yoga classes for restaurant employees.

  Aftermath

  The repositioning represented the restaurant’s final major concept change before its permanent closure during the COVID-19 pandemic.

  Source

1. 1Irving Street Kitchenen.wikipedia.org