Gabe Rosen’s much awaited Biwa, a Japanese restaurant in the same space as the Simpatica Dining Hall, opened this week
Do not expect your run of the mill California roll sushi and chicken teriyaki emporium here. Biwa is inspired by countless neighborhood joints throughout Japan; places that serve (according to Biwa’s website),
“the simple things people eat everyday in Japan…
where small shops in neighborhoods still make noodles by hand
where quality is prized in even the lowliest ingredients
where people eat when they drink and go out in big groups…”
Rosen, who took a long sabbatical from Portland to study cooking in Japan, will be making things like housemade ramen in a “secret broth,” and tsukemono (Japanese pickles – called kimichis at Biwan), in addition to an assortment of yaki-mono (grilled things) and yet unnamed seasonal specials. You can check out their website.
Is Ten 01 Restaurant Spiraling Down the Drain?
No meat thermometer needed for Ten 01, it’s about done. First it is lambasted by Willamette Week in a review called Looks: Ten, Food: 0. After that, Adam Berger moved back into the kitchen to get things under control. Now Karen Brooks has written her most biting review in ages called 01 to Forget (2010 – link no longer valid: removed). Some choice quotes:
“Dishes at this splashy new restaurant are conceived as if they were the last on Earth and every flavor known to man and beast must be sampled before the hour of annihilation. What else could explain the kitchen’s bizarre concoctions?”
“The restaurant’s Web site calls the cooking here “a marriage of flavors that will astound both the casual diner and the connoisseur.” It’s astounding, all right. Misguided and misfiring. Pretentious and amateurish. And wildly overpriced, given the likely tab for two ($100). This is food so bleached of life that you wonder if the kitchen harbors a secret deflavorizing machine.”
“Delivered to the table with the exclamation, “Here’s your rockfish,” it was bland and indifferent and topped with a warm wad of arugula that brought to mind — no kidding — cow cud.”
“And that, in a cold, unsavory lump, is the tale of Ten 01.”
Wow! An astonishingly vitriolic review for the O, and good reading; kind of like a car wreck you can’t help but look at.
Even though I know people in the building, I haven’t been back since opening week. Friends I trust have told me the food’s fallen off dramatically. Something tells me I won’t be running over any time soon. I feel sorry for the guys; trying so hard… maybe too hard. So much potential unfulfilled.
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Fried Rabbit Ears – a New Thing?
Just in time for Easter! Ferran Adria is considered by many to be the most innovative and influential, chefs in the world. Culinary giants like Thomas Keller venerate him. El Bulli, the restaurant where he creates his masterpieces, has become a pilgrimage site of sorts; food connoisseurs from around the world journey down a dizzying coastal road to Roses, Spain to experience his tasting menu which often consists of 25 or more courses.
Now then; let’s say you score some reservations, and fly to Spain for this 25 course meal. How would you feel if one of the courses consisted of a plate of nice fried rabbit ears? Maybe? Look at this picture on the hungry in hogtown blog and then make up your mind. They call them “ear-resistible”.
I’ve eaten a lot of strange things in my life, but Anthony Bourdain I am not. I think I’d have a hard time getting biting into one.
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Portland musical restaurant employees
Jehnee Raines, who was interviewed for this site, originally moved here from the Bay Area. She worked at Gotham Tavern and the ill-fated Balvo, before heading back towards San Francisco. Word on the street says she’s heading this way again. A good thing for our city. Meanwhile, Collin Casey from Andina has moved on, leaving Ken Collura to run the pearl wine shop and work the floor of the restaurant by himself. Somehow I don’t think he’ll have much time to write for this site for a while. On the other hand, Rocket, Leather Storrs new venture is getting so much buzz, they are doing interviews by cattle call. Those making inquiries are getting a form email back.
foodrebel says
Ten01: I don’t feel sorry…they looked for it.
As a friend of mine would say, this is “stoner food”. Who in their right mind would embrace food like this?
The ones I feel sorry for are the employees…
And the ad for a space in the Pearl IS Graze.
Remember the time when ALL the good places where West Side? Sure has change now! Too much hype, too many people opening restaurants that don’t have a clue what they are doing…
FR
brkfstgirl says
Didn’t I read somewhere that Cha! is owned by the Cha! Cha! Cha! folks and is a more upscale version?
tastybittles says
About Biwa- dropped in last night with some friends and a couple items are still *coming soon* but I will happily wait another visit or so for pork bone enriched udon. The miso wrapped grilled cod was a very large hit. Really nice simple menu, great selection of traditional street food from a fairly wide variety of styles, and most of it very locally sourced (Ota tofu beins so nearby.) Plus for someone just opening a restaurant Gabe seems really collected and humble, which is refreshing.
atlas says
brkfstgirl you are exactly right…the Cha Cha Cha people are involved with Cha and it’s in the construction phase right now. A little more on the polished side of taquerias is their goal.
Sigh Ten-01…
I do feel sorry for them, but I am more perplexed by them than anything else. Portland Monthly (who normally are showering with praise) gave them a bad yet honest review, ditto for WW, and now The Oregoinian… all the while the food blogs were sending out flares of concern. I’ve seen blog comments by management so I would suppose they saw the blog rumbling as well.
All this and the only percievable fix is a minor menu tweak and the public declaration of the chefs “presence” in the kitchen?
I may be wrong but it seemed pretty clear to me that a minor menu tweak and chef oversight were not the problem for the bulk of what is wrong about Ten-01. From my perspective they need to engage in a major BOH overhaul and then a big PR blitz… because with this last review I fear they are only going to be clawing at the walls of a hole that will just get deeper if they don’t make some big time dramatic changes.
I still hold out hope for Ten-01… I wish them the best and want to have a reason to return.
Aaron says
Oooh, an upscale Cha Cha Cha excites me… they’re my favorite local taqueria.
I hope they do well.
grapedog says
Ten01: I haven’t had the chance to visit this restaurant, but the creatively-written review in the Oregonian was a great read, almost as if Karen Brooks had just had enough with bad food, bad service and overhyped/overpriced restaurants in the Pearl. It’s nice to see the Oregonian being critical of a place for once rather than just giving every restaurant an A or B rating.
Having been to the restaurant Daniel in NYC a couple of weeks ago, I got to see what excellent service in a restaurant is like. Reading the description of the undertrained staff at Ten01 brought up my disgust for restaurants in Portland whose staff are too lazy to learn the menu and the dishes or are too lazy to write down which diner ordered which dishes. How many times does a server arrive at the table with dishes and then asks “OK, who gets the beef? who gets the fish? Careful, it’s hot!” Ugh
grapedog says
Regarding CHA:
Interesting location for this restaurant. You can eat dinner and have drinks with your date at CHA then walk to the other side of the corner to buy sex toys and movies at Fascinations. Hmmmm…convenience!
Diner says
Or you can walk to the North and visit Stellas for great decorating stuff or to the West and shop on 23rd for almost anything you might want or wander over to Lovejoy and take the Streetcar to lots of places in The Pearl or downtown, or, best yet, head up to Legacy Good Sam for a health check up. Lot’s of options. I wish the folks at CHA well.
James J says
Interesting choices in the Times article – The Oyster bar was a contributor to OCA activities in the past, including the original measure 9; Lisa spoke out against the minimum wage for servers something she has, I think, apologized for; Typhoon! had charges of abusing immigrants which I believe were founded. Everyone can shop wherever they choose, I don’t mind your choice, but these are three places I tend not to go and that’s my choice. My point: Odd that those three out of all the restaurants in town were the sum total of Mr. Laskin’s list.
mczlaw says
Bunny ears? {Yawn}.
Among my snacks today were pig’s ear and tongue; seafood and pork sausage wrapped in wonton skin and fried; pork jerky; and about a dozen fried quail eggs. I skipped the various insects on offer at one of the markets.
Thailand is a great place to eat. Wish you all were here.
–mcz
Cuisine Bonne Femme says
NYTimes – seems like lazy journalism to me. These are all places that advertise in those Portland Area Visitor’s Association brochures and tourist maps. They are also within short walking distances of a couple of the major downtown hotels and sound like places that hotel staff would direct visitor’s too.
I think the NY times needs to hire Portland Food and Drink to act as location scouts for future articles. It would be a tough job, what with an expense account from the Times and everything, but someone needs to do it.
miso says
Food Dude — The Kitchen House Spirits cocktail dinner at Park Kitchen is utterly amazing. I had been to dinner at Park Kitchen once before trying for the first time their fresh water anchovies (I admit I turned my nose up when they first arrived) and was blown out of the water.
And yes — the libations are indeed brilliant:)
Kobe says
Ate at BIWA the other day, and the place itself is cool, great style, however the food is much to be desired, and way overpriced. I ordered the kushiyaki, and had to wonder where the rest of it was when it came. It took me back to that old Wendy’s commercial of “Where’s the beef.” Not only was it salty, but I also had to order a side of rice to go with it. A friend of mine had the udon, and it was basically the same thing, very salty and small portions. I highly suggest that if you go here for lunch that you eat something ahead of time, or if you like an afternoon amuse-bouche, then this is the place for you. Might be a cool place to grab a beer or some sake, but I would take my lunch money elsewhere and get full.