Portland is, after all, a very small city but one whose cause and effect stir the pot when anything new or different comes along. Our dining scene is a prime example. As soon as a new restaurant opens, the local pundits pounce hard and fast to get their words out there immediately, and diners follow suit to flood these new eateries enthusiastically. I include myself in the crowd, though I hope what I have to report and posit are meaningful. That said, the newly opened—and at this writing the restaurant is just days old—Woodford Food and Beverage—has made the obligatory splash. (See my earlier Preview write up).
The WFB dining room bar on opening night; lower right, the corner banquette
It’s the first new restaurant on the scene in 2016 but not far behind two other bright new stars, Terlingua and Roustabout. The latter two have carved out a niche along Washington Avenue. And there’s more coming on the avenue, too, with Maine and Loire expanding its reach (Drifter’s Wife, a wine bar) and a café and chocolate bar, A Lively Palate.
Consider now the ignominious vortex of Woodford’s Corner that presents the only fathomable restaurant—Woodford Food and Beverage–along this disparate stretch of low-slung buildings that house retailers including casual restaurants of all sorts fronting the dreaded crawl of Forest Avenue.
WFB is a welcome addition to Woodford’s Corner, which once housed Valle’s Steakhouse, a movie theatre and pharmacy in years past
Owners Birch Shambaugh and Fayth Pryer have created a wonderfully retro space and a menu that has so much appeal with its American-bistro comfort food. As expected its opening night on Wednesday was jam-packed with the usual food fashionistas and industry folk, including Petite Jacqueline alumnus Chef Fred Eliot with wife Catherine of Portland Patisserie, Todd Bernard of Empire Chinese and the forthcoming Hero on Monument Square and the ever-present food-site laureate, Anestes Fotiades of Portland Food Map.
The space looks like a stylish version of a 1950s Howard Johnson’s or upscale diner with its wall of Venetian blinds covering the big plate-glass windows. These offset rows of black leatherette booths, banquettes and the sleek 18-seat bar. A cutesy touch is the turntable at the front of the room where Shamburg or Pryer tend to the vinyl records holding their 80s music collection. (I hear a dedicated DJ will tend the turntable one day.) Though the acoustics help somewhat, the noise level can be high and the music playing over the sound system becomes all thumps and bass.
This may be the only turntable found in any Portland restaurant
The menu is a very straightforward mix of easy to enjoy stylish American fare prepared by Chef Courtney Loreg. Her creds include posts at Boston’s Hamersley’s Bistro (closed), Café Boulud in New York, The George Washington Hotel in Winchester Virginia, Wente Vineyards in California and locally at Fore Street, Bresca (closed) and Aurora Provisions. To wit—she knows her away around the kitchen!
Some of the dishes I had on my first visit included a wonderful roast chicken, a perfect negroni, steak tartare and baked oysters
The menu offers a good diversity of dishes. In the two visits I’ve been able to get to know the kitchen’s abilities. And prior to this posted write-up I paid a third visit to sample the WFB’s Thursday plat du jour, quahog chowder. And it was a marvelous brew, very bacony, creamy, a meal unto itself. I snacked on the onion dip and Kennebec chips to start, a glorious beginning. A glass of Silvaner Halbtrocken paired quite well indeed.
Glorious meal–chowder with a starter of onion dip with homemade Kennebec chips
The deviled eggs, set on a plate dusted with paprika, are some of the best anywhere–creamy, well-seasoned and beautiful to look at. The portion offers 6 eggs, a great app to share at the table.
Deviled eggs at WFB are a must-have starter
Trending ubiquitously at restaurants nationwide is the new kale of 2016–Brussels sprouts. Here they are presented in a deep bowl filled with crispy, heavily sautéed rounds set in a zingy sauce of caramelized onions and black pepper. We devoured them like so much popcorn.
Baked stuffed clams and crisp Brussels sprouts
Another good starter is the three stuffed baked clams that sit boldly on the plate; they’re put together with a nice mix of crumbs, chopped clams, bacon and bell pepper. It’s another good sharable.
In our group of 6 at the table we had a good sampling of main courses. The bar steak, a hangar done just right and served with crisp fries, and a strip steak with fingerlings pleased the inveterate omnivores at the table, though one friend thought the meat could have been more tender. One of my favorite entrees so far is the roast chicken, which a table-mate deemed exotic.
Brined and spice-rubbed roast chicken
It’s brined and rubbed with smoked paprika and swabbed with a honey-harissa yogurt set over Tunisian-spiced greens. The breast and thigh meat are succulent, crisp- skinned and utterly delicious—a classic helping of roast chicken.
Two steak dishes on the menu: steak frites and strip steak
One of the best bargains on the menu is the baked stuffed lobster at $24. This dish at other Portland restaurants is often priced at double and triple the amount. What WFB does is to take out the meat from a whole 1 1/2 pound lobster and put it back into a split body swathed with a delicious celeriac puree and a creamy swirl of duchesse potatoes piped onto the plate decoratively. I’d have this dish over and over again because it’s so good, but don’t expect an avalanche of lobster meat. At this modest price it’s an inexpensive way to get your lobster fix.
The lobster is fixed with a double dose of creamy celeriac and duchess potatoes
Since we were a large group we sat at a corner banquette at the front of the restaurant. It’s a great table to view all the goings on but far enough away from the tumult at the bar. I’ve eaten at the bar, too, and the chairs are high and very comfortable. The booths and the banquettes are also quite roomy and cushy.
Other dishes enjoyed on prior visit included gingerbread cake, beet salad and baked oysters
Like Roustabout and Terlingua WFB presents a very casual atmosphere serving stylish, tasteful, delicious food moderately priced. With two cocktails, shared first courses, main course and a plate of chocolate chip cookies, the tab for one was $45 before tip.
The retro room is stylish but casual
Woodford Food and Beverage brings back the three-course regimen instead of the heavy wave of small plate menus that have defined Portland’s new restaurants in the last couple of years. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t still greatly enjoy the wonderfully creative food at such small-plate temples as Central Provisions, Lolita and Sur-Lie or the trio of restaurants that make up the Middle Street clique. But now we have more choice, and I’m all for that.
A parting plate of chocolate chip cookies concluded our meal
Woodford Food and Beverage, 660 Forest Ave., at Woodford Street, (207) 200-8503 www.woofordfb.com
Rating: Solid four-star food excellently prepared
Ambiance: casual, cool, neighborhood hipster vibes all in one
Service: Wait staff is very knowledgeable about the menu and service and kitchen were on pace
Tables: bar-seating, banquettes and booths—very comfortable and spacious
Bar: full
Parking: a few spaces onsite (but do not park at neighboring dry cleaner or tanning parlor when they’re open) and unlimited parking at the adjacent lot of the Woodford’s Club
$$$: moderately priced with most entrees in the $18 to $28 range
