Beast
Intensely driven, food-obsessed, self-taught chef Naomi Pomeroy has been captivating Portland food lovers for nearly a decade now, first with her Ripe empire (Family Supper, clarklewis and Gotham Building Tavern), and now with Beast. One of Portland’s hottest dining tickets, Beast has been lauded by the likes of Esquire, Gourmet, and Food & Wine, which recently named Naomi a Best New Chef of 2009.
One of Portland’s hottest dining tickets, Beast has been lauded by the likes of Esquire, Gourmet, and Food & Wine, which recently named Naomi a Best New Chef of 2009.
Despite the accolades, popularity, and price tag, there’s really nothing pretentious about Beast and Naomi’s rich, rustic, locally-sourced cuisine (except occasionally, the crowd, but Naomi can’t help that). What’s Naomi cooking tonight? Only she knows, and since her menus are fixed, you’ll eat it. Each course on her prix fixe menu—which changes every Wednesday—is lovingly prepared by Naomi and her sous chef Mika, in an open, intimate kitchen mere feet from the two communal tables that fill the small dining room and which host two separate seatings nightly, at 6pm and 8:45pm.
While the courses change weekly, the charcuterie plate remains constant, and it feels like Christmas every time it’s brought to the long communal table, each piece of the assortment a little gift to your palate—particularly the foie gras bon bon and chicken liver mousse with candied bacon. When the end of dinner rolls around, you can opt for the cheese or dessert plate, or even better, both. A selection from the incomparable Steve’s Cheese graces the cheese plate, and desserts like berry shortcake with lemon verbena ice cream make you wish your belly never had to leave the Beast.
Details
Cuisine: French
Executive Chef: Naomi Pomeroy
Sous Chef: Mika Paredes
Atmosphere: Warmly intimate, with a rustic French country feel
Outdoor seating: A couple of sidewalk tables are put out in fair weather
Best Seat: Anything facing the open kitchen, Naomi, Mika and crew are great fun to watch in action.
Noise Level: The space is small, and depending what point everyone is at in their meal, noise levels fluctuate from hushed to downright raucous
Dress Code: Dressy casual
Bring the Kids: No
Bathrooms: In the back behind the black curtain, feel free to doodle on the walls. No really, everyone else does, they even provide chalk.
Parking: Free and plentiful on surrounding streets
Beer: Yes, a changing selection of bottled beers is available.
Wine: A half dozen reds, five whites, a rosé, and several champagnes, designed specifically to compliment the week’s menu. Opt for the wine pairing with all six courses for $35, $30 for a five-course pairing, which is quite a deal if you ask me.
Corkage: $30 per 750mL
Teetotalers: Sparkling water
Coffee: Stumptown
Tea: Varies
Ideal Meal: You’re in Naomi’s world now, and you’ll eat what she puts in front of you and LIKE IT.
Vegetarian Friendly: The following quote is directly from the Beast web site: “BEAST has a lot of Meat all over the menu. We (somewhat) politely decline substitutions.”
Vegan Friendly: Not so much
Good for the following occasions: Special & Splurgey, Out With Friends, Family Meal
Group/Private Party Details: Call Naomi or email her at naomi@beastpdx.com to inquire as to renting out the restaurant for a private party.
Reservations: Call Tuesday- Sunday from 12pm to 3pm to reach a live reservationist. Otherwise leave a voice mail and someone will call you back.