Little Bird: Taking Flight at Portland-Tinged Bistro Petit Oiseau [CLOSED]

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Restaurant Sign Portland

Little Bird ties into restaurateur Gabriel Rucker's bird theme.

Haunting might not be the word, but when we ate at Le Pigeon in 2009, chef Gabriel Rucker left a lasting impression on our palates, with dazzling dishes like pork belly with tripe, foie gras pot au feu and perhaps the greatest dessert to date: honey bacon apricot cornbread. Given our monumental meal, it was inevitable that we’d eat at Little Bird during our latest SCAA-fueled trip to Portland. The “bistro petit oiseau” from Chef Rucker did not disappoint.

The restaurant opened on December 8, 2010, with a pressed tin ceiling, mezzanine, faux plantlife, red cushioned banquettes and plenty of bird imagery. Chef de cuisine Erik Van Kley, who was Chef Rucker’s longtime sous chef at Le Pigeon, helmed the stoves from the start.


Charcuterie Portland

A deluxe Charcuterie Plate ($19) allowed the six of us to pluck small bites from a decorative wood plank. Highlights include savory, panko crusted trotter croquette with foie aioli; rustic pork rillete with pickled red onions; creamy chicken liver mousse with truffled shallots; decadent foie gras brûlée with apricot Sauternes jam; and thin-sliced smoked pork tenderloin with tart green apple and mustard vinaigrette. Julie Wolfson encouraged our tablemate Yeekai Lim to finish the foie gras brûlée, but it was already gone.

Soup Portland

Soupe du Jour ($8) combined two different textures of lentil – pureed and whole-grain – plus sorrel crème fraîche, which proved to be both hearty and enlightening.

Hamburger Portland

We kept hearing things about the burger at nearby Gruner, but it’s hard to imagine that it’s any better than the Le Pigeon Burger ($12). The bistro creation paired a rosy, juicy beef patty with white cheddar, crunchy slaw with aioli-tossed lettuce, pickled grilled onions, mustard and ketchup on a sturdy ciabatta roll. Fries bathed in peanut oil and weren’t especially crispy, but still tasted very good and properly seasoned.

French Food Portland

We were all enamored with delicate White Asparagus ($9) spears with a panko-crusted, deep-fried “crispy egg.” They slathered the egg with tangy, herbaceous sauce Gribiche.

French Food Portland

Their Steak Tartare ($12) was satisfying, with silky herb-flecked beef, crunchy watercress, and a horseradish cream quenelle to make the starter pop.

French Food Portland

Mussels ($17) arrived small but plump in a broth rife with crumbled merguez sausage and enriched with harissa butter, which displayed spicy, zesty north African flavors. We just wish there were more crostini to soak up tantalizing broth.

Rucker and his culinary team clearly have a firm grip on Portland-inflected French fare. Should he open an even more casual concept, there’s no doubt that we’ll eat there as well.

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Joshua Lurie

Joshua Lurie founded FoodGPS in 2005. Read about him here.

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