According to a recent article from Oregon Live, Mama Bird will soon become Bistecca at 2145 NW Raleigh Street.
“Mama Bird’s last day will be January 26. After a brief remodel to add more booths and paint the walls dark green, Bistecca will open in the same Northwest Raleigh Street space on February 7. Gabriel Pascuzzi, the Portland-born chef and “Top Chef” season 18 contestant, plans to transform his 5-year-old Slabtown restaurant Mama Bird into Bistecca, a wood-fired steakhouse with Italian touches.”
“An advanced look at Bistecca’s menu presents an ambitious modern steakhouse with Italian flourishes — crab cakes with Calabrian chili oil, puttanesca-inspired steak tartare, cacio e pepe gnocchi in place of mac and cheese. The centerpiece is a hefty T-bone steak inspired by classic bistecca Fiorentina, with a sauce of shallots, blueberries and Chianti that Pascuzzi picked up while living in Italy.”
“The Italian trappings will be pronounced, but not omnipresent. Besides the fried olives and eggplant bruschetta, snacky starters include oysters on the half shell, an “American onion soup” and lobster and prawn rolls.”
“Sides run from classic Hasselback potatoes to veggies cooked on the wood-fired grill. There’s an “Italian chimmi,” aka a salsa verde, but steaks can come with a horseradish cream, Bernaise or au poivre sauces. For Mama Bird fans, Pascuzzi is hanging on to a half bird, now served with those accordion-sliced potatoes and Brussels sprouts.”
