Bar Sprezzatura is opening at 1001 SW Broadway, inside Portland’s historic Heathman Hotel, with a late October target date, according to a spokesperson for the incoming business. The Venetian-inspired cicchetti and cocktail concept comes from chef Michael Mina, marking his only restaurant in the Pacific Northwest, and it will take over the hotel’s main dining space as the Mina Group steps in to run the Heathman’s full food and beverage program, including breakfast and the lobby bar.
The original Bar Sprezzatura opened in San Francisco in November 2022 at One Maritime Plaza, quickly earning a reputation as one of the Bay Area’s best new bars that year and a Time Out five-star review for its Venice-inspired dining room. Portland’s version will keep the same bones, handmade pastas, raw seafood, and Venetian bar snacks called cicchetti, while leaning more heavily into its beverage program, with classic cocktails like Negronis, martinis, and spritzes alongside a deep selection of amaro and regional liqueurs.
Portland chef Justin Ramirez will run the kitchen as executive chef. Ramirez has cooked locally at Coquine, Arden and The Hoxton, and previously spent time working under Mina at his San Francisco restaurant. Mina wrote on Instagram that stepping into a property as enduring as the Heathman came with real responsibility, saying his approach has always been to respect what makes a place meaningful while still bringing something distinctly his own.
