One of the most highly anticipated projects in Portland, Wayfinder Beer is the brainchild of a host of celebrated brewers and restaurateurs. A collaboration between Charlie Devereux of Double Mountain Brewery, Matthew Jacobson of Sizzle Pie and Rodney Muirhead of Podnah’s Pit could not help but have a lot of high expectations to fulfill. Even more so when they brought on board award-winning brewer Kevin Davey, from Chuckanut Brewery, Firestone Walker and Gordon Biersch, to helm their lager-heavy brewing program.
The space, which opened just last week, is located in an industrial part of close-in southeast Portland, near other notable landmarks like Hair of the Dog and Bunk Bar. The build-out is spectacular: The walled-in patio feels expansive and intimate all at once, with a blazing fire pit on a rainy Tuesday night. The interior’s warm brick walls and abstract designs are inviting, as is the 10-barrel brewing system, gleaming and illuminated in the back of the dining area like a prized and priceless Ferrari.
While Davey gets his brewing system online, Wayfinder’s beers are brewed in collaboration with several acclaimed Portland breweries, such as Breakside, Baerlic and Hopworks. The beers are showcased in specialized glassware, and I very much appreciated the effort, even if I’m also pretty sure that kölsch is supposed to be served in a tall slim glass and not a short handled stein. I particularly liked Wayfinder’s and Breakside’s take on the newer style of cloudy IPA, which balanced a lot of sweetness and fruity fragrance with a clean hop kick.
It seems that Wayfinder is still finding its way between casual lunch service and more upscale evening fare. The Black Lodge, a prime rib sandwich drizzled with beer cheese, peppers and onions, was spectacular — the meat juicy, tender and abundant, the roll soft and fresh. Reports we had from other lunch-goers were similarly enthusiastic. However, the wood-fired menu items — the grill is only on for evening service — were uneven. The grilled ribeye was well-done instead of rare and the grilled broccolini practically raw.
But for a brewery and restaurant that has so much incredible potential, I recommend giving them a few weeks, or months, to start brewing in-house, ironing out the kinks and bringing the rest of the menu up to the promise of that IPA and prime rib sandwich. Or even just the beer cheese sauce.
