Coq Au Vin Is Moving to North Portland

938 N Cook Street, Portland, new home to Coq Au Vin.

Last year I wrote about Coq Au Vin, a farm-to-table restaurant in NW Portland. Their time is up there, due to changes they want to make with the business: doing less butchery, and more cooking.

Coq Au Vin started really as a place to park the Magic Meat Truck (a mobile meat and cheese case) and operate it out of their current building on NW Thurman Street. Over time, they created and expanded their dining room; added brunch; offered a multi course Sunday Supper featuring their “unique style of home-spun, French-Italian country cooking.” It has become clear that they want to lean even further into cooking than they already have—so, they they are moving their work to North Portland.

Their restaurant will set up shop in a converted two-story house on, appropriately, Cook Street. Its location on this block of Cook Street is almost to where it hits the bottom of N Michigan Avenue.

Previous Tenant on Cook Street: Liberty Glass

The previous tenant here was Liberty Glass, a bar that brother-sister duo Jason and Rose McCormick opened in 2008.

The COVID pandemic essentially shut it down in 2020. They posted on their Instagram a message that was heartbreaking to their fans, but sadly understandable during that time: “The uncertainty surrounding the Corona Virus has brought a few things into focus for me, financial security and time with my family are necessary for my happiness. Knowing this puts limits on the risks I’m willing to take. I decided not to buy the building that we all fought for because we were closed and payroll was due. I realized that I was to tired to pivot and I didn’t want to fight another round.”

What was Liberty Glass’s loss is Coq Au Vin’s gain.

Morea on the Coq Au Vin Move

Rose Allred, one of Coq Au Vin’s owners, posted the news about their move on social media and on their website as part of their Farm Stories series. Essentially, she says that their time at the Thurman Street space was not originally going to focus on cooking, but “an addendum to our vision of a butcher shop, boutique grocer and farm-market.” But things change and we all adjust to unexpected circumstances, and that’s what they did.

Regarding her co-owner and partner George Page, “the restaurant component of our operation is actually deeply important to him.” She continues:

“This past year has rekindled the spark of desire to stand at the kitchen stove, tending to the simmering, comforting aromas and flavors that emanate from hearth and home. Our experiences on Thurman have served like ingredients to a recipe. The combination of tastes and flavors from this season of our life have resulted in the most beautiful dish of self-reflection, and the vision has become clear: It is time to move to Cook.”

(See what they did there?)

Next Steps

They are naming this next phase, the Cook Street Chapters. And part of that has been upgrading the building’s furnace and air conditioning, all good things.

You’ll be able to enjoy them and their work in NW Portland through the end of August. After that, they’ll start with a soft opening (TBD) in the fall, with a full grand opening to follow. At this point they are planning to be open from 11am to 11pm daily on Cook Street; at their current location they are open Tuesday to Sunday from 6pm to 9pm.

In 2023 in response to my article here, George said, “We are eager to bring pleasure to the palates of our new neighbors in the City of Roses!” I am sure this will continue to be the case in North Portland. Best of luck to Rose and George as they make the transition to the Cook Street space!

Coq Au Vin [relocating, opening fall 2024]
938 North Cook Street, Portland
seabreeze.farm/coq-au-vin | Instagram