Barwares: Ware It Well

By Martin Cizmar
BARWARES

Barwares (4605 NE Fremont St., 971-229-0995, smallwarespdx.com) exists only because of an architectural fluke. Chef Johanna Ware's Asian-leaning restaurant, Smallwares, needs a bar the same size as its dining room about as much as drowsy Beaumont Village needs a swanky place to hang at 2 am on a Tuesday. Given a lemon, Ware slices it and serves it as a twist over a cocktail made with rye whiskey and garam masala syrup ($8). The Barwares space is a modern beauty done on a budget—concrete, wood and HVAC handiwork with accents like the incongruous orange sofa on loan from Al Bundy. The service is better and the food is best. There's always something special coming out of the kitchen—corn fried on the cob and drizzled with fish sauce was a favorite—but I'm happy with a strong cocktail and a bowl of candied peanuts. 

WWeek 2015

Martin Cizmar

Martin Cizmar

Culture editor Martin Cizmar writes about food, beer, jam bands, country music, gangsta rap, bikes, cannabis and the outdoors. He’s originally from a smallish city in the part of Ohio that was once part of Connecticut and has worked as a reporter at dailies in Michigan, Virginia and Arizona and as music editor at the alt-weekly in Phoenix. He’s a passionate advocate for unfettered access to public lands, the repatriation of Oregon wolves, increased urban density and good machaca burritos. He is unwelcome in the cities of Salem and Lake Oswego.

Willamette Week’s reporting has real-life impact that changes laws, forces action by civic leaders, and drives compromised politicians from public office.

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