Skip to main contentT.S. Eliot said, "The river is a strong brown god." He clearly never visited the banks of the Willamette, where the river is bluish-white these days. I don't know if the river's a god or not, but I do know that rivers move on--and so do the chefs at Rivers restaurant.
Always a handsome establishment with the best view in town, the food at Rivers, unfortunately, never lived up to the vistas. Now with a heralded new chef--Rollie Wesen--at the restaurant's helm, Rivers is beginning to find its current. It's a good thing, because its earlier incarnation, "Rivers American Grill," was a mediocre eatery, and its more distant predecessors, Avalon and Sherwood's, were pretentious flops.
Rivers' decor, with its hot rubies, limes, azures, vermilions, golds and fuchsias jumping from chairs, floor, bar and pillars, presents a hard act for any kitchen to compete with. In the past the temptation was to raise the culinary stakes beyond outrageousness; the new regime wisely chooses a more modest route. Wesen has not yet fully taken over the menu; these things take a while, and customers with tastes developed by previous staffs must be gradually weaned from old habits. But a new blended style is gradually coming together: a synthesis of American comfort food and simple French bistro cooking.
The menu is rather straightforward, and a quick perusal would hardly distinguish it from that of a score of other places: chicken, seafood stew, salmon, pork, lamb and a couple of beef items. But culinary skill, like God, is in the details. And it's here that Wesen is adding subtle elements. He's inherited several recipes but is changing the garnishes. This might seem a small thing, but serious restaurants often spend as much time on them as on the main item, and the choice of accompaniments speaks volumes about a chef's tastes and judgments. Mediocre places put the same sides on everything; average ones give little thought to the couplings; the better places pair them to evoke or echo flavors, or to marry ingredients with often surprising results.
At Rivers a lovely slab of halibut ($21)--a notoriously mild fish--carries spring-jade fava beans for crunch and color, pancetta for salt and depth, and white beans for richness and a homey touch. Roasted chicken ($16), extremely tender with a crackling skin, comes with brilliant-green spinach sautéed in brown garlic butter and fluffy potatoes whipped with ample amounts of butter and the natural juices of the bird. Grilled pork loin ($17) is partnered with sweet-potato fries, a welcome change from more ordinary ones, while the bistro touch comes from wilted frisée or curly endive topped with roasted tomatoes, a delightful turn on a more conventional salad. Such small gestures make all the difference.
The appetizer list sports several composed salads, but I would urge a splendid soup of tomato, basil and bacon ($3-$5), with its deep terra-cotta hue and wonderfully smoky aroma. An old favorite at Rivers, a plate of four coconut fried shrimp on skewers ($10) with a sweet chili dipping sauce, is not much more than a glorified bar snack.
Desserts have taken off under Shelly du Plessis' direction. The star is a mousse of espresso and chocolate ($7) that's rich and light at once, punctuated with a pretty, edible flower: one of the town's best sweets for the lovelorn. Homemade sorbets and ice creams score high, but a poached pear with frangelica and mascarpone custard, ladyfingers, hazelnut praline and a rose on top ($7) seems positively rococo.
The most serious problem at Rivers is the service. On one occasion our main courses arrived five minutes after we were served the appetizers; when we sent them back, they must have been held under warming lamps, for they returned utterly overdone. On two occasions I had to request bread. Wine showed up well into the meal. One person's plate was removed while the other was still eating. When we asked questions about the menu, we were met with blank stares. Such lapses are inexcusable in a place that seeks to improve its image; the only remedy is serious training.
As summer stretches on, the menu lightens with such items as grilled fish and grilled corn. I look forward to evolving signature dishes from Wesen's stove; I also hope he whips his waiters into shape as well as he whips his potatoes.
0470 SW Hamilton Court, 802-5850
11:30 am-3 pm Monday-Friday,
8 am-3 pm Saturday-Sunday, 5-10 pm Monday-Saturday, 5-9 pm Sunday. Credit cards accepted. Children welcome, though seldom seen. $$$ Expensive.
Picks:
Crab cakes, tomato-and-basil soup, roasted chicken, seafood "fire pot," sautéed halibut, espresso-and-chocolate mousse, ice creams and
sorbets.
Nice touch:
Pristine views of the Willamette River.
WWeek 2015