Simpatica Dining Hall Halts Dinner and Brunch

Located in the same building as Biwa, Simpatica Dining Hall is a trailblazer of Portland's supper club and pop-up scene, serving two dinners a week and one epic brunch Sundays since 2005. It has received accolades like being named one of "10 Hottest Restaurants of The Year" by Bon Appetit and "Best Brunches in America" by Food & Wine Magazine, but now owners Ben Dyer, Jason Owens, and David Kreifels (Laurelhurst Market, Reverend's BBQ, Ate-Oh-Ate) have announced by press release Simpatica's final service will be June 26.

In an email to the Oregonian, Dyer said, "End of an era. There are so many supper clubs and pop ups these days, it's no longer the novelty it was ten years ago."

Simpatica will continue as a private dining and catering service, utilizing its many hard-won relationships with local farmers, as well as the butcher shop at Laurelhurst Market. Additionally, Simpatica is announcing something it calls producer dinners. The press release says these dinners will be collaborations with "local winemakers, brewers, ranchers, or farmers. We plan on having these once or twice a month, so all is not lost!"

Additionally, Dyer, Owens, and Kreifels are preparing to open a second Ate-Oh-Ate, the casual counter-service restaurant serving up food from Dyer's home state of Hawaii. In fact, they just announced Ate-Oh-Ate is now under construction and should launch in the Woodstock neighborhood this August.