A New Spot for Ice-Cold Ceviche Is Coming to Downtown Portland

Soon, downtown will have a new spot for tiradito, ceviche, and cocktails. Lobby by Lechon, a cocktail bar and lounge from the same team behind the nearby Latin American restaurant, is coming later this summer, complete with an eclectic menu of small plates featuring plenty of raw fish.

For those unfamiliar, Lechon is a Naito Parkway South American restaurant that specializes in wood-fired fare; ironically, Lobby by Lechon will do almost the opposite. “We’re focusing a lot on cold things: ceviches, tiraditos, tostadas,” says Charlotte Deyo, general manager at Lechon. For example, she says the restaurant’s popular shrimp ceviche with aji lime amarillo, salsa criolla, avocado, and jalapeno will also appear at the new bar. As for new dishes, Deyo teased a king salmon tiradito — sort of like Peruvian sashimi — with a scallop leche de tigre.

The cocktail menu will be pretty short— the space is small, which means the backbar is even smaller — but Deyo says Lobby will cover a wide variety of preferences, specifically focusing on small-batch producers both locally and internationally. The alcohol-free will have options, as well, with a few dedicated zero-proof drinks.

The bar and restaurant is tucked inside the 50 Pine building, meaning it will share the lobby space with Japanese comfort food spot Kalé. Deyo says the 800 square-foot, 40-seat space will have a more modern feel than its sibling, though it should incorporate some of the boho, rustic qualities of the original restaurant. “We’re trying to achieve a multitude of things in that space,” Deyo says. “A lot of our clients are travelers, so there aren’t a ton of spots to have a drink in the immediate vicinity... Being downtown, especially close to Old Town, is a really tough location, so we’re trying to get folks to stay close and not Uber somewhere else for cocktails.” Lobby by Lechon should be open sometime this August.

• Lechon [Official]
• Previous Lechon coverage [EPDX]