I hate to call on a cliché (as well as date myself) but my recent visit to The Decoy Bar and Grill reminded me of a real-life version of “Cheers.” You know, the 80’s show that made Ted Danson, Shelly Long, Woody Harrelson and Kristie Alley famous and where everyone yelled “Norm!” when George Wendt came through the door. It was that mix of neighborhood, preppy, blue-collar, college, yuppie, sporty and regulars that only few places can pull off. The Decoy, at least in its initial impressions, seems to have succeeded in that welcoming atmosphere. It’s “Cheers” with a good menu.
Although I never tasted the dishes at Melville’s Seafood (the fictional restaurant above Cheers) I can say with 99.9% certainty that the food at the Decoy is better.
The space is best described as bar-ish. Not a smoky, seedy bar or a posh, upscale bar or even a hip, trendy bar – just a bar. One whole wall is dedicated to mixing of drinks, with a flat screen TV mounted off to the side. Square, leaded-glass fixtures hang over the high-top tables with booths flanking the east and north sides of the restaurant, offering views of the intersection at Bond and Greenwood. Watching the traffic come and go is almost, well, urban.
The walls are covered in an historical Bend motif and mixed with some preppy paraphernalia (after all, the logo is a duck decoy). But, luckily, we are spared any hunter green leather couches or Izod-clad wait staff. Actually the wait staff is young-ish, down to earth, and varied in appearance, with long manicured nails on some and tattoos peeking out on others.
The menu is a nice mix of the expected and unexpected, retaining a few offerings of the well-worn “pub food” genre. There are crispy wings, but there is also pastrami and yellowfin tuna on crostini (a strange but very tasty pairing). There is a burger. (One of the best I’ve had in town.) But there’s also a corned beef Reuben that is so gargantuan that making a colossal mess is deliciously inevitable.
The entrées range from chicken served with plum sauce and couscous, to crab cakes served with remoulade, to a grilled thick-cut pork chop. There is definitely a Southern streak in some of the dishes like the white bean soup with bacon and wilted kale, and the jerk chicken tender sandwich. I sampled the baked grits and shrimp, a relatively simple dish that seems to stump anyone above the Mason Dixon line. Not so at the Decoy, the grits were creamy, the shrimp grilled and spiced to perfection and the caramelized onions and bell peppers added nice body to the dish.
The drink menu is impressive in itself, mainly for its featured homemade sours. For $5 you can get a real bourbon (or any other flavor) sour. This is not that mouth puckering citric acid, sugar-laden concoction that comes premixed in a bottle and served in too many bars, but a drink made with fresh lemon and/or limejuice. They also feature a Mississippi Mule (Booker’s, lime juice and ginger beer) and the quintessential New Orleans cocktail, the Sazerac (rye, Pernod and Peychaud’s bitters).
I was a little disappointed not to see a bread pudding on the dessert menu (in keeping with the slight Southern drawl), but what is offered is worth saving room for. The champagne sabayon brulee seemed like a contradiction in terms (sabayon is like a liquid custard – turning it into a crème brulee seemed to be missing the point), but, to my surprise, it was just that – creamy, fluffy, thick liquid custard topped with a burnt sugar shell that was unique and fabulous. The molten chocolate cake is for true chocolate lovers and is topped with a bourbon chocolate genache. Next time I will try the frozen key lime pie with a pomegranate sauce or the sundae in the cardamom praline cup.
Maybe next time I’ll just start with dessert.
ljrfreelance@clearwire.net
Decoy Bar and Grill – $$
1051 NW Bond (at the Corner of Greenwood) 318.4833. 11AM-close, 7 days/week
This article appears in Jan 17-23, 2008.
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I recently visited Bend on vacation from Yuba City Ca. I myself found the food at the Decoy unbelievable. And that bar tender that looks like Anthony M. Hall in Sixteen Candles sure knows how to make a drink. Keep up the good work, and I will see you upon my return.
I stumbled into the Decoy on a trip back to my old home town Bend, after years of mediocre service and food in Bend’s downtown, I was thrilled to get a top quality meal with a great bar tender. Thank you.
Ditto to what was said by Troy Corbin and Ted Francis (each of whom, along with myself, is unaffiliated with Decoy Bar and GrillÂ�®) – the Decoy is a wonderful dining experience and the youthful bartender is beyond reproach.
I had a great time. Food was off the hook. The Bar Tender was as cute as day old pig but he can make a mean rusty nail. The Wal Mart type greeter…I think his name was Daymond..was very helpfull..Although he looked out of place in a bow tie.. Do not be afraid of food if you go we had large party and were well cared for. A Breath of fresh air for Bend.
This is the type of place you want to make as your regular weekly outing. The food and drinks are absolutely amazing. The yellowfish tunafin and the corned beef reuben are to die for and I can’t wait to come back again.
I recently attempted to dine here but my experiance was less than desirable. It was a tuesday night, not at all busy. We entered sat at a table that was pre set with menues and waited, then we waited some more then after almost 20 min of waiting I tried to make eye contact with the apperant manager. He turned his back as he passed me so my date and I ended up having a burger at Deschutes. This was the worst service I have encountered in bend. Hope they learn.
Love going here….its become my favorite place to dine in dwntown Bend because of the predictibly fresh and great food, value, and incredible staff.
Way to go…..we will be bring our out of town friends here for showing off how Bend can beat Boston in Pub
and food.
I cannot believe this place doesn’t have FSN so we can watch the Mariner’s game. What is the point of the HDTV if not to play a ball game in the summertime. The excuse of it costing too much smacks of “cheapness” and really doesn’t make sense when MANY bigger and “less expensive” bars right down the street have no issues with it. I get that it isnt a sports bar, but Sportscenter on mute is not acceptable.