Its been four years (this Saturday, October 17th) since Executive Chef/owner Cathy Whims and her team moved to the corner of Southeast Morrison and 14th to open Nostrana, which has since become one of Portland’s most beloved restaurants.

Nostrana’s humble, rustic Italian fare continues to charm the likes of many – Nostrana was named The Oregonian’s Restaurant of the Year in 2006 and most recently, Cathy Whims was a James Beard Award finalist for the Best Chef Northwest title.

This Saturday, Whims and team are excited to shine the spotlight on the local farmers and winemakers that help Nostrana maintain its longstanding commitment to community producers.  In honor of the occasion, Whims is preparing a four-course menu that features ingredients from the farmers with whom she has longstanding relationships including: Ayer’s Creek, Cattail Creek Farm, 47^th Avenue Farm, Kingfisher Farm, Laughing Stock Farm, Prairie Creek Farm, and Your Kitchen Garden.  Local winemakers include Cameron, J Christopher, Matello, and Westrey.  Farmers and winemakers will be on site for the celebration, so this is a great opportunity to savor local food and wine with the producers themselves, prepared by one of Portland’s leading chefs.

The evening’s menu is below.

Two reservation options are available on anniversary night, Saturday, October 17; one at 5 p.m. and one at 7:30 p.m.  The cost for the evening is $60 per person, wine and gratuity not included.  Reservations are required.  For more info, visit Nostrana’s website.   Come celebrate!

Happy Birthday James Beard!

In honor of Mr. Beard’s birthday, Kim Carlson of Culinate asked a few Portlanders about how he influenced them.

Lisa Donoughe admires Beard for being an “accidental influencer”.

“So few people fail at their dream — in his case, to be an opera singer — and then wind up having a legacy that transforms a culture. It’s so incredible to me that he never set out to have the career he had, it just happened as a default and then he ran with it. What an inspiration!”

Check out the rest of the article here.

Congratulations to Chef Cathy Whims of Nostrana for being nominated for a James Beard Award! Cathy was nominated for Best Chef in America’s Northwest Region and is the only Oregon chef in the running for this specific award. Awards are announced during a ceremony on Monday, May 4th in New York City.  To view other nominees click here.