From the Department of Not News: The Port Fonda restaurant is cool.
I told myself I wasn’t going to brave the early crowds at Port Fonda, which sort of surprise-opened its doors for cocktails and half-price appetizers for the first time last night. As much as I love food — and Patrick Ryan’s food in particular — I don’t love crowds, and I certainly don’t love waiting for food. So, I decided to be the early crowd, and my friend Kristina and I arrived at 4141 Pennsylvania at 6:05 p.m., exactly five minutes after the doors opened to the public.
The decor is every bit as cool as I expected it to be, with reclaimed wood, vintage signage, and a staff of attractive hipsters in gray T-shirts. The bathroom was probably my favorite part, but that’s just because it still smelled like a Home Depot and I have an unnatural obsession with bathrooms. I would have taken pictures of the bathroom and the rest of the place, but I take shitty pictures and everyone else (including the seemingly-professional photographer who was documenting the whole evening) is probably posting pictures of it on the Interwebs right now.
Anyway, we grabbed two stools at the nearly-empty bar and immediately ordered two fancy pink margaritas.
Deciding on food wasn’t hard since there were only three items on the menu. Sadly, chilaquiles wasn’t one of them, but we got everything that was: chicharones, guacamole and a delicious baked cheesy dish, the name of which escapes me, but it was served with warm tortillas and, like I said, it was delicious.
By the time our food arrived, the place was packed. Chef and owner Patrick Ryan was all smiles, making sure everything was running smoothly (it was).
I will be back. And hopefully there will be chilaquiles waiting for me.
