Holiday Cheer!

We have a basket CHOCK FULL of treats for our customers! As long as supplies last, anyone that spends $20 or more (after discounts such as Groupon are applied) will get to pick a jewel-toned envelope containing one of over $3,000 worth of our tasty treats. Rules are specific and printed on the envelope so please don't rip it open in your excitement!

Happy Eating!
Rob, Janet and our Hard Working Staff...

Happy Holiday Season!

This year has flown by... I can hardly believe that we've been downtown for almost 2 years! It hardly seems possible - and yet the calendar doesn't lie. We have some new specials this month that I think are going to be really popular...(I've actually already posted them, so those of you lurking around are getting a sneak peak before the Noodle News subscribers!)

We have a Ravioli special (all our ravioli are made in house by Robert himself... if you're eating a ravioli in our restaurant you KNOW who made it - not too many places in town can say that!) that's a vegetarian's delight - roasted root vegetables just scream winter and this month Rob managed to coax so much flavor out of those little guys that even meat eaters will enjoy this dish!

We really feel that Gnocchi is about as comforting and hearty as it gets, so we have another stick to your ribs special this month with those yummy little nuggets of potato goodness... This time they're snuggled up with BACON. Be still my heart...

We also brought back a really popular baked dish from a few years ago - Chicken Tetrazzini... We take fresh linguine, chicken and mushrooms and bath it all in a sherry cream sauce. If that's not enough we top if off with some fresh bread crumbs and bake it til it's golden brown and delicious.

Dessert this month is a taste-treat that has always been popular - inspired my mom, it's a Triple Ginger layer cake, Candied Ginger, Ginger and Ginger Snaps all make an appearance in this cake covered with a downy blanket of cream cheese frosting.

We also have music scheduled every Friday and Saturday night from 8-10 p.m. and we are serving our entire menu until 10 p.m. as well... we offer a great place to come with friends or family from out of town to enjoy a late meal and then hang out for some great music and cocktails while still being able to enjoy having some space and time to chat.

We have ONE more Sunday left available for a private party if anyone is interested in the 12th of December, we can accomodate up to 50 or so people, and we don't charge a rental fee for the use of the restaurant! Email janet@willamettenoodle.com if you are interested. Speaking of schedules, we will close early on Christmas Eve, and will be closed on Christmas Day, so our hard-working employees can relax and enjoy the holiday with their families.

Oh, one last thing... Rumor has it there will be some gifts for our dining customers coming soon - there are some beautiful colored envelopes sitting on my desk just waiting for me to fill them with treats and treasures for our guests to enjoy in 2011!

Happy December! ~Janet

New Menu Items... and some other touches too!

We have some really delicious news! We now offer ALL of our entrees (yes, even the LASAGNA!) in LUNCH portions with LUNCH pricing. We realized that while our standard dinner size portions were a great value (and some people really like taking half for lunch the next day) many folks either don't have the ability to take leftovers or just wanted a smaller size meal. So we listened and noodled on it a bit (sorry - couldn't resist, it was RIGHT THERE!) and we decided the time was right to introduce a RIGHT SIZED portion for lunch.

We also wanted to implement the next phase of "7 Years In - Perfecting the Plan" and it involves some little touches that we really love, and hope you will too. First of all, we have a fantastic Garlic Dipping Oil that now comes with our lovely breads. Oh sure, we still have butter, but no one's asking for it! We are also grating parmesan table-side. While we had our own special blend of freshly grated cheeses before, we feel that NOTHING beats "grated before your eyes" freshly grated Parmesan. Angel Hair? Yep. It's on the menu. And you know you can substitute any of our regular pastas for another at no charge, right? If you didn't know that, then I sincerely apologize, because it means that we haven't done a good enough job of letting you know that we really do want you to be happy with what you order. So if you'd much rather have Rigatoni, but you felt like you always had to stick with the Spaghetti when you ordered the Puttanesca, now you know.

NEW MENU ITEMS! I can't even begin to describe how excited I am about the new menu items... We have a new meat sauce that is more authentic old world style - Nana's Sunday Gravy. Beef, braised until tender with our secret family recipe of flavorings, and then married with our rich and hearty marinara sauce - it's absolutely mouthwatering. We also have a new lighter Tomato Cream Sauce - our signature Pink Vodka sauce. This is amazing with Shrimp and Angel Hair pasta, as well as our hand made three cheese ravioli. There's Eggplant Parmesan, a new eggplant pasta with our version of a Romesco Sauce (the traditional version has both nuts and bread, but we've eliminated them in our recipe so our friends with allergies and gluten sensitivities can enjoy it as well!). The Romesco also comes with our show-stopper of an appetizer - the almond stuffed dates wrapped with bacon. Several of our staff had never tried dates, and these bowled them over. Morsels of sweet, salty chewy deliciousness.

The other piece of our current "renovation" will come with time, and that is the elavation of all things related to service. Rob and I will both be on hand to check on you more often than we have been able to this past year and a half. Growing to 2 restaurants with 30+ employees was a huge step - and it took me away from what I loved about our business - YOU! So look for us when you stop in - and please introduce yourself if we haven't met yet. We offer you our personal guarantee, that if you are not happy with your meal then we will fix it for you. All you have to do is let us know.

We continue to book live music several nights every month, and our cocktails and late night offerings are also becoming more popular. We are also adding monthly "Special Events" on Sundays, like this week's upcoming WINE AND DINE, 5 course meal with Grand Vines. A few tickets are still available, please call Maggie at Grand Vines 503-399-9463, to get yours!

If you've gotten to this point, thanks for hanging in there! And thank you for coming along on this ride with us. We've had a blast and we think there are plenty more good times to come. :)

Willamette Valley Vineyards: Chefs' Nite Out Tickets Now on Sale!

Willamette Valley Vineyards: Chefs' Nite Out Tickets Now on Sale!

We are looking forward to being a part of Chef's Nite Out again this year, and debuting Willamette Burger as well!

Tickets are on sale now, and EVERY DOLLAR raised at the event goes to feed hungry families right here in our community. Each participating restaurant and winery donates their time and product so it is truly a team effort!

Oh, and our new favorite local band Calico Jack? Have agreed to play at Chef's Nite Out as well - so it's going to be a really fun event! For those of you that haven't ever thought to attend - thinking maybe it's a "stuffy" event or that you wouldn't fit in, this is the year to buy your tickets and check it out! Dozens of restaurants and wineries will be showing off their best and you get to try all of it! Your ticket purchase provides you with tastes of everything - you don't have to choose just a few... now where else could you get that kind of variety? (as well as great entertainment and fellowship with other food & wine loving folks!)

Tickets often sell out a few weeks before the event so SEIZE THE DAY and buy yours now! We look forward to seeing you there!

June Specials!!

We are really losing our patience with Mother Nature around here... Don't get me wrong - we know that all this rain makes our state lush and green - but when we have things PLANNED for our customers and then she interferes? Well - that's not cool with me!

We will let you all know as soon as we get Ty & the boys re-scheduled, and we have some new faces and old friends that will be appearing in the coming weeks so stay tuned for details. Best place to get all the info will be on our Facebook page, so if you aren't already "Liking" us, (why did you have have to stop being FANS?) be sure to click on over and do so.

We are changing things up just a bit on our Monthly Specials for now... since we just added all those great new appetizers last month, we have decided to forgo our monthly Appetizer Special and ADD a monthly Cocktail Special. This month's is DEEEElicious (Dustin, our bartender extraordinaire is often called "D" around here, so it fits!).

We also have FRESH LOCAL strawberries - you know how short the season is, so be sure to come and get them as often as you can! We will be getting from 2 of our favorite local farms again this summer: Fordyce Farms and Green Villa Farms. Links to their websites are on the side of the blog - be sure to visit them if you are out and about this summer!

This month's specials:
Cocktail
Orange Drop Martini
Our twist on the Classic Lemon Drop – We use fresh squeezed orange juice, add Blood Orange Vodka & a splash of Aranciata Pelligrino then serve it with a house-made Citrus Sugared rim. Delicious!

Entrees
Smoked Salmon Pasta Salad
Bowtie Pasta with our House Smoked Salmon, fresh tomatoes and green beans tossed with a lemon-dill dressing 13
WINE SUGGESTION: Le Rote Vernacia Glass: 8, Bottle: 28

Gnocchi tossed with a savory Sausage and Roasted Garlic tomato sauce 12
WINE SUGGESTION: Root:1 Cabernet Sauvignon or Cubanissimo Pinot Noir
Glass: 8, Bottle: 28

Fire Roasted Asparagus Ravioli (hand-made in house!) with Browned Butter and Tarragon 12
WINE SUGGESTION: Il Pino Pino Grigio or Masciarelli Montepulciano
Glass: 4, Bottle: 14

Dessert
Lemon Panna Cotta with FRESH LOCAL Strawberries!
WINE SUGGESTION: Tualatin Estate Frizzante Semi-Sparkling Muscat

LIVE MUSIC THIS WEEKEND!

We are excited to have Junkyard Casanovas coming to entertain during our Noodle @ Night hours, 9 - 12 THIS SATURDAY!

Joe & the guys played last summer on the plaza and we had a fantastic time with them! Come on down and check out their fun rock and roll sound. They also have a few new songs - you can check them out here.

Just a reminder that this is also the last few days for our May specials, and that we are closed Monday to observe Madeleine's Birthday. (or Memorial Day for the rest of you... but when she was little she thought it was pretty cool she always gets a day off from school for her birthday and she seems to be selling that concept to the twins - five year olds are so gullible!).

June specials just landed on my desk for proofing... am thinking these are all going to be winners!

Have a SAFE and HAPPY weekend!

May Specials.

Appetizer:

Since we have added several new appetizers to our regular menu we decided to let YOU decide what you want to try. They are all delicious! Be sure to check out the new Pizzettes, risotto balls, polenta fries, hand breaded mozzarella sticks AND hand-made salmon cakes - all on the new appetizer list in the menu!


Entrees:

Shrimp and Asparagus in a citrus butter sauce served over Pappardelle 14
WINE SUGGESTION: Le Rote Vernacia or De Canal Pinot Grigio


Rigatoni with Chicken, fresh tomatoes and cilantro tossed with a creamy avocado sauce 11
WINE SUGGESTION: Lockwood Chardonnay or Cubanissimo Pinot Noir


Greek Pasta Salad
Farfalle pasta chock full of feta cheese, kalamata olives & fresh tomatoes in a yogurt dressing 10
WINE SUGGESTION: Le Rote Vernacia or Tre Nova Bonatella Sangiovese


Dessert:

Mom’s Favorite Peach Cobbler topped with freshly whipped cream 5
WINE SUGGESTION: Tualatin Estate Frizzante Semi-Sparkling Muscat


Our monthly specials are popular and use seasonal ingredients so quantities may be limited... We apologize if we run out!

~~Our wine suggestions come from our friends at Grand Vines – give them a try to enhance your dining experience~~

Want to name one of our specials? Now's your chance!

This is going to be one of our specials this April - farfelle, grape tomatoes, green beans, olive oil and herbs topped with slices of seared ahi tuna. A free gift certificate to the Noodle for the best name (and of course, the prestige!)

Good luck!

March Specials.

Appetizer:

Cheese flatbread pizzettes made with our own handmade dough and sauce, topped with a blend of four Italian cheeses 5

Add sausage (our own - housemade!) 7

WINE SUGGESTION: Basciano Chianti Rufino

Entrees:

Spaghetti tossed with Baby Clams, fresh tomatoes, capers and lots of garlic in a white wine & butter Sauce 13

WINE SUGGESTION: Le Rote Vernacia

Caramelized Onion & Bacon Lasagna
This was a favorite at a Catering Company Janet used to manage. We spruced it up a bit with spinach and some extra cheese. Yum! 11

WINE SUGGESTION: Tre Nova Bonatello Sangiovese – Gino Cuneo Cellars

Creamy Risotto made with our own handmade beef demi-glace, with a seared & Sliced petite Flat Iron Steak drizzled with a Fontina Cream Sauce 15

WINE SUGGESTION: Masciarelli Montepulciano d’Abruzzo

Dessert:

Limoncello Cake 5

WINE SUGGESTION: Tualatin Estate Frizzante Semi-Sparkling Muscat



Our monthly specials are popular and use seasonal ingredients so quantities may be limited... We apologize if we run out!

~~Our wine suggestions come from our friends at Grand Vines – give them a try to enhance your dining experience~~

Love is in the Air....

Or, maybe it's just the promise of Spring that has me smiling a bit more these days. Either way - we are excited about this weekend - whether you are celebrating romance or just appreciating good friends (because I don't necessarily relegate Valentine's Day to being a couple's holiday... after all - don't we all send our kids to school armed with dozens of heart shaped missives begging each classmate to "Be Mine"?) you should check out our Dinner for Two offering below. We will not be asking for any sort of proof of "coupledom". See? Equal opportunity dining here.

Also the February Specials are OUT of THIS WORLD! You should definitely hop on over and check them out.

As always we will accept call ahead seating this weekend, but NO RESERVATIONS. We think it works out best this way, since we don't have to fend off angry eyes while we hold an open table for someone running a bit late.

Dinner for Two:

Cheese Pizzette to Share

Choice of Soup or Salad

Choice of Entree:

Fettuccine Alfredo

Spaghetti with Meatballs

Traditional Meat Lasagna

Rigatoni with Mushroom Ragout

Dessert to Share

ALL THIS for only $30!

We think this is an INCREDIBLE bargain... and we hope you will too! Come in and enjoy this offer anytime between 5 p.m., Friday, 2/12 and Sunday 2/14/10.

The pic above is Maddie (our oldest) sharing a fry with one of her BFFs Carter. See? Love is for EVERYONE.

January Specials.

Appetizer:
Steamed Mussels with Sausage & Tomatoes in a white wine broth $10

Entrees:
Braised Beef & Gorgonzola Ravioli (hand-made HERE~!) topped with a rich beef demi-glace $12

Fettuccine with Mushrooms, Toasted Hazelnuts and LOCAL fresh black truffles (while they last!) bathed in a creamy sauce $13

Fresh Orichietti* with our house-made sausage, broccoli & red pepper flakes (for a little heat!) in a velvety sauce $10
*Our Orichietti (they look like little ears) are made in house too!

Dessert:
Toasted Almond Panna Cotta $5

Our monthly specials are popular and use seasonal ingredients so quantities may be limited... We apologize if we run out!

Go to our website to sign up for the Noodle News and be the FIRST to find out about our monthly specials, upcoming events and special offers!

No, Janet hasn't dropped off the face of the earth.

But apparently running a popular pasta restaurant AND co-owning a brand new burger restaurant makes a person a tad busy?

She is probably going to draft me into doing the blogging here (guess I shouldn't be doing such a good job with the Burger Blog) so you'll be hearing from me here soon!

In the meantime, just a reminder that BOTH the Noodle and the Burger will be closing at 4 on Sunday to celebrate the holidays with our awesome staff and their families.

Happy Holidays -- Sarah

Live MUSIC - Cause we still love you!

Hey - we managed to get every Wednesday AND Thursday in August booked with some Live Entertainment!
Tonight, huge thanks to GO DOWNTOWN and First Wednesday festivities for booking Gary Burford and Mark Lemhouse on the Plaza! WOW - they are going to be great!
And NEXT WEEK - because we begged and pleaded (and threw in some Cheesy Bread) Ty Curtis and Hank on Harmonica will be back to rock the Plaza (and our staff!) with their fun brand of bluesy jazz. Mark your calendars for this one - August 12th - Ty & Hank are always popular, and to get to see them for FREE is a big treat! I also have heard that the guys are getting ready to head back in to the studio and start recording, so their performance schedule will be lighter for the next few months.
The following week, August 19th - the man that taught Ty to play the guitar - Gary Meziere and his buddy Ivie are coming back. They are a great duo and we have TONS of fun when they are here.
We are wrapping up August with another local favorite, JT Meier! JT's folky renditions of classic songs are always a treat for me, and it seems many of you agree!

And, for our inside dining patrons, we have Bill Hughes just about every Thursday this month, a little more relaxing and atmospheric, but just as lovely to enjoy.

Let us know how you are enjoying this - if we get enough positive feedback we will continue to work on booking as long as the weather will allow.

MY FAVORITE THINGS - SUMMER EDITION

Ok - I want to know what YOUR favorite summer things are! Post here and at the end of the month we will give away a gift certificate (or two) to our favorite entries! Points will be given for creativity and humor! Of course, if you want to come in and DRAW your favorite SUMMER things, we will accept entries that way too!

I shared a few of my favorite things in this month's Noodle News, but I'll add a few more here:

6. Long drives to nowhere in particular with "road trip" music on the iPod!
5. Fireworks (even though my 4th of July babies HATE them, I LOVE them. Especially with music.)
4. BIG STICK POPSICLES - the original ones - Cherry and Pineapple, none of that Orange and Strawberry fake knock-off stuff. They discontinued them several years ago - but I just bought 2 boxes at the grocery store last week!! YAY!!!
3. Summer toes. Even better when they are in cute sandals.
2. PORCH PARTIES!
1. ICE CREAM. (This will always be my number one answer - regardless of the season).

Okay folks - let's hear what you have to say!

WE LOVE OUR CUSTOMERS!

SO much so, in fact, that we have gone out of our way to celebrate you with live music EVERY WEDNESDAY in July! (for those of you non-music lovers, we are happy to celebrate you any other day of the week.)

Just a quick run down of our line up:

July 1st: Terry Robb, along with a Classic Car show on the Equitable Plaza. Courtesy of GO DOWNTOWN.

July 8th: Gary Meziere is back with his buddy Ivy to rev up the plaza with their rollicking good tunes.

July 15th, 22nd & 29th: Jerry, of JT & The Tourists fame, will be performing his wide repertoire of classics, great to sing along with.

Just a reminder that outside seating is first come, first seated - please check in with one of our friendly staff inside before snagging a table.

Just a quick sneak peek at our specials for next month too: LOTS of fresh ingredients: Fresh Mozzarella, Fresh Angel Hair, Fresh LOCAL Berries (could be strawberries, could be raspberries - we're going to take what we can get from our great local farms: Fordyce Farms and Green Villa Farms). Not enough to tempt you yet? How about a FRESH take on our wildly popular (and I mean people get primal when they eat it) Chicken Avocado special...

Be sure to watch for the newest Noodle News in your in box tomorrow morning! (what? you don't get Noodle News? Well you really should sign up - I ALWAYS let our Noodle News subscribers know what's going on before any one else... Visit the website and click on the link for Noodle News at the bottom of the page to sign up!)

Wednesday Night - LIVE MUSIC TONIGHT

OK - I know this is last minute but I just got confirmation that we do have Gary Meziere and his buddy Ivy coming tonight to play for us from 5:30 - 7:30. They're also coming back on July 8th, in case you can't make it tonight.

Next week, Wednesday, July 1st, we have Terry Robb scheduled, courtesy of GO DOWNTOWN, along with a great classic car show on the Equitable Plaza.

Then, for the last three Wednesdays of July we have JT of JT and The Tourists fame playing for us, just him and some great acoustic tunes. Great summer time music for relaxing outside if you ask me!

Come by and check it out!

Live MUSIC!!

We had such a great time earlier this month when we got to celebrate our Grand Opening and 1st Wednesday with Ty Curtis and his harmonica-playing friend Hank that we've decided to do it again!

While we have Go Downtown to thank for our live music on the plaza for First Wednesday (June 3rd), we decided to bring Ty & Hank back for another round of rollicking good times on Wednesday, June 10th.

As for the 3rd - Hold on to your hats folks... We are going to have an amazing trio of musicians on our little plaza: Nathan Olson, Gary Burford, and John Pounds. Nathan is a local keyboard player and John is a bass player and has played with artists such as Elton John and just back from playing with Tom Jones . Gary is a long time Salem favorite and has played with Screaming Jay Hawkins, Etta James, Stevie Ray Vaughn. According to Suzi Bicknell of Go Downtown we can expect everything from Jazz to Blues to some really great Funk! Sounds like a good way to kick off the month to me!

June specials are shaping up nicely - anyone that has been paying attention knows we love to feature locally grown produce and next month will be no exception... (think STRAWBERRIES).

THE SUN!!! It's back!!!

I know it's only here for a few hours, and then the showers are predicted to return - so I'm gonne enjoy as much of the sun as I can. Did you know we have some tables outside? We are offering a first come, first seated approach with these tables... meaning, if you want to sit outside, come in & order at the counter, pay & get your drink - THEN you can snag a table. Since we are only permitting people to sit that have an order IN PROCESS this will hopefully eliminate squatting. Until we know it's busy enough, the outside tables are "limited table service" which means we'll run your food out, but after that, depending on how busy we are inside, you may need to come in and get help from the counter for anything you might need. Thanks for your understanding!

OH, and did I mention the new specials yet? Mmmm MMM. Be sure to check everything out - the Ravioli are always a favorite, and the vegetarian dish has toasted almonds and a spicy kick for a new flavor combo that we really liked.

Any Moms out there? Are you tired of the same old Mother's Day brunch? You know, carved ham, belgian waffles, maybe an omelette station if you're lucky? I'm not knocking the brunch mind you - there are some really great ones out there... but if you long for something different (or hey, maybe you went to brunch, and you manage to get out of cooking for dinner too!) we have 2 seatings available for our special "Mother's Day - Family Style Dinner" at our Broadway location. We will have 2 seatings, 4:30 and 7 pm, and they are limited to the space we have - about 30 per seating. Price is $20.95 for adults, $12.95 for Children (4-10). Dinner will feature antipasto, salad, a few pasta selections as well as roasted chicken and bracciola... Call 503.399.9992 or email janet@willamettenoodle.com for reservations. Due to the limited availability, please be prepared to provide a credit card to hold your reservations.

And the BIGGEST news right now is it's time (finally!) to have our Grand Opening and Chamber Ribbon Cutting!! Next Wednesday, May 6th, at 4:00 pm we'll be welcoming all our friends from the Chamber and the community to come in and celebrate. And, right after those festivities, we are SOOOO lucky to have Ty Curtis and his band performing right outside our doors on the Equitable Center Plaza at 5:00 pm! We couldn't have gotten any luckier. (See? I was SMART to wait this long to have our Grand Opening!) So come down early - we'll be sampling some tasty treats during the open house, and then our outdoor dining will fill up fast I'm sure, as we'll have some daily specials to entice you get a bottle of wine and hang out for a bit. Hope to see you then!

Sneak Peek: April Specials!

Okay, I'm not going to give it all away... but here are some of the ingredients we will be featuring next month:

• Carrots (the Easter Bunny will be happy with our Dessert Special!)
• 2 - count 'em - TWO types of Ravioli for you stuffed pasta fans...
• Spring Leeks
• Avocado - OH... some of you know what this means... A big thank you to Megan P & her colleagues at Holiday Touch for requesting this one.

Keep your eyes peeled for the specials email in your box tomorrow.

Remember you can send in your requests for specials - we do try to feature seasonal ingredients so don't get discouraged if it takes a while for your favorite special to make an appearance.

HOW is it possible...

That the Red Lion Hotel on Market Street is placing third for "Best Wedding Location" over beautiful local venues like wineries and other parks and locations? The fact that Willamette Valley Grill - a part of the Red Lion property is placing in so many categories - even those that it doesn't really qualify in - suggests that this voting once a day, as many times as you care to, is only going to show how many computers and employees you have under your control.
I'd like to believe that this process has some semblance of what Salem residents really think... but I'm starting to resent having to beg people to vote more than once to keep the playing field somewhat level.
Oh well, off to the next dilemma... because as a wise colleague pointed out - Does anyone really believe that that chain restaurant out on Lancaster is "real Italian"?
So, just in case you feel the urge to go in and vote everyday, please help out some of our friends:

• Willaby's Catering (under Professional Services)
• Coldstone Creamery (LOCALLY owned and operated, even though it's a franchise)
• Grand Vines - Best Place to Buy Wine, also under Entertainment - Best Place to Taste Wine
• Word of Mouth Neighborhood Bistro - great people serving great food :)
• Venti's Cafe - cool bar, great expanded menu (try the Honey Pepper Pork!)
• Caruso's - SO GLAD they are leading in Italian! We wouldn't begrudge them winning this category at ALL!

I'm sure there are many more quality, locally owned places that I'm missing, but these are some of our favorites! Feel free to comment and share your favorites too - wouldn't it be cool if locally owned places could place over corporate chains?