RingSide, Portland’s Oldest Steakhouse, Is Closed After a Kitchen Fire

RingSide Steakhouse, one of Portland’s oldest and most celebrated restaurants, is closed for the time being after a fire broke out in the kitchen on the afternoon of Saturday, April 5.

The Oregonian reported over the weekend that fire crews responded to reports of a fire around 2:20 p.m.:

“According to fire officials,” the paper wrote, “crews arrived to find smoke coming from the historic steakhouse. Once inside, firefighters found smoke in the dining room and a fire near the stove in the restaurant’s kitchen. The flames were put out by 3 p.m.”

No one was injured in the fire, and RingSide’s told the Oregonian through a spokesperson that “the team is not available for interviews regarding the incident and is not ready to talk about it.” But the damage from either the fire or the smoke was significant enough that the restaurant remains closed for the time being “while we work through repairs and restoration,” RingSide management wrote on Instagram. “We are heartbroken, but above all, we’re grateful that everyone is safe.”

RingSide has been Portland’s quintessential steakhouse for decades. Originally an Italian restaurant, it was bought by Allan and Marguerite Delepine in 1944 and has been in the family ever since; it’s currently owned by Craig and Scott Peterson, the Delepines’ grandsons. Beyond its steaks, RingSide is famous for its tuxedo’d servers and its onion rings, which James Beard himself said were “the best I’ve ever had.”

In 1979, RingSide opened a second location next to the Glendoveer Golf and Tennis club, but that restaurant shut down in 2017. The original RingSide remains one of the most popular dining destinations in the city. How popular? When RingSide had a frozen steak sale during the 2020 pandemic lockdown, it caused a mile-long traffic jam.

We’ll have more on RingSide when it’s clear what the timetable for its return will be.