Fishwife

• Restaurant website
• Location: North Portland (Portsmouth) almost to St. Johns
• Price to fill up two people: $40-$50

If you’re a glassist or ceramicist in Portland, you’ve probably been to Harbor Freight and Georgie’s, right? If you just keep heading down that road (Lombard), almost to St. Johns, you’ll drive by (and probably miss) the Fishwife. That’s a shame, because they run a real fish house.

Real fish houses like Fishwife, if you can find them, are generally hole-in-the-wall storefronts with peeling paint on the outside and a lot of anchors, boat pictures and fishhooks–sometimes even the fish–on the walls. The kitchen’s out where everyone can see your fish being cooked, and from the plastic tablecloths and cups to the creaky ceiling fan overhead, there is absolutely no pretense to fancy dining. 

What there is, though, is good fish fixed by people who know how. I’m not sure I’d put Fishwife in the same class as a couple of New Orleans shrimp houses I could mention, or that little lobster place in Gloucester or the OH Townhouse in Eureka or…  But it’s still pretty flippin’ good.

There was fresh halibut and fresh Dungeness crab as well, the latter served cold (a pity, because my mouth was watering at the thought of fresh-steamed crab, butter and lime juice, but hey). They had wild Alaskan salmon, although, as the waitress solemnly said, “This season NOBODY can get much fresh salmon,” and so it was flash-frozen, not fresh. But the whole menu looked pretty good.

I had the fresh Tombo tuna, lightly seared with a mushroom polenta, served with a blanched, marinated fennel salad, one of the night’s specials. I was served a cube of tuna about 3-4 inches on a side, seared and sealed on the outside and pink on the inside. The outer tuna was just a tad dry but still very good. The polenta was delicious. 

Service was fast and friendly. Don’t go there for the ambiance, but definitely show up for the fish.

Tip: Parking’s a bit of a problem. I’m not sure if you’re *supposed* to park in the lot with the Baskin-Robbins next door, but nobody towed me away, so try there if all else fails.