What is Ruddick/Wood?
Ruddick/Wood is a new casual restaurant and tavern set to open late summer of 2013. Ruddick/Wood will serve locally focused, seasonal, new-American fare alongside craft beer, wine and cocktails in a renovated 1920s garage in downtown Newberg, Oregon. Think dinners of wood-fired steaks, burgers and flatbreads; vegetable sides; house-made desserts; and rotating snacks all changing with the season. Think of classic cocktails; small-batch spirits; craft breweries; and lesser-known wineries. These are the things that will make Ruddick/Wood what it is. The project is headed by working owners, Kyle Lattimer and Paul Losch, who bring with them nearly thirty years of combined experience in the restaurant world.
After a chance encounter, several drinks and many discussions, we decided in early 2013 to work together to open a restaurant and bar. Since then we have been working tirelessly to develop our concept and bring it to fruition in downtown Newberg.
Ruddick/Wood has been built around the idea of country kitchens, roadhouses, saloons and way-points; and reflects our love for local food and drink, as well as our desire to create a place that will become part of the community fabric. We have spent countless hours working together and with friends, contractors and designers to do everything from brand development and designing the space, to demolition and construction of the building. We have committed our life savings and months of effort to this project. Removing and refinishing the old ceiling in the restaurant and refinishing the tavern ceiling; grinding the concrete floors; digging trench; pouring concrete; constructing framing and supports; and building the bar are just some of the projects we have taken on. Before all is said and done, we will be able to add painting and paneling walls; refinishing floors; tiling bathrooms and finish carpentry to the list. This is a true labor of love, and after eight months of pushing through numerous delays and challenges we are seeking help from you to complete our goal.
Use of Funds & Our Rewards
We have our space, we have our large equipment and the majority of our construction completed, but where we need help is in the finishing touches. We will use the funds we raise on glassware and china; seats and bar-stools; kitchen smallwares and small equipment; light fixtures; wood and paint for the wall finishes; wood and copper for finishing the bars; the fireplace; starting inventory from farmers, wineries and local distributors; bathroom fixtures and finishes; and finish carpentry and floor finishes. With your help we can complete our goal of serving thoughtfully sourced and prepared, approachable and affordable food and drink to the community in downtown Newberg.
Thank you for taking the time to learn about us and Ruddick/Wood and contributing to our project, we look forward to seeing you here in the near future. Don't forget to share our story with your friends!
Continue reading below to learn more about our history and the space in detail, as well as to see some additional video from friends in the community.
Stretch Goals
$25,000
If we reach this mark, we will each dress in an 1880s period costume for one day of service.
$30,000
At this point, we will take on a project slated for down the road: the commission of a large mural on the Edwards Street side of our building. We will add the names of each of our backers to this mural, as well.
$35,000
If we are lucky enough to achieve this level of support we will shut down R/W for a weekend night and host a community party with food, drinks and music, open to all of our supporters.
Ruddick/Wood, The Space
The front half of R/W is the restaurant where we will serve lunch and dinner, as well as a weekend brunch. The space is built around an open kitchen with a small chef's counter that overlooks the service kitchen and our custom brick, wood burning grill. The room will feature warm woods, a pellet stove, ample natural light in the day, and comfortable lighting at night, all creating a casual and comfortable environment. We have exposed the original trussing and ceiling to create a warm and rustic space that is as suited to a date night dinner as it is to a casual night out with friends or a quick lunch during the workday. Lunch will be ordered at the front counter, with the option of a quick dine-in or take-away experience.
The rear half of Ruddick/Wood will simply be known as R/W Tavern. The tavern will be the slightly less refined sibling to the restaurant, built around a copper bar and high-table constructed from timbers we found in the space. The tavern will serve craft cocktails, rotating beers and wines in a comfortable atmosphere, alongside a tavern food menu. There will be ample booth seating for those who want a little more privacy than the bar or high-table will offer. Found off of the tavern will be our private dining room with a large, vintage warehouse table with seating for up to 12. High shelving and a rolling barn door will separate those within the room from the bustle of the tavern.
Who we are
Kyle
While growing up in Ohio, Kyle began visiting Oregon on vacations to see family in Salem. Falling in love with the state on those trips, after finishing school and working as a wine rep in his home state, Kyle moved to Oregon in 2009. Drawn to the Yamhill County area Kyle began working at Jory in The Allison Inn and in the Chehalem Winery tasting room shortly after arriving. In 2011 Kyle decided to open his own food cart, Uprooted, in the Chehalem parking lot, serving locally sourced lunch fare to downtown diners. The cart gave Kyle a ground-level view of an evolving downtown Newberg. The Highway 99 bypass finally coming to reality and the city's focus on a revitalized downtown, combined with the support and following that Kyle gained at Uprooted led him to pursue his dream of opening a restaurant in 2012. Kyle went after this goal by selling the cart and taking the lease on a 1921 auto garage at 720 E First St in downtown Newberg.
Paul
A desire to be closer to the source of his food and nature brought Paul to Oregon in 2008 after spending time in New York, Colorado and London. Raised in rural Pennsylvania, Paul has been working in food-service since the age of 13, starting in a snack bar his family ran at Shawnee State Park in the summers. Arriving in Oregon, Paul began working at a small organic grocer in Portland, as well as as the sous-chef at Vino Paradiso, both introducing him to the local food and wine communities. After three years at Vino Paradiso Paul took a head-chef's position at DOC restaurant where he continued building relationships with the local agricultural communities. With a long-stewing desire to open his own restaurant that reminded him of the places he ate while growing up, and a new-found love of the Willamette Valley, in 2012 Paul began solidifying plans to open a place in the Newberg area.
Local Support
We have been extremely lucky to receive amazing feedback and support from the community and managed to capture a few of these folks on camera to tell us in their own words how they feel about Newberg and Ruddick/Wood. Take a look at these short videos to get a look at what's been keeping us going for the past 8 months.
Special Thanks to...
Video production: Matt Hayes, Claudia Meza & Brandon Viney
Music: Claudia Meza
Photographs: Dina Avila, Amaren Colosi & Lauren Wylie
Daniel Strong; James DeBortoli; the City of Newberg; Chapter's, Coffee Cat and Coffee Cottage for keeping us moving; our contractors; Carter Case; Reid Rental; and especially our friends and families.
Media
Both of our work in Oregon has been well received and noticed by not only the local communities, but we have also been lucky to have received positive feedback from local print media and online sources. You can read more:
Ruddick/Wood in the news
http://www.newbergdowntown.org/history/newberg-downtown-vision-by-ruddick-wood-forwarded/
Online love for Uprooted
http://em-i-lis.com/wordpress/cooking-eating/food-truck-love-in-newberg/
DOC Coverage
http://wweek.com/portland/article-18078-restaurant-guide-2011-listing-a-z.html#doc
http://wweek.com/portland/article-18084-restaurant-guide-2011-ninja-veg.html
http://www.oregonlive.com/diner-2012/index.ssf/2012/06/doc.html
Vino Paradiso in The Oregonian
http://www.oregonlive.com/dining/index.ssf/2011/02/wine_bars.html
Risks and challenges
As with any new business we will face challenges.
Prior to opening the doors, there is still time for construction delays and set-backs in inspections. By hiring competent contractors and keeping a watchful eye on them and the process we are able to minimize these setbacks. If we do encounter problems in this process, we address them immediately and with a clear direction to get them solved as quickly as possible.
Once we open, the need to serve consistently good food and drink is probably the biggest challenge that faces a new restaurant and we will meet this challenge with the skills gained through our experience in the industry, as well as devoting time and energy to hiring and training our staff properly. We will also put the effort into testing recipes and working out kinks in the system prior to opening, and predicting problems before they arise to ensure our guests receive the best experience possible.
There is also a seasonal lull that restaurants in the Willamette Valley experience. We plan on focusing our attention and efforts on the locals to minimize the effects of this seasonal trend. By keeping our prices low and our quality high we aim to be the go-to spot in an evolving downtown Newberg. Our connections to the local agricultural and food communities will also drive business our direction year-round.
Perhaps our biggest challenge will be keeping our chins up after long days and nights and through the unknowns of a new restaurant. We will overcome these moments with the support of our friends and families and with the knowledge that so many former strangers stepped up to make our dreams a reality.
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Funding period
- (28 days)