A month after Naomi Pomeroy’s unexpected death, restaurateur Luke Dirks will open, in pop-up form, the project that was supposed to be Pomeroy’s exciting return to full-service restaurants. Instead, it became the final project of a life filled with next acts.

The people who knew and loved Pomeroy are nowhere near done grieving this shocking loss. However, Dirks, known for high-profile projects like Ava Gene’s and Tusk, found himself at a particularly fraught crossroads as he mourned his longtime friend. He and Pomeroy were planning a bistro called L’Échelle in the former Woodsman Tavern space at 4537 SE Division St.

The team behind this project obviously needed time for their own feelings. "We all gave ourselves permission to have two weeks of not even thinking about anything business related," says Dirks. Then they gathered together to discuss "what we could do, what we wanted to do, what we thought Naomi would want us to do."

The prix fixe Garden Party dinners Pomeroy was hosting in this space were so personal to her. It didn't make sense to continue them. The group landed on a more casual "backyard bistro pop-up" idea and secured her family's approval.

 This outdoor iteration of L’Échelle will keep things very casual—no reservations, open seating, and a small menu of food and wine. It opens for dinner today, August 15.

The food will be a simpler proto-version of what you can expect when L’Échelle opens next year, says Dirks. The permanent menu will be a mix of bistro classics and updated versions of familiar French dishes.

The team running things is the same group putting together the brick-and-mortar L’Échelle. Executive chef Matt Mayer comes from Heavenly Creatures and cooked at Ripe, Pomeroy’s ambitious former market-bistro. Manager Ben Bryant was previously at Bar Norman and Tusk; wine director Michael Garofola's resume includes Beast (not to mention plenty of other local spots); he also makes wine under the label Cutter Cascadia.

The name L’Échelle is a French-translated tribute to Prince’s song "The Ladder," a slow-groove meditation on spiritual journeys, our quest for enlightenment, and how to climb our way to salvation. It had deep personal significance for Pomeroy, a devout Prince fan, Dirks said in an email statement. These words, of course, carry even more meaning in hindsight.

The pop-up will be open Thursday through Saturday, 4–9pm, for the remainder of 2024. (Find it through the double doors next to the original Stumptown.)