Gather round the hearth
Enjoy farm-fresh feasting at Hearth & Table in Lincoln City
By Naima Baker
For the TODAY
Grab a slice of the action at Hearth and Table in Lincoln City, where the fire is hot and the pizza is fire.
From the first breath of fresh bread wafting in the warm air to the last mouthwatering morsel, you will be enraptured with the active ambiance and cultivated cuisine. Take a chair at a table or even better the bar, because at this restaurant you not only taste decadence but see its creation.
A well-oiled machine worked to create the massive Forno Bravo wood oven, shipped in six 300-pound pieces. The restaurant team assembled and plastered it into a pleasant centralized dome in the open kitchen. It really puts the heart into Hearth and Table.
Enthusiasts and entrepreneurs Danelle and Ethan Granberg share their passion for baking, but besides being talented chefs and gracious hosts, these pizzeria employees are skilled at the art of fire tending.
"At any given time, we have six to nine cords of wood of different sized pieces,” said Danelle, a self-taught chef. “If the wood is chopped too big, the fire cools too fast, too small and it burns too hot. So, when you come here for dinner you get a kind of show.”
In addition to the balancing act of feeding the fire, you may see some jigging behind the counter as Ethan, an experienced and classically trained chef, adds a few physical flourishes to his expert plating or salad making, adding joy to every recipe, an invisible yet crucial ingredient.
You might also spy Bear Jackson, the long-time talent behind the variety of artisanal pizzas that emerge from the oven.
Wood is not the only thing that they need loads of.
“It's amazing how much citrus and herbs we go through,” Danelle said. “We love to add a fresh element to everything. We pick out local fresh vegetables and ingredients, so we can have a weekly specials menu, with dishes like beet and Cara Cara orange salad with mozzarella and mint, or baked cauliflower with tahini."
Dedication to the invigoration added by crisp produce shows up in every dish and drink. Cocktails include the lightly green elderflower gimlet, featuring a classic lime round, a sprig of rosemary floating atop a perfect pear and a zesty lemon wedge.
The herbal accoutrements continue in the sides and main courses. Fresh-chopped garlic melds with the buttery melt-in-your-mouth shrimp, sprinkled with vivid green parsley. It comes with focaccia made from dough fermented for flavor and with the right ratio of crispy surface and fluffy center to sop up all the sauce. Crispy chicory and romaine lettuce make the base for an authentic Caesar salad. Instead of the challenging chew of dry bread cubes, this lively green bed is topped with crispy crumbles of crust, mixed with a light, tangy cheese dressing and complete with anchovy on the side. The margarita pizza is especially elegant, enhanced when hot from the oven with raw basil leaves, local olive oil and crunchy sea salt.
To top it all off with a taste of sweetness, all the desserts are made in house and many are gluten-free, including the pleasantly puffy tiramisu, ganache tart and almond cake. There are no bad choices on this seasoned menu. From the burrata with prosciutto to the lamb kofta, you cannot go wrong here, making multiple visits a must.
With its successful spread, it is no wonder Hearth and Table is expanding.
Located on the ground floor of the historic La Escallona building, they are now adding a waiting area in a neighboring space. Choose from a creative list of cocktails, wine and non-alcoholic beverages and lounge on comfy couches, drink in hand. Be warmed while you wait by a fireplace and enjoy a mantle of decorative pomegranates, vibrant red symbols of abundance.
Due to high demand, it is drop-in only here from 3 to 8 pm, Wednesday through Saturday, but you can shop while you sip as you sort through a selection of snacks, kitchen items and ingredients to recreate your own culinary experience, like authentic olive oil and exotic beans absent from most grocery stores, including the thick and brightly colored scarlet runner bean and the aptly named corona giant bean.
The restaurant has something for the whole family, which the McNichols attested to.
"We come here all the time and everything is so good," said Tim and Kailey, parents of Rune, aged three, who personally approved the "ice, pizza and bread."
"This is the most rewarding job," Danelle said. “It feels very alive. Seeing the folks who are really enjoying the food and being part of the community. It’s lovely.”
Though the perfected portions at the Hearth and Table are generous and the food is filling, the moment your foot leaves the door, you will already be daydreaming about more.
Hearth and Table is located at 304 SE Hwy. 101 in Lincoln City and is open Wednesday through Saturday from 3 to 8 pm, with happy hour specials from 3 pm to 5 pm. For more information, go to hearthandtablelc.com.