Behind the counter, that neglect is echoed and amplified, and it’s not just the lack of a pleasant salutation when you arrive. But apart from décor, the restaurant seems to have shed most of its chipperness.Īlong the counter where staff assemble dishes from prepped ingredients, toppled stacks of black melamine bowls create a chaotic atmosphere, while the hundreds of faded, now barely discernible pink-toned Polaroids of customers along the opposite wall make the space feel forgotten.

More than three years on, Mainely Noods, with its larger-than-life, multicolored chalk menu and loping strip of bright LED lighting overhead, remains aesthetically upbeat. I was genuinely buoyed by the restaurant’s success. Sometimes, I’d even feel hopeful about the future of dining out when I peeked inside, especially as I began to see diners return indoors for meals, snagging seats along the wall-to-wall banquette, mostly around lunchtime. Every time I’d walk past this stretch of Congress Street back then, I’d catch sight of Mainely Noods’ cheerful staff and the Day-Glo neon ramen bowl flickering inside, and my brain would squirt out a little extra dose of dopamine. Starting life in early 2020 as Noodle Love before a New York restaurateur objected to co-owner Li Yang’s use of the same name, this colorful, well-lighted shop has a tremendous amount of curb appeal.Īt the start of its run, the business seemed uniquely well positioned to ride out the pandemic with its menu of easily transportable, pan-Asian noodle bowls. Over the span of a few days this month, I had both experiences at Mainely Noods, a fast-casual Portland noodle bar.

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