Amanda Cannon, co-owner of SE Ankeny’s Normandie, is set to open a new Italian-American restaurant called Sunday Sauce on October 23.
The idea for Sunday Sauce emerged after she lost her mother earlier in 2024.
Cannon, who was pregnant at the time, found solace in cooking traditional dishes from her childhood, specifically the Italian-American fare she enjoyed growing up in Hoboken, New Jersey.
This inspired the recent Sunday Sauce event at Normandie, showcasing comforting meals like meatballs, eggplant parmesan, and classic pasta dishes that filled the restaurant with the aroma of braised meats in marinara sauce.
Feedback from the event was overwhelmingly positive, often with customers claiming the eggplant parmesan and marinara were the best they had ever tasted.
Due to the high demand for more of these dishes, Cannon decided to transform this temporary event into a permanent establishment on N Killingsworth.
For Cannon, Sunday Sauce represents personal significance and a chance to share the comfort foods of her youth with her children and the broader community.
She envisions the restaurant as a welcoming place for various gatherings, from family dinners to solo meals, allowing guests to enjoy a warm atmosphere while indulging in nostalgic favorites.
To help realize this vision, Cannon is collaborating with Isaiah Brown, Normandie’s chef with experience at renowned restaurants like Hale Pele, Flying Fish, and Seattle’s Canlis.
The menu at Sunday Sauce carries over beloved items from the pop-up event.
It highlights the signature “Sunday sauce,” typically made with available meats, often featuring pork butt and short ribs served over rigatoni.
Familiar dishes reminiscent of New Jersey red sauce joints will grace the menu, including eggplant and chicken parmesan topped with fresh mozzarella, beef and pork meatballs, lobster ravioli in rich pink sauce, and orecchiette with sausage and broccoli rabe.
As a nod to local flavors, one of the fun offerings includes disco fries, which are prepared with a marsala and mushroom gravy rather than traditional brown gravy.
Cannon’s Portland connection shines through with personalized touches from her husband, Judson Winquist.
He has contributed his own version of cheesy garlic bread to the menu, humorously noting his one-eighth Italian heritage.
Behind the bar, Winquist and bar manager Anna Moss have crafted a cocktail menu inspired by 1990s nostalgia.
This playful drink list features Shirley Temples made with cherry vodka, peach vodka cosmopolitans infused with oregano tincture, and vodka martinis fat-washed with sour cream for a unique twist on a classic.
The festive spirit extends to the decor of Sunday Sauce as well.
Cannon describes the aesthetic as “Pizza Hut chic,” featuring terra-cotta pink walls and dark red booths draped in checkered tablecloths.
The seating set-up, reminiscent of what old Italian men might have used for card games or smoking, adds to the welcoming atmosphere of the restaurant.
Cannon envisions Sunday Sauce as a postmodern interpretation of East Coast trattorias, aiming to provide a comfortable and visually appealing dining experience.
As the opening date draws closer, excitement builds within the local community for this new chapter in Cannon’s culinary journey.
image source from：pdxmonthly
