Picture this: you walk up to a door, descend the stairs, and burst into an underground world of glam. Velvety booths wrapped in red trim, an animal-print carpet underneath marble tables, sepia chandeliers, and black-and-white striped wallpaper featuring the namesake animal of this place: Lucky Cheetah. Were Nick Carraway to enter the scene, he would think he had been dropped in the center of a Gatsby extravaganza.
This scene, however, is no Gatsby party, but Portland’s newest dim sum restaurant. Co-founded by Jared Dinsmore and Wills Dowd, Lucky Cheetah follows the success of their first endeavor, Bird & Co.
But this is not your typical dim sum restaurant in terms of menu or decor. While it was important to Jared and Wills to include the staple dishes that make dim sum, dim sum, their creative spirits cultivated a menu full of surprises and outside influences. Try the Mojo Baby Corn in a mango habanera sauce for a Mexican-inspired twist. The Littleneck Lo Mein pulls flavor profiles from Maine, France, and China. Another must-try are their cocktails, expertly crafted by Bar Manager, Ben Bozeman. The Lucky Martini is not your average restaurant’s martini, but a sesame fat washed martini topped with caviar olives.
Interior designer Susie Smith Coughlin was brought onto this project by Wills and Jared because they admired her work at East Bayside’s hard seltzer bar, Après (also featured on the cover of our 2021 Year in Design Issue!). “Where the design started and where it ended is worlds apart,” says Susie. The Victorian era was the inspiration for the design, but it quickly morphed into a mishmash of eras and influences—much like the restaurant’s menu. The vision for the space was sultry and sexy, but the initial paprika and green color palette wasn’t quite hard-hitting enough to pull off the effect.
“When I came across a Schumacher floral print velvet fabric,” says Susie, “the design exploded. I knew that we should scrap the original design and opt for a new one that embraces maximalism.” To pair with the Schumacher fabric, she found House of Hackney Wallpaper, dark carpet, and moody lighting to fulfill the desired effect.
The design was so complex and risky that Susie didn’t want to present digital renderings to Wills and Jared. Instead, she employed an artist to create watercolors of her vision. “I think if I were to have put what was in my head in a digital rendering,” she laughs, “they would have said no way. The watercolors brought the idea to life, with its colors and shapes being such a fluid concept.”
So, run–don’t walk–to Lucky Cheetah to sip on a deliciously mixed cocktail, taste the Lobster & Black Garlic Pan Fried Dumplings, and soak in Susie’s wonderful world of design created in the heart of a Portland basement.
