Ava Gene’s to Convert Into a Market With Walk-Up Window

Shipshape Goods will eventually offer outdoor seating.

(Henry Cromett)
By Andi Prewitt

Ava Gene's is gone.

Don't worry—it's not permanent. It's not even quite a closure. It is, however, a change in format. In its place, owner and chef Joshua McFadden is converting the vegetable-focused Italian restaurant into a market with a walk-up window and giving it a new, temporary name: Shipshape Goods.

Since mid-March, a skeleton crew of workers has been offering everything from meal kits to pantry items for pickup in the eatery's parking lot. The online ordering platform has proven so popular during the past two months that McFadden's Submarine Hospitality has decided to convert the façade into a market, complete with walk-up window. It opens for takeout beginning Tuesday, June 2.

Beyond the structural changes, the menu is also undergoing alterations. Shipshape Goods will offer a slew of seafood sandwiches that include centerpieces like king salmon, crispy shrimp and albacore tuna. Other offerings nod toward the approaching summer weather: popsicles, housemade ice cream sandwiches, soft-serve and beer.

Mediterranean items from Tusk that had previously been available through Ava Gene's platform will soon be sold out of Tusk's own takeout program, which launches later in June.

For guests who'd rather linger outside and dine rather than retreat to the monotony of their homes, Shipshape will open seating in its parking lot once Multnomah County is approved for Phase 1 of Gov. Kate Brown's reopening plan. Tables will be spaced apart from each other the recommended 6 feet or more.

Related: Joshua McFadden Opened a New Pizza Restaurant in the Middle of a Pandemic. Thank Goodness.

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