, the much-lauded stove-side creative dynamo at

will open his second restaurant, Little Bird, later this year.

Little Bird will land on Southwest Sixth Avenue between Oak and Pine Streets across from the U.S. Bancorp building in long-vacant space owned by Downtown Development Company, an arm of the parking lot-owning Goodman family. The new location will be co-owned by Rucker and

's front-of-the-house and business manager, Andy Fortgang.

Le Pigeon,

, is known for French-focused dishes often involving offal and other off cuts of meat and delivering layers of complex, intense flavors. Beef cheek bourguignon and a pig tail soup spring to mind. While Little Bird will also have its heart in France, it will focus on simple bistro meals, inevitably with the kinds of imaginative twists that have earned Rucker

national

for last three years running. Rucker, a northern California native, will draw inspiration from his favorite restaurant,

, in Yountville, Calif., which he characterizes as "homey, simple and classic."

Though Rucker will be the culinary force overseeing Little Bird, the chef de cuisine charged with running the show day-to-day will be Le Pigeon's even-keeled, long-time second-in-command, Erik Van Kley. Rucker and Van Kley have been busy developing the Little Bird menu, and Rucker expects that collaborative effort to continue. "We work so well together that we don't want to lose that," Rucker says.

The menu is still a work-in-process, but diners should expect minimal overlap between the two restaurants. The exception, Fortgang says, is that "the Le Pigeon burger will be available at Little Bird without any limitations." For those in search of something to sip with their meal, Little Bird will have a full bar serving classic cocktails and will offer a wine list of predominantly French provenance with a nod to Oregon.

Second restaurants can be difficult for even successful operators, but Rucker says, "After four years doing Le Pigeon with mostly the same crew, we were ready to do something a little different and I wanted to reward my longtime employees."

The idea behind Little Bird, according to Fortgang, is to provide Portlanders with an eatery that is "bigger and simpler than Le Pigeon, with longer hours and lower prices." Rucker echoes the sentiment, saying that he intends Little Bird to be "more accessible" to a broader segment of diners. The current plan is for service from the lunch hour through late night seven days a week.

Though the opening is not expected until sometime in early winter, Mark Annen of

-- whose food service portfolio includes layouts for

, and the

restaurants -- has already sketched out a 50-seat space, 10 at the bar and the balance at tables. Fortgang says Little Bird plans to accommodate both reservations and walk-ins.

Mark Goodman, one of Downtown Development's principals and a food enthusiast in his own right, says he "couldn't be more thrilled" to provide a roost for Little Bird "given Rucker' s cooking skills and huge following."

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