Restaurant Guide 2006

Three Square Grill serves bistro food, alternating both Northwest and Southern accents. The simple decor�small tables, white paper�and attentive staff makes it easy to focus on the food. The salads bear little resemblance to the uniform fare of most good restaurants: mixed greens, stinky cheese, protein. Instead, they throw in such rebellious choices as pickled vegetables and fresh herbs. A recent fusilli with duck confit paired rich, smoky duck meat with the perfect, if unexpected, foil of a light and tangy tomato sauce. The salmon hash, one example of the grill's obsession with the meal-in-a-bowl, was hearty, loaded with flavorful fish and supple potatoes. The grill luxuriates in simple perfections: Its mashed potatoes go down like whipping cream, and the collard greens don't taste like they were made in Oregon. (AV)