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[CIRCLE THE WAGONS] An ox is the cow you don't eat. But let's be clear: That isn't Ox's game. Ox will serve you a 36-ounce chimichurri ribeye ($78) just because it can. Ox will dunk a shank's worth of marrow in your clam chowder ($13), seemingly to induce some sort of eye-rolling umami coma. Your terrine comes fried, or it comes as foie gras. Ox—along with neighbors Toro Bravo and Russell Street Barbecue—seems almost like an argument for a way of life: Richness is all. It is a brawnily countervailing vision of Portland to the vintage-bicycle nexus of Ned Ludd, Kinfolk and Beech Street Parlor just a half-mile up the road. And yet, Ox's sidebars and appetizers are often more appealing than the grate of grilled meat that fires through the middle of the menu. Try, for example, a cauliflower-peanut side spiced with raisin and mint ($10 half/ $18 full), or a lamb heart dish that focuses on the flavor of caper and charred leek and the texture of panzanella bread ($11). A Scotch-amaro-smoke-syrup Cowboy Killer cocktail ($12) is more subtle in its smoky pleasures than much of the meat. But whatever you do, bring a lot of friends or be ready to make a full evening of it: The restaurant does not take reservations for parties fewer than six, and wait times can extend to multiple hours. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.
Make friends with the fine folk at Billy Ray's Dive, unless you want to spend $50 at the antiseptic Whey before your meal begins—downing $3.75 oysters and availing yourself of the excellent $12 cocktail list.
The Directory: Our 100 Favorite Restaurants in Portland
By Neighborhood: Southeast | North/Northeast | Westside | Suburbs
2014 Restaurant of the Year: Kachka
Top Five: Old Salt, Ataula, American Local, Expatriate
Counter Service Spots: Latin | Asian | Italian | Sandwiches | Burgers
Wine Bars | Beer Lists | Veg-Friendly | Gluten-free | Elsewhere in Oregon
WWeek 2015