Skip to main contentThis bare, high-ceilinged gastropub in the new Ace Hotel, just off West Burnside Street, is filled from happy hour to closing with a stylish crowd downing creative cocktails and munchies like deep-fried, blue-cheese-stuffed green olives. Expect an uncommonly warm welcome and—about 75 percent of the time—uncommonly good food, like charred hanger steak with a jolt of the North African red-pepper relish harissa , or white-fleshed whole fish (could be dorade, could be branzino) with Mediterranean-inflected sides like preserved lemons—great fun for any diner who isn't scared off by a few bones, fins and eyes. Chef Jason Barwikowski's clever menu is studded with who'da-thunk-it dishes like confit of lamb heart or a version of the Québécois comfort food poutine that adds foie gras to the standard fries, cheese curds and gravy. Even wallflower veggies like cauliflower turn sexy when they're caramelized to a savory brown. It's nice to have another downtown lunch option, but the daytime menu needs more pizzazz and better execution. (HY)
Signature dish: Beef tongue with seared scallop, beets and tomato jam, a new take on the surf-and-turf.
Standouts: Chicken-fried chicken livers, a far bigger inspiration than just the pun; whatever's on tonight's "fishboard" or "meatboard"; chocolate pots de crème .
Regrets: The uncomfortable communal tables should be reduced to kindling.
WWeek 2015