Skip to main contentOlea
1338 NW Hoyt St., 274-0800. Dinner nightly. $$$ Expensive.
Olea has garnered a large following by squeezing two dining experiences into one space: Pearl-dwellers come to the comfortable bar to sip lemon-rosemary vodka martinis and nibble on hummus, pencil-thin pommes frites, and brick-oven pizzas topped with the familiar (salami) and the not so familiar (quail egg); those out on the town sit in the grand yet soothing dining room to be wowed by inventive, Mediterranean-informed cuisine. Roasted striped sea bass freed from its salt crust tableside and Andy Warhol-esque compositions of seared scallops with Technicolor sauces provide meals that stimulate the mind, eyes and palate. Not every dish knocks it out of the park, but they're all interesting, no matter what you're looking for. (IM)
Signature dish: Duck done two or more "ways": seared rare breast, duck tortellini and confit.
Standouts: Hearty pastas, like orecchiette with dark-as-night ox tail ragout or fontina ravioli with crisp veal breast in onion broth.
Regrets: The organization of the menu into vague categories like "vegetables," "shellfish/fin fish" and "snacks/primi" makes it difficult to construct a full meal without asking lots of questions of the harried servers.
Paley's Place
1204 NW 21st Ave., 243-2403. Dinner nightly. $$$ Expensive.
All too often Portlanders looking for a fine dining experience are forced to choose between stunning dishes served in derelict warehouses and glitzy dining rooms with menus of creamed spinach and rubbery ravioli. For the last 11 years, Kimberly and Vitaly Paley have eschewed spectacle in favor of a balanced approach, serving up excellent renditions of traditional French and American dishes in their elegantly remodeled Victorian. The unpretentious dining room emphasizes comfort with warm lighting and spacious tables, the cocktail list favors tasteful brevity over flashy exoticism, and every item on the menu, from the gazpacho right through to the cheese list, is harmoniously and thoughtfully chosen. Paley's refusal to group its dishes into the three-course French model allows for flexible dining: ambitious eaters could start with the escargot with roast marrow bones, squeeze in a baby romaine salad, and climax with a whole pheasant in sage butter or mustard-grilled rabbit leg with ratatouille. On a budget? Grab a half-order of crab-and-corn risotto and add a few sides—sweet beets with hazelnuts and honey mustard; crushed potatoes with olives and basil; sauteed string beans in Caesar dressing—for a fine meal at a third of the price. However you arrange your meal, save room for pastry chef Wednesday Wild-Wilson's lethally rich desserts. (BW)
Signature Dish: The Mizuna salad with unbelievably flavorful smoked feta, prosciutto and grilled peaches.
Standouts: Refreshingly unobnoxious staff; the cookie plate is much more than pile of coffee-dippers.
Regrets: The impressive wine list has little to offer diners without stock portfolios.
Pambiche
Pambiche
2811 NE Glisan St., 233-0511. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Moderate.
Pambiche is one of those restaurants that inspire culinary ESP: Even before the first bite, you just know this food will make the tummy sing. Even the building's exterior, painted in Miami-bright pinks and greens, hints at the hardcore Cuban flavor you'll find inside. The menu is extensive, offering a full spectrum of traditional dishes and pastries from Castro's country. Pambiche serves up picadillo empanadas and Cuban sandwiches with equal gusto, and the cramped quarters are simply brimming with zesty Latin American energy. Clearly, authenticity is important here: with Jufran Banana Sauce at every table, Pambiche is bona-fide Cuba. (LS)
Signature dish: It's hard to beat the Cubano! Roast pork, smoked ham, Swiss cheese and pickles on a fresh roll.
standouts: The empanadas dulces (or pastelitos)—a pastry with fruit filling.
Regrets: Cramped, sweaty quarters. You'll feel like a packed sardine surrounded by patrons in Tommy Bahama outfits.
Park Kitchen
422 NW 8th Ave., 223-7275. Lunch Monday-Friday, dinner Monday-Saturday. $$$ Expensive.
For diners whose heads turn with the season, a chef's persona, an impressive room and food with flash are what make a restaurant great. Park Kitchen displays none of these, and is the greater for it. Chef Scott Dolich and chef de cuisine David Padberg are interested only in food. The menu changes weekly and according to the vicissitudes of the market: in summer, gnocchi with fresh corn so sweet it tastes nearly of caramel; duck with drunken figs; lamb with three garden nightshades. Freshly marinated anchovies are tender as babies' toes, and tempura-fried green beans with tarragon aioli includes strips of battered bacon, a taste so unexpected and delightful it prompts laughter and wonder. Nothing on the menu is what one expects, from the homemade tonic in the gin and tonics to pastry chef Tara Tulley's desserts: cucumber-lime ice with fennel snaps, sopapillas with honey semifreddo and melon. Park Kitchen's true grace note, however, may be that it leaves diners spellbound without calling undue attention to the magicians. (NR)
Signature dish: Salt-cod fritters with malt vinegar.
Standouts: Service, cocktails, dinner, dessert.
Regrets: No-reservations policy means you may be several drinks in before you're shown to a table.
Patanegra
1818 NW 23rd Place, 227-7282. Dinner Monday-Saturday. $$ Moderate.
Sure, small plates are all the rage, but if you're looking for real tapas, there's only one place to go—Ricardo Segura's cavernous, cacophonous Patanegra. Take a seat at one of the spacious copper tables and watch it fill with surprisingly large helpings of all the classics: duck in red wine with dates wrapped in jamón Iberico, juicy chorizo on a bed of lentils, super-creamy crema Catalana. Segura departs from tapas-bar standards only with his salads, which are fresh and ample. Vegetarians should beware, though—Patanegra, like any self-respecting Spanish restaurant, is all about the meat. (BW)
Signature dish: Segura's overpoweringly flavorful take on the tortilla de patatas—Spain's national dish—would satisfy even the pickiest Iberian abuela.
Standouts: The enormous wine list and a large selection of grappas at the bar to fill your every boozy craving.
Regrets: So loud it's like dining in a disco; friendly staff could use some lessons in proper pronunciation.
Pazzo Ristorante
627 SW Washington St., 228-1515. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$-$$$ Moderate-Expensive.
Pazzo's decor is strictly old-school, especially for a boutique hotel: dark wood, plush booths and warm yellow lighting. The waiters are old-school, too—mature, professional and eager to please. Although his work tends to steer clear of cutting-edge technology, Chef John Eisenhart serves some really nice food—classic Italian dishes like spaghettini puttanesca, modernized with tender calamari and kickin' jalapeños, and the simplest pan-roasted halibut steak, which is cooked to perfection (but could use a little more salt). Among the starters you'll find a gussied-up version of another popular Italian restaurant favorite, prosciutto with grilled ciabatta and pickled melon. The wine list accommodates both academics and novices with small(ish) wallets. And the bartenders have been known to recommend a good port with the supple tiramisu. (AV)
Signature Dish: The best of the West: a pan-roasted wild salmon with local mustard greens, sweet-potato sauté and summer truffle vinegar.
Standouts: Spinach salad with poached egg and pancetta vinaigrette, fresh pasta.
Regrets: Even doused in olive oil, the housemade bread is so-so.
Il Piatto
Il Piatto
2348 SE Ankeny St., 236-4997. Lunch Tuesday-Friday, Dinner nightly. $$ Moderate.
A meal at Il Piatto is like a trip to some marvelous, imaginary village where the locals muse their way through rich Italian fare served by hipsters. Exuding warmth and romance and brimming with curios, it's a world far away from Portland's many sleek, hurried bistros. Though the food has grown less consistent over the years, much of the menu is bound to please for the price. Appetizers work wonders, particularly the fritelle di fromaggio di Capra, a goat cheese and date fritter that blossoms in the mouth; intensely flavorful beef carpaccio; and crespelle alla ricotta in an adventurous smoked-pear crème fraîche. The gnocchi may drown helplessly in an overly sweet, oily sauce, but saltimbocca—prepared with pork instead of veal—comes off nicely. The smoked-salmon ravioli rarely disappoints, and simple cobblers, tortas and cakes provide a lovely finish to a languorous evening. (TLB)
Signature dishes:Signature dishes: Risotto, vegetarian lasagna.
Standouts: Charming atmosphere, equally charming servers and the house-cured duck prosciutto.
Regrets: Pastas and entrees lean toward heavy sauces and sweet flavors; a lighter hand would balance the menu.
Piazza Italia
Piazza Italia
1129 NW Johnson St., 478-0619. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Moderate.
With soccer paraphernalia and fake frescos, flirtatious waiters and classic Italian-American cooking, the authentically pleasing Piazza Italia is a lively little piece of San Francisco's North Beach in the Pearl District. Dig into a hunk of fresh, chewy bread while you peruse the menu: an assortment of pasta dishes, like a rich spaghetti mare e monti with succulent shrimp and mushrooms in a creamy pesto, are balanced by lighter dishes like salads and antipasto. Entrees are reasonably priced, but salads run a bit high for what they are. Nothing's groundbreaking, but the traditional fare comforts and satisfies. The service is friendly and attentive; a handful of servers buzz about the room making sure everyone is taken care of, rather than taking a per-table approach. Don't miss the luscious old-world desserts, like a rich marzipan roll cake. They're in a pastry case in the corner, but not on the menu. (SC)
Signature dish: The rigatoni alla Bolognese is rumored to have the best meat sauce in Portland.
Standouts: Warm, friendly atmosphere.
Regrets: A salad with bologna, boiled eggs and less-than-fresh greens was home-style in a "What's left in the fridge?" way.
Pix Pâtisserie
3402 SE Division St., 232-4407. Lunch, dinner, and dessert daily. $$ Moderate.
The veritable pâtisserie pageant hits its heights with the Saint Honoré, a caramelized cream puff; the Ménage à Trois (almond cream, chocolate ganache and a dusting of pistachios); the lemon-loving tart citron; and a deceptively simple housemade vanilla ice cream. Sadly the Dobos torte (rich in layers of marzipan, hazelnut, etc.) never quite tastes as good as it looks. On the savory side, the peaty goat cheese-onion tart is fantastic; the panini (ham and fontina, pepper and artichoke) are a good bet; or marcona almonds, olives and brioche can be just as satiating. Perfect for midday, a late-night treat, or with family, and whether delving into their extensive selection of Belgian beers, dessert wines or moscato, always finish with the crème brûlée. (TD)
Signature dish: Sweet: the lemon-loving tart citron; on the savory side: the fantastic goat cheese-onion tart.
Standouts: The Ménage à Trois.
Regrets: The Dobos has lingering echoes of Nutella.
Portland City Grill
111 SW 5th Ave., 450-0030. Lunch Monday-Friday, dinner nightly. $$$ Expensive.
Portland City Grill, we have two words of advice for you: "stadium seating." Your still surprisingly adventurous take on pan-Asian cuisine—blackened tombo with wasabi-ginger beurre blanc, say, or mahi-mahi with papaya salsa and banana-coconut curry—is worth the 30-floor elevator ride up Big Pink, but once your diners get up there, is anyone thinking about the food? No, they're checking out the sunset on Mount Hood, scanning Mount Adams for volcanic puffs, hauling out the binoculars to see if anyone's breaking into their West Hills homes. So why not work with that? Take out those viewless, barely lit tables in the middle of the dining room, and replace them with rising rows of cushy cinema seats fronted by long, Bagdad Theater-style counters so we can enjoy our madeira-cherry pork chop while watching the city lights twinkle on. Or you can stick with what works—we're just throwing out ideas here. But have your people call our people, OK, babe? (IG)
Signature Dish: The herb-garlic pork tenderloin with apricot marmalade, garlic mashed potatoes and Thai sweet-and-sour gives a good sense of the kitchen's skyscraping (if sometimes overreaching) taste experiments, built atop a solid Americana base.
Standout: During happy hour, the lounge is the place to take in the view and tasty morsels for cheap.
Regret: That stadium-seating thing isn't gonna happen, is it?
Portland Steak and Chophouse
121 SW 3rd Ave., 223-6200. Lunch and dinner daily, breakfast Saturday-Sunday. Moderate-Expensive $$-$$$.
Housed in the Old Multnomah Hotel building (now an Embassy Suites Hotel), this basilica to beef makes very little room for frivolity in the practiced demeanor of its waitstaff or in the presentation of its hearty meals. With a foundation in about 20 different beef-based dishes, the dinner menu makes few incursions into the non-mooing meats, its seafood choices consisting largely of prawns, Dungeness crab and salmon dishes and its pasta menu consisting of a scant (but well-prepared and imaginative) four dishes. Vegetarians dragged to this joint by carnivorous parents or business associates must choose between a couple of starter salads and two of the four wood-oven pizzas. But meat eaters will rejoice at the sight of the delicious slow-roasted prime rib and the braised beef pot roast. (MB)
Signature dish: The prime rib with rock salt and roasted garlic-peppercorn horseradish.
Standout: Large windows facing Third Avenue offer plenty of people-watching.
Regret: Diverse orders result in a few cold plates.
Red Star Tavern & Roast House
503 SW Alder St., 222-0005. Breakfast and lunch daily, brunch Saturday and Sunday, dinner nightly. $$ Moderate.
Don't be scared by the fact that this popular mainstay is housed in a high-end downtown hotel (or put off by the fact that crews are tearing up the streets outside). You can happily and affordably choose from basics like pizza and cheeseburgers, if you don't opt for fancier selections like a recent pinot noir-poached Alaskan halibut with toasted-garlic pea vines. And don't ignore the salads, from grilled corn and Walla Walla onion to roasted beet and avocado. (HS)
Signature dish: Mac and cheese. And don't skimp: Spend the extra $2 to add andouille sausage.
Standouts: New England clam chowder with potatoes and applewood-smoked bacon.
Regrets: Slow (but apologetically so) service during a recent weekday brunch.
RingSide Steakhouse (downtown)
2165 W Burnside St., 223-1513. Dinner nightly. $$$ Expensive.
Everything about this purist's steakhouse—wood paneling, tuxedoed servers and a honkin' pair of horns above the entrance—calls to mind the type of joint you imagine the coolest grandpas hanging out in when they were young lads. The 14-ounce New York is perfectly cooked to order and (like all RingSide's steaks) served with natural juice-butter sauce; when steak is this tender and flavorful, you don't need frills. Solid American fare like succulent fried oysters and huge baked potatoes—accompanied by sour cream, chives and bacon (yes!)—upholds the "we're not fooling around" vibe. House specialties like prime rib with freshly grated horseradish and non-cow options such as rock lobster or fried chicken round out RingSide's consistently classic menu, and a wicked, gold-medallion-emblazoned fireplace drives the classy-old-man feel home. (AM)
Signature dish: The perfectly trimmed New York "King of Steaks."
Standouts: Fantastic, individualized service and a sweet, old-school pit-style bar where you can still smoke indoors.
Regrets: The fact that, at some point, you have to swallow every savory bite (sigh).
Roots
19215 SE 34th St., Camas, Wash., (360) 260-3001. Lunch and dinner daily, brunch Sundays. $$$ Expensive.
Chef/owner Brad Root, formerly of Higgins, Wildwood and Red Star Tavern & Roast House, is well into year three with his Northwest seasonal restaurant extraordinaire. The moment you step inside, you'll forget the strip-mall surroundings as the clean, warm design featuring modern woodwork and a bustling exposed kitchen beg your attention. Service is so streamlined and professional that you'll never be left wanting or waiting, especially when it comes to tackling the lengthy wine list. The Dungeness crab starter pairs hunks of sweet chilled crab with avocado and a delicate vermouth vinaigrette. Entrees such as the grilled line-caught salmon with a corn-and-chanterelle sauté speak to the season. But do what you can to save room for a sweet something, because the dessert and drink pairings, such as a recent chocolate cappuccino pot de crème paired with Clear Creek pear brandy, are not to be missed. (LC)
Signature dish: Lamb shank with chickpeas and peppers.
Standouts: Flawless, spot-on service.
Regrets: A place this good shouldn't require a quarter-tank of gas to get there.
Roux
1700 N Killingsworth Ave., 285-1200. Dinner nightly, brunch Sunday. $$ Moderate.
This onetime NoPo drapery factory is now a Creole-inspired restaurant that invokes both the seriousness and the fun with which eating is approached in New Orleans. Chef Josh Blythe looks to the Big Easy for inspiration, but isn't chained to its conventions. A classic muffaletta sandwich is reinvented as a satisfying salad with mortadella, olives and salami, crisp hush puppies are moistened with a piquant green tomato dip, and an entree dubbed "pork and beans" arrives as a meaty pork shoulder steak atop sweet, savory white beans with just a hint of bite. The desserts echo the creativity-meets-precision preparation model, from heavenly fried-to-order beignets with chicory-infused caramel to a seasonal blackberry trifle layered with champagne and crème anglaise. The final course at Roux is something to marvel at and save room for. (IM)
Signature dish: The crawfish pie—this buttery, flaky pielette filled with creamy crawfish tails is so endearingly good, it makes you wary of friends' inquisitive forks.
Standouts: The moist pan-roasted rabbit loin filled with spicy cornbread dressing is delish enough to get Thumper lovers to change their tune.
Regrets: It can be so noisy you can't hear yourself "mmmm."
Saburo's
1667 SE Bybee Blvd., 236-4237. Dinner nightly. $$ Moderate.
If you could come up with a formula as surefire as Saburo's—e.g., sushi three times the size of normal sushi for a third of the price—you, too, would have lines snaking outside your no-frills restaurant night after night. Is the sushi fresh? Sure. Are there a few not-to-be-missed items? Yes: a piquant marinated-octopus sunomono, and creamy scallops made lustrous with sesame oil. And if size matters to you, by all means get the unagi (river eel), 8 inches long, striations of cartilage skeleton clearly visible, flopped on a roll of rice as long as an ear of corn. The qualitative difference between sushi of salmon and salmon belly? One has scallions on top. But the beer is cold, the chefs cheerful, the service fast, and if the jewel-like quality of the sushi is lost, customers seem delighted by the super-sized bang (and forearm-length California roll) they get for their buck. (NR)
Signature dish: Monster-of-the-deep-size sushi.
Standouts: Marinated octopus sunomono, creamy scallops, California roll.
Regrets: Someone in the kitchen has a hard-on for loud '80s rock, meaning your dining companions will include David Lee Roth and Pat Benatar; lines so long you feel as though you're waiting to get into the next Star Wars prequel.
Salty's on the Columbia
3839 NE Marine Drive, 288-4444. Lunch Monday-Saturday, brunch Sunday, dinner nightly. $$$ Expensive.
Poke me if the seafood here isn't some of the freshest in Portland. Start with the creamy crab and artichoke dip, which runs away with appetizer honors; skip the tough, over-blackened calamari. Salty's signature seafood cioppino is zippy-tangy, filled with from-the-tank crustaceans. Desserts and cocktails tend to run toward standard-issue fare, and service is of the factory-stamp variety—pleasant and somewhat forgettable. But don't forget the breathtaking views and the denizens of the deep procured daily for your perusal. That's what you're paying for here, and it's damn well worth it. (SMB)
Signature dish: Salty's calls it their signature, and they mean it—the signature seafood cioppino is just that good.
Standouts: Crab and artichoke dip, enough for three or four people, and a Sunday brunch that will fill you up for three or four days.
Regrets: Overeager, occasionally sloppy service.
Saucebox
214 SW Broadway, 241-3393. Dinner Tuesday-Saturday. $$ Moderate.
Heading into its 12th year, Saucebox is far from exhausted. With founding chef Chris Israel back in the box for nearly a year now (although he's re-creating the Zefiro magic at the former Balvo site with 23 Hoyt), Saucebox is flaunting its original pan-Asian flair for food as well as a smashing house-infused cocktail collection. The space is twofold—the low-lit, seductive, original side of Saucebox hosts DJs while the ultra-mod, bright, nonsmoking addition is for those who'd rather see their food than be seen. The full menu, available in both rooms, features exotic renditions such as grilled squid satay with a spicy cilantro sauce and tapioca dumplings filled with a well-spiced chicken sauté. House-infused spirits and housemade cordials are worth their weight in gold—and that's about what you'll pay. If you like the spice, the Kickboxer mixes Thai chili vodka, passionfruit and raspberry purée—warm spirits and cold fruits collide like a perfect storm. (LC)
Signature dish: Surf and turf. Israel's delicate Javanese salmon paired with bite-sized Korean-style baby-back ribs is one of the reasons this place still rocks.
Standouts: The book of amazing cocktails will keep you fueled for hours.
Regrets: On slow nights, the dining room comes off as sterile.
Savoy
2500 SE Clinton St., 808-9999. Dinner nightly. $$ Moderate.
This isn't so much a tavern as it is a bistro dedicated to mid-century Midwestern meals. The space mirrors the modern-yet-still-homespun menu, with Thonet chairs and lighting salvaged from downtown's old YWCA. Although chef Alton Garcia hovers over an open kitchen with an firm hand and an even firmer (OK, gruff) demeanor, his meals will make you all happy inside. That's because it's three-square comfort food of the highest order. Starters are meatballs and fried cheese curds, of the Wisconsin variety; salads can come in an iceberg wedge, Waldorf-style or full of beets; and supper means you're getting two sides (including baked or green beans, fries or sautéed 'shrooms) with your baby-back ribs or barbecued chicken. And even though it starts to sound like standard cafeteria fare, the meals found at the bottom of the menu—a succulent shrimp dinner or Savoy burger—will tickle your taste buds in a way your elementary school's "meat surprise" dish never could. (BB)
Signature Dish: An inexpensive grilled steak served with the perfect amount of horseradish cream.
Standouts: Comforting balls—of both cheese and meat.
Regrets: An ice-cream sammie dessert wasn't quite as good as it sounds.
-Screen Door
2337 E Burnside St., 542-0880. Dinner Tuesday-Saturday, brunch Saturday-Sunday. $$ Moderate.
The term "screen door" evokes certain images—tall glasses of sweet tea, simple home cooking and lazy summer days silently swaying on a porch swing. Screen Door, the new Southern-inspired eatery on East Burnside Street, hits the mark on most of these points. Sweet tea can be had by the glass or by the pitcher, there's grits and greens all over the menu, and the servers are earnest and welcoming. The Alabama pimiento cheese, a creamy spread accented by a copious amount of smoky roasted red peppers, is an example of classic Southern appetizers done right. Ditto for the crisp, corn-studded hush puppies and savory slow-baked beans loaded with shredded ham hock. Entrees continue with a roster of Southern favorites done well. The pulled-pork sandwich, done in traditional Carolina style with a vinegary sauce and a dollop of coleslaw, was heavy on taste and generosity of portion. Screen Door's only snag is consistency; hopefully it's just part of the learning curve of a busy new place. (IM)
Signature dish: Buttermilk fried chicken with tasso ham gravy.
Standouts: Everything off the local/organic menu is spanking fresh and tastes like an ode to the season.
Regrets: It's so noisy it feels more Grand Central Station than Whistle Stop Cafe.
Shula's Steak House
520 SW Broadway, 552-2220. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$$$ Very Expensive.
Yes, the menu is written on a football that sits on an orange tee. And yes, this eponymous eatery oddly honors a coach who piloted an undefeated NFL team that played 34 years ago and 3,000 miles away in Miami. But this new downtown Marriott Hotel restaurant, laden with action photos of past Dolphins from Bob Griese to Larry Csonka, also adds a worthy option for steak lovers beyond the usual local lineup of Morton's, El Gaucho and the like. Just as Shula's champions used a conservative, run-first attack, the best approach in this steak house is not to be tricky. You're there to eat meat, so order it. If you must go outside the playbook, try the barbecued shrimp wrapped in bacon with basil for starters and add asparagus with hollandaise sauce to your steak selection. (HS)
Signature dish: Don is said to love the 24-ounce porterhouse steak.
Standouts: Who are we to disagree with a Hall of Fame coach? We also loved the porterhouse.
Regrets: Service as unsteady as a rookie quarterback in his first preseason game.
Siam Society
2703 NE Alberta St., 922-3675. Dinner Monday-Saturday. $$ Moderate.
Year-old Siam Society has paid its neighborhood dues after blood-sweat-and-tears renovating the handsomely graying power substation that loomed vacant on the Alberta strip for years. Executive chef Adrienne Inskeep's captivating Thai menu includes apps such as fragrant riesling-braised pork spring rolls with vanilla bean and hazelnuts among other to-be-expected items such as salad rolls and chicken satay. Sexy Beef often steals the curry-and-noodle show with strips of flank steak sautéed in a spicy coconut sauce with oyster mushrooms and roasted garlic. If you're looking for a knock-your-socks-off cocktail, try the jalapeño margarita—the perfect blend of spicy, sweet, sour and salty. Although the industrial space has been criticized for its sterility, the food and drink menus hold enough heat to keep you warm and satiated. (LC)
Signature Dish: Yellow curry with fried catfish, cucumber and pickled jalapeños.
Standouts: Housemade ice creams: cardamom, hibiscus lime, chocolate chili.
Regrets: The chicken/tofu/prawn triad isn't diversified for noodles and soups.
Silk
1012 NW Glisan St., 248-2172. Lunch and dinner Monday-Saturday. $$ Moderate.
Pho Van Bistro went under the knife this April and emerged from the bandages with a facelift, a new bar, and a Pearl-pretentious new name. Silk is a trendier take on the successful Vietnamese restaurant, with a black-and-white, wood-and-glass palette and lengthy list of fruity cocktails. But don't worry, pho lovers! All the classics are still on the menu, from tender beef skewered with kaffir lime leaves to hearty duck curry. Don't forget to order the best salad rolls in town, made with chilled pork and mint, fat shrimp bulging under the perfectly wrapped rice paper. Not looking for a full meal? Check out the bar's small-plates menu. (BW)
Signature dish: A salad of shredded lotus root with shallots, cucumbers, and mint, topped with shrimp.
Standouts: Lots of room;servers are attentive without being nosy.
Regrets: Icky dessert menu.
Simpatica
828 SE Ash St., 235-1600. Dinner Friday and Saturday (reservations recommended by email; join the list at addme@simpaticacatering.com); brunch, dinner Sunday. $$$ Expensive.
Simpatica is the perfect name for this easygoing establishment, where the three boisterous chef-owners (the same crew behind Viande Meats) revitalize classic culinary themes with the panache of jazz musicians infusing new life into familiar standards. For sheer deliciousness, the food usually can't be beat. Their Sunday brunch is one of Portland's best: These guys are wizards with fat and salt (the building blocks of breakfast) and are crazy enough to make a tough-to-execute dish like fried chicken and waffles a standard. The casual style plays less well at four-course dinners on weekend nights. You'll spend upward of $100 for two, yet food can arrive in fits and starts; long, banquet-style tables are awkward when an evening stretches to three hours; and the heavy wooden chairs become weapons of ass destruction. (HY)
Signature dish: Anything made from pork, especially cured pork.
Standouts: At brunch, biscuits and cream sausage gravy.
Regrets: Factory-floor noise level.
Sinju
1022 NW Johnson St., 223-6535. Dinner daily, lunch Monday-Friday. $$ Moderate.
The devoted patrons of Sinju (and they are legion) swear that it's the best restaurant of its kind in Portland. That's arguable—but it's certainly one of the prettiest sushi-toriums in town, with tatami rooms overlooking 10th Avenue and immaculate tables that seem to have been set using protractors. The chefs' ethos is perfectly expressed in the tako sunomono; the simple octopus salad is at first briny and bracing, but finishes as clean as the perfect cucumber moons on which it's bedded. Also excellent is the tonkatsu, a panko-breaded pork chop served with a plum dipping sauce, and the Sinju steak, redolent with ginger. The chef's choice nigiri sushi platter brings no surprises, just a very good rendition of greatest hits: snapper, tuna, and river-fresh salmon. Even elements that are usually throwaways are memorable, like the pre-meal iceberg salad, perfectly chilled and tart with vinegar. The sleek decor is a perfect fit for the Pearl, and the platings and presentations are worthy of a magazine food stylist. (KA)
Signature dish: Gorgeous, groaning boards of sushi.
Standouts: See above.
Regrets: The dessert menu (ice creams and a "New York fried cheesecake") is an afterthought. Order more sushi instead.
Southpark
901 SW Salmon St., 326-1300. Lunch and dinner daily. $$-$$$ Expensive.
This restaurant is classic without being stuffy, offering fresh, perfectly crafted versions of American and Mediterranean classics. Many dishes highlight fresh, high-quality seafood, like a tangy ceviche with succulent rockfish and scallops and a rotating cast of fresh-caught specials. Daily pizzas, including a shrimp-ham-arugula version, put creative spins on an old favorite. Fun desserts, such as roasted pears with superb buttermilk gelato and a phyllo nest, keep pretension at bay. The airy interior, sunny outdoor seating and cultural district location make the spot equally appealing for a business lunch or post-show glass of wine. Servers are knowledgeable and prompt and keep the chitchat to a minimum. (SC)
Signature dish: Creative daily fish specials, like a perfectly grilled hunk of Hawaiian opah with heirloom tomatoes and brioche toast.
Standouts: An expertly compiled list of high-quality vino offers something for every palate, including a lengthy selection of dessert wines.
Regrets: Outdoor tables are "open seating," meaning circle low and swoop fast.
St. Honoré Boulangerie
2335 NW Thurman St., 445-4342. Breakfast, lunch, dinner daily. $$ Moderate.
Tear open the perfect croissant and you are rewarded with innumerable buttery layers and crackles of pastry thin as spun glass fluttering onto your shirt. Saint Honoré, the closest Portland comes to a traditional boulangerie, does not bake this croissant, but it comes close. It does serve a magnificent lunch: a tian, or casserole, of squash and tomato; a mixed-greens salad with fat slabs of smoked duck rimmed with lovely fat; gorgeous sandwiches on just-baked breads formed by a passel of young bakers in the open kitchen. With a glass of vin de pays or café au lait, one could not ask for a sweeter spot. Until it is time for dessert, when, quel dommage, the filling inside an éclair chocolat tastes not like pastry cream but packaged pudding; a canelet is burnt outside, gummy within. And the Opera—at its best, sponge cake layered with espresso buttercream and ganache and so tender it surrenders to the fork—is here stiff as Sara Lee brownies, of which it also tastes. Which is to say, pretty fine, if more freezer case than France. (NR)
Signature dish: Fresh-bread baked in an on-site brick oven.
Standouts: Croque-monsieur; salad with smoked duck.
Regrets: Pastries look better than they taste; croissants are rumored to be made from frozen dough.
Sungari Pearl
1105 NW Lovejoy St., (971) 222-7327. Lunch Monday-Saturday, dinner nightly. $$-$$$ Moderate-Expensive.
Sungari Pearl will change your mind about Chinese food in Portland. Serving contemporary cuisine that draws from Szechuan and other traditions, Sungari allows fresh ingredients to shine in a tastefully minimal room. Battered, deep-fried foods, so often the downfall of American Chinese restaurants, are like delicate clouds of flavor here. No MSG is used, and even the chili oil is housemade. The ample menu is strong on seafood, poultry and vegetarian entrees, along with a satisfying array of soups and appetizers (try the scallion pancakes, wontons, steamed bean-curd sheets and crispy spring rolls—or select the sampler platter). The austere Crispy Pepper-Skin Duck reveals the meat's tantalizing texture, and the spongy Pei Pa Bean Curd cradles scallops and prawns in a subtle mushroom sauce. Creative house cocktails are definitely worth investigating. Other restaurants may claim more Chinese authenticity or lower prices, but Sungari Pearl's approach makes it a Portland gem. (TLB)
Standouts: Crispy Pepper-Skin Duck, Pei Pa Bean Curd.
Signature Dishes: Peking Duck (order 24 hours ahead), Lobster in Spicy Mandarin Sauce, Scallops in Tangy Sauce.
Regrets: A recent visit found the busser dropping food on our tablecloth, which went unnoticed by our server; the crêpes were chalky and held insufficiently tender lamb.
Syun Izakaya
209 NE Lincoln St., Hillsboro, 640-3131. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Moderate.
Syun Izakaya Hillsboro isn't exactly known as a fine-dining mecca, but Syun Izakaya rates a drive (or MAX ride) from just about anywhere within its 25-mile radius. Truly superb Japanese fare served by cheerful ladies in a postage-stamp-sized space lined with big sake bottles. J-pop plays overhead; fresh flowers are abundant. My dining companion especially liked the evening's special, a kicky-crunchy stir-fried bitter melon with pork; he also took note of "the loveliest-smelling bathrooms." Other highlights: nasumiso (eggplant with tangy miso sauce), takuso (fresh vinegared cukes with boiled octopus), and a monumental sake selection, of which we especially liked the slightly dry-sweet Utamaro. (SMB)
Signature dish: For big-roll sushi, the futomaki can't be beat.
Standouts: Heavenly scented bathrooms. Bonus: They'll keep your sake on hand for up to 100 days after it's purchased.
Regrets: Service is a little sluggish.
Tabla
200 NE 28th Ave., 238-3777. Dinner Tuesday-Sunday. $$ Moderate.
We're going to say this right up front: Tabla has small portions. The point of the Mediterranean restaurant's carefully designed menu (which, by the way, offers half and full sizes) is quality, not quantity. It's about enjoying the flavor, the way it subtly fills your mouth with savory or sweet—or both—and washing it down with a favorable wine. Minimalism in food is a good thing, and Tabla does it with panache and a museum-quality presentation. The pure simplicity of hand-cut pasta with truffle butter, or the duck confit with whipped potatoes and a port-poached orange, is simply genius. And let's not forget the three-course prix fixe menu! It's still going strong, even if it did get bumped up from $20 to $24. That, my friends, is a deal. (LS)
SIGNATURE DISH: The squid-ink spaghetti with seared scallops, Walla Walla onions, organic greens and capers.
STANDOUTS: Flavor, flavor everywhere, topped off with a fantastic wine menu (and a knowledgeable staff).
REGRETS: Tabla still needs to work on its food delays. The wait is still too long between courses.
Takahashi
10324 SE Holgate Blvd., 760-8135, Dinner Wednesday-Sunday. $$ Moderate.
Portlanders have long made the pilgrimage to deep Southeast for the quirky Takahashi tradition. Light, crunchy tempura and chunky hunks of sushi bring them here. So does the dark, funky atmosphere, the Japanese knickknacks, the toy train running endlessly around the restaurant and the casual people-watching—not to mention the 40-percent Wednesday Discount Nights, when many sushi and tempura selections come cheap. Completely unpredictable service and long waits may irritate the novice Takahashi diner, but they're just part of the experience. Price and portion size are the main draw for sushi, along with an extensive list of maki (rolls), which make use of everything from Tabasco to chicken tempura. As fish quality may be moderate, cooked items and sauces are appealing; a recent nigiri special of peppery seared salmon proved delicious. Don't pass up the mouthwatering à la carte tempura list, featuring inexpensive deep-fried goodies from kisu (whitefish) to lotus. (TLB)
Signature dishes: "The Best Ramen in Oregon" (caveat emptor), crunchy California maki (deep-fried Cali roll), King's Dinner (large dinner of miso, salad, rice, tempura, potstickers, sashimi or yakisoba, and panko pork for $12.95).
Standouts: Tempura of shiitake mushroom, kabocha squash, or shrimp.
Regrets: "The Best Ramen in Oregon" is doughy and floats among unchewable, undefinable bits of meat.
Taqueria Nueve
28 NE 28th Ave., 236-6195. Dinner nightly. $$ Moderate.
For five years now, Taqueria Nueve has had the distinct pleasure of offering Portlanders a sophisticated opportunity: re-imagining Mexican cuisine that is at once innovative and authentic in its range of palate thrills. Under the watchful eye of chef Billy Schumaker—who has a stellar free-range, organic sensibility—this often crowded neighborhood establishment is consistently on the mark. You'll experience vivid flavors in everything from the enchilada (the usual gravy boat of sauce is replaced with green tomatillo, cilantro, queso fresco or a spicy tomato-and-chile sauce) to the more exotic fare, like wild-boar taco, the coctel de pulpo (octopus, a house specialty) and tortitas de yuca (cassava root fritters with crème fraîche—a Mexican hush puppy of sorts). Looking for something a little more meaty? The bistec del nueve (grilled hanger steak over a Oaxacan pasilla chile sauce) or the mole poblano con pollito is a must (if it's on the menu), as are the desserts, especially the coconut ice cream. A very knowledgeable staff is willing to go the extra distance for a good experience, even under great pressure to turn over tables—and that can make all the difference. (TD)
Signature dish: The stampede-worthy wild-boar taco.
Standouts: Coctel de pulpo and bistec del nueve with smoky pasillas.
Regrets: Tres leches cake is a disappointment after a fiesta of vivid flavors.
Three Degrees
1510 SW Harbor Way, 295-6166. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily, brunch Sundays. $$$ Expensive.
You're familiar with "Six Degrees of Separation," right? Three Degrees—the restaurant at the RiverPlace Hotel—cuts that standard in half by using seasonal ingredients from mostly local, small-scale vendors. And hitting up Three Degrees' Sunday brunch for Willamette Valley eggs alongside Double R Ranch (based in Idaho) beef or Dungeness crab hash puts your tongue within no degrees of sheer bliss. An extensive wine list gives more props to the Northwest; drink up and gaze out the slew of windows overlooking the Willamette and you can almost smell the perfectly fatty (read: succulent yet crisp) smoked duck with blackberry-port sauce in the air. (AM)
Signature dish: The sinfully juicy, cider-braised pork chop stuffed with fontina.
Standouts: Dessert specials like toffee-encrusted bread pudding layered with pears.
Regrets: Despite the earth-toned decor and warm lighting, the atmosphere is a tad sterile...like you're in, well, a fancy hotel.
3 Doors Down
1429 SE 37th Ave., 236-6886. Dinner Tuesday-Sunday. $$-$$$ Moderate-Expensive.
This Southeast Hawthorne Boulevard hideaway is the kind of neighbor you should be so lucky to have: a cozy, inviting copper-topped bar at the ready with fresh-squeezed cocktails and an arm-long wine list, a brick-colored dining room that morphs from quiet to downright boisterous as the evening wears on and a grip of servers whose understated charm fairly gleams in the dim light. One of the few shifts this trattoria has made in the past 12 years is to expand its dining room and add that bar, all the better to accommodate the Southeast hordes hungry for silky-salty housemade chicken-liver pâté; rustic, sharable Caesar; and well-dispatched entrees (rich, mouth-happy riffs on standard chicken, fish, beef and pork preparations). But who are we kidding, it's the vodka penne here that's legend: stubby noodles and fat housemade sausages bathed in an unctuous plum tomato-cream sauce that can get inferno-hot (it comes with its own side of chili flakes). Sop it all up with a huge hunk of Pearl Bakery's finest and don't miss a single, searing drop. (KNC)
Signature Dish: That penne with vodka and a housemade banana cream pie.
Standouts: As our server (who'd been with the restaurant for nearly a decade) noted, this place just feels like home.
Regrets: A few spotty starters, like an insipid scallop-and-peach dish dressed with a cloying honey-basil sauce, can have you wondering what all the fuss is about before you hit the pasta course.
Three Square Grill
6320 SW Capital Highway, 244-4467. Lunch Tuesday-Friday, dinner Tuesday-Saturday, brunch Saturday and Sunday. $$ Moderate.
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)
Signature dish: Hash, hash, hash. Remember to ask for the poached egg on top.
Standouts: Pastas, salads, apple pie.
Regrets: Chicken Mirabella was a bland approximation of the bistro classic.
Typhoon!
410 SW Broadway, 224-8285; 2310 NW Everett St., 243-7557. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Moderate.
Although it has one what must be one of the largest menus in Portland—cruise-colossal, in fact—the food here is always spanking fresh and artfully prepared. With six locations and counting chef/owner Bo Kline's Typhoon restaurants form a Pacific Northwest fleet of top-notch, inspired Thai food. It's daunting to choose from 20 appetizers and 150 teas, but you'll be happily rewarded once you do with items such as the tasty, bite-sized Menlo and seaweed-wrapped ahi paired with the curiously seductive jasmine-tea Manhattan. The interior design is spa-like sparse, with several cast Buddhist sculptures on the walls and a glowing bright-orange cast-glass bar. Most of the beauty here lies on the plate of the beholder, anyway. (LC)
Signature dish: Five-spice duck with steamed buns and a cinnamon plum sauce.
Standouts: Artful platings incorporate pinecone-shaped flash-fried halibut and veggie flowers.
Regrets: Spotty service.
Wildwood
1221 NW 21st Ave., 248-9663 9663. Lunch and dinner Monday-Saturday, dinner Sunday. $$ Expensive.
This is one of the restaurants that you hear a lot about, mainly thanks to the reputation of its exemplary executive chef and founder, Corey Schreiber, who has helped define "Northwest Cuisine." That refers to seasonal offerings, dishes that tend to have a light touch when it comes to seasoning so that the flavor origins are enhanced, not covered up. And, after 12 years, local hero Schreiber is still on his game. Although you might find his hosting staff a bit standoffish, that small glitch in this well-olive-oiled machine is a mere annoyance compared with the bounty of true Oregon flavors you'll encounter here. During lunch, it's all about the crispy fried oyster salad and mild, braised lamb shoulder—that is, when you're not slurping one of the flavorful soups or scarfing down an heirloom tomato pizza. At dinner, dig into the pan-seared Muscovy duck breast. Some say they prefer the tiny (OK, cramped) dining room to the spacious bar. Bit either space is fine, as long as you can sip one of the several varieties of Oregon and Washington wines on offer (also available by the half-bottle). A special-occasion space that also works for everyday: Now that's Portland. (BB)
Signature dish: The steak's from John Day, Ore., and the veggies are straight outta Sauvie Island—Wildwood's mesquite-roasted Strawberry Mountain New York strip with rainbow chard gratin and braised lobster mushrooms showcases the best this restaurant, and region, has to offer.
Standouts: All local, all the time.
Regrets: Persnickety hosting and a smallish dining room.
Wong's King Seafood
8733 SE Division St., 788-8883. Dim sum and dinner daily. $$ Moderate.
Wong's King Seafood Screw San Francisco, we've got Wong's. Round up your eight favorite gluttons and prepare to get gloriously stuffed at this Cantonese-style banquet hall. Suck crabmeat covered in savory black-bean gravy directly from the shell; stab your best friend with a fork in a dive for the last morsel of crackly skinned, big-flavor duck meat. Wipe the excess gooeyness from a nearly candied plate of revolutionary General Tso's chicken on your pants and groan embarrassingly loud over Wong's fire-hot, lightly glazed string beans—it's cool. You'll get to do it all over again at this Southeast Portland strip mall palace's amazing dim sum service. Although kind, Wong's servers don't always trust Caucasian palates. Often the good, weird stuff ends up at the table of that rowdy, extended Asian family of 14 over by the gigantic king crab tank while whitey is left chewin' a bland, oversized fish stick. Make your desire to take a culinary vacation known as soon as you sit down. (KNC)
SIGNATURE DISH: A steaming cauldron brimming with a silky lamb and tofu stew paired with raw romaine leaves ready for a dip; delicate seafood dishes and the best damn sautéed spinach in gravy ever. (KNC)
Standouts: The owners bankrolled this paean to Asian eats with a trio of Chinese-American restaurants around Portland. Plus, you gotta love a place that caps a meal off with a giant, moist Wet-Nap for each giddy, grease-covered face.
Regrets: Hot and sour soup—very hot but not so sour. What gives, guys?
Vindalho
2038 SE Clinton Street, 467-4550. Dinner Tuesday-Saturday. $$ Moderate.
The most immediate thing about longtime P-town chef David Machado's "spice route" restaurant, Vindalho, is its exceptional service. And, oh yes, the food, which for the most part wends a route through old-world India with updated takes on classics like saag paneer masala, chicken tikka, and more. Something else that becomes apparent as soon as you take your first bite is the clarity of Machado's (formerly of Lauro, Pazzo, and Southpark) artistry. A pork vindalho with Carlton pork shoulder is as delectably just-so as the best Kipling; Suvir Saran's prawns, with a ginger-spiked citrusy marinade, jars the senses appropriately. Let yourself be surprised by the freshness of the melon chaat salad, or the (not too) spicy pickled vegetables. Opened just last year on the west end of the Clinton Street food row, Vindalho, with vaulted ceilings, an open plan, and subtle sound collage of traditional Indian and more fanciful, far-out Bollywood sounds (for late nights), is a beacon for those seeking refuge from the humdrum of most of Portland's Indian dining outlets. (TD)
Signature Dish: Pork vindalho; samosas that become electric when dipped in their accompanying dried-mango chutney.
Standouts: Able to deftly mix Old World and new sensibilities, it balances the gustatory experience as smartly as it does the design and aural experience.
Regrets: Saag paneer masala didn't hold its flavor and was a tad watery.
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WWeek 2015