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1. Rough Draft Burger Shop
Inside Uptown Beer Co. at 6620 SW Scholls Ferry Road, rdburgershop.com. 4-9 pm Wednesday-Thursday, noon-9 pm Friday-Saturday.
Rough Draft's idea of the perfect burger is fatty, simple and crispy-smashed—just meat, cheese and condiments. The dark horse menu item, though? Vegetables. At least one delivers cruciferous vitamins and fiber: fried broccoli with hot cheese, pickled peppers, scallion and crispy jalapeños.
Read more: Seattle's Rough Draft Pops Up in the Burger Desert of Southwest Portland.
2. Kimura Toast Bar
3808 N Williams Ave., 971-266 8087, kimuratoast.com. 8 am-3 pm Tuesday-Sunday.
At Kimura Toast Bar, thick slices of shokupan, or Japanese milk bread, can be the stuff of a light breakfast, a savory lunch or a meticulously composed dessert. You can get your toast simply, or under a hot dog. And yes, you can get it with avocado—a straight-up concession to the Portland market.
Read more: Kimura Toast Bar Introduces Portland to the World Beyond Avocado Toast—but It Also Has Avocado Toast.
3. RingSide Steakhouse
2165 W Burnside St., 503-223-1513, ringsidesteakhouse.com. 5-10 pm Wednesday-Thursday, 4:30-10 pm Friday-Sunday.
When RingSide emerged from the COVID-19 lockdown to hold a flash steak sale in April, it literally stopped traffic. Now the decades-old restaurant has relaunched its dinner service for the first time in nearly five months. A newly set up tent allows guests to dine outside. Bet you never envisioned eating filet mignon served by black-tied waiters in the parking lot.
4. Oma’s Takeaway
3131 SE Division St., 971-754-4923, omastakeaway.com. 5-10 pm Thursday-Sunday.
It's hard to say anyone can "win" in a pandemic, but Gado Gado found one heck of a silver lining, as its pivot to takeout is spinning off into its own restaurant. Oma's Takeaway will now occupy the space formerly home to Whiskey Soda Lounge and feature Thomas Pisha-Duffly's playfully inventive Southeast Asian items, including five-spice tater tots served with curry ketchup and char siu pork shoulder.
Related: Gado Gado's COVID-19 Pivot Oma's Takeaway Is Spinning Off Into Its Own Restaurant.
5. Havana Cafe
901 NW 14th Ave., 970-400-8887, havanacafepdx.com. 11 am-10 pm Tuesday-Saturday.
Cuban restaurants are hard to find outside their native turf and nearby Miami. Havana Cafe remedies that with an unmissable rooftop experience in Northwest Portland. Among a handful of platters, lechon con mojo may be your power move: a mound of ultra-tender, deeply flavored slow-roasted pork infused with garlic.