I go by AJA frequently, and it never seems full. Sometimes, it seems empty. Not a good advertisement. Yet, it's been at this location for over a year, so there must be something good going on, right? Asian fusion can't be too bad, can it?

We went for Sunday breakfast, at about 11am. There were two other tables in the place. We start by ordering coffee ($2) and iced tea ($1.50). The coffee was diner coffee; the iced tea, some sort of fruit tea, rather than the black tea we were expecting.

The menu only lists breakfast items: half a melon or grapefruit ($3), granola or oatmeal ($5), pancakes or french toast ($7), an egg-meat-starch plate ($8), 3 omelets ($8-$9), a scramble ($7), a hash ($9), 3 benedicts ($8-$9), and a traditional japanese breakfast with miso, koda rice, and fried egg ($6). So we order the Vanilla Crusted French Toast with Real Maple Syrup and the Chinese Sausage and Mustard Greens Omelet with House Potatoes.

Maybe five minutes after we order, the waitress comes back: they don't have any french toast. Huh? She has a new, different menu which has more and different breakfasts (6 different benedicts, 5 different omelets, 5 different egg dishes), plus a couple salads, soup, and sandwiches. So we order a Three Cheese Omelet with chedder (sic), swiss and manchego.

My partner starts to grouse; he would have liked to have ordered a sandwich, like the kobe beef burger, but wasn't given the opportunity. But his scone arrives: 'dry like the desert' he claims.

Then our omelets come. The chinese sausage omelet, with the contrast of the sweet slightly spicy sausage and the bitter greens, should be good, but we realize that in fact it's the chinese sausage, sauteed spinach and manchego omelet listed on the second menu. These things don't taste bad together, but there's no real zing to them, and the melted mess of sausage chunks, spinach and cheese lie beneath a puffy layer of eggs, rather than sandwiched lovely between two layers of eggs.

I'm not really a fan of puffy omelets, but hey. My cheese omelet is okay, just underseasoned. I wonder if the egg even saw any salt or pepper in the kitchen? The potatoes are chunks of yellow potatoes boiled through, then fried, but they don't show much browning from the frying. They too could use a little bit of seasoning. And the toast is like bruschetta. I love bruschetta when there's a contrasting topping, but there's no contrast here.

While everything was okay, nothing about the experience makes me want to go back again.

• Portland Food and Drink

We won a school auction of a Acadia gift certificate, so it was time for a splurge.

We were last at Acadia maybe 5 years ago. It was expensive and underwhelming. But, they had donated this gift certificate to a friend's elementary school, and it was time to give them another chance. After all, it's for the kids!

We ordered a decent bottle of wine which didn't seem exorbitantly marked up off the short but sweet wine list, and settled in to try a number of things. We started with the Barbeque Shrimp ($10.95).

Barbeque Shrimp is four large Louisana Gulf head-on shrimp in a butter, worcestershire, garlic, white wine, lemon and pepper sauce. It was terrific, and the sauce was decadent and lovely sopped up with Pearl bakery baguette.

Next was salads. I had the Bleu Note ($8.95), with fourme d'ambert (bleu) cheese, toasted pecans, and pears aside salad greens tossed in balsamic vinaigrette. My companion had the House Salad ($6.50), salad greens tossed in a creole mustard vinaigrette topped with crumbled egg. They both were gorgeously presented, perfectly dressed, and really really good.

My companion chose to do the 3-course $25 dinner. You get your choice of the house salad or a caesar, one of the starred entrees (which is everything but the barbecue shrimp, filet mignon, pork chop, or the taste of new orleans [crawfish etouffee and soft-shell crab]) and dessert. What a deal! It's available all night on Tuesday through Thursday, and before 6 and after 9 on Friday and Saturday.

So he had the Shrimp Acadian ($18.50), which was jumbo shrimp with shrimp and crawfish stuffing atop slices of crispy luscious eggplant. Oh, and there was a tomato beurre blanc sauce. Really really good.

I went for broke and had the Royal Street Filet Mignon ($29.95) atop grits. The grits were wedges of crispy-fried goodness, crunchy on the outside, smooth and creamy on the inside. The filet: well, that was incredible.

We finished with a slice of the gooey lemon cake which was really one of the most lovely desserts I've had in a dogs year. Wow.

Now, this wasn't inexpensive. Our bill was $119 for two, including a bottle of wine and a bottle of Abita Turbodog. Was it worth it? I think so. It was a really great meal, and for a special occasion, yum.

Now, if you want a cheaper experience, stay away from the sauce, go for the 3 for $25 deal, or better yet, go on Mondays when they offer 8 entrees for $10 each (as well as the regular menu).

First, I'd like to begin with the reasons why you won't want to eat here. One, they close at 8pm. Two, they are way north in NE Portland, far away from anything trendy. Three, they have a limited Lebanese menu—no fancy names you aren't sure how to pronounce. Four, there is no atmosphere, and in cold weather, the dining room is cold. Five, they have some american food items which encourage people to bring children. Six, they have no liquor license. Seven, small dining room. Eight, location is hard to find.

So, that's the downside. The upside is that the food is so good, you won't want to tell anyone about it. It's so reasonable, that, well, you might feel guilty that you're not elbow to elbow with punk rockers. They've applied for the liquor licence, and they take credit cards.

The pita is heads and shoulders above anything in town. It's so flakey and delicate that it melts in your mouth. Pita arrives hot from the kitchen soon after you sit down. Oh! The mezza goodies (falafel, homous, baba ghanouj, grape leaves, labneh, and foul) are each under $5, with a mazza combo for $8.50. The roasted eggplant in the baba is coursely ground, not at all bitter, vibrant with the peppery olive oil that marks all of the dishes. The homous is creamy and smooth and wonderful.

The rest of the menu is sandwiches, soups and salads, safeehas (pita dough with toppings), and grilled things. Nothing fancy, but everything done at a reasonable price. Lentil soup is not soupy lentils as at many restaurants—it's pureed almost smooth, a nice lemony note, and quite possibly addictive. Cheese safeeha—yummy cheesy goodness without falling into cheeziness. The meats—oh! Lamb is tender, chicken is incredibly good, covered in spice and flavor, and the rice is unlike any I've had before, and that's in a good way.

We finished our meal ($26) with a baklava and a turkish coffee, both less cloyingly sweet than usual. This is worth going out of your way for!

Other Press:

• ExtraMSG


• Portland Food and Drink

The food and beer are reliable, nothing exceptional, but solid. (Except, of course, when it's not.) Fish and chips are one of the better options.

CLOSED 9/6/2007
for more information, see this OregonLive Breaking News story

Remember Jellyfish? It's gone, and now Alberta Street Oyster Bar and Grill is in its place. Not that anyone would confuse the two.

I know nada from oysters, so I brought someone who does. She was impressed with the oyster selection, and the fact that you could order a half dozen and get one of each type. She started her meal with the Bloody Mary Oyster Shooter with fresh grated horseradish, which was well received.

ASOBG has a good selection of wines and drinks, and they have beer on tap as well. Out of a halfdozen or so taps, I recall Laurelwood's Motherlode Golden, Alameda's Porter, and Rogue Dead Guy. There is also a bar happy hour menu which I've been assured kicks ass. The atmosphere is lovely and darkish, and the service some of the best in the city.

First and second courses looked much more intriguing than entrees, so she decided to get the steamed mussels, pan-fried veal sweetbreads, and fries. These were all very good. The mussels came in a tomato-saffron-chorizo broth. The sweetbreads came in a raisin sauce with chestnuts. I had never had sweetbreads before, but they were tasty, I have to admit. And the fries were quite good.

I ordered the Dungeness Crab Napoleon with Spicy Black Bean Puree, Avocado and Blood Orange Reduction. It was the highlight of the evening for me: huge chunks of crab, avocado, and the intriguing blood orange sauce—sublime! I can't wait to make an excuse to have that again. That was followed with a burger on ciabatta with bleu cheese and bacon, which should have been great, but wasn't. It was cooked to order, and all the components were good, but together, it didn't gel. There was too much ciabatta, the cheese and bacon were lost in the taste of the hamburger, and I lost interest quickly.

Dessert failed to stand up to the first course either. The apple upsidedown cake was good, but its spotlight was stolen by the ginger ice cream, redolent of Ting Ting Jahe. I almost didn't order the donut holes with coffee pot de creme and vanilla froth because of the word froth—am I the only foodie who irritated by turning food into foam?? The donut holes were really disappointing, with the coffee pot de creme the best part.

It would be easy—really easy—to drop a lot of money here. Our total, with a shooter and a beer, was $59.

Okay, full disclosure: I know the owners socially. I met them after eating at their place several times and being wowed. That said, oh... my... g-d! This place, for me, is like dying and going to heaven! There's Anchor beers on tap, and wines by the bottle or glass—not cheap, but nothing outta line expensive. Bring a couple friends so you can order lots. Begin with a meat or veggie or combo plate. I haven't tried the veggie plate, but man, it looks good. And the meat plate is good. Salami (from Salumi, I believe) to die for. Next, the caesar salad. Garlicky, beautiful, and adorned with anchovy if you wish it. This is one of the three best caesars in town. And the plate is huge, an abundance of riches.

Hope you didn't fill up on appetizers cuz it's time for the 'za. Now, there are lots of arguments about what style pizza this is—is it Italian, is it Connecticut, or New York? I don't know from pizza, I just know that it doesn't get much better than this. Certainly not in Portland, at least. Thin crust that is perfection, crispy and wonderful, baked hot-hot-hot, topped with sparing amounts of exquisite ingredients.

Everytime we go, we order one pie (for two of us—it's good sized) and wish we had ordered a second. Because it tastes so good!

Drawbacks: parking can be a problem. And this place is popular—forget about going during restaurant prime time unless you don't mind waiting in line. The service is sassy and casual (which I appreciate). It's a small place, and it's easy to spend a lot of money because, gosh, you gotta get the caesar, and the meat plate is so good...

Not that there haven't been complaints, particularly about service there. I've ordered drinks and had them appear in a flash, and ordered drinks, and waited about twenty minutes for them to appear. That's frustrating, when the food is so damn good.

Let's begin by talking about dinner. The last time we were there, we had great service. Our waiter was congenial and quick, and had the liberty to really serve us in a subtle, excellent way.

The menu (thanks, Food Dude!) is divided into seafood cocktails, soups, small plates, salads, and large plates. Thursday night is pasole blanco night, a more subtle pork pasole than what you might be accoustomed to.

If you're a fan of ceviche or octopus, you have to try them here, because they are among the best in the city—Taqueria Neuve and D.F. have nothing on Autentica. Seafood cocktails range from $7-$9.

There are three soups ($7-8) which come in a good-sized bowl, and three salads ($7-8). The cream of corn soup is vegetarian, as is two of the salads, and another one each features shrimp. I tried the tortilla soup which was delicious and well-worth ordering.

Small plates range from $2 for a taco, to $7 for the queso fundido, a fondue of oaxacan cheese and chorizo, served with fresh corn tortillas, which is just plain wrong, it's so good. I tried the tostada con tinga de pollo ($5) which was really lovely. The tinga, or shredded meat (it can be chicken or pork, traditionally), is cooked with chipotles and guajillo peppers, and it has a really lively pepper taste without being too hot. Add the crispy tortilla beneath, and the lettuce, tomato chunks, queso fresco, and radish on top, and you have a really lovely combination of textures and flavors.

I also tried the vegetarian tamale with poblano peppers ($3.50), which was quite possibly the best tamal I have ever had. It was tender and moist, but tremendously flavorful. The poblano is also subtle, not hot, but mostly I was aware of how delicious the corn masa was.

The large plates range from $12-$17, with two vegetarian options and three seafood options. The shrimp in mojo de ajo (garlic sauce) were also gorgeous, subtle and garlicy, and accompanied by rice ($16). So good! The whole roasted fish ($17) came, and it was gorgeous as well as humongous. It was delicate and sweet, its skin so beautifully brown, and its flesh so pearly white, marinated with dried chili paste. I'm not a fan of fish, but I'm ordering that next time.

But even the less expensive plates are excellent. Take the platillo mexicano ($13), two enchiladas, in red and green moles, with a chile relleno. It sounds like your regular combo plate at your corner mexican joint, right? Wrong. If you're a fan of mole, you have to try this! The green mole is made from pumpkin seeds, tomatillos and serrano peppers, really rich and complex, over a simple chicken in tortilla. The red mole is made from 8 kinds of dried chiles and nuts, and is better than any I've tasted anywhere. And the chile relleno is stuffed with cotija cheese, in a rich tomato sauce. We were glad to have some extra, handmade, fresh corn tortillas to sop up all the extra sauce!

Now, for brunch.

The menu (thanks again, FD) ranges in prices from $2-$13, and ranges from little antojitos like tacos ($2) and sopes ($3), three salads ($7-$8) (two vegetarian), and a pile of delicious brunchy goodies ($7-$13), 5 of them vegetarian.

Brunch begins, first of all, decent coffee and fresh orange juice. Our waitress brings out molletes to try while we were mulling over the menu: soft bolillo rolls with refried beans and fresh housemade mexican cheese. Over time, we've tried just about everything: huevos rancheros con jamon, frijoles y salsa, chilaquiles con salsa picante y bisteck, fish soup, shrimp in spicy broth, quezadilla, menudo, potato omelet, eggs or chicken in red broth, eggs as you like them, enchiladas caseras, pork in chile sauce, and a flat iron steak. Huevos rancheros (eggs ranchero style with ham, beans, and salsa) was pretty darn traditional, with a good ranchero sauce, eggs done right and thin grilled ham. Chilaquiles, fried tortillas in a spicy sauce, served with a little steak and refried beans, was also traditional, lovely, and the steak was small but buttery and good. Really, everything has been so good. I was less than crazy about the fish soup, but fish fans loved it.

More photos of Autentica

I was disappointed to not get fresh, hot molletes (soft bolillo rolls with refried beans and fresh housemade mexican cheese) right off the bat. But we did start with fresh, good coffee.

The menu reflects some of the strong points of dinner—the cocktel con pulpo y camaron, for example, but it also reflects the owner, Oswaldo, listening to his customers. Folks wanted more vegetarian options, and now there are quite a few.

The menu is made up of appetizers and antojitos like ensalada con pacotilla aquacate pepinos y lima (bay shrimp with avocado, cukes and lime, $8); ensalada de berros con queso panela (watercress salad with panela cheese and spicy peanuts, $8); fruit salad ($7); the aforementioned cocktel ($8); sopes ($3 each), a couple different tacos ($2 each), quezadilla ($7), menudo, and several types of soup ($8-$10).

Entrees range from an omelet, eggs in a dried chili broth, huevos rancheros, huevos al gusto (eggs any way you'd like them), chilaquiles, enchiladas caseras, bisteak ranchero, and carne enchilada ($8-$13).

While the menu may have changed, the food is still incredible. We started with the ensalada de frutas: papaya, honeydew melon, cantaloupe and pineapple, with a wedge of lime and a monkey dish of chili powder—everything totally fresh and with vibrant flavors. Next came the sopes: you can order them with chicken or chorizo, I always get chorizo. The handmade grilled corn disk is topped with a hash of diced potatoes and your meat, topped with fresh cheese and crema, and slices of avocado & radish. These are just addictively delicious.

Then came our main dishes. The omelet con papas is indeed an omelet with oaxacan cheese and diced potatoes, with pico de gallo on top. It comes with refried vegetarian black beans topped with fresh cheese, and the beans are as runny, rich and comforting as any of the best mexican refrieds, even without the lard. And, the omelet came with blistering hot homemade corn tortillas. Huevos rancheros (eggs ranchero style with ham, beans, and salsa) was pretty darn traditional, with a good ranchero sauce, eggs done right and thin grilled ham.

Other yummy things include chilaquiles con salsa roja, bisteck o heuvos. Now you can order them vegetarian, with eggs, or with a little steak. This is just fried tortillas in red sauce, and it is some supreme comfort food. The eggs in dried red chili broth is soft poached eggs and nopales (brined cactus paddles) floating in a spicy and intensely flavorful broth that begs to be sopped up with tortillas. The enchiladas caseras are homemade enchiladas with chicken or cheese, a red or green sauce, and casera cheese and crema—it's not the cheeseball production you usually get with enchiladas, but a light and delicious (though filling) version.

Our waitress was having the pollo en consome rojo, chicken in a dried chili broth, which I got a good look at and whiff of. Yum. I'll be ordering that next time.

The food is amazing. And the price: two entrees, an antojito and an ensalada, and two cups of coffee for $30 before tip: also amazing.

When it comes to taking visitors out to dinner, there are just a couple places I consider. Cafe Castagna, Ken's Place, and Bastas. These are my special occasion places, places where the atmosphere is good, the service is good, and the food, of course, is good.

Bastas is my favorite Italian. In a former Tasty-Freez. Yeah!

Though once you step foot inside, you might never know it. You enter into the sophisticated bar, and unless you're doing their excellent happy hour, you eat in either the garden room or the other room (I'm sure it has a name). They offer, of course, lots of wine, including by the glass, and a couple beers on tap.

Our downfall is the appetizers. There are quite a few, and they all appear to be yummy. The carpaccio is a full plate of raw thin-sliced beef dressed in olive oil and parmesan, with lemon on the side. The caesar is not as garlicky as I generally like but is still one of the best in town.

Entrees. Yum. The pasta is a little less spectacular than other dishes sometimes, however, it's good. But there is so much to love amongst the entrees. The $19 steak is the best $19 steak in town, cooked to order, nested with the most decadent mashed potatoes around. The crispy fried chicken (is that Italian?) is also so very good, crispy and moist and delicious. Their version of cioppin is a delight, with lots of broth to soak up. And the lamb chops cause my partner to go into fits of pleasure.

Desserts also are good, though a little bit of a let down for me after the whirlwind beauty of the appetizers and entrees. But the fact that you can park in their lot, right there around the restaurant, is pretty darn good.

Downsides: it's a former Tasty-Freez, so when it gets full, it's like a bus station. The chairs are fine if you don't spend too much time in them, but they're torture in a long formal dinner. And, I tend to spend too much money there.

The Berlin Inn is one of those places that I remember on the way to some place else, and think, I made the wrong decision. It's not terribly close to home, and I don't eat german all that often, so it's just not on my radar. Which is silly, because it's quite good.

This small place, stuffed to the brim with germanica, is popular with many, though it might be a bit much if you're claustrophobic. Stairs, small rooms, and tight turns make this definitely not wheelchair accessible.

The weekend (or should I say, wockenende) frühstück is a relatively small menu. There are several veggie items, including buttermilk and German pancakes, and blintzes, several meaty dishes like pork chops, chicken schnitzel, or leberkäse with eggs, 3 omelettes, and 3 benedicts. Everything but the pancake/blintze/North Sea Toast comes with your choice of bratkartoffeln (think, German home fries) or potato pancakes.

They offer three German beers on tap: today's selection was Allgaüer Hefeweizen, Spaten Premium Bock, and Salvator Paulaner. If you're interested at all in the local beer scene or German beer, be sure to chat with Marty—he's a wealth of knowledge and loves to share.

Prices range from $6-$12.50 a plate, and portions, as you might imagine, are huge. We got the Best of the Wurst omelet, and the leberkäse plate. Each was a gut bomb of food. Our potato pancakes were unlike any I've ever had: throughly, pan-fried until they were like crocquettes, but the omelet and leberkäse were both good. I needed a nap afterwards.

K7AAY, aka John, writes (5/18/2006)

It's fusion, but in a good way.

Bernie's, on rapidly gentrifying Alberta Street, is an alternate history restaurant, taking the basic theme of working class food from the Old South and raising it to astronomical heights of culinary achievement. Sadly, no Sundays, no Mondays, and no lunch, but for a moderate cost, you'll find crisply fried okra, black-eyed peas not boiled into oblivion, and tasty greens.

$3 happy hour features fried green tomatoes, mac and cheese, and po boys from 4-6 pm and 10-close Mon-Sat

Where else you gonna get a decent mint julep in Puddletown, annyhow?

WARNING: Impossible on 4th Thursdays due to Culture Vultures.

Press

• Portland Monthly

Like any other type of sandwich, banh mi benefit hugely from being made fresh in front of you. You can frequently get banh mi at Vietnamese groceries and some restaurants as a grab-and-go, wrapped in cellophane, and they just are no where near as good as a fresh sandwich.

Bread makes a difference too—if you can find a place that bakes the bread fresh, you can bet the banh mi is going to be good. And Binh Minh is a bakery as well as a banh mi shop.

Binh Minh is a phone booth of a place around the corner from the Pacific Super Market. They have a couple tables indoors that aren't really designed to be sat at for more than a couple American-sized people, and a couple tables outside. You go to the coolers and pick up your beverage, a gelatin dessert, shrimp flavored chips, etc, and then step over a step and order from the sign board on the wall.

Foodwise, I'm told it's pretty traditional. There are eight sandwiches, most $2.50: the Vietnamese sandwich (banh mi cha thit nguoi, $2), meat ball (banh mi xiu mai), barbeque pork (banh mi xa xiu), lemongrass chicken (banh mi thit ga nuong), Vietnamese pork (banh mi cha lua), fish (banh mi ca), pate (banh mi pate), and shredded pork (banh mi bi).

There are five soups and stews: fish soup (chao ca, tom, $5), Vietnamese rice noodle with pork (bahn cahn tom, xa xiu, $5), egg noodle with beef (mi bo kho, $5), beef stew with french bread (banh mi bo kho, $3.95), and french bread with round egg (banh mi op-la, $3.25). You can add extra meat or vegetables for 50 cents more.

I haven't tried any of the soups or stews, but I've had all of the sandwiches, and, wow, there's not a bad one in the bunch. I particularly enjoy the pate, but the lemongrass chicken is also great, and an option you don't always find elsewhere.

In addition, they always have some stuff in the hot case: steamed pork buns, and spring rolls for sure.

The sandwiches, let's face it, aren't huge: they're about the size of a skinny hoagy, so plan on getting two or supplementing it somehow.

The staff aren't terrifically friendly, but they know english well, and they're really speedy.

Stopping in to Binh Minh is always a treat—I think their banh mi are the ones to beat.

Cash only!

• Vietnam's far, but tasty lunches are nearby
• Hot Chefs, Cheap Eats

We had heard that breakfast at Bob's was good, so we headed out there one Saturday. Their info isn't kidding: it is only about 15 minutes from Portland by car.

You go into the Whole Grain Store, and the counter to order food is back and to the left. Don't be surprised if there's a line and you have to slowly inch by the breads. Sooner or later, you'll get to the front and you can order.

After you order, you take your number and claim a table, either on the first floor, on the patio, on the second floor. Water, coffee, and pop are self-serve, and the stations also include maple syrup, butter and honey. Someone will deliver your food and make sure you have everything you need.

The breakfast menu is rather sparse: 16 items, omelettes ($7-$8), breakfast eggs ($4.75-$7), cereals ($2.50-$4), a fruit bowl ($6) and a kids plate ($3.50). There is also a vegetarian menu of 10 items ($4-$7), most vegan. All the menus are online.

So where are the carby things that you think of when you think of stone-ground whole grain goodness? It seems they are relegated as sides (or on the veg menu). After all, they offer vegan and non-vegan flapjacks made from buttermilk, 10 grain, or buckwheat, as well as buttermilk waffles, and vegan and non-vegan french toast. I would have liked to have a multiple carb breakfast, but building your own plate is expensive, or so it seemed at the time. We ended up having eggs and cheese grits with scratch biscuits. The grits were excellent, and the whole-grain biscuits were yummy, flakey, and a little messy.

The next time I go back, I'm definitely going to try the flapjacks. Maybe with a side of cheese grits...

The downsides are definitely that Milwaukie isn't so close for those of us who live in town, and it doesn't look like you have a lot of public transit options on Saturdays. And Saturday morning probably means a wait in line. The meat products are turkey based. And everyone from Clackamas County is there on Saturday. Including Bob and Charlee Moore whose grandparently visages appear everywhere, and they eat there too!

This is definitely worth the trip, especially during the week, for Bob's Red Mill fans, vegans, and whole grain enthusiasts.

I hate to damn Bridges with faint praise, but it's a neighborhood joint. Mind you, they're reasonably friendly, generous with the food, relatively popular, so much so that there's frequently a wait, and their food is consistently not bad. It's just inconsistent about being great.

Bridges is a sunny little corner breakfast joint. There are a couple booths, and quite a few tables, but it's crowded enough that wheelchair access would be a hassle.

It's smoke-free inside, and they have an awning hanging over some picnic tables on the Russell Street side if you prefer the company of your dog, or want to people-watch the folks going in and out of the Nike Outlet store. There is some exposed bike parking, and a gravel parking lot behind for the motor vehicles.

The menu is split into Benedicts ($9.50-$10.25), Omelettes ($8-$9), and Specialties ($7.25-$9.25). There's a dazzling selection of food items: burritos, french toast, fruit plates. You can also get cocktails and mimosas ($4.50-$6.50), bottled beer ($2.75-$3.25, selection varies, though usually it's some Wolaver's Organic Pale, Deschutes ales, Fat Tire, and Henry's), and wine by the glass.

Most non-carboload dishes come with potatoes. These are garden variety roasted potatoes, and like most places in town that serve them, they're not very good. They tend towards mushy.

This morning, we ordered a classic Benedict, and the Eggs Fiesta. The latter seems like it should have an exclamation point—whadda name! But sadly, the Fiesta, while its individual components were okay, there was nothing about the combination to write home about.

The benedict was fine. No complaints. Local canadian bacon, nice sauce, eggs just right. If only the potatoes were better.

more pictures of Byways

First, let's look at breakfast, which runs til 11am on weekdays and all day on the weekends. The coffee is good, and hot. The menu looks like the usual greasy spoon fare: eggs & protein, omelettes, pancakes, hash. In fact they serve four different types of hash which look beautiful and taste even better. Griddle fare includes buttermilk pancakes, but also amaretto french toast, and super fabulous blue corn hotcakes with pecan butter. Eggs are treated respectfully and are always tasty. Potatoes are well-cooked home fries—not my fav, but hey. And, I don't know that this is the best bacon in town, but it's sure the best bacon I've had in town for quite a while.

Lunch is more of the same, stuff that sounds unassuming and unexciting until it's in front of you. They have malts, brown cows (coke with vanilla ice cream), rootbeer floats, stewarts sodas and arnold palmers (lemonade & iced tea). The lunch menu is the three Ss: soup, salads, sandwiches. The prices range from $3-$9, and the salads range from tuna salad, chef, cobb, greek, back to chicken salad. French fries accompany all the sandwiches, and they're thick on one side, thin on the other!

The counter makes great seating if you're there by yourself, and the booths, by the display case of vintage travel souvenirs are great if it's quiet or you're in a small group.

This is a small place and popular, so on the weekends, bring the paper and plan on a wait.

I wasn't expecting much with this cute space just outside of Hillsdale. You can eat downstairs, or in the more bistro-like upstairs. They offer a weekend brunch, of about 12 breakfasty things and 11 lunchy things, as well as champagne, coffee nudge, bloody marys, and mimosas.

So it all started well: greeted at the door, immediately brought menus, coffee and water. The coffee, eh, okay, nothing to write home about. We order, and as we wait to eat, the upstairs fills. And still, one waitress. So, I wasn't terribly surprised when my meal came to the table cold, or that I never got a coffee refill. I watched as the folks behind us waited to get the tab, then waited for the waitress to pick up their credit card, then waited for it to come back—all in all, about 20 minutes!

Unfortunately, the food was similarly lackluster. My cold ham and cheese omellette was very overdone. It was accompanied by potatoes (a handful of smushy pan fried potatoes) and "fresh fruit" (three very thin, very dry slices of melon, one of starfruit). The Hillsdale Heap (potatoes with veggies, egg, and cheese) had eggplant mixed in with the veggies—just not the most harmonious combination. To add insult to injury, I was still hungry afterwards!

ExtraMSG has noted that they serve the food of the ethnic Koreans in China. The thing is, you don't see that much reflected in the menu. I'm told once you're trusted, or once you're persistent enough, you get some pretty damn incredible stuff that isn't on the menu.

This was our first time, so we ordered off the menu. We ordered BBQ pork, a good-sized serving with dipping sauce for $5, and potstickers. The potstickers were crunchy and thoroughly steaming hot when they came to the table—we inhaled them, in spite of the temperature.

The atmosphere is post-fast food. A couple of fridges are in the dining room, and everything is clean, but not showy. Signs in chinese and korean advertise specials, while crabs scuttle around their tank.

I had the seafood & bean curd in clay pot, which was excellent and very mild: a lovely flavorful sauce, fresh seafood perfectly cooked, lots of veg and tofu which had absorbed the sauce. My copilot ordered the seafood noodles with gravy, a new-to-us concoction of broth, egg noodles, more perfectly cooked, perfectly fresh seafood, egg, and of course, a moo goo gai pan-like sauce—very mild, curious, and quite good.

They offer two free refills on sodas as well as beer, wine and sake.

At the end of the meal, I offered that the kim-chi really looked good, and it was like I had said the magic words. Oh! Just ask for it next time, the waitress said, clearly pleased that I had some lick of sense. Next time I will ask about the signs, oh yes...

Clays is a little place, with a couple picnic tables out front, and a number of tables and booths built for people who tend to routinely overeat. It's not fancy, and everything is nicely mismatched and vaguely, humanly, kitschy.

The menu is impressive: smoked BBQ hot wings as a starter ($8), chowder/chili/gumbo ($3.75-$4.75), salads ($3.75-$10.25), sandwiches ($7.75-$9.75), BBQ platters ($10.75-$14.75), and even veggie delights (their words, $7.75-$9.75). BBQ purists will freak: there's catfish and salmon, and that's wrong. But I'm not a purist—I don't care unless someone makes me eat it.

When I was there, they had a bunch of beers on tap:

• Bayern Doppelbock
• Widmer Hefeweizen
• Amnesia IPA
• Anchor Steam
• Bud
• Jamaican Red

I ordered the brisket platter, and my companion the BBQ sparerib platter, and naturally, these are huge portions, piles of meat smothered in a sweet, not terribly hot sauce, with chunks of potatoes in ranch sauce (aka, home fries with garlic sauce), a vinegary slaw, and not-quite Texas toast.

My brisket seemed a bit lean, and the sauce bugged me, but it was nicely cooked. It just blanches before fattier, crustier briskets like Campbells or LOW. The pork ribs, however, were sweet, juicy, and moist, very tasty ribs. The slaw was sharp and complex. The potatoes—eh. Value for the meal, though, was very good.

Our service was incredible. Our server was the sort who was there when you needed him, and if he was there when you didn't, you sure didn't know. It was the sort of effortless seeming service that you should get with a very good meal, and here in Portland, frequently don't. So that was a tremendous pleasure.

I'm curious about the wings, and I've heard great things about the cold smoked seafood platter (like a lox platter, just not), and the turkey in the garden salad.

The highlight for me was the dessert. We got the apple crisp ($4.75), topped with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream, and wow! It was just a modest crisp, nothing fancy, but so very good, a combination of soft and crunchy and creamy. Next time, I'm gonna leave more room for that!

Do you like fish? Or are you celiac (gluten-allergic to you, bud)? Or pining for the northern midwest? Need to feel that Green Bay Packers spirit? Get thee to Corbett Fish House. If you don't like fish, you could have chicken, a gardenburger or a salad. But if you like fish, well, you could sure do a lot worse than here.

The menu online isn't up to date, sadly. Appetizers include a number of seafood you'd expect, plus sweet potato fries, packer fries and deep fried cheese curd. Now, the latter is just plain wrong, which explains why it disappeared off our table as soon as it arrived. Packer Fries are their great french fries covered in melted cheddar and pickled jalapeno. The jalapeno is easy to pick off, for those who chose to. Prices range from $2.50-$12.

They offer soups, salads, sandwiches, which I'm sure are great ($3.75-$13). But the fish and chips are the thing ($10-$18). For those of you who care, they follow the Monterey Bay Aquarium guidelines. They have:

• prawns
• oysters
• yellow perch
• walleye
• halibut
• chile-fried catfish

They also have fish tacos, three different types made with halibut and chile-fried catfish, which are yummy, huge and filling.

Everything that is gluten-free is clearly marked, and that is most of the menu, so celiacs have lots of choices here. It's also wheelchair accessible (though there is a lip at the front door).

Of course, fish and chips requires beer, and Corbett offers a full bar. When we were there, they had on tap:

• Mirror Pond
• Alaskan Amber
• Fish Mudshark Porter
• Widmer Hefeweizen
• Terminal Gravity ESG
• Walking Man IPA
• PBR
• Michelob Light
• Pilsner Urquell
• Guinness

Happy hour is 3-5 daily; no drink specials, but they do offer 8 items for $3.95:

• deep fried cheese curds
• fried oysters or chicken strips & fries
• a catfish sandwich
• calamari
• a caesar
• bay shrimp cocktail,
• oyster shooters.

I mention to the barber that I'm hungry, and immediately, Du's is mentioned. Have I been to Du's? OMG, Du's is so good, blah blah blah. And I admit that I've smelled Du's when I've ridden my bicycle by. The aroma of grilled meats coming out of that place is incredible, the sort to make you hungry again when you've just eaten. And suddenly, Du's sounds like the best idea EVAR.

They claim they have the best grilled teriyaki in town. They may just be right. They have 9 menu items, not counting sides or drinks, each between $5.50 and $8. Mostly, it's chicken, beef or pork teriyaki, though they also have a tofu bowl and yakisoba. I didn't see anyone order the tofu bowl or the chicken teriyaki salad; the resounding favorite was the chicken & beef teriyaki.

In no time flat, and I mean, less than five minutes, I had a groaning container of salad, rice, and teriyaki. The salad is dressed with a poppyseed dressing that I had been warned about— it's good, though all iceberg lettuce. The rice was rice, and the teriyaki was steaming hot grilled meat, a little dry but really tasty with the rice and a bit of teriyaki sauce. You can also get hot sauce, or a side of kim chee ($2.25).

The dining room has nothing going aesthetically, but hey, do you need that really? Especially since it appears they stuff even more food on the plates, and two people can eat and drink pop for under $20? No beer, but hey, you don't come here to hang out. You come here to eat teriyaki.

A little girl glued herself to the counter, watching a woman cleaver chop up pieces of chicken with big eyes. "I've been coming here since before you were born", a business man said to her, obviously just having pulled himself away from work at 8 o'clock at night. And even at 8, there were a steady stream of customers.

more photos of Echo

Let's start with the restaurant itself: with brick walls and an insanely high ceiling, a beautiful wood bar, and some nice wood accents. Wood booths line the floor to ceiling windows. The atmosphere is cozy. The outside eating area is in a space between two buildings, with bamboo at the end that faces MLK, heaters, and homemade lanterns and a fountain. It manages to be shady and breezy and thoroughly pleasant.

When we went for brunch, there were two folks working the front of the house: the bartender, and a waiter. This was fine initially, but as the patrons started streaming in, they were in the weeds.

The menu is varied and inexpensive: biscuits and gravy, french toast, pancakes, eggs & meat, frittata, as well as small plates, salads and sandwiches, most in the $5.50-$8 range. Some of these things seemed to be different just to be different, like the french toast, made from zucchini-carrot bread in an orange juice-rum batter. We ordered a cup of coffee (a bad idea: stick with espresso or alcohol), the dos heuvos (2 eggs, bacon, potatoes or grits and biscuit or bagel) with grits and biscuit, and the frittata with salad.

While we waited for food, the staff kept our coffee and water glasses full. The water carafes have slices of cucumber floating in the water—nice.

About a half hour later, out came the food. The frittata was overdone, browned, on the outside, and too thin. The crab filling tasted fishy, and the hollandaise that topped it was gelatinous and had a muddy flavor. The accompanying salad was almost dry, with very little sign of a dressing, nonetheless balsalmic vinagrette.

The dos heuvos were good, cooked to order, though the biscuit was drier than dry and didn't really taste like anything. I opted for grits, which were made with a white sharp cheddar and thyme: my dining partner thought they tasted weird, but for me, they were the highlight of the meal, and some of the best grits I've had in Portland.

In the end, I think the recommendation that I've heard for dinner at Echo also applies to brunch: keep it simple and you're likely to be happy.

Walking in the door of Edelweiss on a Saturday can be intimidating. You'd be forgiven for not trusting that there is a deli. You have to walk into the place, past the German speaking shopladies, through the tight aisleways, and squeeze past the hoards of people who are in getting their sausages and cold cuts for the weekend. The whole experience can be a bit overwhelming. And it doesn't help if the shop ladies laugh at you. Remember, it's nothing personal, they mean well, it's just German humor.

Make your life easier, and make an immediate right by the magazines. You'll see the fast food tables set up, as well as a cooler of beers and pop. You can grab something there but keep in mind that there are three beers on tap.

Now, head to the back of the shop, to the Northwest corner, and there's where you can buy lunch, and no, you don't need a number.

When we were there, the Russian or Ukrainian woman behind the counter treated us with soviet efficiency. She glared at us for not ordering something to drink, and then she glared when we changed our minds and went back to get some pilsner on tap. And yes, while it seems like a simple thing to put a sausage in a bun, and then put sauerkraut on top, she'll give you a number and someone will bring it out. Ten minutes later.

For $4, you can get a sausage with sauerkraut on a bun. They have three different kinds, but we were only offered mild or spicy, and honestly, I was afraid to ask for the weisswurst that I love. But our spicy sausages were good, with a nice snap.

You can also get sandwiches and 9 different salads, but I can't speak to that.

Supposably they offer the best reuben in town, and I suspect when it's less busy, they're probably happy to practice German with you. My pal Heather has lots of fond memories of going in and practicing Kinderdeutsch. We overheard someone haplessly telling the shoplady that he was from the Zoo (as in, he lived in the Zoo. No reports on if he looked like a monkey), and to their credit, they didn't laugh at him (though we did).

Yes, it's a Grateful Dead reference, and a Mount St. Helens reference.

This place is unassuming from the street, except, for all the cars parked around it. It's small—you walk in and order at the counter. They offer chicken wings and all manner of other deepfried things, like french fries, sweet potato fries, onion rings, tater tots, mushrooms, pickles, twinkies. They also offer 12 excellent sauces, including a couple that will blow the back of your head off (and I'm a hothead)—lucky for us, they provide celery matchsticks that you can try all the sauces for your favorite combination of hot, sweet, and flavor.

You can order wings by the half dozen, and that's how they do the saucing as well. Each order comes with blue cheese dressing or ranch—your choice.

There are tables, natch, and some reading material. Usually, the food arrives soonish. Of course, if you're eating spicy deep-fried food, you need something to wash it down, which is where the 7 taps of microbrews and Rainer come in handy. And, they even have "Portland Wings" (sheesh, it's tempeh) for vegetarians. Damn. While I can't speak to tempeh and pickles, the wings and fries—it's all good.

This little hole in the wall is part of the big high-end Elephants Deli in NW. With grab-n-go coolers, you can get salads, sandwiches, and take away meals, as well as yogurt, and every possible type of chi-chi pop, water, beer, wine, bubbly, etc. Baked goods and deserts wait at the center island. Hot sandwiches and soup can be ordered straightaway in the back. The cost for any of the food items tends to come in shortly before $7, so as long as you can restrain yourself at the drink cooler, it's not an expensive meal.

The drawbacks of the place is that it's popular, and the table situation is tight: like Paris-cafe-tight, not built for our supersized American bodies. Still, you can get lucky and score a table on the sidewalk and watch them tear up the parking lot right in front of you.

more photos of Fuller's

Fuller's is an old school coffee shop, with a double horseshoe shaped counter. It's all counter. Everybody, except the folks that sit outside in good weather, sits at the counter.

The breakfast menu is short, with the general breakfast stuff: eggs and meat, omelets, pancakes, french toast. Prices range from $5.25 to $8.50.

But there are a couple interesting things. Heuvos rancheros at Fuller's is the most interesting and not even vaguely authentic interpretation of the dish. It's so wrong! A disk of egg is topped with cheese, then a mixture of stewed tomato, onion, mushrooms, and bell pepper. Refried beans with cheese, and salsa are served on the side. No tortilla! Georgia's Potatoes Deluxe takes hash browns and covers them with the stewed tomato mixture, plus spinach and cheese. And, german pancakes are an eggier version of the American ones.

How was the food? Good, simple, delicious. The coffee sucks, though they do have espresso. We had the pig in a blanket, which is a german pancake surrounding link sausage, and the aforementioned heuvos rancheros. Both were great.

The hash browns are absolute standard-bearers. Shredded potatoes (seemingly freshly cut, could that be?), are perfectly cooked, crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside.

Egg dishes have toast on the side, from bread I believe they make themselves.

As good as the food is, the people watching is also superb. It's easy to pick out the tourists with their Powells walking maps and Pearl shopping guides, as well as hungover locals.

• Road Food

And, it's also a great lunch place. On weekdays, breakfast is served all day (which is to say, until 3pm), and you also have a selection of sandwiches and entrees like meatloaf with mashed potatoes and mac-n-cheese.

I had their excellent, unpretentious, burger. It's substantial, but not too much—maybe a third of a pound, cooked to order. The bun is squishy but not bad squishy, and the burger is dressed with the usual lettuce, tomato, onion, and.... whole-grain mustard aioli. I was a doubter, until I bit in. It's a good burger—one of the best in town.

It comes with fries or salad. I can't speak to the salad, but the fries were thin, double-fried, a slight hint of batter, perfect.

Another argument to come in on the weekdays is the Heuvos Rancheros. It's just an wonderful combination of eggs, tortilla, nicely-seasoned beans, and sauce, the sort of good meal that sticks in the corner of your mind for a long time.

Some people like the cocktails, ranging from $4-$6, including the EmergenC Elixir (orange vodka, EmergenC, muddled lemon, and a splash of cranberry juice). There are coffee and champagne cocktails too. Beer in bottles, and Caldera pale in cans, but no beer on tap.

I first fell in love with the roasted potatoes. Potatoes can be the most lovely food, but so often at breakfast they are lackluster, undercooked, underloved. Not these potatoes, oh no. Little wedgelets, crispy, tender, delightful, I could eat a bowl of these plain.

But no reason to do that with all the wonderful stuff on the menu. There are 19 different egg-variables, from the traditional eggs, potatoes and toast to omelettes to scrambles to benedicts, $5.50-$9.25. The basic ingredients are good, even free-range groovy, stuff, and it's all kept simple enough so there's some semblance of balance.

Take for example, the classic benedict. The hollandaise is lemony and luscious, topping the soft poached egg, the local canadian bacon (yumm!), the crispy english muffin, and begging to be draped over the potatoes.

Another example of being caught off-guard is the white chocolate chip & toasted hazelnut pancakes. One, you could feed several people well with one plate. Two, the white chocolate serves as the secret agent taste that makes the pancakes irresistable. Three, real maple syrup and a bowl of butter bricks wait on your table.

They also have some sandwiches, which I may never try. The menu is amazingly vegetarian friendly, with 14 different options, and you can sub in tofu for eggs for a buck. Oh, and they serve Stumptown coffee. No espresso.

The two dining rooms are a little cramped, with the back one like a basement bar, and the front like a bright and cheerful diner. The rooms have both booths and tables, and there are a couple of outside tables for good weather as well.

Just know, you'll probably be waiting a bit to get in, and you'll be waiting outside. But you can have some coffee while you wait.

After having been there for lunch, I am so bummed that they aren't open for dinner. But I guess that's good for my wallet.

Press:

• BarFly
• Portland Tribune
• Willamette Week

photo by Molly Holzschlag

airport & Washington Square locations still open.

This restaurant is closed as of 4/29/2006

They serve Stumptown coffee. They have excellent baked goods. They have the best breakfast sandwich in town, and some really yummy soups and sandwiches. Oh, and they even have salads.

Excellent Japanese style sushi and meals in a quiet serene setting. The prices are right too. With no nigiri above $5 (most is $2.95), and no rolls above $9 (with most under $5), it's easy to have a meal without taking out a second mortgage. They offer lunch as well as dinner, Tuesday-Saturday. Excellent, reasonable bento boxes, too.

Helser's appears to be about to implode due to its popularity. But it's popular for a good reason: a good breakfast at a fairly reasonable price. Cheap eaters will want to get there before 9 (probably, quite a bit before nine, as it seems to fill fairly early), and order off their early bird menu. The scotch eggs are insanely good, as are the occasionally offered potato pancake sandwiches. And while I'm still waiting to find a place that does french toast as good as my own, this is the best I've found in a while. Decent coffee, and the opportunity to start the day with alcohol are other bonuses. On nice days, there are tables outside as well.

When I heard about Henry's the first time, I thought, right, 100 beers on tap—how likely is that? I had all sorts of expectations that it would be suburban and sportsy and not serious. And you know, I was totally & completely wrong.

The bar has several different levels, including a lovely outdoor patio. You can watch sports on the huge flatscreen tvs, or, you can sit so you don't even know that there are giant flatscreen tvs. The volume is on mute, anways. It's a classy place, and hooligans are asked to leave immediately. Really. I saw some guys come in who were obviously already inebriated, they treated a waitress badly, and several managers went over and helped them out.

You can sit well away from the bar, but if you're serious about beer, you want to sit at the bar. They have a cool ice ring to set your beer on, and their bartenders know the beers well and serve them in appropriate glassware. (The wait staff haven't a clue).

Be sure to ask if the beer is old, and if you can have a taste. Somethings don't move so fast at Henry's.

For your friends who don't get beer: there's mixed drinks. Though I wouldn't know anything about that.

I wouldn't expect a lot from the food (this is a Pacific Coast restaurant, so solid but unexceptional chain fare), but if you order during happy hour, at least it's cheap.

This is similar to shabu-shabu. You get a broth, in a pot, on a burner, and you get to toss various protein, starch and veggies in, as you wish. Once you've chosen from their 7 asian broths (vegetarian, Ma-la [herbs and red pepper], Thai-style hot sour, pao-cai [pickled cabbage Korean style], xiang-cai [Chinese cilantro with egg], and meat [yes, I know that's only six, but there is another, really]), you can go and load up on soda, dipping sauce, and goodies for your broth.

The goodies vary, naturally, but include frozen shaved meat, meat balls, stuffed wonton, k-crab, frozen and fresh tofu, a couple types of noodles, and then a bar of vegetables. You choose just what you'd like. Then go plunk yerself down in front of your steaming pot of broth, and start cooking. The best thing: you can go back again and again.

If you have questions, just ask. The Tsais are very helpful, funny, and very real.

Lunch is an amazing $7.50, with dinner $12.50 (I think)—dinner has more seafood, and just more stuff.

I love this place. It's fun people-watching and you get to play with your food. And, you can eat so virtuously, and it's so good.

• Adventure to Hot Pot City (::space:.TUNA:..)
• A hot pot on a cold winter's day
  Dan Cook, The Business Journal of Portland, December 13, 2002

Huber's is known for two things. Spanish coffees, flamboyantly made, and turkey. You're forgiven if you had no idea of the latter. Most people do come for the delicious, potent Spanish coffees and the scenery: the fireworks involved in making a Spanish coffee at the table by a hunky waiter, the incredible old bar done all clubby with the arched stained-glass skylight, the terrazo floor, and lots of stained wood—solid Philippine mahogany paneling, and the see and be seen crowd, most notably, the Blazers. It's Portland's oldest restaurant. The restaurant portion looks out on 3rd Avenue, while the bar is tucked inside, accessible from 3rd or Stark.

We went there with a bunch of scooterists to try out the lunch menu. Here's what I heard and tasted. Almond-encrusted turkey on a bed of spinach (I think) was simple and good. The hot turkey sandwich is the last of its kind in Portland: served on white bread with your choice of yummy dressing or powdered mashed potatoes, it hits the nostalgia button but good. The buffalo burger with fries was good, but overdone. Cobb salad is hard to do wrong, and Huber's certainly does fine. Pan-fried oysters were good, but the breading was distracting. And finally, turkey noodle soup—fine, about what you might expect. Everything, save specials and seafood, comes in under $10.

In the end, Huber's is solid, a little pricey, and unexceptional for lunch. Spanish coffees, now that's something else altogether.

This is one of my favorite restaurants in town, and I hate to even bring it to your attention, because what if you love it like I do, and suddenly I can no longer get in for my caesar and pasta fix? Justa Pasta started out as a pasta maker, and they still supply many high-end restaurants with noodles and ravioli.

The menu is made up of salads, pastas, raviolis, and specials. If you're being careful, you can easily get a small salad and a small pasta and come away owing less than $10. The caesar is one of the city's best, garlicy and sublime. Soups are consistently fantastic. But really, this is all about the pasta—a couple types of pasta, a couple types of ravioli, a handful of sauces, all housemade. It's great. Specials, always including several lasagnas... great. Cheesecake and other sweets... great. And, the owners are really good about posting the day's specials (as well as a current menu) on the website (imagine!).

Okay, so what are the downsides, then? One, you queue up for food. Grabbing a table before you order and get your food is really frowned upon, and seriously not cool. They have a couple of bottled beers, a couple of wines by the glass, or you can select a bottle of wine while you're queued up. Otherwise, find a seat in their remodeled restaurant/lounge, enjoy a sip of whatever you're drinking, and relax. Pearl Bakery baguette comes almost immediately. The service is efficient and friendly, but you'll have to get your own water refill or fresh glass of wine. (See? Why would you want to go there, really?)

Ken's is one of a couple bakeries in town making excellent bread products. That said, Ken's is my absolute favorite. Everything is handmade, using the best organic flours and ingredients, the slow way. The breads are incredible—if you like French-style breads, this is the place. It's a bread-lover's paradise—and an Atkins dieters' nightmare.

In addition to bread, they have yummy sweets—a pain au chocolat to die for. They have awesome sandwiches—the best croque monsieur in town, and they have beer and wine as well as espresso.

They also have a mean pizza night, Mondays, from 5:30-9:30, serving bistro-style pizza.

Downsides? They're often packed, and finding parking on 21st is a pain (though if you're there before 3pm, you can park in Basta's lot). Tables are tiny—great if there's two or less of you, not so great if you're coming in a pack. And, it's a small place. Service can be quite brusque (though it's always markedly better when Ken is around). And, they close early (7pm T-F).

It's hard not to really like Ken's. It's just an unassuming diner with a tiny staff, including Ken Gordon who's behind the stove most the night, but the food is simple, and at the best of times, transcendent. The starters are a great start: the caesar is garlicky and one of the best in town—but only if you like garlic. Other salads are also fine, as was the chile rellano app.

Now a friend of mine claims she's found better chicken in a restaurant, but I still believe Ken's is the best I've had outside of my own kitchen. If the buttermilk fried chicken is on the menu, you've got to have that. But it's hard to go wrong. Their burger is one of the best in town, and giant. But what really stands out for me there, as well as at Cafe Castagna, are the vegetables. I'm not much of a vegetable eater, but I am always certain to order them there -- they are always excellently prepared. Oh. And the pecan pie is to die for.

• Ken's Place
  An Exploration of Portland Food and Drink
  

more photos

Still, when I noticed the Kennedy School does breakfast, I knew I'd be heading over there sooner rather than later.

Kennedy School is a former school, built in 1915, retired in 1975. Its one-story modular design was a model to others and got national recognition. In 1997, the McMenamin Brothers worked their magic, transforming the school into guestrooms, bars, a theatre, brewery and restaurant, all with a smirking reference to the school it once was.

And note the year: 1997. Before Alberta was happening, before New Seasons even existed. Before Nature's Northwest went bad. The McMenamin Brothers took a big chance on a property in an area that a lot of folks saw as a bad neighborhood. Good or bad, the Kennedy School project was a huge force in the area's gentrification.

The Courtyard Restaurant is the former cafeteria, right on a courtyard, and I was surprised as we walked in the room how I wanted to linger. The room is full of mismatched light fixtures, huge wood booths, a gorgeous bar, and of course, a whole wall of windows onto the courtyard which is gorgeous: lots of tables, chairs, benches and small pews surround beautiful plantings, and a huge fireplace.

In a word, the place is beautiful, and comfortable, eccentric but in a thoroughly pleasant way. It's so thoroughly Portland, and the acid-trip stuff that makes me gag about McMenamins (men wearing overalls with a hammer for their head, women who look like some SCA witch, stars and moons, so many stars and moons) is so very subtle if it's there at all. I love this room.

We had coffee that they roast themselves: not bad at all. The breakfast menu ranges from $4.15-$9.40, from eggs to flapjacks to biscuits & country gravy to cereal. The waitron recommended the benedict, which is significantly more expensive than everything else. So we ordered heuvos rancheros and biscuits and gravy, along with a side of sausage.

The menu is tremendously vegetarian friendly, just as Kennedy School is tremendously wheelchair friendly.

Anyways, the food: bland. There was plenty of it, but nothing had much of any flavor.

The biscuits were like mutant dumplings, absolutely huge, covered in a white sauce. There was plenty of gravy, but it tasted really more like a white sauce than a sausage gravy. Mmmm, white sauce over giant biscuits...

The heuvos rancheros, of course, did not have anything resembling ranchero sauce, just warmed corn tortillas, bland black beans, unmelted shredded cheddar cheese, poached eggs, a bland salsa, and sour cream. Even the sausage didn't taste like much of anything.

This bummed me out so much. By the time we had gotten our coffee, I had decided that I wanted to spend as much time as possible in this room, or once it stops raining, in that courtyard.

June 2nd is the last day in the SE Hawthorne location.

Full disclosure: I know these guys.

If you've had Pastrami King's pastrami in the last couple weeks at the Hillsdale Farmers Market, you know it's sublime. Well, they've given up on the market and moved their operation back to Ken Gordon's restaurant, Ken's Place, and it appears to be an unqualified success.

Before a couple weeks ago, I didn't understand why people get so excited about pastrami. I was thinking it was a waste of a good brisket. But now I understand, and now, I crave it.

It's a true brunch menu: pastrami & eggs, corned beef hash, latkes, a big salad, handmade bagels with lox, reubens, pastrami sandwiches, and baked knishes. We sat at the counter watching everything get made, and, wow, everything looked better than the last!

We began with a toasty warm potato knish ($2), which could be a meal in itself. One of my favorite things to do in NYC is go to Yonah Schimmel on Houston, and Nick's knish is even better than I remember having at Yonah Schimmel's.

We ordered a reuben ($10.25) and the pastrami & eggs ($8.75). Watching the reuben being grilled was almost painful, it was so beautiful. And while I would have preferred having eggs with sliced pastrami, the frittata was delicious and quite addictive. The guy next to me ordered the hash, which I would have liked to eat off his plate, and his daughter the bagel and lox. Whoa! Even the big salad looked like a decadent treat. We washed these down with Dr. Brown's cream and cel-ray sodas, the latter tasting like celery without the annoying strings. They also serve Stumptown coffee and eggcreams made with Dagoba chocolate. Yum!

Meals run from $6.75-$11.75, and we brought half of ours home. You can also get pastrami by the half pound, chopped liver, potato salad, cole slaw, and full or half-sour pickles.

The downsides here is that with everything looking and sounding and tasting so good, a nosh plate with little bits of this and that would really help. It's not a cheap endeavor, especially if getting breakfast there also means bringing a half pound home to nosh on later—and you practically have to! And the service, while friendly, is a little uneven at this point. Still, I'll be back.

CLOSED

There was a collective sigh of relief when Ken Gordon of Ken's Place bought the BBQ and smokers from the LOW guys when LOW (Laid Off Workers) BBQ (serving you with 15 years in the semiconductor industory!) closed in August 2005. Rodney Muirhead and Kyle Connally worked magic with slow-smoked Painted Hills beef brisket and to-die for pork ribs. But they got other jobs, and the BBQ, beloved as it was, had to go.

It was, by all accounts, a great success. But, for a number of reasons, Ken has decided to move on, into the deli-pastrami-brunch business he built with Nick Zukin, Kenny and Zuke's, which will be opening downtown in the Ace Hotel in September.

Luckily for us, Rodney Muirhead couldn't stay away from the BBQ and opened Podnah's.

The original Pasta Veloce location, which became La Terrazza, has reopened as La Capanna.

This tiny place with sidewalk and balcony seating has seen better days, but they still make pasta, panini and salads to order, serving the same dishes that PV and La Terrazza did. Prices are in the sevens for panini, $8-$9.50 for salad, and $6.75-$10 for pasta.

The lunch servings aren't bad: a pasta bowl fullish with a couple of pieces of grilled bread, quite attractive. And quite underwhelming. With the Pesto E Pollo, the chicken is dried out (nothing new there, unfortunately), and while the cream-pesto sauce is green, it's not terribly basilly. The artichoke hearts tasted freshly plucked from the can, with the brine still on the interior leaves. And, the pasta was gummy.

I don't want to claim that the original Pasta Veloce was incredible, because it wasn't. But sauces were simple and tasty.

Mind you, it's edible. But for $9.25, it should be a bit better than edible.

Well surprise, surprise, in spite of the sign, the new shop is called Taqueria y Restaurant Las Nayaritas, and there is no sign of a buffet. Indeed, it's just a sparse hole-in-the-wall filled with fastfood molded plastic booths and tables, and the sort of place where the dishes listed on the walls are just suggestions, really.

They have all the usual stuff: tacos, burritos, tamales, enchiladas, but weekends are really the time to stop by, because they increase their menu almost two-fold, making delicioso caldo de cameron, rico menudo, rico pozole, carne en su jugo, and birria. They also serve Desayuno Classico starting at 9am!

So after some consultation, we ordered the pozole ($4.99) and a quesadilla ($2.99), and grabbed some sodas out of the cooler. I asked for the quesadilla without onions, and I was happy to hear the cashier tell the cook to hold the pico de gallo and any other onions en espanol. As we sat down, I immediately regretted ordering something as pedestrian as a quesadilla.

Maybe we looked hungry, I don't know. One of the ladies brought out tastes of their sopa del dia, Carrot Soup, which was seriously rich and luscious. Then she brought out chips and salsa -- no great shakes, but I appreciated getting them in a taco stand. Then, out came our food. The pozole was a pho-sized bowl, with lots of shredded pork on top, accompanied by a plate of cabbage and several slices of lime. The quesadilla was huge, a giant flour tortilla griddled, filled with a little cheese, and a lot of chicken.

The quesadilla was good, especially with the homemade salsa; the pozole was great. It was full of hominy with a yummy broth, very definitely homemade, and such a huge portion.

When we were finishing up, one of the ladies brought us tastes of their carne en su jugo which was wonderful: lots of broth and smaller pieces of meat. Yum.

With the cheapest thing on the menu being tacos ($1.25) and the most expensive being the filet minon ($11.99), it's hard to imagine you could go wrong here. No alcohol, no smoking, cash only.

Still, the space is very pleasant: 3 garage doors that open onto the courtyard and Mississippi Street, ceiling fans to keep the air moving around, and an assortment of interesting art and dinosaur statues. And, like everything else on Mississippi St, they have wifi.

This evening we went, and I took a closer look at the menu. Let's begin with beer. They have 4 taps, with Laurelwood Red, Terminal Gravity IPA and Golden, and usually an Amnesia on... though tonight it was Walking Man's Barefoot Brown. They have a selection of bottled beers, bottled drinks, iced teas, etc.

The menu is divided into Appetizers, Bowls, Burritos, Salads, Quesadillas and Add-Ins. I had never spent enough time with the menu before to see that they encourage customization. They're largely groovy and organic. Okay!

Prices range from $3.50-$9. The menu is largely vegan and vegetarian, with protein items like groovy chicken, smoked turkey, tofu or tempeh as add-ons. But it's not just protein: you can add spinach, broccoli, mashed potatoes, brown rice, shitake barley-quinoa pilaf, greens, corn, plantains, grilled veggies and/or romaine. And/or guac, sour cream, jalapenos, tillamook cheese, vegan rice cheese, and vegan sour cream.

We ordered the Amaizin' Grace Quesadilla and Grilled Chicken burrito. The Amaizin' Grace has corn, green chilies and cilantro pesto in addition to jack cheese and pico de gallo. In the spirit of customization, I ordered mine without the pico.

The grilled chicken is a basic mission-style burrito, with pinto beans, brown rice, lots of jack cheese, and pico de gallo. That was ordered with guacamole.

So. Both dishes came without their customization. We sent the quesadilla back, and they comped us a bowl of chips and salsa. The burrito was also missing its rice. The chips were lackluster, but the medium roasted tomato-chipotle salsa was warm enough to keep us drinking our beer.

When we got to eating, it was all good. My quesadilla was super-cheezy, and a nice flavor combo. The burrito had nice, carmelized chicken in it in chunks, quite tasty.

In the end, this seems pricier than going out for a burrito at a taqueria, but part of that may be the fact that there's no beer generally. I 'm excited that I can bring veggie and vegan friends here, and they can have a range of ordering options. The beer on tap will probably be enough to draw us back.

But the fact that they encourage customization, and then are a bit sloppy about actually customizing isn't encouraging.

• EAT: Laughing Planet Cafe (Alisa's Adventures in Sustainable Living)
• Portland Blog
• The summer sun brings a bloom of fresh eateries (Portland Tribune, undated)

For a brewpub, the food is some of the best in town. Which is to say it's uneven, but still; there's a reason this place is full at meal times. There's a good-sized, and diverse, menu of salads, sandwiches, and full entrees. And they have killer fries. Also, a great weekend breakfast.

But my beef with the Laurelwood is that it's wildly popular too. At least, most of the times when I've been there, it's so loud that I couldn't hear anything my companion said. But, if you don't like kids, really lots of really little kids running about willy-nilly, just as if they've been drinking beer and own the place, don't bother.

more photos

Breakfast is served from 10-3 on the weekends. The menu is pretty straightforward: a handful of omelettes like the Super Protein (stuffed with bacon, ham, sausage and cheese), the Ham and Cheese (which is big chunks of ham in a cheese omelette) and the Green Eggs and Ham (a pesto version of the Ham and Cheese); a handful of scrambles; a breakfast burrito; egg, meat and carb combos; and a couple kid's options (leggo my Eggo!).

We've been there several times now, and it's a good honest, tasty breakfast. Two omelettes and a coffee rang in at $16. While the roasted potatoes aren't quite as good as Genie's, they're still pretty darn good, topped with raw garlic, parsley and parmesan. If you're familiar with Laurelwood's garlic fries, it's not quite that garlicky, but if you don't like (raw) garlicky potatoes, you probably won't like these.

Toast products come with little commercial jam tubs, but it's actually good.

It's a good, satisfying breakfast with the option of letting your children run free, or having a bit of the hair of the dog. Of course, if you're allergic to children, sit in the bar—or go somewhere else.

If you don't like kids, don't bother with this. Beer, some organic, a bar, and plenty of space and toys and other kids to distract your little ones while you suck down a cold one.

Dude, I just got the best festivus present ever! The New Old Lompoc project on N Failing, aka Failing Williams, aka 5Q, is open! They have all the Old Lompoc Brewery beers on tap, natch, including an insane five (5!) winter seasonals, as well as hard liquor. Two nitro thingees. They have this sophisticated space, not as self-consciously cool as Pix next door, but lovely in an astere, calm sort of way. They have—wait for it!—a garage door (thankfully not open this time of year). They have these crazy huge long booths which practically demand interaction, and appear to be built for beer lovers. And real adult food. The macaroni & cheese of the day yesterday was a rib-eye in a red wine-cream sauce over penne—a lovely stroganoff of sorts. The steak was delicious and a steal at $14, presented over the rich, creamy and thoroughly homemade mashed potatoes, and perfectly done veggies. Meatloaf, well damn, I loved that, too. They have a healthy list of appetizers, salads and sandwiches too, and the fries look great. No wi-fi yet. They'll start brewing in the spring, and distilling in the summer. Damn!

Regular house pints are $3.50. There's a happy hour, too.

Other Press:

• Like a breath of fresh air, the Fifth Quadrant beckons
  Liz Colie Gadberry, the Portland Tribune

Fancy this: it's Saturday afternoon. You go into MacTarnahan's Taproom, and while there are only a couple tables occupied, there is a Wait to be Seated sign. The beautiful porch overlooking industrial NW Portland appears closed in spite of it being a nice spring day. We are seated and given menus, listing all sorts of pretentious sounding food. We order some beer (an imperial pint is $3.50) and some fries ($4). They do have all their beers on tap, and the room is both airy and Germanic with wood and beer signs, and the taps at the bar are beautiful. The fries are very good.

• about the brewery and beer
• happy hour

Mama Mia's, in spite of the name, has got some serious bordello going on. You shouldn't go in expecting the new Tuscan cuisine that is touted as Nouvelle Italian—this is the Italian of your childhood, redolent of cheese and red sauce, perhaps lacking in subtly, but... I'm not complaining, please!

Huge menu. Starters range from $4-10, with the standouts being the chopped salad, the zucchini, and the calamari. Individual sized 10" pizzas are $11-$12.

16 pastas come in huge portions, from $8-$16. The sunday gravy and gnocchi are crowd pleasers. The Losta the Pasta Lasagna has been uneven: perfect and well balanced one time vs eggplant undercooked and tough. Entrees range from chicken, beef, veal, and seafood, $14-$19, featuring all your childhood favorites: scallopine, parmigiana, milanese, alla marsala. Three of us got veal and loved it, though it was interesting to see how serving sizes varied on the same dish. (The veal, by the way, is free-range and naturally fed)

There are quite a few veggie options and the menu indicates a willingness to accomodate vegans as well.

The mixed drinks are impressive, and about the usual price. They do have 8 taps, with Widmer Hefeweizen, Widmer Drop Top Amber, Newcastle Brown, Moretti, Stella Artois, Lagunitas Censored and Bridgeport IPA. The pints are $4, unless they're Guinness, and then they're $4.75.

We finished the meal with about one of everything off their dessert menu. While dessert is not their strongest course, that didn't stop us from devouring almost everything before us.

You can make this a cheaper meal, or as we did, go completely overboard. I love coming here, it's like coming back to a childhood memory, except it totally doesn't suck. It's really a pleasure.

The Mississippi is as comfortable as they come with its painted floors, mix-matched furniture, and post-collegiate feel. They have a couple taps, too, salads, and much improved, store-made pizza (which they'll deliver if you live in the neighborhood and they have a spare person). We had good salads and slices. Not the best pizza in town, but a comfortable place with good ambiance, decent pizza, good beer, and quite frequently live music.

You could do a lot worse than Muddy's. Yummy and very reasonable breakfast all day. The best french toast in town, even beating out Henry's. Homemade chipotle hot sauce. Good, groovy coffee, groovy eggs, yummy baked goods and really good bread. Homemade strata on the weekends to die for. Our only qualm was that they don't do over-easy eggs. But hey, at least they are totally upfront about it. Lunch features the three Ss - soup, sandwiches, salads, along with a quiche of the day. Not that I've ever made it to lunch, but I bet it's good. It's like hanging out at home if your home is an adorable victorian filled with mix-matched furniture, and clean. And with good food, and good vibes. They now have bottled beer and house wines to make this an excellent, low-key place to hang out and get some work done. Or not.

The Nite Hawk is a funny little place. A recent advertising campaign seems to be bringing in a younger than 70+ crowd to this time capsule from the early seventies. Dinner and lunch here are okay, serious family restaurant fare, but breakfast is the real deal.

This place is all about booths and a counter. The restaurant is non-smoking; you can smoke on the lounge side, and perhaps the only way to tolerate the lounge side is by smoking. They have their own parking lot as well as street parking, a little bit of bike parking, and they're located at a MAX Yellow Line stop.

Breakfast is served all day. They list breakfast specials on the board, usually about a half-dozen of them with the most expensive being $5.95. When we were in, they also listed a prime rib & eggs, which was significantly higher.

The coffee is awful. But they're lavish with it.

Menu items lean heavily towards meat, eggs and potatoes, and run from $3.95-$8.95. We had pigs in a blanket, biscuits and gravy, and the standard eggs-sausage-potatoes-toast with hashbrowns rather than the default cottage potatoes.

The pigs in a blanket was a huge plate of four long breakfast sausages tucked into pancakes, then sprinkled with sugar. It came with garden-variety "pancake syrup", and it was just fine.

The gravy on the biscuits could have been more hearty, but it was the first gravy we've had in months of eating out in Portland that actually tasted like sausage. It even had some visible sausage particles! It was easily doctored with pepper and hot sauce. The biscuits were hidden, but were fine.

And the standard American breakfast was just that. The hashbrowns were great diner hashbrowns.

If you get bored, there's Keno and scratch-offs, and the lounge features video crack and pool.

Most patrons, if they're in a for a hair of the dog, prefer a red beer (a glass of lager with a tomato juice chaser), but with a full bar and a couple of beers on tap (Bud, Coors Light, Fat Tire, Mirror Pond Pale Ale, Widmer Hefeweizen, and Black Butte Porter), you can have whatever you'd like. Or RC.

• BarFly

I've just become aware of these fast-food noodle joints, and I wonder if anyone pulls it off? It seems like a simple, fast food to make, however... Noodles is not the mid-west chain, nor is it the Burgerville effort. Noodles is basically just pastas, salads and bread, in a fast-food style restaurant and the place is popular with families. Caesar salad had an awful dressing, thai chicken linguini was inedible, but the beef stroganoff was pleasant, with chunks of beef and mushrooms. Salads run $2.75-$7.00, bread $1.50-3.50, pastas $5-$8.50. Beer and wine are available.

Just got back from dinner at Nostrana. If you've been in the previous occupants (Sue Bee's, Kienow's), you won't recognize it: it's all chic and gorgeous and hard wooden surfaces and a giant wall rack of wine. It's beee-autiful. And the menu is full of all sorts of Italian words that weren't at all recognizeable.

One way to get great service, or better service: take pictures of the place before going in. They'll think you're a reporter (and they'll ask, too).

We had a selection of things from various parts of the menu: a charcuterie plate from Salumi, the Nostrana salad, a pizza with sausage and sweet peppers, a steak, and some semifreddo. The meat plate was delicious, but very spare, 4 different styles of meats from Mario Batali's dad, served with big slices of crusty Italian breads, and a cranberry jam. The Nostrana salad is a caesar made with radicchio, and the serving is large and impressive. We liked it: it has an impressive crunch and the dressing was oily rather than creamy. Radicchio, I'm told, is usually bitter, which I didn't know at the time, but I scarfed my portion of the salad.

The pizza was a 12" version, which comes to the table uncut. I have to agree with the foodies who complain that it should come cut. It just should. The pizza was fine—a crackery crust, a tiny layer of sauce and cheese, sausage and peppers, all in balance. Nice. It's not going to give Apizza Scholls a run for their money, but I wasn't expecting it would.

The steak was our big ticket item ($22). It was small and came with maybe six or seven little wedges of potato and several leaves of kale, dwarfed on a huge plate and it was dressed in a tomato-pancetta sauce. The sauce seemed unnecessary as the steak was tender and rich, perfectly cooked, with just a smidge of fat or gristle.

In the end, it was a nice experience but one that didn't seem worth $66 to me. I can't fault the food—it was good. I'm sure part of it is my inner cheapskate that wants to feel very full after $66. That cheapskate also doesn't want to rely on guessing or having to ask the meaning of non-English words, and wonders why a main entree is served as this spare, slight thing (what, how expensive are potatoes or kale these days?). Part of it certainly was the service, which was competent but not the level I'd expect for that sort of cash. It just wasn't the epiphany with angels singing that I expect for $66. (though I could occasionally hear opera above the dull roar of the diners)

And then once I'm there, I remember. You walk in, and there's a crowd of people, but where does the line end? There's an english menu with tacos and combo plates, and then there's a wall of photos with faded labels. What meats are available? What about nopales? I see barbacoa (a huge steamed cattle head). Everyone is speaking spanish, and I'm wondering if my awful tourist pidgin is up to this.

Still. Our cashier can pidgin English so we order. Huaraches are one of the reasons to make the trip: masa "sandals" the size of an NBA player's foot that are grilled, spread with refried beans and then topped with some sort of meat. I chose carne asada. I also got sopes, masa disks covered with refrieds, meat, fresh mexican cheese, crema, avocado, and lettuce, and a combination plate with more carne asada.

This and two jarritos cost $18. My sopes were most expensive at $5.50! The combination & the huaraches were both $5.

While we wait for the food, we explore the salsa bar. 5 salsas: a pico, two reds, and two greens, and the red and green we try are both blistering and addictive. Free chips await—help yourself. While we watch people around us get food, I make mental notes of things to try next time. The 7 Mares (7 seas) soup looks wonderful, as does a Cocktel de Camarones—good-sized shrimp, topped with good-sized chunks of avocado. I watch a man tuck into a torta, which seems about the size of his head. I watch someone from the kitchen come out and trim out some barbacoa for an order.

You'll notice there's no photos of the food: it's because we fell into it! The huaraches plate came with two giant huaraches, plus rice, beans & guacamole. The sopes: three to a plate, no sides. And the combo plate: rice & beans, and freshly made tortillas. Everything was delicious, both hot, and as leftovers (we brought lots home).

On the way out, I asked about to-go menus. The cashier said, yes she had them, and then I repeated the question in spanish: she gave me a scowl and said, no, of course, no! I wish I had a road map. But I think I'll be back there soon, saying, give me what he's eating.

There are also some pleasant tables out on the sidewalk.

The menu lists giant tiger prawns, halibut, salmon, true cod, catfish, and chicken tenderloins as fried options, and ahi (is it fried? is it roasted? is it grilled? is it poached? Who knows?), crab cakes, an unfried combo, chowder, corn on the cob, shrimp cocktail, and key lime pie. It seems initially quite straightforward.

All of the entrees come with skin-on fries, and all come as a half or full order.

Every time I come into Halibuts, I think, mmm, I'll have the halibut ($9/$14). Now, should I get a half, or a full? I can never remember if a half is enough food, but then, at $9, it seems like it should be. And then I get the half with its two small pieces of halibut and think, shoot, I should have splurged.

This is the thing: it would be helpful to know that a full order of prawns is 8 pieces, and a full order of halibut is 4 pieces. But the menu doesn't specify and most of the staff seem to not want to chat or explain: they just want to take your order.

Half baskets range from $5-$10, while full baskets are $3-$5 more. $6 will get you a very small bowl of very good clam chowder (though, at that price, it ought to be).

We've had the halibut, the prawns, and the true cod. All very good. The batter is tasty, and the result isn't greasy. This is probably the best fish and chips in town, though that comes at a price.

When we were in recently, the owner stopped by our table and started with the, oh, you got half orders schtick. "For ten dollars, you get 4 prawns", he says. "For four dollars more, you get four more shrimp. It's a no brainer."

Unfortunately, we've heard this speech from him every time we come in. Unfortunately, his menu claims a full order is $5 more, not $4. Does he not realize that it sounds like he's telling his patrons they're cheap while he's bragging about his food?

They have some beer on tap,

• Anchor Steam
• Fish Organic IPA
• PBR
• Widmer Hefeweizen

There are plenty of other places that do fried fish well. And have beer on tap. Alameda Brew Pub and Corbett Fish House come immediately to mind. And I think that's where I'll be spending my money, the next time I'm jonesing for fish.

Other Press:
• Metroblogging Portland
• Portland Food and Drink

It seems that everyone in N & NE Portland were up watching the Trojan implosion, and then decided to go out to breakfast. We pulled up at John Street Cafe and were shocked to see the inside and the outside crowded with people.

I was with my companion, he who does not willingly wait for breakfast, so we obviously needed to come up with Plan B tout suite. But we're in St. Johns, which is a bit sleepy at 7:30 on a Sunday morning. There's Pattie's—no, that's out. There's the New Portland Rose, which was also deemed unsuitable. I didn't know about Slim's but I bet it wouldn't have passed muster either.

And so with lowered expectations, we went to Our Daily Bread. It's a family restaurant. However, it's not a chain, and the name is from the fact that they bake their own bread. The coffee was awful, but was there immediately with a menu and a glass of water.

The interior is all about wood, but very comfortable.

Breakfast is offered all day, and the ranch breakfasts are all about eggs and meat: three kinds of sausage, corned beef hash, chicken fried steak, and three kinds of conventional steak are among the offerings ($6.75-$19). There are pancakes, french toast and waffles ($2.50-$6.75), omelettes ($6.75-$8.50), even espresso. And from 6-10am, there are five $4.50 breakfast specials.

So, I ordered the classic ham & cheese omelette with hash browns and homemade cornbread. HWDNWWFB got pigs in a blanket.

Quickly our food came, and hey—it was great!

The omelette was perfect: a thin crepelike egg layer swaddling chopped ham and melty cheese, neither over or underdone. It wasn't an exercise in trying to pile food on the plate, but it was tremendously filling. The shredded hash browns were crispy and lovely, creamy on the inside, not at all greasy. And the cornbread was warm, obviously freshly made, northern-style so slightly sweet, served with creamed butter.

The pigs in a blanket were plate-sized pancakes rolled around link sausage, served with applesauce, creamed butter and syrup (sorry dunno if it was real maple or not).

We both attacked our plates and began talking again once we hit about half through, which was about when we had to say when.

Another example of what makes St. Johns great: unpretentious, hard-work, and value on the buck.

First, let me say: this is a family restaurant. So don't get your hopes up about gourmet or really good. But this greek diner/lounge has a pile going for it. Among other things, if you live in the neighborhood, you'll see your neighbors there. The non-smoking restaurant side is busy, bright, and very diner-like, with an assortment of booths, tables and counter seating. Go at breakfast or dinner, and you'll find kids—not a lot, but some. The lounge side is dark, soothing, busy, and smokey, with its own counter, what seems like thousands of TVs playing sports, and two fireplaces(!). You don't have to drink on the lounge side (just be tolerant of smoke)—and at breakfast time, is about half full, though there's not a lot of folks in for their hair-of-the-dog.

What the Overlook does exquisitely is the diner breakfast. Lots of options, always some cheap less-than-$5 specials, and the food is reliably solid. Get the grits if they have them—you can doctor them up into something fantabulous. The two of us went a bit nuts and still got out for less than $15, not including tip, for breakfast.

This bar can be quite cosy. Ten taps, three with a beer engine, and the largest selection of spirits in the state of Oregon. Just recently had the worst lunch in recent memory there, with abysmal service to boot. They have a new chef, and supposably will have another one in a month.

Now, you might be familiar with them already. Up until recently, they were simply Sunset Deli, a shack-like building on MLK across from Sheridan's, and next to Taco Del Mar. I admit, it seemed a little too divey for even me.

But with a new paint job, Pho Green Payaya looks almost respectable. A covered deck on the side would be nice in warm weather, and it would be removed from the hustle and bustle of the tiny, newly painted interior.

The original Sunset Deli menu (teriyaki, salads, sandwiches) is still in place, and for vietnamese lunch, you've got some limited, not terribly cheap, options. We started with vietnamese iced coffee and their salad rolls, which they call fresh spring roll: filled with bbq pork (xa xiu), shrimp, vermicelli noodles, & mint. The presentation on these was gorgeous, and they really were the highlight of the meal. Though definitely not the best salad roll in town.

Next came our entrees, beef pho and lemongrass chicken. Like I said, the viet menu is short: 3 pho variants (beef, chicken or vegetarian, with no choices for meat), udon (huh?), curry, fried rice, papaya or mango salad, and lemongrass chicken or tofu. The presentation on these were also really lovely. And for a $6 small bowl of pho, it ought to be lovely.

The pho was disappointing. It came with a very small salad plate (though the broth was studded with lots of herbs), and the meat and rice noodles clumped to themselves. By the time the pho got to the table, the meat was an unidentifiable grey mass. And the broth was salty and thin, not rich and robust.

And the lemongrass chicken was also underwhelming. The sauce was tasty with that nice lemongrass citrusyness and slightly spicy, but the chicken itself tasted plain. The green beans were nice and crisp though. It seemed overpriced.

So, beautiful presentation, a little expensive for what it is, and okay but not memorable food.

Pho Hung makes one of the best pho broths in town. And their vietnamese food is solid. The 82nd Ave location offers a bit more sophistication than other locations, along with a menu with color photographs and explanations for those who might be new to vietnamese. Some claim the pho here is greasy, and I can't comment about that, as I've only had it at the Fremont St restaurant. If all things are equal, you could do much worse than the pho here, and the bun and com (noodle and rice) dishes are also very good. Salad rolls are not giant, but they are freshly made and delicious. But watch out—spring rolls are tasty, and greasy.

More photos here

We went seeking pho, soup and bun. Pho Saigon is a pleasant restaurant with booths and tables, a large flat-screen TV, and a lot of lobsters on the wall. The menu is Vietnamese and Chinese, with most items given in English, Vietnamese and Chinese. I was a bit surprised at the prices: a small pho was $5.50, and a large was $8. But no matter.

We ordered salad rolls, fried prawns, a pho with meatballs and rare steak, BBQ pork wonton soup, BBQ pork bun, a thai iced tea, and a Vietnamese coffee with condensed milk.

The drinks, of course, came first: small, strong, and not terribly sweet. I prefer doing my own sweetening, so that was right up my alley.

Next, the salad rolls, which were very decent, stuffed with shrimp and BBQ pork. The dipping sauce was very thin, which made for a drip hazard. I decided to get okay with a drip (or three) on my shirt.

The fried shrimp were, well, not the best example of the craft. The shrimp were firm, sweet, and mediumsized, covered with a thick batter, which was still doughy and undercooked. They came with a classic chinese sweet and sour dipping sauce. The person who ordered them didn't end up eating them in the end.

Then came the entrees. The BBQ pork wonton soup was totally full of wontons and chinese BBQ pork—it was the winner of the table. The wontons were filled, it seems with BBQ Pork, so they were at the bottom, covered by an impressive array of BBQ pork slices. The person who ordered that slurped happily, ignoring the glares from the other side of the tabel.

The pho was a small bowl with both meatballs and sliced eye of round. I had ordered it children's style, without onions, but that had been lost in translation: they may well have given me extra onions. There was a salad plate that was small, but with very fresh ingredients with a full salad plate. The beef broth was okay, though definitely mild and a little underspiced, not the rich broth that I relish.

And the bun, or vermicelli bowls (a rice noodle salad with a fish-sauce dressing), was deemed okay, but terribly mild. It came with adorably cut carrots, and pickled daikon. And while it was deemed okay, the eater picked at it.

Now it could be that we just got lucky, and came in on a bad night. In spite of the parking lot being full, there were only a few tables full in the restaurant. Friends, with better palates than mine, certainly, have liked it. Next time through, I'll stick to the chinese noodle dishes.

Soups are $5-$7.50, entries $6.50-$8.50. One of my favs is the cha gio chay, spring rolls with tofu and taro root, with soy-ginger dipping sauce. If you really want to impress someone new to Pho Van, order Banh xeo, an impressive crispy rice flour crepe filled with pure yummyness (shrimp & pork)—as big as a dinner plate and golden brown delicious. Bahn xeo is always impressive, but Pho Van's version is quite possibly the best in town. Okay, I've not had anything I don't absolutely love there. It's so yummy, I try to come up with excuses to go there, across town, several times a week.

One of Pho Van's greatest strengths are their ability to work with groups. This is a place that doesn't get flustered with a crowd. And they take reservations for parties of six or more.

This is also a great place to take your unadventuresome midwestern relatives: the place is so beautifully designed, so clean, so stylish, that how can your Applebee's loving mom not approve?

Pho Van is well-known to Eastside pho enthusiasts. It's hard to go wrong with a good bowl of pho, and Pho Van does some of the best. The prices are good, the service is fast, and, it's a great place to take someone who isn't sure about pho. Unlike most of the other eastside pho parlors, Pho Van is gorgeous and lovely and tremendously aesthetically appealing. With the new menu strict vegetarians won't have to go hungry, though their options are limited. Dinner for 2 including appetizers, beer, and tip came in at $25.

Rodney Muirhead, of LOW BBQ fame, is back. You better believe it. In this tiny storefront next to a taqueria, a subtle, unpretentious and sometimes chilly dining room awaits. So, okay, wear long underwear. Or get your meal to go. It should be fixed soon, if not already.

The menu, these days, is pretty simple. Openers include their wedge salad and Texas style chili. The wedge is just that: a wedge of iceberg lettuce dressed in homemade bleu cheese dressing and scallions. Simple and so very delicious. The chili reminds me most of red pozole, made without hominy, and with lots of brisket. Delicious, and very spicy. My one complaint is that it comes in a very small cup.

The entrees are what you might expect: brisket, pork ribs, beef sausage, pulled pork, and more, with two sides. The sides are cornbread, coleslaw, beans, and potato salad.

The meats, for the most part, are exquisite. Okay, so the sausage is not as good as you'd hope, but the brisket and pulled pork are really scrumptious, with a little bark and very tender. The sides are a work in progress: on two different visits, we had different styles of cornbread and beans, so maybe I shouldn't comment on them? The initial beans were borracho style, in a decious meaty broth, and the second time, they were more like baked beans.

Lunch has some sandwiches: whatever meats were smoked the day before: probably pulled pork, brisket, smoked turkey, plus ribs and the wedge salad. For $8, you can get a sandwich, a side, and a pop.

The lunch—well, there's nothing not to love. The sandwiches are piled high with slow roasted meats, and they come plain, with a side of pickled carrots, jalapenos and onions, and another side of sauce. And they are really good enough to eat without sauce.

You can wash all of this down with some pop, some fancy soda, or beer. They do have some on tap. And follow up with some pecan pie.

So... great BBQ or greatest BBQ? Arguably, the sides are better at Ken's Place-LOW BBQ. The issue of meat is going to require some investigation. But of places that serve BBQ more than one night a week, Podnahs is above and beyond anybody else in town.

It's all about the lunch, and burgers, and cash. You have limited choices: essentially burgers and fries, and a couple other things that are afterthoughts. You can get a cheeseburger, or a double cheeseburger. You can get it with bacon. Don't get uppity though -- there's one kind of cheese. The burger comes on a pillowy bun with krinkle cut fries.

There is something so delightful about this place. It's not cheap (a bacon cheeseburger is $7.50), and as they only take cash, not always so easy, and the food is not by any stretch of the imagination gourmet. Maybe it's the sea of maroon vinyl, or the strange enclosed garden out the window, maybe it's the homemade shakes, or maybe it's the fact that it's so insanely fast. I timed it today—6 minutes between ordering, and having a cheeseburger of my own. Anyways, it's great in an anti-bistro burger sort of way.

It's a large place, so unlike some other wonderful brunch places, you are much less likely to have to wait in line. Once seated, coffee and other beverages, like their beautiful bloody marys and champagne cocktails, are brought with amazing efficency.

This is the thing about Roux: the service aims high. And for the most part, succeeds.

A version of the menu is on their website (sadly, not up to date). It's made up of oysters; starters, soups and salads; benedicts; eggs and omelettes; brunch & morning treats. If you really want a treat, try their 4 course French Quarter brunch for $25: bread & fruit, oysters or shrimp fritters, benedict or omelette with a side of meat, and beignets.

While I appreciate in theory the idea of that sort of decadence, I don't have the necessary restraint to take part in something like that.

So we start with shrimp fritters with spicy remoulade ($8). It's shrimp, it's fritters, what's not to like? 5 light-as-air fritters make up the serving, golden brown and no sign of grease. Mmm.

I don't know what they do with their eggs, but if you are an egg fan, you've got to have them here. It doesn't matter if you get them over-easy, scrambled or in an omelette: they are just amazingly good. The best we've had anywhere in a month of Sundays: really fresh, really tasty, just incredibly eggy. We had them over easy and scrambled soft and that's the way they came. The scrambled eggs were so creamy. We asked the waitress what was in them, but never really got an answer.

Two free range eggs with home fries, toast and meat is $8. My consort loved the home fries, while I couldn't be bothered with them. The toast comes with a little homemade-tasting jam (yesterday's was strawberry). The andouille was house-made and very smokey—in fact, it overwhelmed the other seasonings.

The chicken fried steak ($12) was tender and melt-in-your-mouth good. The sausage gravy was easily the best sausage gravy I've had in town in a restaurant, but it was salty.

The mushroom omelette ($9) was loaded with mushrooms and little cubes of bacon.

I really liked the white cheddar grits there. A serving is $3, generous, and just really good.

The wait staff kept our coffee and waters full. We sat a table down from an Oregonian photographer so it was great fun to watch the dishes come out, and watch her work. Presentation is really nicely done here. And the drinks: especially the bloody mary and the sparkling wine with a douced sugar cube made me wish I had an excuse to drink in the morning.

The place filled quickly -- by the time we left at 11:45 or so, the place was almost totally full. The prices are so reasonable: if you stay reasonable and don't order 5 things, like we did, and don't order alcohol, you can easily get out of there for under $15 a person. I totally didn't see the 4 courser, but if I had, well, yikes. As it was, I brought well over half my meal home.

So, it's not totally perfect, but it's awfully good, and the service was really really lovely. I love the Simpatica gang, but I also loved never running dry on fluids at Roux.

And really, that's a good thing. It makes that meal a special event, which is nice given that I, and perhaps you, eat out entirely too much.

So. Simpatica. I've only been for brunch, but it's one of those things that stands out. Not only is it the best breakfast you've had all week, it might be the best meal period.

First of all, all the meats come from Viande, which conveniently enough is their meat shop. Yum.

Every week, the menu changes. Prices range from $8-$10. Some things stay, like belgian waffles, chicken and waffles, and biscuits and gravy. So, with something like chicken and waffles, where the fried chicken is the best in town, and the waffles come with a fruit or berry based syrup (or regular maple syrup if you'd prefer), it's easy to get into a rut, and order it every week. A wonderful, magical rut!

But you are rewarded for trying the new stuff too. There's always a frittata, a hash, and crepes. There's always the breakfast sandwich, the cheeseburger, and the philly cheese steak.

I've had the cheese steak: best in town. The cheeseburger may well be the best too—if only it came with french fries. And, I've tried everything else that was close enough for me to stab, and everything, everything has been superb. Every meal there has been memorable and delicious.

They serve Stumptown Coffee, bloody marys, mimosas, wine, beer and cocktails, to ease your way into the morning.

So what's the drawback, other than it just happening on Sundays? Well, Bon Appetit named Simpatica one of the Top 10 hot new restaurants in the US for 2006 (June 2006), and so the lines waiting for breakfast have just increased. Now everyone knows about it. Gee, thanks!

The room is loud, and in the best of circumstances, you have your choice of a 4-top or a communal table. That said, you may meet some new folks.

If you are here from anywhere else, you might just think of the Spaghetti Factory as a chain, which is true. This is an excellent place if you want salad, pasta and dessert on a budget if you stay away from the alcohol. You'll see lots of families there, just for that reason. That, and the menu is very kid friendly. However, let's just be serious: the pasta sucks. But the prices are inexpensive, the drinks strong, and the view of the river downright intoxicating.

This is just a little corner cafe/diner: tiny, really, with a couple of booths, a few more tables, and counter seating. In nice weather, they have a patio as well. It's the sort of place that you can ID from the street because the windows are all fogged up, and there's a line of people reading newspapers.

Yes, they did trademark "You eat here because we let you", so there is a bit of attitude, theoretically. Sometimes, there's enough folks staffing; sometimes, it's just Denise (who's worked there since the beginning of time) and someone else working the entire place. So yes, your (Portland Brewing) coffee cup and water glass won't stay full.

As noted, the coffee is not what you come here for. They do serve expresso, or drinks if you need some hair of the dog.

And they do serve lunch. Not that I can speak to that.
The breakfast menu is huge, and there's always more on the chalkboards. If you can't see them, ask, or just make a point to check them out.

There are traditional breakfasts ($4-$8.50) which are egg, protein, potatoes, toast, including some absolutely excellent scrambles. If you fear you aren't getting enough pork in your diet, try the meat lover's scram. It has, of course, ham, bacon, and sausage in bite-sized chunks with a little jack cheese—delicious and easily two meals.

Potatoes are big slices, fried on the griddle—they don't do it for me, but they are a good excuse to have some homemade salsa.

The ala carte menu ($3.50-$7) has favorites like a decent biscuits & gravy (which you can get as a half order), and the Tichenors (Tichenor's choice, the dilemma, the other dilemma), which is home fried hash browns covered with all manner of things.

The griddle menu ($2.50-$6) includes pancakes, french toast, waffle, and blintzes. The pancakes are huge, covering an entire huge round plate (and you can get real maple syrup for a surcharge).

And finally, there are 3 egg omelettes ($7-$8.25).

With a big menu and a lot of specials, you have choices, and they all seem to be solid. The heuvos rancheros are a favorite, a delicious (and completely inauthentic) carb-fest of corn tortillas, refried beans, ranchero sauce, eggs, potatoes, and pickled jalapenos. Yum! And you can add avocado.

Whenever I have friends staying in NW, this goes on top of the list for what to do for breakfast.

There are several things that divide Takahashi lovers, and Takahashi haters. One, they're out way out east. The fish quality isn't phenomenal. And finally, they make some Americanized sushi.

That said, the Takahashi is adorable. It has, of course, the sushi bar, where you can watch Mr. Takahashi and a collection of younger men at work, and that is definitely the best place to sit if there's just a couple of you. There are also tables, of course. A miniature train runs (sometimes) on a track above the dining room, and Japanese gee-gaws are everywhere.

The real high points of the Takahashi are the ala carte tempura choices, cooked sushi (for folks who don't care for raw fish), and low prices—especially on Wednesdays, when everything is discounted.

When you are seated, you'll get your tea and hot scented towels. I'm never sure what to do with the towels, but I like the idea.

You have your choice of three menus. The first is the goofy, hand-written laminated menu of appetizers and entrees. There are fried, rice, yakisoba, pot stickers, miso soup, sukiyaki, udon, a number of combo plates and ramen—I admit, however, that I come to the Takahashi for tempura and sushi, and it's those menus that I pay attention to.

As you might expect, the tempura and sushi menus are forms to fill out, on your table. The tempura choices are many: 16 different vegetables (including tofu! who knew? $1-$1.50), 10 types of seafood and fish ($2.50-$3, softshell crab, $8), and chicken ($2), and beef ($3). So if you'd only like to order, say, kabocha (japanese squash), onion ring, nasubi (japanese eggplant), lotus, several types of mushrooms, banana, kisu (japanese whitefish), snapper and chicken, that's what you get—two pieces of each.

The sushi menu is a great primer for Japanese food newbies: everything is spelled out. They offer nigiri (sushi on pillows of rice, $2.50-$5 for 2 pieces), and maki (sushi wrapped in rice, and then rolled in nori, $2.50-$7), and the menu indicates if the fish is raw or not. Nearly half the menu is cooked maki or nigiri.

There are also specials, which generally top out at $3.50.

Purists will be upset, surely, about the use of sweet chili sauce, Sriracha, chicken tempura, mayonnaise, and especially cream cheese. But, hey, you can get natto here.

Vegetarians have a lot of options in the tempura menu and 9 options on the sushi menu (tamago nigiri [egg & sugar omelette], kappa maki [cucumber], avocado nigiri, inari [fried tofu pocket stuffed with sushi rice], natto handroll [aged soybeans], picked daikon radish maki, shea maki [avocado, cream cheese & cucumber], spicy daikon radish sprouts, and su maki [avocado, cream cheese & asparagus].

They offer hot and cold sake, naturally, Japanese and American beers, and wine: plum or white.

The downside to the Takahashi, other than the drive, is the service. It's really erratic, going from great one visit to awful on another. The other night when we visited, it took 45 minutes to get our sushi and tempura, and from the guilty look we got from the waitress, it wasn't the kitchen's fault. It gave us lots of time to try origami (directions and paper are on each table) and learn it wasn't our style.

This is why it's best to sit at the sushi bar. You always have entertainment and your food comes faster.

The prices are great, but it still ends up being expensive unless you show some control. This last visit cost us $50—not the most we've spent here, and not the least.

This place is very popular, and for good reason. Try something different—like boar—or something familiar like carne asada. They also have a full bar, and Hales on tap.

Strengths include some of the best ceviche in town. Weaknesses include being popular, small portion size, and store bought tortillas.

The place is small but cute, and obviously professionally designed. Lovely art lines the bright walls, and the glassware and china and nice and unexpected.

The breakfast menu is short: one page, made up of Huevos a la Mexicana, Huevos Rancheros, Omelet Poblano, Omelet de Carnes, Desayuno (typical american breakfast), and Burrito de Desayuno, ranging from $5.75-$6.50.

We ordered the ranchero and the Omelet Poblano. Everything on the menu (except the burrito) comes with potatoes and toast, but when we saw the owner having his breakfast with rice and beans, we asked for that on the side of one of the plates. Meanwhile, we drank good coffee out of smallish cups, and had okay orange juice.

As usual, we drained the coffee and water quickly. I didn't wait long before they were replenished the first time. The next time came as we were paying the bill.

The ranchero was fine. Not the best we've had but at least more typical than most in town. A round two sunny-side up eggs topped a tortilla and then was covered with a tasty pureed sauce. The eggs and sauce were good, but the tortilla was this knife resistant thing on the bottom of the plate, which didn't want to be eaten with the eggs.

However, the potatoes. Not seasoned, not browned, tasting of nothing.

The omelet was also fine. It was topped with the aforementioned diced poblano, and the interior of the omelet was the mild chili-onion-tomato stew that the menu says gives Mexican food its characteristic taste with some mushrooms and cheese. Of course, we were expecting more poblano, so that was a disappointment. The rice and beans, also fine, though not exciting. I learned after the fact that the beans are vegetarian, which explains why they weren't unctuous, but doesn't explain why they were underseasoned.

We finally flagged someone down to ask when they open, and we didn't really get an answer. 10am, maybe? Sorry!

The menu also has a reasonably priced lunch, with many vegetarian options, and a much-more expensive dinner ($10-$16 for entrees), with no vegetarian entrees. The menu that I have shows the usual beers, though I'm told that they don't have beer yet.

In the end, I'm not sure I'd go back. Autentica is yummy, and while they also have service problems at times, they're yummy. With 21st, there's the parking issues, and the food just wasn't that exciting.

Thai Noon is the oldest Thai restaurant on Alberta Street. When you consider that Alberta was all but deserted a dozen years ago, you know it hasn't been there so long. But it appears to be holding its own against Thai newcomers like fancy Siam Society, and newbies Halo Thai and Monsoon.

They don't have the hugest menu, and like a lot of Thai food in Portland, it's sweet without the balance of heat. However, they're fast, generous, and consistent, and just about everything on the menu can be ordered vegetarian.

Tonight we ordered chicken salad rolls ($2 for $3.75), which came immediately. They were premade, but not old, and they actually did have a bit of spice to them.

We had barely finished these when our noodles came. Their pad thai may not be the best in town, but it's sure not bad—a generous portion dotted with protein. Pad Kee Mao was also large, and yummy even if it wasn't hot and spicy enough.

You can get a cocktail ($4.50-$8) from the connected My Thai (groan!) Lounge, most with super cheezy names. There is also beer on tap: Widmer Hefeweizen, PBR, Bridgeport IPA, and Black Butte Porter.

There is a special Specials sheet that comes, along with the menu, which also has specials. Seven appetizers range from $3.50-$7, two soups (tom yum and tom kha—$7.50-$9), and three salads for $6.25.

Entrees include a dozen curries and stir-fries, three noodles, and two fried rices, for $7.50 vegetarian, $8 with chicken, beef or pork, and $9 with shrimp. You can swap in organic rice for $2 more. And the eight menu specials include a couple salmon dishes ($7.50-$12).

Finally, there are lunch specials (M-F 11:30-3) too—10 different entrees served with chicken or tofu for $5.50.

But I've been motivated to get over there lately, now that I am completely infatuated with grits, and I know Tin Shed's got 'em. Unfortunately, I was a little undercaffeinated, so I didn't take a lot of notes.

The inside is a nice, but small and crowded space. The outside, under a giant roof, and backed by a giant fireplace, is almost twice the size of the interior, and really pleasant on a nice day. That patio is a great place to dogwatch, as many folks bring theirs with them. Inside or out, you serve yourself coffee and water.

They have a big new breakfast menu that debuted 4/29/2006. We ordered Huevos Ranchitos, Roll Over, and two sides of cheese grits.

Now, we habitually order the You Gotta Have it, which is eggs any style, meat, toast or homemade biscuit, and potato pancakes or grits. I love potato pancakes (really, I just love carbs), so that's what I always end up ordering. It's good, solid, great biscuits—what's not to love?

Huevos Ranchitos is just like the ranchero version, except there is no ranchero sauce, there are 2 layers of tortilla, as well as jalapeno-stewed black beans and rice, scrambled eggs, homemade salsa, sour cream, and green onion (they own stock in green onion). It was tasty but it would have been better if everything if the things that should be hot: like beans, rice, and eggs, actually were. The rice was all clumped as if it had come out of the cardboard carton in your fridge. The beans were not spicy at all, but they did have a nice cumin flavor.

The Roll Over starts with a layer of potato pancakes, then a layer of scrambled eggs & sausage, then a layer of bacon gravy. I expected this to be a conflict of interest, what with the sausage and bacon, but it tasted great. However, nothing on my plate was consistently hot either. The gravy was the warmest element, but it had hot and cold spots (ooogh).

The grits were most disappointing. They're plain grits with grated cheese added almost as an afterthought, and the grits were so not hot that the cheese wasn't melting. Butter, also not melting. I finally sent them back to be nuked.

To their credit, we complained, and they comped us for one meal. We saw some other plates going back to the kitchen, so maybe someone was having a bad bad day?

Unfortunately, we had a really lackluster dinner there recently as well.

Other reviews

• Portland Blog

more photos of Toast here
It's exciting that all these new breakfast spots are opening SoHo (south of Holgate. C'mon, it's better than FoPo, you've got to admit), and I've been spoiled by how good they are. So we walked into Toast: a Neighborhood Restaurant with some high expectations.

Reports are very good on the dinner there.

We were in for breakfast. Note one: it's small, and there was a wait. It opened a week ago, and there's a wait! I guess the neighborhood was ready for them.

But soon enough we were seated at the counter. I had my jacket under my butt and my purse hanging from my knee because there were no coat hooks, or stool backs. That's fine, as long as you don't have a coat or a purse. But there are foot rests on both the stools and the counter itself, so it could be much worse.

One thing I noticed right away that I liked. They offer beer, wine and mixed drinks ($5-7) to go with your breakfast... and some of the mixed drinks don't have alcohol ($3). That's brilliant! Why isn't everyone doing that? I mean, that's seriously a great idea.

So we ordered a Zero Gravity (ginger ale, OJ, splash of cranberry and orange zest) and a Conscious (pomegranate, lemon, lime, OJ and soda water). Both came in pint glasses, and both were very good.

Our waitress brought us by a monkey dish of two mini scones to munch as we looked at the food menu. And that's where my trouble began.

The menu has 12 entrees, and nothing really suited me. There were lots of mentions of members of the onion family on the menu, and I know most folks love onions. It's just not my thing. But just about everything that isn't vegetarian has pork: pork belly, griddle ham, cured pork, which seems kinda promising.

So we order a sausage turnover, the Benedict oh ($9), and the Golden Pig ($8.50). We're immediately told that they're out of the sausage turnovers, sadness.

The Benedict oh is soft poached eggs, housemade sausage patties, chard, and housemade english muffins with a bit of bearnaise sauce.

The Golden Pig is pork belly with three basil scrambled eggs & crispy shallots on a slice of toast.

So the food comes, and my first response is, what is this? I'm used to seeing breakfasts including some potatoes or some salad or some fruit. This is just the entree, by itself, seeming dwarfed by the whiteness of the dinner plate. It looks very small and spare. So I order a potato rosti ($2.50).

My benedict is an interesting idea, really. The housemade sausage is something I'd never order again, but I can imagine the benedict with chard and pork belly or cured pork could be really good.

The pig is tasty, but nothing out of the ordinary.

The rosti comes, onion-laden. Oh well.

$26.00 later, and we're out. And I have to wonder, with prices like those, if it will remain a neighborhood restaurant. True, breakfast entrees at Bar Carlo and Arleta Library are similarly priced, but just about everything is excellent at both, and your entrees will fill you up at either. And while I'm really not opposed to the small plates idea applied to breakfast, I want that small plate to be really good. Is that too much to ask?

Don't bother with the salads - proceed directly to the protein: chicken, cooked to order sirloin, lamb, roasted pork, salmon, prawns, or tofu. In addition to grilled meats, they now have a roaster, and yesterday's specials included roasted pork and rosemary roast chicken (which was really good). Add some perfectly steamed veg and white or brown rice, or—la pièce de résistance—garlic mashed potatoes. Maybe add some potstickers if you're feeling greedy, and you have enough food, delicious, luscious, wonderful food, for two meals. This, all, for usually less than $10.

The surroundings are fine, clean, cheerful, though tending to be full of business folks talking loudly on their cell phones. A condiment station has sauces (including a spicy peanut sauce that occasionally zaps ya) and seasonings, to-go boxes, and just about anything else you'll need. On nice days, you can sit outside at tables on the sidewalk, and the garage-like door opens and lets the fresh air in.

Drawbacks: this place is popular. It's not cheap. Getting to the ordering area involves stairs and there is no apparent wheelchair access. And those porcelain plates laiden with piles of food are heavy!! Still, the folks that work there are masters of customer service. I, who eat there maybe 4 or 5 times a year, was greeted like a regular; I dropped a fork and one of the guys runs over with a new one. Generally, you just feel a bit coddled: good food, nice service, a respite from work.

Veganopolis is an all vegan cafeteria in Portland, Oregon. For those of you who perhaps aren't clear about vegan cuisine, the method is simple: No animal products whatsoever are used in the kitchen; Our emphasis is on flavorful and nutritious soups, salads, sandwiches and vegan baked goods. We will also be serving fresh Illy coffee and espresso, juices, iced green tea and organic sodas.

Veganopolis is a nice combination of fake meat and fake cheese, and actual vegetablish entrees. This place is a gold mine for the lactose intolerant as well as raw foodies.

But how do omnivores who aren't crazy about vegetables do with it? Well, obviously enough, fine.

First, the web site. There are menus and they are up to date. The specials for today are posted in HTML. They have a weekday buffet from 11-3 of an entree and sides for 6.95 per pound. And a Saturday breakfast buffet for the same price.

Drinkwise, there's espresso, a cooler of drinks and beer, and fresh squeezed OJ. There's a selection of soup, salads, sides, and sandwiches, made with just about any type of fake meat you can think of. Prefer your protein in the form of tofu or almond pate or housemade cashew ricotta? Well, duh!

It's a lovely space with great light, wide open, wheelchair accessible. A couple tables outside allow you to enjoy the ambience of the neighboring Subway. There is also seating on the mezzanine, which gives you the opportunity to be secretive (or to look down upon the front kitchen/counter area).

With the exception of the daily raw platter, everything is under $7. I'm addicted to their seitan caesar sandwich on a ciabatta roll, which won't convince anyone that it's meat, but it's really tasty all the same. And I love the idea of the vegan BLT. Next time...

more photos of Vendetta

The interior is sleek and cool. There's a shuffleboard along one wall, and the two parallel glass garage doors make a pleasant dogtrot. Free wifi ensures at least a couple of laptop users.

There are three beers on tap: Rainier, Mirror Pond pale ale, and Lagunitas IPA. They have a number of bottled beers there as well. And of course wine and many options involving hard liquor.

They also have food: some snacks that are available anytime, between $2-$5, and main meals that are available between 4-11pm. We got the nachos ($5), mac and cheese ($5), and the sloppy joe ($6). None of this is pretentious, and indeed, all of it could use a little more seasoning, but it's perfect, filling food, when you are in need of inexpensive filling food.

The best part about Vendetta, however is its back porch and garden, also known as the smoking area. They have a rooved back porch that is big enough for a row of tables, and that of course looks out on the garden, which has paved areas with tables, and lots of benches for hanging out and socializing.

Vita Cafe is all about groovy for breakfast and lunch. The cover of the menu expresses their earnestness forthrightly: common meals, fair price, organic and local, free range, hormone free, dairy-, egg- and wheat-free.

Vita was the sister cafe to SE Belmont's Paradox Palace Cafe. Now they both have new owners and it will be interesting to see what the future brings.

The Vita is back, and you'd never know they were ever gone. We went in early on Sunday afternoon and the place was packed. Folks were even sitting outside in the sprinkles.

Vita has made its name for being vegan & carnivore friendly. You can get any number of animal-free dishes, or you can get a groovy hamburger. Breakfast can consist of eggs and potatoes, or tofu & rice, or really anything in between. Vegans and vegetarians love it: the food is plentiful and cheap, and you can have it with beer, wine or liquor.

Breakfasts range from $3-$9, and include corn cakes, scrambles, french toast, heuvos rancheros, & biscuits and gravy. 15 of the 24 breakfast items can be made gluten-free.

We ordered a couple old favorites: biscuits & gravy, heuvos rancheros, and NW corn cakes, plus a cup of black bean soup with homemade herb and onion bread.

The black bean soup was excellent and flavorful: a basic rendition, but a very nice one. The bread was a hit, with its slightly sweet crust and herby-oniony filling.

The heuvos rancheros were particularly creative. Fried tortillas curl up on the plate, covered by what tasted like vegan chili, eggs (or tofu), salsa, guac, and a cilantro-y vegan creme. If you were looking for something closer to authentic, well, you'll be disappointed, but the contrasts between the smooth and crunchy, the spicy and the bland, was very nice.

Biscuits with almond gravy has always been a favorite, and they just didn't taste as wonderful as I remembered. Maybe my tastes have changed? If I wasn't working from sentimentality, they probably would be fine, though the biscuit was a little heavy.

But the NW Corn Cakes do stand up to memory. Corn cakes, as big as a pancake, covered with toasted hazelnuts, and served with organic maple syrup. Yum.

Most folks around us were having lunch, and that looked good too. The fishwich, a deep fried square of tofu with lettuce, pickles and vegan tartar sauce, was very popular, as was the free range, hormone-free beef burgers and fries. Mac and cheese, made with vegan cheese, also appeared to be a big hit. Lunch prices top at $8, and dinner at $12 (with most entrees ringing in under $10), and nicely, the full up-to-date menu is online.

They have four beers on tap. And they have a Wednesday special, 5pm-close: $2 well drinks, $2 drafts, $5 cocktails, and $5 food specials on the fishwich, mac & cheese, grilled cheese, tofurky sandwich, or thai pasta. And, from 5-7pm, they have a $1 kids menu.

Definitely recommended for vegetarians and vegans.

In spite of being located in Industrial North Portland, Widmer is a popular joint. It's not unusual to have a half hour wait for a table at 4:20 on a Sunday, or 5:15 on a Thursday.

It's also a little tight. Claustrophobes beware. There are several steps to the entrance, a small area without any steps, and then steps to get anywhere else in the restaurant. Restrooms and the entrance are wheelchair accessible—if you don't mind going through the kitchen.

Mark and Lyn wrote this in 1997 and it still rings true:

Beneath the Fremont Bridge, along side Interstate Avenue, hunkers Widmer's Gasthouse. Featuring a variety of German themed entrees, sandwiches and appetizers, the place offers far better than average pub fare, and superb fresh beer, in a beautifully restored brick industrial building. Our party of four got out bloated and smiling, for a-bit-on-the-shy-side of $50.00, but we splurged. First, the negatives. Service was just so-so, which seemed odd on a pretty quiet night. The main courses, like sandwiches and german schnitzels, and even the vegetarian dishes are satisfying, arriving with tasty sides, like cabbage salad, and garlic mashed potatoes, which were raved about, and a quarter of a really good dill pickle.

Widmer's sensational Double Bock was a sterling compliment to the food. Beer fans will find much to love here, including an ever-changing roster of fresh seasonals and the stand-up roster of Widmer's usuals. The dining room is cozy and dim, and literally surrounds some of the brewing apparatus, reinforcing the industrial feel of the building and neighborhood. The food was very good, decent prices, just O.K. service, but best of all, you get all this while sitting in the heart of one of Portland's trademark brewery success stories.

Beerwise, there are a dozen taps. Beers that are always on include Hefeweizen, Drop Top Amber, Broken Halo IPA, their excellent Alt, and their Root Beer. Seasonals, the Collaborator tap, and one-offs make up the rest, and those are the beers you should try. If something looks interesting, ask for a taster; the staff are happy to show off the range and styles of the beers. When we were there, they had a Doppelbock, Double Alt (yum), Dortmunder Lager, Summit Hop Pale, Stout, Sterling Pilsner (fresh-hopped), and Collaborator's Sled Crasher.

They have a full lunch and dinner menu presentable for relatives and coworkers. The menu is heavily, but not exclusively Germanic—expect large portions whether schnitzel or vegetarian. Happy hours have food specials as well. Menus, nicely enough, are online for your pre-meal obsessing.

Yes, you can get a burger, a number of different salads or sandwiches, even pasta, but things really get interesting in the groaning entrees of schnitzel, sauerbraten, goulash, and sausages with mashed potatoes, potato pancakes, potato salad or spaetzle.

Appetizers include a german pretzel ($2), sausage sampler, and wings (most between $6-$8.50). These are fine, though if they have fondue on, get it. Dinner salads range from $6.95-$10.50, and they are dull, with too much or too little dressing; easily the worst thing on the menu. Sandwiches ($7-$9) and burgers ($8-$9) are big, served with potato salad or green salad, though the Bourbon Bock Cheese Burger is so slathered in BBQ sauce that I couldn't wait to run to the bathroom and wash my face, hands, and upperbody.

I have never tried the pasta ($10-$12.50); I never seen anyone try the pasta.

But the entrees ($12-$21). Now that's the thing. There is nothing like schnitzel and mashed potatoes to sooth the seeker of comfort food.

Sunday afternoons are an especially nice time to visit, as they have a 1-2-3-5 deal: $1 for a pretzel, a pint of Hefeweizen for $2, a pint of beer for $3 (a pint is usually $3.75), and a Bourbon Bock Cheese Burger for $5. Just ask for extra napkins... or wet naps.

I think all reviews of Wong's King are obligated to begin thusly:

There are other Wong's King, owned by the same family, but the only one you have to take seriously is Wong's King Seafood on SE Division in the new Chinatown. The ones in Sellwood, Sandy and Estacada? You'll get a decent American Chinese meal. But if you are looking for serious high-end Cantonese, get thee to WKS.

Dim sum, a competitive sport.

Word to the wise: have your whole party there when you're seated: if you hold seats for your flakey friends who don't show, you'll be personas non grata in the dining room. I know this sadly from experience. You can get away with this stuff at Fong Chong, but not here.

Within 10 minutes of being seated, every table in the large banquet hall is full. And the carts have already begun. I would have loved to have one of those picture menus so I could accurately name what we had. But everything we had was really good.

Some of the things we had:
-shumai
-shrimp dumplings
-chicken paws (feet)
-congee
-BBQ duck
-sesame balls
-han sui gok (pork in sweet sticky rice then deepfried)
-sticky rice in banana leaves
-spareribs
-ginger chicken
-humbow
-wu gok (mashed taro in sweet sticky rice then deepfried)
-shrimp dumplings with chives
-BBQ pork pastry
-shrimp paste on sugar cane
-deepfried shrimp balls
-shrimp in rice noodle
I admit being too greedy with the eating to take notes.

Whenever we needed something, be it a fork, 10 glasses of water, a glass of 7up, more shrimp in rice noodle, soy sauce and chili oil, we just asked one of the cart ladies, or one of the staffers gliding around the room, and our wish appeared in a matter of moments.

So we ate to a Mr Cresote level, all of it delectable, and for ten people, it was $86. So it was $10 plus change per person.

Eating off the dinner menu is a little more intimidating.

A great start to a meal is ordering a BBQ plate (we've had the duck, pork and duchess chicken and they were all good) and some soup. Even old standbys like wonton and hot and sour soups are really something altogether better.

We ordered several seafood dishes, one a suggestion and another a memory of another meal at WKS, and they were both very good—not what we had expected, but something better entirely.

Most entries ring in within a couple bucks of $10 and portions are generous. For $50 including tip and a beer, two of us ate to bursting, and brought some food home.

Other Press:

• Hidden in Plain Sight: Wong's King Seafood
• Portland Food and Drink
• Royal Dumplings: A new Southeast Portland outpost of Chinese cuisine does dim sum right
  Nancy Rommelmann, Willamette Week, 1/26/2005

Ya Hala is my favorite Lebanese restaurant. There, I've said it. I know you can get whole wheat pita at Karam. I know it's cheaper at Nicolas. But it's hard to beat Ya Hala. Yes, it's in Montavilla, dangerously close to 82nd. They serve lots of interesting home-style food, beautifully presented, in generous portions. Until recently, lots of menu items are ones you rarely see in these parts: beef artichoke hearts, bamyae or makloubeh. Add in the fresh-from-the-oven pita bread, and gosh. Vegans, vegetarians, and omnivores can eat together happily. The atmosphere is one a midwestern parent could love. There is beer, wine, and mixed drinks. Street parking is easy, and you can pick up some spices or other middle-eastern goodies in the attached store. You know you want to!

more photos

The hot dog here is all-beef with a satisfying snap, served on a toasted bun. You can substitute veggie and turkey dogs for no extra charge; or a red hot, cheese filled, or sausage of the day for a buck more (when we were there, it was linguisa). The red hot is a nice variation, with enough spice to make you take notice. You can get the usual salad dog, chicago stylee, or a Coney Island, as well as more unusual toppings like olives, salsa, cucumbers, sour cream, and cream cheese. Try a red hot St. Peppers if you are a bit of a tiger. Prices range from $2.50-$4.50.

So, fries. With cheddar, big chunks of jarred jalapeno, chili—yum. The fries are krinkle-kuts, and not a huge serving. The chili—ah, it's okay, not great—more like a chili sauce than chili. The cheese fries aren't as good as others in town, but still, cheese fries! ($2.50-$3.50)

Of course, a frosty beer is the best side to a dog. They have four beers on tap (when we were there, they were Lucky Lab's stout, Sierra Nevada Pale, Lompoc's C-Note, and Pelican Kiwanda Cream Ale, for $3 a frosty glass. Bottled beers are also $3. Happy hour, from 4-8 everyday, means drafts are 50 cents cheaper (and PBR a $1.25).

You can eat on the Hawthorne sidewalk, inside, of course, or on their back patio. Non-smoking until 10pm.

Sadly, the quality tends to dip when Zach isn't around, but if he is, this is a great cheap eat.

I like this place a lot. Comfortable chairs, pleasant space. Four taps, many bottles, lots of liquor. The downstairs is non-smoking, the upstairs, smoking, and downstairs, you'd never even know that there's a smoking section. Upstairs also has a tiny pool table. The wide-open downstairs affords lots of people watching. I'm told it gets loud when it's full, but I have yet to see it full.

The food is very good, though some of the flavorings are not conventionally Levantine. My one complaint was this evening's shorba, my favorite, a red lentil soup redolent of cumin and lemon, was also newly redolent of onions. Sigh. Our hummus was heavily tahini-ed, and for those spoiled by Karam and YaHala and Nicolas, the pita is not fresh and pillowy and full of hot air. That didn't stop us from inhaling it, natch. But the entrees are pure pleasure, with all the sandwiches coming on a Bosnian roll called lepina. Baba's burger is a painted hills patty with feta and my new favorite thing, lemon aioli—the combination of beef, garlic, salty feta and lemon is so nice. Chicken jemila is a chicken breast marinated in sumac, encrusted in zaatar, and nestled in the lepina—yum. Timman u Marag, a chickpea stew, with a side of laban (youghurt and cucumber)—yum. It's clear that they are taking care on some of the details: the tomatoes served were romas, gorgeous, and with some tomatoey flavor. All in all, good food and a tremendous value in or out of happy hour.

photo by Warren Gamley

photo by Annie & John Schmidt
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It is in the Pearl, kinda, and suddenly, it looks like it's in the Pearl. And I know there were reasons that they had to change, but I miss the old place. And I'm not crazy about the food. It's okay, but not worth the pretension you see here.

I took an out of town friend on a tiny beer crawl a few days ago, and it was really helpful to hear what she had to say. First of all, we walk in the entrance, which has a step. I think the step was added.

I remembered meeting friends at Bridgeport recently, and seeing a woman in a wheelchair outside seething because the main entrance wasn't accessible, and the wheelchair entrance was locked. It was drizzling, and she had had to send someone in from her party to get them to unlock the door.

We walk in and walk up to the iced cobras to get a beer. They aren't quite iced yet (too early in the day), but they are gorgeous—all stainless steel shinyness, and the multiple taps on each. I was looking forward to showing her the glass rinsing mechanism which chills the glass, and makes the carbonation less likely to stick to the glass, thus improving the beer's nose. She's a beer geek, she'll love this.

It's 2 in the afternoon and about 3/4 of the tables in the bakery/pub area are full. A waiter barks at us to find a seat, and someone will wait on us. Sigh. My friend would like tastes, as she's never had Bridgeport's beer, but now we'll have to ask the waiter—another obstacle.

The waiter brings a large bottle of water and glasses—nice touch! He's there immediately after we've sat, so my friend is furiously searching the menu for the beers. I try to draw this out by making some small talk so she can read the menu, but in the end, she ends up with a beer that she finds too sweet.

We look around the room. It's full of ordinary people with a little cash to throw around. They're all nicer dressed than us, and I'm in my dress clothes.

Later, we're in Henry's and I mention that it's very see-and-be-seen, and she says that Henry's is a lot more comfortable and less audacious and conspicious. She mentions too that there didn't seem to be any bike parking (there isn't) and that there wasn't any outdoor seating (there isn't) at Bridgeport. But it is right there on the Streetcar line, though there's no door on the Streetcar side (why?).

They do have pub/bar/bakery and restaurant menus, and for the neighborhood, the prices are quite reasonable.

Beerwise, they have their beers, and as far as I'm aware, no guests. They also appear to no longer be doing seasonals other than Ebenezer. Here's what they have on:

• India Pale Ale
• ESB
• Black Strap Stout
• Ropewalk Amber
• Blue Heron
• Suerpris!
• Porter
• Old Knucklehead barleywine