Portland OR best food?

Only there for a few days. A few select choices?

Thanks,

Bhorn

There are alot of good restaurants in Portland. I'd agree with the list above except for the Gustavs recommendation. In my opinion this restaurant has definitely slid in quality and service in the last few years. If I had only a few days to sample Portlands finest, I wouldn't go there.

In the McCormick & Schmicks restaurant group is Jakes Famous Crawfish......a Portland institution since 1908 and one of my absolute favorites anywhere. They use the freshest of locally grown ingredients and seafood from the region. They have a defferent menu printed every day......really wonderful preparation, presentation and service! http://www.mccormickandschmicks.com/main.cfm?action=location&element=sample&type=dinner&locID=1

The restaurant at Multnomah(sp) Falls in the Columbia River Gorge area is also quite nice......good food and service plus the Falls are a major Oregon attraction and only about 25 miles from downtown if you have a car.....definitely worth seeing.

I hope you have a great time there.....Lyn

BTW Marrionberry pie is a regional specialty and worth trying if in season while you visit.

Bhorn,
I contend that you can eat better for less in Portland than in any US city of its size, due in part to a long, slow NE economy, and to strong competition in certain food areas (Asian especially – look for small family “specialty” places). Not to be missed places include: Brewery Pubs (especially craft brews); bakeries (wonderful artisan breads); Teriyaki, Pho and Bento joints (often simple “holes in the wall” and often superb); and Coffee Houses (ditto above). Breakfast is always the best food value of the day, and there are some great places here offering bargains. The list below is entirely “Roadfood” criteria places (with two exceptions that most wouldn’t even notice).


Hanna Bea’s Poundcake
3969 NE Martin Luther King Jr Blvd , Portland, OR 97212
Just good, country cooking

Original Pancake House
8601 SW 24th Ave , Portland, OR 97219
A Portland institution that hasn’t lost a beat

Produce Row Cafe
204 SE Oak St , Portland, OR 97214
Another Portland institution

Gustav’s Beir Stube
5035 NE Sandy Blvd , Portland, OR 97213
Eat in the bar or outside patio, and get something from the rotisserie

Cadillac Café
1801 NE Broadway , Portland, OR 97232
Great breakfasts

Calli Sandwiches
6620 N.E. Glisan St. , Portland, OR 97213
Unique sandwiches such as BBQ with cilantro, carrots, cucumber, and jalapeno on a great crusty roll.

Taqueria Sirenita
2817 NE Alberta St , Portland, OR 97211
Good, cheap, Tex/Mex

Bistro Montage
301 SE Morrison St. , Portland, OR 97214
A unique Portland experience – open very late with super food

Pearl Bakery
102 NW 9TH Ave
Portland, OR 97209
One of the very best among strong competition! Coffee, sandwiches, and tables too.

Todai
340 SW Morrison St (Pioneer Place), Portland, OR 97204
Getting famous for their “all you can eat” sushi

Pho Van Bistro
1012 NW Gilsan St , Portland, OR 97210
Vietnamese noodle and soup specialties

Thai Noon
2635 NE Alberta St , Portland, OR 97211
Unpretentious, fresh, and delicious

enjoy, John

Tennessee Red serves tar heel sauce? Isn't that what lawyers would call a conflict of interests?

Original Pancake House is the best! Be prepared for long waits if you go on weekends.
Esparza's is at it's best when it's busy/rowdy.
At Jakes, get the razor clams if they're on the menu. Best I've ever had, and I've eaten a ton of them.

These are great suggestions. We'll be heading to Oregon on Wednesday for 8 days!!

YAHOO!!

I cover a lot of these places and have pictures of many on my website here:

extramsg.com

I know the original purpose of this thread if passed, but I thought it would be useful for people in the future anyway for me to make some Roadfood style suggestions:

MEXICAN

* Tortilleria y Tienda de Leon: Great guisados (Mexican stews) in the deli at the back of this Mexican store. Awesome salsas, too. Look for the fluorescent orange habanero salsa and the fluorescent green lettuce salsa.

* La Ochoa: In Hillsboro, but excellent food. They make really good birria de chivo and huaraches. Huge selection of dishes with pics of many on the walls.

* Salvadors: In Woodburn, but worth the trip. The whole town in a little bit of Mexico. Salvador's has a great panes dulces selection and makes all the tortillas to order. Awesome carnitas.

* Poncho's al Pastor: Some of the best al pastor I've ever had, even compared to stuff in Mexico. They're amazingly nice there. Make sure you add 25 cents to get your tortillas hecho a mano.

* La Iguana Feliz: Near the airport, they make very good tacos and desayunos. The chips and salsa are even very good. Try the birria and the carne asada.

VIETNAMESE

* Pho Oregon or Pho Hung: Two best pho places in Portland, both dives, but both excellent. Both have multiple locations now, too.

* Yen Ha: Scary bar connected next door, but they serve up very good and cheap Vietnamese.

* My Canh: Mix of Chinese and Vietnamese, but it's the Vietnamese that is worth eating. Try the claypots.

* Pho Van: Okay, a little nicer than your average pho place, especially the bistro. But the bistro food isn't overly expensive despite the nice setting and dishes like the banana blossom salad are excellent.

THAI

* Cha Ba: Lots of fresh ingredients. They make a very good green curry and their specials are usually quite good.

* Sukhothai: Often overlooked, but excellent food. They make a very good khao soi. Look for their northern Thai specials and don't be afraid to ask for suggestions.

* Thai Little Home: In Vancouver, they make simple, but very tasty Thai food. The panang is one of the best in town.

* Arawan: Quality preparations. They really execute well. Their yum neur (beef salad) is one of the best I've had. The beef is always tender and perfectly cooked. They make a very good larb, too. And people who like sweet curries usually like their pineapple curries a lot.

LEBANESE

* Karam: Easily the best in town. Their falafel, if made fresh, are sublime. Everything is good though.

* Nicholas: My second favorite in town. They have very good meats and mezza. Cash only, though. They're going to open a new spot on Broadway soon.

* Ya Hala: Best on the far east side. They make a very smoky baba ghanooj. Good stuff, though. All three of these places are owned by relatives, by blood or marriage.

BURGERS

* Foothill Broiler: Really good, made to order, flame-broiled burgers. The buns are nicely toasted and they have quality ingredients you can add to the burger yourself. Avoid the milkshakes but get the tasty fries.

* Mike's Drive-In: A few locations, this is a classic burger joint. Very good milkshakes, adequate fries, and nicely griddled burgers.

PIZZA

* Scholls Public House: Easily the best pizza in town. It's not cheap, but it's very good. Right now you have to go out to Scholls, but soon they may be moving to SE Portland. Great stuff.

* Escape from New York: Straight-forward and good NY style pizza. Not jaw-dropping good, but they sell by the slice and it's pretty good.

* Hot Lips: Similar quality to Escape, although they do have Sicilian style.

INDIAN

* Curry Leaf: Out in Beaverton area, but easily the best in town. This is the only place that would be considered good in a city like SF or Chicago.

BREAKFAST

* Original Pancake House: Obvious choice. Only takes cash. It's in the Roadfood book and deserves it.

* Zell's: A bit more expensive but really good breakfasts.

CHINESE

* Sam Ho: The only non-Sichuan and dim sum I am willing to eat in Portland. Lots of seafood specials.

* Fa Fa Gourmet: In Vancouver, they make the best Sichuan I've found in town, unless you're willing to up the priciness and go to Sungari.

ICE CREAM

* Mio Gelato: Probably the best ice cream overall in Portland. They consistently have good flavors and good textures, plus they're right next to Powell's.

* Alotto Gelato: Very good gelato with interesting flavors done well.

* Staccato Gelato: Probably the most interesting flavors in town, but they often fail on sorbets and their textures are inconsistent.

SWEETS

* Pix Patisserie: Really awesome desserts. If you get a chance, they make fabulous ice cream, too, though they're not an ice cream shop.

BAKERIES

* Pearl Bakery: Great rustic breads with an emphasis on Italian breads.

* Ken's Artisan Bakery: Small, but quality bakery that emphasizes sourdoughs.

* St. Honore: French bakery with lots of nice pastries.

* Grand Central: A local chain, but a very good one. Widest variety of breads.

Great to see this posting, I have been wondering where all the Portlanders are. I have a few suggestions.
Burrito Loco in Gresham, North Porland and Notheast Portland(excallent Mexican dirt cheap)
Taco Rico on Gresham (good cheap Mexican)
Esparza's Tex-Mex The mashed potaoes are killer, so are the Pozole and Chile. I've never eaten anything bad there

Dan and Louis Oyster ( still the best Oyster stew in town)
Bertie Lou"s Cafe in Sellwood. Large, inventive breakfasts
Bijou cafe (wonderful breakfasts)

The Ringside( steaks and the best onion rings I have ever tasted)
Jarra's(Ethiopian)

Russia House(take a wild guess)...now closed

btw, if you haven't seen it, there's a group of Portland food lovers that get together occasionally to eat: http://www.portlandfood.org