Beaker & Flask

When is a bar not a bar? That thought wandered across my mind as w and I were sitting in Beaker & Flask a couple of nights ago in the midst of what was turning into one of the most satisfying dinners we’d had in a long time. The reason for that musing was when B&F was getting started, the buzz around town was that bartending savant Kevin Ludwig was finally fulfilling his dream of opening his own place,and won’t it be a cool place to grab

Morton’s The Steakhouse

I hadn’t been to Morton’s in at least eight years when I pulled up to the valet a few weeks ago. The last time my experience had been pretty good. On this warm Thursday evening, I was expecting a meal that would be close to the quality of El Gaucho.
Morton’s was founded in 1978 by [...]

El Gaucho

To many, El Gaucho epitomizes what a steakhouse should be. It feels sophisticated. The atmosphere is formal, the lighting dim and romantic, and lots of dark wood provides a backdrop to tinkling stemware and white linens. Live jazz wafts from the background as tuxedo-clad waiters scurry by with carts for tableside Caesar salads, the darkness punctuated by an occasional burst of flame from a bananas Foster in the making. To many people, this type of ambience is it, as fancy as they will ever dine, a place

Noble Rot 2.0

Noble Rot has a somewhat confusing pedigree. As I understand, it was originally started by chef Leather Storrs, and received positive reviews, including from me. I liked the warm, comforting atmosphere and the limited but mostly well executed menu. In 2007, Leather left and opened another restaurant on East Burnside called Rocket. This new restaurant was known for its interesting interior, terrific patio and nice view of Portland, but the food received less than stellar reviews, and it closed in a little over a year.

Fast-forward to 2009. Rocket was still empty, and Noble Rot wanted

Restaurant of the Year for 2008: Ten 01

Fugue – Music: a composition based multiple themes, which are enunciated by several voices or parts in turn, and gradually built up into a complex form having somewhat distinct divisions or stages of development and a marked climax at the end.

For those who have been reading my reviews for some time, it’s no secret that I have a background in music. Growing up, I was exposed to a wide variety, and played multiple instruments. For this reason, I tend to make lots of musical

East India Company

Downtown Portland is dotted with Indian restaurants and food carts. It has gotten to the point where, when making plans with friends, you have to make sure you all are talking about the same restaurant; otherwise some of your party will invariably end up at the wrong place. That is what happened to me the first time I went to East India Company.

Biwa

It’s hard to be terribly impressed with Japanese restaurants in Portland. Aside from a couple of outstanding examples, Japanese restaurants here are fairly mediocre and formulaic. Sloppy mayo-filled sushi rolls, pasty overcooked udon noodles in packaged broths, and sugary sweet teriyakis are Portland’s curse. This is most apparent in our lack of good noodle shops [...]

Miss Delta

I’ve talked before about the time I spent in Maypearl, Texas growing up, but I never mentioned the boiled chicken death march, and my plot to get even.
In the 50’s, dinner in the south was a family, sit-down supper. Grace was said, and whatever was fresh on old Mr. Jackson’s farm next door was usually [...]

Teardrop Cocktail Lounge

As I was doing research for this review in my father’s old bar notebook, I came across a list of ingredients labeled “always have on hand”. What especially interested me were incidentals like falernum, cassis, five types of bitters, orange flower water, Herbsaint, and tepache. They were standard ingredients back in those days, but you [...]

Andina

Refreshed 1/10

With the myriad of restaurants opening in Portland every year, it is easy to forget some of the older ones, which often are better than the latest gastronomic trend-setters. In my opinion, Andina is one of these, a restaurant that rarely disappoints, always intrigues, and provides a great introduction to one of the [...]

Bar Dué

Fratelli’s Bar Dué Happy Hour in Portland
Hi, PFDers! Hap here. Did you miss me? I’ve been traveling. I don’t know about you, but I find it’s always best to visit the state parks during the week before or after Memorial Day weekend, because the weather is good and most kids are still in school, so [...]

Thatch Tiki Bar

“Thank God the tiki bar is open
Thank God the tiki torch still shines
Thank God the tiki bar is open
Come on in and open up your mind”
John Hiatt
The Tiki Bar is Open
My own experience with tiki bars began early, and my love of the tiki bar has been with me ever since. As a young kid [...]

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