3
iustiout
MARCH 3. 200
Epiquéerean
BY JENNY NGUYEN
JDDÖS
Eat Hellas Good Food
RttÙWmt & tOWM!
•Casual Dining
J
dinner
• Piano Lounge
• Entertainment
• Game Area
• Happy Hour Specials
120 NW Third Avenue "Portland, Oregon 97209* 503-224-3285 • Open 4:00 Daily
Parking Validated
Smart Park
NW Davis 6
ellas, Greek for Greece, is this edition’s
cuisine of choice in honor of the Winter
Olympics. So hold on to your pants and
prepare for the podium as yours truly
dishes this town’s menu medals.
castagna Wednesday...Saturday
cafe castagna 7 nights a week
503.231.7373
1752 se Hawthorne, portland
Eleni's Philoxenia •
112 N.W. Ninth Ave.
Portland s Eastside
Dining & Spirits .
i
!
Featuring music and videos on
Hal screen plasma monitors
Video Lottery
* we now have WiFi *
Extended menu including
late night hours
Tlitirs. Fri. Sat. til 1:30am
503-230-7980
2913 SE Stark
I
WWW
Alexis • 215 W. Burnside St.
Celebrating 25 glorious years, this two-story
Grecian institution is plump with praise; one step
inside and seeing is believing. Shots of ouzo and
glasses of retsina flow as family, employees and
patrons eat communally. Saganaki, kefalograviera
cheese flamhéed with ouzo and put out with a
fresh lemon, is a deliciously showy appetizer. The
moussaka is rich with eggplant and béchamel,
and dolmathes are bursting with ground lamb and
walnuts, but the lamb souvlaki is like skewered
cubes of heaven flawlessly grilled. Alexis abounds
with Euro-charm, and it seems Greeks from all
over have converged here for the past quarter­
century—definitely a good sign. This celebrated
home deserves the silver on merit and authenticity
alone.
Fresh «Simple
American
Café
Don’t he fooled hy the swank digs of this Pearl
District restaurant, ’cuz the food is down-home
goodness. Appetizers outnumber entrees five-to-
one, so don’t hesitate to skip the big plates
altogether. You’ll find revithia teeming with garlic,
the richest tzatziki and homemade filo stuffed with
Greek cheeses and spinach. Gigantes, giant lima
heans braised in tomato sauce and chilies, is the
promised cure for the wintertime blues. Sheep’s
milk feta blended with basil is creamy and mild
compared to the saltlick cow’s milk version found
at lesser fine restaurants. Arni kapama, braised leg
of lamb, is succulent and perfectly paired with ziti
pasta and rosemary. Bring floss and indulge in the
overly sweet, ooey-gooey, orange-infused honey
baklava. Whatever you do, bring your A-game for
this bronze medal recipient.
8051 SE 17th
• 503-239-1177
Demetri's • 1650 W. Burnside St.
GREAT
PORTLAND
ARE WAITING TO MEET YOU
A tiny glowing neon sign with hut a name lent
beacon to the Greek feast to he had alongside the
Burnside autobahn. Classic Greek music met with
multiple rooms, fictitious awnings and windows to
a warm, welcoming Mediterranean view. Kala-
marakia, fried squid with tzatziki, was light and
greaseless. Avgolemono, an egg- and lemon-based
soup with manestra, is a unique combination of
contrasting flavors. A flawlessly prepared medium-
rare lamb “steak” was the showstopper. Rubbed
with oregano, thyme and charhroiled to buttery
perfection, it can quite possibly be the best lamb in
town. The homemade baklava is orgasmic: crisp
layers of filo followed by multiple layers of honey,
walnuts and wild, passionate lovemaking...wait,
maybe it just tasted like that. Oh, snap—that’s
gold, baby. ©
Want to make it safer to play? Test for STDs every 3 months.
503.988.3700 Portland • 360.397.8089 Vancouver • All confidential, all the time
FREE, LOCAL. NOW.
JENNY N guyen needs your help eating out. Write
her at jenny0080@hotmail.com to lend a hand.