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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (July 20, 2007)
-----------H- ------------------------------------------- eatingout eatingout eatingout eatingout eatingout 20 2007 , JULY --------- eatingout lUStlOUt 27 eatingout Epiqueerean BY JENNY NGUYEN Hot Spots | he heat is on here in the Rose City, and I’m not just talkin’ ’bout the mercury rising. New restaurants are ripe with hype, competing for our picky, everyone’s-a- food-critic dollar. So here 1 am to give you my two (and three-quarter) cents on some of P-town’s hottest spots. breakfast & lunch Rocket • 1111 E. Burnside St. This is perhaps one of the most overhyped restaurants to infect Portland in years; Leather Storrs (of Noble Rot fame) has a huge reputation to fulfill. The new “green” building on the comer of Sandy Boulevard and Bumside Street is absolutely stunning once you get to the fourth floor, where the gleaming- chic dining room perches. Take in the mad views, bathe in artsy decor, and be at ease in the expertise of the wait staff, ’cuz when it comes to the fixxl, all bets are off. The shrimp cocktail with avocado and chips is delicious, but the potato pierogies are dry and lackluster. A $10 salad of butter lettuce and fennel narrowly misses the mark for being over dressed and wilted. The braised beef rib is tender but lacks sauciness. On the other hand, the crisp salmon and lemon chicken sous vide are fairly gixxl. The menu isn’t overly creative, but consistency makes R<x:ket a constant experiment. The Chesterfield • 1101 E. Burnside St. Strapped for cash but craving to be in “the scene”? Look no further, as literally just upstairs is the spendy/trendy Rocket and down the street is the Doug Fir. Here, it’s DJ’in bass beats, graffiti art and ambient lighting in all the right places. The stellar cocktails will have you reeling, ’specially if you take it to the “patio” to be paired with some steaming, hot CO2. Grab a group and claim the must-see Egg’s Nest upstairs (seriously too cool). Don’t even think about skipping a meal here expecting drab bar food, as the menu is superbly executed by Tabla chef Paul Duncan. From a divine cheese plate of ossau iraty, port-poached prunes and Marconas to an open-faced pork belly sandwich with a fried duck egg, the food here is spectacular. For what seems like forever Fir Territory, East Bumside now has a couple of alternatives for the people by the people. 503 230 0463 1------------ 1 1 I Bung in this I I jd fot a FREE OESSERT w/ENTREE PURCHASE1 ’ i -»•BBQ on Broadwa y-*- ^Odessa’s Cafe Authentic Southern BBQ r Slow Cooked Homemade Sauce Now Serving Beer & Wine 3445 NE Broadway 503-2SS-3369 Sun-Thurs llam-8pm • Fri &Sat llam-lOpm •< Dine-ln or Take Out CAFFE MINGO serving dinner nightly @ 5pm in northwest Portland, we don't do reservations be a kitchen voyeur eat at the original 503 226 4646 COME DINE AL FRESCO I , Nostrana FRESH, LOCAL, WOOD-FIRED^ 503.234.2427 1401 SE Morrison www.nostrana.com Restaurant of the "Sear 2006 — (Oregonian Toro Bravo «120 N.E. Russell St. This Beautiful space adjacent to Wonder Ballroom is earthy, airy and inviting. Specializing in Spanish tapas, the menu is laden with soon-to-be quintessential small plates. From a deliciously fluffy tortilla espaha to an incredible green gazpacho with scallop ceviche, every single plate is to die for. The pork rillette with braised cherries is tender, salty and addictive. The flawlessly grilled bone-in pork chop dances with rosemary-infused cherries. With an extensive and complicated menu, TB somehow still manages to make killer paella and stellar Marcona gelato and to pull a nice shot of espresso. Although the echoic dining room can get vtKiferous, you’ll forget all about the noise when all you can hear is your own moaning. Bravo indeed. J enny N guyen wants to know what’s in your mouth. Spit it out by writing to her at epiqueerean@comcast .net. simple Italian cooking simple Italian food MiNGO serving lunch mon-fri, dinner 7 nights happy hour in between in Beaverton, we do reservations full bar. big bottles of wine great.... if you can find it 503 646 6464 (directions at mingowcst.com) £oun¿je 4 4' 4 4 4 301 S£. Worton -503.234.1324 numtaaeportLul. com Open Seven <Saip a wa O4appiyO4our Wìon..J». 5-6 pm i^jon.- Iboup) • Ouei.- Service ^kuluitry • OhurA.- Orivia PL a^^rtistó on
