Image provided by: West Linn High School; West Linn, OR
About The amplifier. (West Linn, Oregon) 1921-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 1, 2009)
009 13 Urban Fondue shares sweet treats, fun flavor lARY WOOD Staff Reporter When you're craving fondue, the first thought that comes to mind may be to go to the Melting Pot, but a different Portland restaurant should be your first instinct: Urban Fondue. This charming and cozy restaurant on Northwest Glisan serves excellent fare at a fair price, with good service to boot. One of my favorite things about Urban Fondue (besides the food!) is the atmosphere. It's a bit dark inside, but not overwhelmingly so, with pretty, small candles all around and rich colors on the walls. For seating, there's the option of typical tables or fun, tall booths with cushy seats. The service is also consistently good. The hosts or hostesses are very friendly to guests. For instance, they have always helped me find the area to hang coats. The servers are kind and informative about The menu. For example, they will let you know whether there is meat in a fondue « as a service to vegetarians. Of course, they're surely required to tell you that everything on the menu is great, but they're not lying when they say it! They have great choices for cheese fondues at variety. This one has bacon in it, so avoid it if you're a vegetarian. The cheese fondues cost $11.95. They also serve entrée fondues for cooking meat and vegetables. They're more expensive, and I've never had the opportunity to try one, but they have plenty of options to appeal to many tastes, like cooking broths with and without meat, and dippers like seafood, chicken, pork and tofu. These fondues have various prices, ranging from $14.95 to $39.95, the latter serving two people. Their dessert fondues are delicious as well. The bases of these fondues vary, with different kinds of chocolate mixed with things like marshmallow and peanut butter, as well as fondues of caramel and cheesecake. The dippers for the dessert fondues are a lot of fun. There's some healthier fruit options, and more decadent options such as pound cake, cookie ■ cheaper prices than the Melting Pot. The cheese comes with bread for dipping, but there's also some additional options available, like sausage and fruit. My recommendation for a cheese fondue is to try the delicious Tomato Basil McMenamins offers friendly service, broad choices at reasonable prices Staff Reporter In the Willamette area of West Linn, there is a restaurant that serves comfort food in a nice, family friendly environment, and has reasonable prices and excellent service. An old favorite: McMenamins. Upon first entering, the lighting is a bit dark and the bar located in the middle may chase away some families with younger children. Once you sit down, your perspective will change. The artwork on the walls is very appealing, and it is fun to read the posters that are hanging on the wall advertising past concerts and other Oregon events. The rustic wood booths and tables convey a sense of antiquity as well. The service at McMenamins is top notch almost every time. The waiters and waitresses are very helpful whenever there is a question about something. They are also f l t t y nice and conversational given the right topic. They always have good insight on which dishes are good that day and which aren't. But of course, the main reason to go there is for the quality food. McMenamins mainly focuses on American classic cuisines, but also offers a variety of other foods, such as pastas, wraps, and even hummus as an appetizer. The appetizers are relatively cheap, ranging anywhere from $4-8.1 recommend their tater tots, which come with ranch dressing for dipping and only costs $4.75. Or, if you want to "cajunize" them, $5.75. The entrees are equally as good, with a variety to choose from. The restaurant focuses mainly on burgers and sandwiches, including their "Communication Breakdown" Burger, with grilled mushrooms, onions and bell peppers, and costs $8, and their Backyard Chicken Sandwich, with Hammerhead barbeque sauce, Tillamook cheddar cheese, and crisp bacon, and $9.75. In the case of vegetarians, have no fear! McMenamins offers a few meat-free entrees that are equally as delicious, such as the Willamette Veggie Wrap, the Boca Burger, and the McMenamin's High Pasta, in addition to the salads available. My favorite dish is their special Macaroni and Cheese, which is extra creamy and topped off with bread crumbs to add some extra flair. And while dessert options for after the main course are not vast, the few that they do offer are pretty good. Desserts include carrot cake, Black & Tan Brownie, Chocolate Porter Torte Cake and Chocolate Chip cookie. Although McMenamins is part of a Portland chain that has existed for many years, I believe that this individual one offers something that others can't measure up to. It is a nice, family restaurant that is good to go to on any occasion. It is located at 2090 S.W. 8th Ave. West Linn, OR 97068, and is open Monday-Thursday 11 a.m to midnight, Friday-Saturday 11 a.m to 1 a.m, on Sunday from noon to 10 p.m. dough, doughnut pieces and mini cream puffs. The dessert fondues cost $13.95. In addition, there are plenty of appetizer and side dish options, as well as some great beverage choices. Next door is a bar called Bartini, which offers fun mocktails to the restaurant (and plenty of real cocktails for adults). Urban Fondue is a great restaurant, whether for a special occasion or just for fun. It's in a really neat area of Portland, just a short walk from the shops on NW 23rd. I definitely recommend checking it out by stopping at 2114 NW Glisan, or going to their website, www. urbanfondue.com. The restaurant opens at 5 p.m. every day, with various closing times throughout the week. Catering and space for private events is also offered. LO's Go Fish Go Sushi brings culture, tasty food to neighborhood fELP Staff Reporter With classic Korean style and an open kitchen where you can watch chefs at work preparing delicious food, Go Fish Go Sushi is a nice place to relax and fill up on a wide variety of your favorite fish and vegetarian meals. When you walk into the modernly decorated restaurant off of State Street in Lake Oswego, a hostess will politely lead you to your seat. As an added bonus, it doesn't matter where you sit in the restaurant, whether it be in a secluded corner or a comfy booth, because with the restaurant's open layout, it is possible to experience the entertainment and atmosphere everywhere. As you settle into a booth, it is pretty clear that this new sushi hangout caters to the customer's needs. A conveyer belt travels all the way around the restaurant from the open kitchen to the very last seat in the restaurant. No plate stays on the belt longer then 15 minutes, and fish is delivered fresh daily to the restaurant. As five different colored dishes travel around the belt, each customer can take off the dish they desire. At the end of the meal, the total is added by the number of empty dishes on the customer's table and the color they are. The prices are clearly listed from highest (black) to lowest (yellow). If you happen to be more in the mood for a bigger meal, Go Sushi Go Fish also has a menu to order off of. The options include both cooked and non-cooked cuisine that cater to every customer's individual taste. In addition to receiving the perfect seafood dish, each customer can enjoy a bit of a new dining experience by using the only utensils provided by the restaurant—chopsticks. While you may not know how to use them, it makes the dining experience even better. In some cases, using your fingers to eat the food is perfectly fine; for example, the California rolls and the cooked jumbo shrimp. These two dishes cost around $5 each. An average dinner for three people might cost around $30; this includes about five small entrées from the belt and one seafood chicken noodle dish. Go Sushi Go Fish is open Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and for dinner from 4:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. On Fridays and Saturdays, they are open a half an hour later for dinner. The sushi bar is closed on Sundays*. With traditional Korean music, flat screen fish art, and an open kitchen where the customers can see their food being prepared, Go Sushi Go Fish is a great addition to Lake Oswego and a very worthwhile trip from West Linn.
