Need central Portland OR dining recs....
 

Our family is leaving in a few weeks for 8 nights in Portland (well, with one night away at Timberline lodge in Mt. Hood). Our vacation apartment is near Couch & 12th NW.

I would love some dining recs for the immediate area.

Looking for suggestions in all cuisines as well as in varying price ranges (up to $20 entrees). Casual is a must.

We want walkable - we don't want to hop a bus/tram to go eat.

Also want some dining recommendations near the major tourists sites (which we WILL use public transport to get to).

We thought Kenny & Zuke's deli was great, and down the block, Mother's (we didn't eat there) was packed on a Sunday morning. Both seem to be a block from where you're staying.

Tx. Anyone else?

Your budget might be a bit restrictive for the trendy Pearl District, but have a look at Clyde Common, Oba, Piazza Italia, 12th St. Tavern, and Fratelli. If you don't mind a brew pub atmosphere, Deschutes and Rogue Ales would be a short walk away. And all else failing, head to the deli at Whole Foods, across the street from where I'm guessing you'll be staying.

BTW, Mother's is great, but it's 10 - 12 blocks from 12th & Couch.

Thanks - I've got all marked now, except the somewhat pricey (for us) Oba.

These are exactly the kinds of places we like to eat out on our family vacations. Also nice to know there's a good grocery so close.

Clyde Common in particular looks like a bulls-eye match for us. We'll probably be there more than once.

Other suggestions always welcomed...

If you like hamburgers, I have two suggestions: Little Big Burger on NW 10th and (a bit of a hike) Veritable Quandary at 1220 SW 1st. The VQ has a great bar menu burger on ciabatta bread.

Don;t be afraid to hop on the tram in that area, its free and simple to use. In addition to those already mentioned, I would add: Andina, Southpark, Deschutes is a quintessential Oregon place and not too spendy + best beer in Oregon, Bridgeport. Portland is pretty small, so you could hop in the car and head to other parts of the city, such as Alberta St, Mississippi, or Hawthorne - sooo many choices. We like Hopworks on Powell for a family pub stop with organic food. We also like Gustavs on Sandy, Prost! on Mississippi for German beer, Laurelwood on Sandy, and even the Kennedy School is ok - more for the atmosphere than the food. Defiently break out of the Pearl to see all that Portland has to offer (the Pearl is not really the real Portland, it would be like going to England and only seeing London or France and only seeing Paris, there is ALOT more places that are more typical of what the majority of Portland is like. Enjoy!!! (Spendy is a PNW word BTW!)

I'm not sure how close they are to your vacation apt, as I'm not very familiar with the area (a friend lives there and did all of the navigating), but two places she took me were wonderful. The Portland City Grill (on the 30th floor of the BofA building) has a spectacular view of the city. Like most restaurants, the lunch menu is much more affordable than the dinner menu. We went at night and had a few appetizers and drinks; there was a very talented piano player who played at just the right volume~loud enough to be heard, but not so loud we couldn't have a conversation in a normal voice. The other one was Typhoon, a Thai restaurant. I'm not sure about the prices, as my friend treated me to dinner.....but the food was fabulous!!

Oldmacdonald, thanks for recommendations! We did get out to Hawthorne, just passing thru to visit Mt. Tabor Park, but got coffee at Fat Straw. And we had a terrific lunch at Southpark when we went to Portland Art Museum. Portland's a real foodie town, and even more a beer drinker's nirvana.