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These days, rising-star chefs and the foodies who adore them are flocking to Portland. In this playground of sustainability and creativity, many of the city's hottest restaurants change menus weekly—sometimes even daily—depending upon the ingredients they have delivered to their door that morning from local farms. The combination of fertile soils, temperate weather, and nearby waters contributes to a year-round bountiful harvest (be it lettuces or hazelnuts, mushrooms or salmon) that is within any chef's reach.
And these chefs are not shy about putting new twists on old favorites. Restaurants like Le Pigeon, Beast, Ox, Ned Ludd, Natural Selection, and Aviary have all taken culinary risks by presenting imaginatively executed, often globally inspired fare while utilizing sustainable ingredients. There’s a strong willingness in and around Portland for chefs to explore their creative boundaries.
Menus frequently extend across nations and continents. First-time visitors to Portland always seem to be impressed by the culinary scene’s international diversity, especially when it comes to Asian and Mediterranean fare, but you’ll also find outstanding examples of Peruvian, Russian, regional Mexican, and dozens of other ethnic restaurants. Of course, seafood is prevalent, with chefs regularly taking advantage of the availability of fresh salmon, albacore, halibut, crab, oysters, and mussels from the rivers and the Pacific Ocean.
Most of the city's longtime favorites are concentrated in Nob Hill, the Pearl District, and downtown. But many of the city’s most exciting food scenes are on the East Side, along Alberta Street, Mississippi Avenue, Williams Avenue, Fremont Street, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Burnside Street, 28th Avenue, Belmont Street, Hawthorne Boulevard, and Division Street, and tucked away in many neighborhoods in between. Serious food enthusiasts will definitely want to make some trips to some of these vibrant, if out-of-the-way neighborhoods.
Bar and restaurant culture greatly overlap in Portland, and many eateries around the city stand out as much because of their carefully curated beverage programs as for their food. Expect to find wine, craft beer, and cocktail lists that rely heavily on Northwest products, and also note that many of the top cocktail lounges, brewpubs, and wine bars we included in our Nightlife and Performing Arts chapter also serve excellent tapas and bar snacks.
The Portland branch of the Bend-based Deschutes Brewery typically has 26 beers on tap, including nationally acclaimed mainstays Mirror Pond Pale Ale, Inversion IPA, and Black Butte Porter, plus seasonal and experimental brews. On the food side, the talented kitchen staff have made this a worthy destination for elevated pub fare, such as Manila clams steamed in cider, Nashville-style hot chicken and waffles, and peanut butter–pork belly burgers.
Beloved chef and cookbook author Lisa Schroeder dedicates her home-style, made-with-love approach to food to the comforting foods prepared by mothers everywhere. Clearly the theme resonates, as evidenced by the long waits on weekends, and even some weekday mornings for breakfast, which is arguably the best time of the day to sample Schroeder's hearty cooking; try the wild salmon hash with leeks or the French toast with a crunchy cornflake crust. Reservations are recommended on weekends.
Focusing on both craft cocktails and the exceptionally delicious sandwiches that Portland's local Bunk chainlet has become justly known for, this trendy spot in the Central East Side has an industrial vibe with soaring ceilings, exposed ducts, and concrete beams. It's a great lunch option by day, and more of a drinking spot in the evenings, when you might also catch live bands playing, but anytime you visit you can sink your teeth into a pork-belly Cubano, fried chicken, or double cheeseburger. The other locations are in Inner Northeast, Alberta, and Downtown's West End.
One of several spots around Portland that has become known for advancing the art of sandwich making, Lardo offers a steady roster of about a dozen wonderfully inventive variations, plus one or two weekly specials, along with no-less-impressive sides like chickory salad and apple hushpuppies. Sandwiches of particular note include the tender Korean-style braised pork shoulder with kimchi, chili mayo, cilantro, and lime, and grilled mortadella with provolone, marinated peppers, and mustard aioli. There's also a branch Downtown in the West End.
This convivial neighborhood bistro and its adjoining side bar Over and Out have developed a devoted following over the years for friendly service, well-crafted and affordable contemporary American food, and a long, impressive list of local beers and creative cocktails. Start things off with one of the starter platters (smoked fish, Mediterranean, and charcuterie are all options), before graduating to one of the larger plates, such as the lamb burger with local goat cheese, or blackened catfish with remoulade.
The original of what's now a franchise with more than 100 branches in North America and Japan, this pancake house is the real deal. Faithful customers have been coming since 1953 to this cabin-like local landmark, which is crowded with both locals and tourists from the time it opens at 7 am until it closes in the mid-afternoon. With pancakes starting around $7, it's not the cheapest place to get a stack, but with 20 varieties and some of the best waffles and crepes around, it's worth the trip.Signature item is Apple Pancakes.
There's one reason people frequent this buzzy 23rd Avenue bistro: its luscious desserts, like the banana coconut cream pie, the berry cobblers, and the boccone dolce (Swiss meringues layered with whipped cream and seasonal fruit and drizzled with semi-sweet chocolate).
On the 30th floor of the U.S. Bank Tower, the Portland City Grill has bragging rights for best dinner view in town, which makes up for the rather unremarkable steakhouse fare. Gaze over the city skyline and the distant Cascade and Coast mountains from a window table. The adjoining bar and lounge has comfortable armchairs along its windowed walls, which are nearly always occupied.
A slightly snazzier but still informal outpost of a classic blue-collar burger joint in Portland's industrial Swan Island neighborhood (there's a third location just across the river from downtown on East Burnside), Tilt is a worthy stop for massive burgers, sandwiches, biscuits and gravy with fried chicken, house-made jalapeno tots, and hand-dipped pie shakes. On the right side of this cavernous order-at-the-counter space, there's a full bar as well as a coffee counter serving espresso drinks. There's ample seating on the patio, a former loading dock; sadly, there are no loading trucks to help you out of your seat.
The tremendously varied and interesting beers—barrel-aged ales, small-batch seasonal sours, gluten-frees, German and Belgian styles—are the key draw of this cavernous brewpub, but the kitchen also turns out legit pub fare that makes this a great choice even for the hops-averse. Many of the best dishes have an Eastern European slant, such as the smoked trout salad and the bratwurst sandwich, but the pizzas are great as well. There's a second location at Glendoveer golf course in far Northeast.
