Tasty and Alder Highlights

Back in 2013, purchased a ticket to my very first Portland Food Adventures eating extravaganzas. What Chris puts together is a special dinner that includes the chef coming out to introduce/discuss the dish, each course comes with a pairing, and at the end we each receive an envelope of gift certificates to encourage us to continue our food adventures at picks for eats by the chef. I highly recommend each and every food experience he puts together both for the excellent food and the outstanding atmosphere of the great people you can meet at these gatherings.

That first one I attended was for right before the opening of Tasty N Alder with John Gorham. I loved my experience, and the fact that during that special dinner I got to try and realize I enjoyed so many options (rather than just an entree or so at a time) made me very confident that this restaurant worked for me.

Tasty n Alder restaurant area Tasty n Alder restaurant space, kitchen bar seating Tasty n Alder restaurant space, bar seating Tasty n Alder restaurant space, bar seating

Since then, I can’t even exactly recall how many times I’ve been to Tasty N Alder. I thought I would list my Tasty and Alder Highlight of some of my very favorite things since it’s now the 2 year anniversary of that first experience for me. Specifically, my top things that I insist you must order when you visit.

1. Bloody Marys. Any of them. Below you see the Cuate Mary with chili infused tequila, tomato, pimenton, and calabrian chili, and then another offering called the Dockside with gin, kummel, tomato, old bay, and shrimp. Both were kickin! I’ve had many other delicious cocktails from the bar here, including three Grown Ass Milkshakes that are alcoholic ice cream dessert drinks, so don’t feel like you need to limit yourself to bloody marys.

The Cuate Mary with chili infused tequila, tomato, pimenton, and calabrian chili at Tasty n Alder The Dockside Mary at Tasty n Alder with gin, kummel, tomato, old bay, and shrimp

2. As a dinner  starter, if you are willing to get your fingers a little messy get the Blaze’s Smoked chicken wings. When I attended the Portland Food Adventures dinner, I got to hear from John Gorham the story about how he had these wings at a big get together and hired Blaze after eating these wings.
Tasty and Alder Blaze's Chicken Wings at dinner as a starter are messy but delicious

3. For a less messy start, the Radicchio​​​ with bacon lardons, manchego & six minute eggs is amazing, and you don’t often hear me praise salads. This is available on all their menus throughout the day, be it brunch, mid day, or dinner. It’s one of my top favorite salads in Portland.
Tasty and Alder famous salad, the Radicchio salad with bacon lardons. manchego. six minute eggs Tasty and Alder famous salad, the Radicchio salad with bacon lardons. manchego. six minute eggs

4. Any steak or duck is good, a version is always on the menu at brunch or dinner. When friends are looking for steak but want an alternative to the plated Steakhouse entree experiences at Ringside, Laurelhurst Market or Urban Farmer, the meats of Ox and here at Tasty and Alder are always my recommendation.  That’s because they are cut to be served family style so that everyone can feast on multiple cuts of meat family style.
Tasty and Alder offers lots of meat dishes at dinner that are steakhouse quality but in a format that is tapas style for sharing family style Tasty and Alder offers lots of meat dishes at dinner that are steakhouse quality but in a format that is tapas style for sharing family style

This is the Duck Duck Steak available at Brunch, where it’s served medium rare with an egg and duck fried crispy potato wedges.
Tasty and Alder brunch dish of Duck Duck Steak Tasty and Alder brunch dish of Duck Duck Steak

5. For a dinner side, get the Skillet Corn Cake at dinner.
Tasty and Alder's buttery skillet corn cake side at dinner Tasty and Alder's buttery skillet corn cake side at dinner

6. It is listed as a starter on the dinner menu, but I also like eating the Goat Cheese Dumplings Arrabiata as a side with the meats here.
Tasty N Alder  Goat Cheese Dumplings Arrabiata

7. The best option to eat on the Mid Day Menu between 2-5:30 (aka brunch and dinner) besides the already raved about Radicchio salad, is the Buttermilk Fried Chicken
at Tasty and Alder, the best option to eat on the Mid Day Menu between 2-5:30 (aka brunch and dinner) besides the already raved about Radicchio salad, is the Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Last year, after surprising Portland residents with listing the Oregonion 2014 Restaurant of the Year as no restaurant at all but the concept of restaurant pop-ups, the next article of dining note was the list of five best new burgers in Portland.  I guess they define “new” pretty broadly since the Number 1 burger from Tasty and Alder, has-been  open and offering that burger for a year and a half almost at the time of the article.
Tasty N Alder burger, composed of Cascade Natural Chubut cheese and bacon, with a hazelnut romesco sauce and housemade pickles. Tasty N Alder burger, composed of Cascade Natural Chubut cheese and bacon, with a hazelnut romesco sauce and housemade pickles. alt=

But, I can’t say the burger isn’t tasty. The Tasty N Alder burger is composed of Cascade Natural Chubut cheese and bacon, with a hazelnut romesco sauce and housemade pickles.
Tasty N Alder burger, composed of Cascade Natural Chubut cheese and bacon, with a hazelnut romesco sauce and housemade pickles

I don’t think it ascends to the height of the Toro Bravo burger, whose burger also boasts romesco and bacon, and I personally like the Manchego cheese better than the Chubut. Not sure how much it matters, as both are the creations of the Gorham empire of restaurants though. The Tasty and Alder burger is available at both brunch and dinner, but not mid-day – which is fine, because if you really want a sandwich get the Steakhouse Sandwich with Cascade Natural smoked coppa steak with fried onions & horseradish instead.
Tasty N Alder Steakhouse Sandwich with Cascade Natural smoked coppa steak with fried onions & horseradish Tasty N Alder Steakhouse Sandwich with Cascade Natural smoked coppa steak with fried onions & horseradish Tasty N Alder Steakhouse Sandwich with Cascade Natural smoked coppa steak with fried onions & horseradish

At just 2 years old, Tasty and Alder has settled into executing good dishes without the mad rush of people and lines that it had during its first few months. The only time I’ve seen a line now is on brunch on the weekends, but that’s easily avoidable since they serve that brunch menu everyday they are open.

Meanwhile, I continue to jealously look at the recaps of other Portland Food Adventures that I don’t get to attend, even though I just went to one (and recapped) a few weeks ago featuring Chef Ben Bettinger at Simpatica. Chris is expanding his Portland Food Adventures to now go abroad with the Ataula Chef Jose Chesa. I love and fully support the idea of a food vacation I don’t have to plan! If you get a chance I highly recommend trying a PFA experience to see the fun of these food parties yourself, and the maybe new regular stops you may learn about from the food adventures.

Have you been to Tasty n Alder yet, or any o the Gorham restaurants? What are your favorite dishes at them? 

Signature

Lunch at Tasty n Alder

After I visited Tasty n Alder as part of Portland Food Adventures for dinner (it was a set prix fixe for the event), I wanted to also try their lunch menu. So I visited twice in the past month, during their soft opening month. Today marks their official opening as a restaurant now, and they will not only have their lunch and dinner shift, but be open between that as well and have a happy hour. They have not announced their reservation policy yet- not sure if it will be differant than the other two restaurants which are geared to be walk-in and so only take reservations above a certain size group.

Now, I realize that this is still during their soft opening, so I am waiting to see what happens now that they are officially open in March. However, I did notice that the restaurant was really hopping already- Gorham’s reputation from Toro Bravo and Tasty n Sons is already generating interest and filling the seats. And clearly, people are happy to get a chance at his cuisine on this side of the river.

I first tried for a Sunday brunch, but there was already a 45 minute wait. So, my first visit for their everyday brunch was actually a weekday lunch, and I ate at the bar. I started out with  Bloody Mary of Dim Summore with hoisin, lime, sriracha, ginger. I then had a half order of the Patatas Bravas with over easy eggs and aioli, and my main was the Korean Fried Chicken with short grain rice, house kim chee & egg two ways (boiled and sunny side up).

Still, despite the busyness, the bartender was quick at making sure I had a menu and water, and the food came from the kitchen very quickly- the out of town visitor next to me had just received his check and before he could sign it, I already had my Patatas Bravas. And, it was the bartender who told me that I could have a half order so I would have room for the Korean Fried Chicken. I was in and out in just a little over 40 minutes.

Tasty n Alder Bloody Mary Dim Summore with hoisin, lime, sriracha, ginger Tasty n Alder Patatas BravasTasty n Alder Korean Fried Chicken

Of these three items I ordered, none stood out in terms of bowling me over with deliciousness however. The Dim Summore was the best, with an interesting blend of spicy with sour and funky. The Patatas Bravas were oversauced for me and became soggy potatoes, and the same problem with the Korean Fried Chicken which after I diluted the sauce with rice, the boneless chicken hunk had a great crunchy texture that tried to survive under the sauce. Maybe they made my dish a little too fast in trying to keep up the pace with service.

There were more items on the menu I wanted to try though… I was curious about the ​Bim Bop Bacon & Eggs, and I admired the plate of The Alder Burger with Cascade Natural​​​ chubut cheese & hazelnut romesco I saw coming out of the kitchen as I left, and what about that Duck Duck Steak dish…so I went back for a second lunch.

This time, I sat at the kitchen bar seats. This second opportunity gave me a chance at the Bim Bop Bacon and Eggs, as well as a temporary new small plate that appeared during this visit, Chipolata Sausages from LaughingStock Farms. It also let me witness firsthand how they oversauce that Korean Fried Chicken- yeesh one spoonful of the sauce is enough when tossing that deep fried chicken, you don’ t need that second ladle… I also observed  how awesome the bartender is, mixing up all the drink orders and serving those at the bar seats but also stepping in to help get dishes from the kitchen window to tables quickly. Again, I was in and out within less than 40 minutes.

Tasty n Alder restaurant area Tasty n Alder restaurant space, kitchen bar seating Tasty n Alder restaurant space, bar seating

The Chipolata sausages were small but every bite was as good as the Nurenberg sausages I recall when I was in Germany– Chipolata sausages are seasoned with different herbs and spices, but it tasted so fresh and with the perfect grill that I had no reference but another country where sausages are a source of national pride and specifically one that is a famous regional delicacy for close comparison.

Meanwhile, the Bim Bop Bacon and Eggs starts out with rice that is topped with vegetables (such as here carrots, spinach, kimchee, bean sprouts),  a chili pepper paste and an egg that you mix up all together. When they place the rice in the bottom of the bowl I think they put some sort of sesame oil so that the rice touching the bottom gets crispy. The Bacon they refer to in the name of the dish turns out to be not just regular bacon, but a a sweet grilled Korean pork belly.
Tasty n Alder Chipolata Sausages from LaughingStock Farms

I also got to try the other two Marys- they offer four and the Tasty Mary I’ve already had at Tasty n Sons, and so that left the Cuate Mary with chili infused tequila, tomato, pimenton, and calabrian chili, and then another offering called the Dockside Bloody Mary with gin, kummel, tomato, old bay, and shrimp. Both were kickin!

The Cuate Mary with chili infused tequila, tomato, pimenton, and calabrian chili at Tasty n Alder The Dockside Mary at Tasty n Alder with gin, kummel, tomato, old bay, and shrimp

This time lunch was wonderful, full of punches of flavor with every bite and sip. I’ll be back…

Signature