Bar Casa Vale Brunch

I’ve shared previously how I enjoy the tapas and the drinks at Bar Casa Vale, but this weekend they are launching a new weekend brunch. From now on they will be serving up, in addition to their all day happy hour on Sunday, brunch from 10 AM – 3 PM on Saturdays and Sundays. I recently attended a media preview that let us share a taste of some of the offerings, so here’s my report back on some of the items. As usual, the menu is subject to change – I think they do tweak the dinner options pretty often by swapping out what is on flatbread or toast and such, so go open-minded. Based on my meal here, I am sorta thinking this is now the best hungover brunch spot in Portland.

The space has huge windows and great lighting during the daytime. Although the seated area inside is mainly to one side by the windows if you don’t want to sit side by side at the bar, don’t over look the outside patio either which is covered and has heated lamps and that firepit.
 

In terms of cocktails, some brunch options, among many libations, include

• Agua de Valencia, with gin, vodka, citrus, and cava which has a light flavor like a mimosa but with less bubbles
  
• Of course there’s Sangria, here in the form of Sparkling Sangria Blanco with cava, brandy, and citrus
  
• The classic Bloody Mary here at Bar Casa Vale has a well balanced pinxto garnish, aka snack on a skewer that you can see here includes meat, cheese, and vegetables and fruit with your tomatoes in the BCV Bloody Mary Mix- all the food groups are covered!
  
• The Mato Grosso is a version that uses Aquavit and the BCV bloody mary mix., and here’s a more detailed look of the ham pinxto with pepper, cheese, olive.
  
• For the most visually striking morning cocktail, look to the Tea Cobbler with Brandy, hibiscus, and citrus.
  

It may sound counterintuitive to order yogurt, but believe me, this was a huge hit with everyone. The Bar Casa Vale Cultured Yogurt includes a layer of buttermilk that makes it incredibly light and creamy, like whipped cream. But it also benefits from great texture interest from a squeeze of olive oil and then apricot, puffed rice, seeds and nuts sprinkled on top. You will just have to try it to see for yourself – on my next visit I know I’ll be ordering this again.
 

There are also quite a number of what I’ll categorize as Fancy Toasts. I’m sure they will probably change out some of the toppings based on what is available, but for now it includes Chocolate Toast with pistachio and olive oil, Sheep Cheese Toast with turnips, rapini, and horseradish for a fun little kick, and a Grilled Sardine Toast with potxta beans, calcot, and ‘nduja.

My favorite was I think the Chocolate Toast – it is the most simple but it has just the right amount of chocolate that is not too sweet and the nut butter that you can still taste the smokiness from the toast being on the fearsome fires of their kitchens. The other ones are beautiful and tasty, though you should definitely expect it to be a bit messier too. I think with the Grilled Sardine Toast I ended up just eating the sardine at one point because it is the clear star of that toast and it kept flopping out of my toast anyway. I confess I am a picker upper to bite into open faced sandwiches – it would probably been smarter to knife and fork these in retrospect.

Also not qualifying as Fancy Toast but in the similar Open Faced Breakfast Sandwich division, is the Bar Casa Vale of whitefish salad on a bagel, but here in the form of English Muffin with smoked whitefish, cream cheese and trout roe. IF you usually like bagel and lox, give this twist a try.

Another full dish in the sandwich is the multi-napkin Fried Egg Sandwich with rapini, chedar, tomato jam, and for a worthwhile $2 more add bacon, fennel sausage, and avocado. I opted out of the bacon because I was saving the calories for another helping of chocolate toast, heh heh.

If you’d rather have a sweet pastry, check out the Cinnamon Roll with tangerine curd and cacao nibs. This is massive – easily can be divided into 4 portions even.

Don’t want bread? The massive Bar Casa Vale brunch menu has you covered. How about a Steelhead Crudo with salsify chips, dill mayo, borage, and radish so good I wouldn’t blink if this was a a white tableclothed fine dining seafood restaurant?

Or consider the Kohlrabi with green wheat, dried cherry, hazelnut, and feta for something light and healthier. It was not up my alley – I guess I think if I’m going out to brunch, I’m going to indulge.

So on the opposite end, there’s the Fried Chicken with churros, honey, and manchego. YES. Definitely make sure to wipe up the cheese and honey to accent your fried chicken on a fork here. This dish is all fried stuff, so you will want to order something else in addition to this, not by itself.

The heaviest dishes are the very protein centered Chicken Meatball Cazuela with bomba rice grits, tomato, cilantro, and fried egg and topped with chicken skin, or the Rotisserie Lamb Cazeula with artichoke, chickpea, salsa verde, and poached egg. Both of these definitely can feed four and is intended to be shared and once again, not eaten by itself but ordered with other dishes.

Are you interested in any of the dishes on the new Bar Casa Vale Brunch menu? Which ones?
    

Disclosure: Some of the photos above are from a meal that was part of a complimentary media brunch, others are from when I went back once brunch officially launched that I paid for myself and updated the post. I will always provide my honest opinion and assessment of all products and experiences I may be given. As always, the views and opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own.