Kachinka for Portland Dining Month 2019

In my previous post, I shared my top list based on the menu and $ value what I think are the best picks for Portland Dining Month, Aka the whole month of March, when more then 100 restaurants offer a deal of 3 courses for $33 all month long. On my list was Kachinka for Portland Dining Month 2019. I have already visited, and here’s what I recommend. And to help encourage you, I AM DOING A GIVEAWAY FOR A DINNER FOR TWO!

Kachinka for Portland Dining Month 2019

Ok, first, I should establish that Kachinka is in the old Kachka space – aka located at 720 SE Grand Ave, while the Kachka restaurant with its larger dinner menu has moved to a new location at 960 SE 11th Ave. Kachinka is a bit more like a bar with more small plates, including the all important dumplings. Kachinka opens at 4pm. With the opening of Kachka, it is now much easier to walk into Kachinka too since both restaurants can serve guests.

Kachinka Kachinka

The Portland Dining Month 2019 offerings they have for Portland Dining Month are really a food special that is not usually on the menu – that is one of the reasons it made my list. They are offering (including photos of each dish from my visit on March 1)

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Picks for Portland Dining Month 2019

Portland Dining Month 2019 takes place all of March in Portland, and includes 133 restaurants participating, each offering 3 course meals for $33. This is Portland Dining Month’s 20th year, and my 7th year taking advantage of the great food at a great deal. Every year I do my due diligence reviewing who are the participants and making my list based on the menu offered and value of the meal. With this post I’m sharing with you my picks for Portland Dining Month 2019.
Portland Dining Month 2019

A full list of participating Portland Dining Month restaurants and their menus can be found at the official Portland Dining Month list and map on the Travel Portland website. As usual, making a reservation though the Portland Dining Month website can also benefit the local community. Besides supporting local businesses and employees in Portland, in addition Travel Portland has partnered with OpenTable. A donation will be made to Oregon Food Bank for every online reservation booked at participating restaurants through PortlandDiningMonth.com – just click on the OpenTable reservation button next to the restaurant listing.

I highly encourage using this, not just for the fact you are doing good to fight hunger by using the OpenTable online reservation systems, but some places can get pretty busy so to avoid an annoying wait, make reservations with whoever takes them to spend less time waiting and more time dining.

Also check back to the blog and follow me on my Instagram social media stories and feed to see where I am eating at @pechluck– I will be dining at one Portland Dining Month restaurant at least once a week through March. I’ll also be doing giveaways that I post on the blog Facebook page and the Instagram page so follow me to be in the know!

Bluehour 3 courses for $33 for Portland Dining Month March 2018: after a complimentary amuse bouche, I enjoyed courses of 1. Farmers Mixed Green Salad with blue cheese, pickled red onions, radish, sunflower seeds, and sherry vinaigrette 2. Parisian Gnocchi with butternut squash, apples, grana padano, sage and 3. Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with salted caramel, creme fraiche, textures of chocolate Bluehour 3 courses for $33 for Portland Dining Month March 2018: after a complimentary amuse bouche, I enjoyed courses of 1. Farmers Mixed Green Salad with blue cheese, pickled red onions, radish, sunflower seeds, and sherry vinaigrette 2. Parisian Gnocchi with butternut squash, apples, grana padano, sage and 3. Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with salted caramel, creme fraiche, textures of chocolate Bluehour 3 courses for $33 for Portland Dining Month March 2018: after a complimentary amuse bouche, I enjoyed courses of 1. Farmers Mixed Green Salad with blue cheese, pickled red onions, radish, sunflower seeds, and sherry vinaigrette 2. Parisian Gnocchi with butternut squash, apples, grana padano, sage and 3. Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with salted caramel, creme fraiche, textures of chocolate Bluehour 3 courses for $33 for Portland Dining Month March 2018: after a complimentary amuse bouche, I enjoyed courses of 1. Farmers Mixed Green Salad with blue cheese, pickled red onions, radish, sunflower seeds, and sherry vinaigrette 2. Parisian Gnocchi with butternut squash, apples, grana padano, sage and 3. Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with salted caramel, creme fraiche, textures of chocolate

Example Portland Dining Month menu of Bluehour 3 courses for $33 for Portland Dining Month March 2018: after a complimentary amuse bouche, I enjoyed courses of 1. Farmers Mixed Green Salad with blue cheese, pickled red onions, radish, sunflower seeds, and sherry vinaigrette 2. Parisian Gnocchi with butternut squash, apples, grana padano, sage and 3. Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with salted caramel, creme fraiche, textures of chocolate

How I made the list of my picks for Portland Dining Month 2019:

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Fimbul PDX Konudagur Dinner

Earlier this week I attended an instantiation of the Nordic supper club Fimbul PDX popup, offering Icelandic Cuisine. The theme of the dinner on February 12th, 2019 was to celebrate Konudagur, Icelandic Women’s Day. This holiday, as explained by Fimbul, “has deep roots in ancient Viking midwinter feasts celebrating Góa, the wife of the Winter King Þorri. We will be awaiting the first signs of Spring and celebrating the feminine energy with our tasting menu.”
Fimbul PDX Konudagur Dinner Fimbul PDX Konudagur Dinner

Besides the 7 course meal for $80, this dinner Fimbul PDX also offered a beverage pairing option that featured wine and spirits crafted by an all female lineup, and during the dinner a playlist of music of Icelandic female artists as we sailed through the tasting menu together.
Fimbul PDX Konudagur Dinner Fimbul PDX Konudagur Dinner

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Farm Spirit Winter 2019

Farm Spirit recently moved into a larger space that offers table dining now and double the capacity for guests, more seatings in terms of different times, and with a larger kitchen that boasts new capabilities like fire (literally they only used hot plates before to work cooking magic). When they finally opened their new space on 1403 SE Belmont St I quickly snapped up seats for F and I for our visit to check it out. Here’s a look at the Farm Spirit Winter 2019 menu during our meal in January.
Farm Spirit Winter 2019 Farm Spirit Winter 2019

As always, to dine at Farm Spirit you purchase reservations and prepay ahead of time. You will not know the menu until you arrive and are shown to your seat, but expect it to be 100% vegan and what Chef Aaron Adams calls “Cascadian Cuisine” which uses modernist techniques with everything plant based he can find within 100 miles. He also focuses on as little waste as possible, using every part of the plant he can. Even some of the plates are sourced locally from local makers.
Farm Spirit, an all vegan restaurant, Farm Spirit Winter 2019 menu Farm Spirit, an all vegan restaurant, Farm Spirit Winter 2019 menu

Since they source mostly locally depending on availability and season expect dishes to change. Because it is winter, a lot of the techniques used for the food involved dehydration and rehydration to remove and add textures and flavors.

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Matt’s BBQ Tacos

I was literally squeeing— squeeeee!! — earlier this week on Tuesday when I saw the news that Matt’s BBQ is opening up a taco cart probably sometime next month in March 2019. I had a chance to enjoy Matt’s BBQ Tacos when they did a pop up with Shipwreck back in 2017, and they were legit the best breakfast tacos I ever have had. I can’t wait to have more.

Shipwreck PDX at Chalino with Matt's BBQ in November 2017 featuring cocktails and Matt's BBQ Tacos Shipwreck PDX at Chalino with Matt's BBQ in November 2017 featuring cocktails and Matt's BBQ Tacos featuring breakfast tacos such as a Basic Taco with scrambled egg, potato, cheddar; Brisket Taco with scrambled egg, potato, cheddar, brisket; Sausage Taco with scrambled egg, potato, cheddar, and jalapeno cheddar sausage; Mushroom Taco with scrambled egg, potato, cheddar, smoked mushrooms; and a Pork Belly Taco with black beans, cotija, tomatillo salsa, and pork belly

Since then Portland’s BBQ prince Matt Vicedomini has already launched Eem Portland with food friends Eric Nelson of Shipwreck PDX and Earl Ninsom (of Langbaan, Paadee, Hat Yai), a brick and mortar restaurant of Thai and BBQ mashup on North Williams. I had been hoping that maybe breakfast tacos might pop up there now and then at Eem to re-live this previous popup, but this news is even better. The Matt’s BBQ Tacos will be a food cart on SE Hawthorne, and though I don’t know for sure what the menu will offer, here are some possibilities…

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