Gaufre Gourmet Food Cart

March 3, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Before our trip to Fred Meyer on a quest for tire chains (that we would not be using but had to carry just in case) to go to Trillium Lake, we headed out for breakfast/lunch. My sister voted between a stop at a brick and morter for crepes or a cart for waffles, and she went with waffles and her first Portland food cart. When we arrived, my choice of Flavourspot was not open for whatever reason – it’s a risk sometimes with food carts, and especially in the winter, and especially as this past weekend was just ending a very cold spell that froze many cart water tanks (though I didn’t see anything on FB or Twitter, oh well).

Backup plan! So we went a few blocks down to F’s recommendation of Gaufre Gourmet. Gaufre does a slightly more traditional waffle menu from their relatively new cart- they top mini waffles  with sweet or/and savory, rather then making a dutch taco (where the waffle is the “taco”). You can order whole servings or halves of any of their waffle menu offerings.

Savory offerings. One was a special for the day/week/season?, a “street taco waffle” with seasonal shredded chicken with pico de gallo, salsa verde, sour cream and guacamole on a cornbread jalapeno waffle. I didn’t get to try this one, but other F seemed to like it, and it sure looked good.

street taco waffle with seasonal shredded chicken with pico de gallo, salsa verde, sour cream and guacamole on a cornbread jalapeno waffle, Gaufre Gourmet Food Cart, liege waffles, sweet waffles, savory waffles, mini waffles

The other savory offering we ordered was my half order of an ABC waffle: arugula, bacon, camembert cheese, and fig jam. They sure were generous with the arugula, and although I liked the combination of the acid from the dressed arugula with the savory salt of the bacon and soft lightly sweet of the fig, I wish that the cheese had been more creamy melted on the waffle. You can see sorta under all the arugula and bacon that the camembert got warmed enough to sweat but not get oozy to release its butteryness.

ABC waffle: arugula, bacon, camembert cheese, and fig jam, Gaufre Gourmet Food Cart, liege waffles, sweet waffles, savory waffles, mini waffles

Sweet offerings. The Milk and Honey: goat cheese mousse, pistachios, and balsamic caramel sauce, was lightly sweet, but became overwhelming after getting halfway through it. The goat cheese mousse was delicious though- I would recomend only getting a half waffle on this instead a whole. The same advice can be applied to the the Nutty Pearfessor (ok, cute name) with nutella, pears, caramel sauce and candied pecans, unless you really love nutella.

Milk and Honey: goat cheese mousse, pistachios, and balsamic caramel sauce, Gaufre Gourmet Food Cart, liege waffles, sweet waffles, savory waffles, mini waffles Nutty Pearfessor: with nutella, pears, caramel sauce and candied pecans, Gaufre Gourmet Food Cart, liege waffles, sweet waffles, savory waffles, mini waffles

I thought the combination of both sweet and savory can be best found in the Maple Bacon waffle. I think this is better then Voodoo’s maple bacon bar, without having to wait in line and isn’t as sickly sweet as the doughnut, and the ratio of bacon to sweet is more in line to distribute the salty with the super sweet. Pictured below is a half order. I actually saved this and heated it up later so that the maple frosting melted off a bit (there was a bit too much frosting) but the thick crispy bacon definitely still held up in crispness a few days later!

Gaufre Gourmet Food Cart, liege waffles, sweet waffles, savory waffles, mini waffles, Maple Bacon waffle

This kept us pretty full up to dinnertime- and Gaufre’s location on Burnside and 4th makes for easy parking on 4th when you want to quickly stop and grab some deliciousness from a cart and go. Gaufre will take credit cards and also offers warm beverages on their menu varying from coffee to hot chocolate to cider too, they have some picnic benches around the carts… basically everything you need to get your morning (or erhm late morning) started. You will need to use their plastic silverware to eat any of their waffles- they are messy, and even then you may need to lick your sticky fingers so if you can bring a wet napkin for each diner that would be ideal. Their location, no surprise, is also open at late night so you can walk only a block or two from the clubs in the vicinity for a wee hour waffle bite. Why get fast food or wait in line for Saturday brunch at a restaurant when you can have food like this at a food cart?

Everything was a bit too sweet for my taste, so maybe next time I visit (I have a Groupon for them that I had not been carrying since I switched purses to snowshoe), I might ask them to dial back on the sweetness and that could make it work for my palatte, which has always leaned more towards savory than sweet. Parker’s Waffles is still my favorite waffle cart, but they put entire scrambles and meats liked pulled pork in between their waffles, which they just brush with maple butter or sweet cream butter, so it’s not a fair comparison. Waffle Window would be more fair competitorto Gaufre- but I haven’t had them either so can’t judge yet. Since Gaufre is new, it has the advantage right now of no huge line… yet- but given the devoted followers of the other 3 waffle carts I have named, it may be just a matter of time.

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Vegan Vietnamese?!

February 28, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Mmm, Vietnamese food. Traditional Vietnamese cooking is not really vegetarian or vegan friendly, at least not as found here (since there are Buddhist influences, there are some vegetarian foods in the culture, but they are not commonly found as menu options in restaurants) because they use fish sauce in many many things. Also for instance, the famous pho, where the rich broth simmers with meats for half a day, is something a vegetarian or vegan would never have pass through their lips.

But wait! Pho Pdx doesn’t want them to feel left out. So surprisingly, not only do they have vegan pho, but they even offer more then a dozen dishes at their hole in the wall lunch spot/super late night munchie spot in the downtown area of Portland. It turns out not all the dishes are equal to the meat version, and I was a bit cynical anyway that they would be, but I was curious to see how they would stand just on taste and on their own too. Usually I need to find other people to eat Vietnamese with out in Beaverton (I believe I have mentioned before that I heart Best Baguette. Pho is a bit hard to have for lunch because it comes out so hot and I end up hot after eating it, and in Beaverton you have to account for driving there and back during your lunch hour as well), and so a downtown option was a potential alternative (though Pho PDX is only open for lunch and late night).  And, I am trying to eat healthier for some meals. Don’t worry, I still love butter and cheese and bacon just as much as I used to, but no one should eat like that all the time.

We tried it for lunch since I had the day off for President’s Day. We started with the  traditional spring/salad roll, but with tofu. This translates to tofu, vermicelli noodles & lettuce and bit of mint rolled in rice paper, served with the dipping sauce that doesn’t have fish sauce so it’s vegan while still giving a hoisin peanut sauce flavor that is both spicy nutty and sweet at the same time. These were pretty good, with the freshness of the roll and the fact that the mint was not overwhelming and the vermicelli noodles were soft and in good proportion to match all the other ingredients. The tofu is really fresh, so even though you can see it is a huge hunk, it tastes really good, and also mops up the dipping sauce well. You could order these instead of the ones with shrimp or pork and still feel satisfied with your salad roll experience.

traditional spring/salad roll with tofu, Pho PDX, now Luc Lac Vietnamese, Portland, Oregontraditional spring/salad roll with tofu, Pho PDX, now Luc Lac Vietnamese, Portland, Oregontraditional spring/salad roll with tofu, Pho PDX, now Luc Lac Vietnamese, Portland, Oregon

Next, the main event. We tried the vegan pho with five spice vegetable broth w/ tofu & veggies. Would it taste weak? Well, it has a light taste, but it’s flavorful in its own right even if it is not like a traditional meaty broth for regular pho. The tofu here also sang, and we eagerly sought them out. The best part was the broth at the bottom where the peppers had been adding itself to the broth- wish we had added more peppers. Congratulations on your great tofu sourcing. Again, it’s not like regular pho- but it isn’t bad, and if you are ordering this you are probably veggie. I also appreciated that the pho was hot but not boiling so that we had to sit and wait to enjoy or burn or tongues or be sweating as we left because we got hot from the soup. It was just right temperature for us to eat the rolls and start on the pho.

vegan pho, Pho PDX, now Luc Lac Vietnamese, Portland, Oregonvegan pho, Pho PDX, now Luc Lac Vietnamese, Portland, Oregon

Finally, Pho PDX’s lemongrass tofu stir-fry w/ veggies & lemongrass-turmeric-chili sauce. This tasted as good as any Asian stir fry tofu dish, especially with the green beans, but if you are expecting the lemongrass flavor and texture you will be disappointed here. The sauce doesn’t get to caramelize like it would if chicken was used and there was too much sauce (it needed to reduce more). I had asked for it at level 3 out of 4 spicy, and didn’t find it spicy at all. The only thing I found spicy during the meal actually was the jalapeno infused bottom of the pho bowl. I would pass on this to get something else on the menu if I wanted a traditional Vietnamese taste to my food rather then something which is good but could be served at any Asian restaurant.

Pho PDX's lemongrass tofu stir-fry, Pho PDX, now Luc Lac Vietnamese, Portland, OregonPho PDX's lemongrass tofu stir-fry, Pho PDX, now Luc Lac Vietnamese, Portland, Oregon

They really are in a hole in the wall, somewhat hidden location that is like an Asian food court with the exact atmosphere that description probably brought to mind. But, their food came out fresh. I have to give them props for offering several veggie versions and if you are a late night veggie in the area you can get some pretty satisfying veggie eating on at Pho PDX. Especially those salad rolls. Yeah, I liked those, I really did.

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The Fish & Chip Shop

February 25, 2011 by Leave a Comment

There is a hole in the wall fish and chip speciality place called The Fish & Chip Shop on Killingsworth, on the way back to the Max from Saraveza or just on the other side of the Max by the block when coming back from Hop & Vine. Heh, convenient location. They serve British style fish and chips, which means deep-fried battered fish (traditionally cod but sometimes haddock) with “chipped potatoes” which = fries or potato chips. Yes, it’s a totally deep-fried platter, but historically it is fast food after all.

Though, don’t expect fast service here. When I came in I didn’t see a server, so I seated myself to browse their paper takeout menu. Another guest did the same thing, and 10 minutes later another customer came in and impatiently wondered whether anyone was working there (uh, clearly, there are 5 tables occupied) because she hadn’t been greeted yet to give her carryout order. However, wanting the crisp batter texture I knew I was eating in, and after 5 minutes or so the server emerged. Since the menu is pretty limited, as soon as she came over she anticipated I was ready to order, and less then 10 minutes later the plate was in front of me. So, slow to take the order, but efficiently speedy in delivery of the food, and she left me alone to eat in peace. Just like the start, the end was a bit Portlandy slow in getting the check, but at that point I was full of warm fish and potato and satisfied, and living in Portland has taught me a lot more patience.

I decided to go with haddock as my fish, though they also offer cod, red snapper, dover sole, and halibut. You can choose 2 or 3 pieces of fish to come on your plate. As per tradition, they have salt/pepper and malt vinegar on the table, but you can request a lemon wedge and tartar sauce also as an accompaniment. Since I was trying to settle some alcohol in my stomach, I also ordered the Bubble and Squeak.

What Fish and Chip Shop offers is simple but fresh in a clean minimalist atmosphere. The batter was light and fresh in taste, flaky crunchy and despite being a deep fried plate nothing tasted greasy. I wish the fries had been a little crisper, but they were hot and steamy and they definitely give plenty of them. You may want to think about adding a topper of brown gravy or curry sauceas if you are like me and are not much a fan for soaking them in the malt vinegar. Though really, they are going to charge $2 more for that as a side?

“Bubble and Squeak” is a side dish of creamy garlic and herb mashed potatoes mixed with cabbage and then grilled so it has a bit of crispy pancake like crust on the outside where it was slightly burned/seared. The dish gets its name from the sound it makes supposedly while it is cooking. I don’t know why this is not a more popular way of preparing mashed potatoes.

Would I say this is the best fish and chips in Portland? I’m not sure, fish & chips is a once in a long while indulgence, and I haven’t tried this dish at the other places that yelp ranked higher. It seems authentic though, like something you would be able to get exactly from wandering into any place in Britain that is adequate but not necessarily “The” fish and chip place all the British locals say is the best in town. Though executed well in the fryer, and as good as that light batter is, the fries didn’t stand up. Still, it hits the right spot just enough. I didn’t have any room, but they also offer Spotted Dick Pudding with Bird’s English custard. And various English soda. The onion rings another table ordered came in a heaping hot pile that also looked incredible and much better then the chips. I at least came out with one lesson learned: on an upcoming Thanksgiving I definitely see me making bubble and squeak in replacing the regular garlic mashed.

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Recent Eats: Pok Pok lunch, a cheese + beer at Bailey’s Taproom Cellarfest 2

January 23, 2011 by Leave a Comment

I recently went with friends to lunch at Pok Pok. Whatever meal you visit here for, I always recommend getting an order of the Vietnamese Fish Sauce wings, ask for it spicy. The half a dozen natural chicken wings include the leg along with it as you can see for a good amount of meat, and after beeing marinated in fish sauce and palm sugar are fried and further tossed in caramelized Phu Quoc fish sauce and garlic. It comes with Vietnamese table salad on the side, but I recommend two orders of sticky rice to go with.

Pok Pok, Ike's Wings, Vietnamese Fish Sauce wings, Andy Ricker, Thai restaurant

The recipe comes from daytime cook Ike, and was named one of the top ten restaurant dishes in America 2007 by Food & Wine magazine. It is as a sticky mess to eat as it appears in the photo (they do give you little wipes)- and also just as full of intense flavor as you might imagine from the photo.
Pok Pok, Ike's Wings, Vietnamese Fish Sauce wings, Andy Ricker, Thai restaurant

Since they don’t have Kaeng hung leh (a pork belly and pork shoulder curry that I adore from my mom’s Chiang Mai/Northern Thai area) at lunch, and I was a bit too chilled for their namesake som dtum (they call it the “papaya pok pok”) I opted for the one dish meal of khao muu daeng/muu krob. This is a pork dish done two ways- the top slices you see are the muu daeng, which is their housemade chinese bbq red pork, and the bottom is a crispy pork belly. The whole dish is then doused with a sesame sauce and on the left is a steamed gailan.

Pok Pok, Andy Ricker, Portland, Thai restaurant, khao muu daeng and muu krob

The gailan was a nice break from the sesame sauce which I thought they put too much on the dish. Their housemade version of chinese bbq red pork could not stand up to any bbq pork you can get from any random Chinese place- and although the Thai interpretation is a little more thin and bland the taste is made up for using a red sweet and salty sauce which didn’t have a presence here.  The crispy pork belly was ok but not quite what I was expecting- there was only a little bit of crispness to it, although I do recognize they gave better pork meat along with it.

I think I’m a harsher judge because what Pok Pok excels in is making street- style Thai food, no holding back the flavors that you would get if you were really there in Thailand- but I’ve had street food in Thailand. Most Thai restaurants have compromised on the homeland taste in order to survive normal consumer demands when Thai food started becoming acceptable take-out and because taste buds here are just different, understandably, then the home country. Also, ingredients that compose the dish are hard to find or just don’t taste the same as if fresh from the Thai markets there. Many times, the kitchen in Thai restaurants are also turning out home cooking, and don’t have the recipe or even intend to compete with the flavor profiles coming from food cart style expertise. Just like here in Portland, in Thailand, certain stalls are famous and followed to inconvenient locations because of their signature take on a dish. Pok Pok has been rewarded for holding true to Thai strong flavors even on American soil- but it also means that if you’ve had the real thing in Thailand and remember it well, as I have- sometimes Pok Pok can’t win the inevitable comparison. IMHO, their khao muu daeng/muu krob wasn’t bad, but just can’t compare to the real thing on the other side of the world- if you’ve had that experience. Otherwise, you might find this wonderful- and you wouldn’t be wrong either.

Whatever you do- don’t forget to get the chicken wings. And, order items off the menu that you haven’t seen before in other Thai restaurants- there’s more to Thai food than the 20 kinds of standard Thai dishes that you see on most Thai restaurant menus; here especially try the Northern and Eastern Thailand regional speciality dishes. Also, try to overlook the prices- sorry they are in dollars not baht (if you don’t know the costof these dishes in Thailand in Thai currency, you may not even think about the prices given the intensity of flavor it buys)… remember it’s saving you airfare! Besides, I have to admire the guts of a chef who is willing to dish out pretty much the real thing to the general public, not just in secret “in the know” to Thais only via secret menus or hole in the wall word by mouth only locations. To get the recipes they do use, he has to have the charisma to learn cooking in Thailand, so extra heart points.

Pok Pok, Andy Ricker, Portland, Thai restaurant, khao muu daeng and muu krob

Our regular beer bar, Bailey’s Taproom, was having their second Cellarfest. Our friends brought their liquid crack brie, while I brought the cheese board and utensils as well as (counter clockwise from the brie) a Beecher’s No Woman, a sharp cheddar, and Port Salut.

We also had two kinds of local bread: Franz’s Palouse Plateau all natural steel cut oat, and Great Harvest‘s 9 Grain (loaves baked fresh daily all day!). The usual bread, Portland French Bakery‘s asiago bread, was missed since it wasn’t at the Fred Meyer’s during the grocery run, but Great Harvest was a fine tasty (in a different way- sweet rather than the chunks of cheese) and much healthier substitute. I’m thrilled to be able to be a supporter of so many local bakeries- and that there are so many to choose from (I am also a fan of Dave’s Killer Bread and Gabriel’s Bakery).

Our plate went great with all the beers we tried at the Cellarfest- and we tried all 18 of them that were available- and our seconds (and thirds) of tastings of the Block 15 2009’s Pappy Dark, though the sweet when emerging from the cellar Dogfish Head 2009 120 Minute IPA was a strong 2nd place favorite of ours. Last year this event is what convinced me that I wanted to start cellaring beers along with wines. Thank you Baileys.

bailey's taproom festival event, bring your own cheese plate

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Filed Under: Beer Review, Food and Drink, Restaurant Review Tagged With: , , , ,

Karam Lebanese Restaurant

January 17, 2011 by Leave a Comment

I’ve heard good things about Karam from a reliable foodie friend, but it was only relatively recently that I finally was able to visit this Middle Eastern cuisine restaurant. It is located not far from Al Amir, the home of my favorite baba ghanouj. I wondered going in how Karam would stack up, including to my Chicago standby Reza‘s.

To be fair, Reza’s is Persian, while Karam is specifically described as Lebanese. So I forgive them for not having dill rice, and my interest was peaked by their offering of kibbee, a national Lebanese dish made with ground meat, onion, and bulgar.

Our dinner entrees came with a fresh side salad, and we were excited to see some interesting beverages, especially the fruit infusion one I had that was made with homemade yogurt. I could see myself craving those drinks during the summer.

Karam Lebanese Restaurant Karam Lebanese Restaurant

I passed on specifically ordering the the kibbee this time to try their Baleela, their take on hummus served hot, steamed garbanzo beans mixed with garlic, cumin, olive oil and tahini sauce. Really really good, definitely would recommend it. I did get to try the kibbee as well- more in a moment.

Karam Lebanese Restaurant

I ate almost that whole plate on my own, because he got the huuuge Veggie Mazawat, which is a sampler of, from left to right and back to front row, taboule, baleela, falafel with tahini sauce and grape leaves (on the same plate), baba gahanouj, veggie kibbee nayee, hummus, and labne their homemade Lebanese cheese and the wrapper is from the basket of fresh oven baked pita bread! If you are coming in for your first time, this is a good way to try a little bit of everything, obviously.

Karam Lebanese Restaurant

After the full Veggie Mazawat shot, you can see closeups of what made up the sampler. First photo is a look at the taboule, baleela, and baba gahanouj. I don’t think the baba gahanouj is as good as Al Amir, but that baleela still is awesome and unique. Following that is the closer look at the baleela, falafel with tahini sauce and grape leaves (on the same plate), veggie kibbee nayee, hummus. Very filling sampler that filled our table with 7 plates of goodies to try

Karam Lebanese Restaurant Karam Lebanese Restaurant

For my entree, since I would get to sample the kibbee from the Veggie Mazawat, I decided to try something else. Based on a foursquare suggestion, I went with Lamb Couscous, a dish of tender lamb shawarma topped with feta cheese and tahini sauce. I think I only ate 1/4 of that lamb, it was good but this was a really big plate. When we asked for a box, they brought us boxes for *everything* so we didn’t waste any food by throwing it away… and it did still taste delicious the next day. Despite the lack of dill rice, this place is the closest to giving Reza’s a run for my money, and is my pick for Portland for Mediterranean food right now.

Karam Lebanese Restaurant

The restaurant is a family business with the men greeting and serving while the wife gives you a taste of her incredible (probably literally) home cooking based on recipes that have been passed down. They take great pride in their food- giving you lots of choice including ones that are unique, lots of it on a plate to make sure you don’t go home hungry, all executed well, they check to make sure you are enjoying your meal and heap new fresh in house pitas onto your table. Whether you are someone who already enjoys Middle Eastern food and is looking for a new take on it or someone trying to expand their ethnic cuisine palette, Karam is going to pleasantly surprise you with flavors – look past the simple traditional plating and indeterminate mush look and put it in your mouth and enjoy.

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