Roe PDX

I enjoyed the original Roe PDX restaurant by Chef Trent Pierce when it was a hidden restaurant in the back of Block and Tackle (formerly Wafu), and have been excitedly awaiting the opening of the new Roe PDX location downtown. Dining here is completely reservations only, and you select your date and time of seating from Tock or OpenTable – they have a smaller Theater menu, or go the full chefs menu course dinners. The price includes gratuity. The food here is contemporary seafood, with an intimate fine dining atmosphere – the level of service here is worthy of any white tablecloth restaurant in the top cities in the world, not the usual Portland casualness.

You’ll find Roe in the back of Morgan’s Alley (515 SW Broadway), only blocks from Pioneer Square. It is slightly hidden on the second floor with no clear Roe sign, only a congratulatory “Yes! You’ve Found Us!” as a hint.

Roe PDX Waiting room before you enter the dining room of Roe PDX

When you first enter the otherwise unmarked door, you find yourself in a waiting room with no view of the restaurant space yet, only another note that someone would be with us and some seats against the all and flower arrangement in the middle on a table. At first, it felt a little Alice in Wonderland.

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Breakfast Club Popup in PDX

Last month, a traveling pop up series visited Portland called Breakfast Club. The series appears at various restaurants who do not normally serve breakfast to entice those chefs to do a one day breakfast event. Cities that Breakfast Club popped up this year included New York, Austin, Miami, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Portland. Three restaurants hosted here in PDX, and I attended 2 of them – one at Nong’s Khao Man Gai, and one at Kachka. Unfortunately I was not able to make the one at Tusk. Here’s a quick photo recap of those Portland Hey Breakfast Club Popup events.
Hey Breakfast Club Popup in PDX Hey Breakfast Club Popup in PDX

For a set price, a diner would get a main dish, two sides, coffee/tea, and a special prize inside. Diners could choose to take the bag to go, or sit at communal tables and eat and meet others. What a fun play on the idea of a kid’s meal, but for adults!
Hey Breakfast Club Popup in PDX Hey Breakfast Club Popup in PDX

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Lardo PDX Chefwich with XLB – Char Siu Reuben

I have given a lot of love to Lardo in the past, in particular their Chefwich series which spotlights a collaboration with a local chef with a portion of the sales going to a charity near and dear to that guest chef’s heart. For December, the chefwich spotlight is to XLB‘ s Jasper Shen + Laura Tran. Together, they created a Char Siu Reuben that stars roasted Chinese pork, spicy cabbage, Swiss, XLB secret sauce on griddled rye bread.
Lardo PDX and XLB Chefwich, the Char Siu Reuben with BBQ Chinese pork, spicy cabbage, Swiss, XLB secret sauce on griddled rye bread and benefiting Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon (APANO) for the month of December 2017 Lardo PDX and XLB Chefwich, the Char Siu Reuben with BBQ Chinese pork, spicy cabbage, Swiss, XLB secret sauce on griddled rye bread and benefiting Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon (APANO) for the month of December 2017

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A Nice Dinner Out at Ringside Fish House

If you are looking for a sophisticated place to go out on a holiday dinner with your loved ones or your friends during the holiday or post holiday, don’t overlook the classic nice dinner out at Ringside Fish House. This elegant restaurant is located downtown right by Director’s Park, and is a favorite for theater goers with their 3 Course Prix Fixe Dinner that can get you to the show on time. I like visiting without a show ticket even more so I can fully linger and enjoy the atmosphere. Take advantage of the complimentary self-parking at Fox Tower Parking Garage, or walk only a block or two away from the Max or Streetcar.

Here’s a look at a recent nice dinner out at Ringside Fish House I enjoyed this month. Keep in mind of course that like any excellent seafood restaurant the dishes may change based on what is fresh. Certain favorites will be there in some form though – for instance the impressive starter of a Fresh Seafood Platter arranged with King Crab Legs, Hokkaido Scallop, Gulf Prawns, Oysters, Mussels, Manila Clams, House Smoked Salmon. This one is just a small that offered more then enough for us four, but they come in two other sizes for even more grandness and has an optional upgrade addition of lobster. That house smoked salmon is really something special
A Nice Dinner at Ringside Fish House with a Fresh Seafood Platter arranged with King Crab Legs, Hokkaido Scallop, Gulf Prawns, Oysters, Mussels, Manila Clams, House Smoked Salmon A Nice Dinner at Ringside Fish House with a Fresh Seafood Platter arranged with King Crab Legs, Hokkaido Scallop, Gulf Prawns, Oysters, Mussels, Manila Clams, House Smoked Salmon A Nice Dinner at Ringside Fish House with a Fresh Seafood Platter arranged with King Crab Legs, Hokkaido Scallop, Gulf Prawns, Oysters, Mussels, Manila Clams, House Smoked Salmon A Nice Dinner at Ringside Fish House with a Fresh Seafood Platter arranged with King Crab Legs, Hokkaido Scallop, Gulf Prawns, Oysters, Mussels, Manila Clams, House Smoked Salmon
You should perhaps also warm up with a cocktail. They have the classics as you would expect from Moscow Mule to Penicillin to Boulevardier or whatever you’d like to call. But think about their house cocktails as well, including a few that rotate seasonally. The NxNW cocktail with Vodka, Apple Brandy, Pear, Cinnamon, Lemon brings together nice warming flavors, while their Water of Youth consists of Vodka, Yuzu, Honey, Chamomile, Cava that brings some bubbly joy and yuzu that goes well with seafood.
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Pie Harder – Deep Dish Pizza of PDX

I tend to have mixed feelings about Willamette Weekly – sometimes it seems to a draw for trolls, other times they legitimately spotlight great local stories, including food. Earlier this year they highlighted my favorite type of pizza, deep dish or pan pizza with their article “Detroit Style Pizza is the New Hotness. We Found the Best in Portland” which ignited passionate discussion on the definition of Detroit Pizza and other regional pizzas and who has the authentic deep dish pizza of PDX. That’s probably not really a reflection of WW and more about people’s love for pizza. They followed that article up this past summer with Pie Harder, a food festival devoted to the deep dish pizza of PDX.

Ranch Pizza made my dreams come true with a mac and cheese pizza served with ranch sauce at Pie Harder 2017

Six pizza places showed off their version of deep dish pizza with sample slices of their pizza, and I ate them all. I think there were some dessert pies also available at the fest as part of Pie Harder but I had to tap out after only the savory pizza pies. If they do this event again, I would recommend it but be prepared with stretchy pants.
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