#foodiefriday Archives - Page 2 of 19 - Pechluck's Food Adventures

Urdaneta for Portland Dining Month

March 30, 2018 by Pechluck 1 Comment

Earlier this week, I had a chance to enjoy Urdaneta for Portland Dining Month. I will also be back to Urdaneta shortly for their Basque Supper Club. If you haven’t heard, on Sunday April 8th at 6PM Basque Supper Club will be doing the only Portland screening of the film “The Txoko Experience: The Secret Culinary Space of the Basques”. Basically, Txoko is the Basque version of a supper club. This Basque Supper Clubevent, with tickets already sold out, includes watching the movie, a Q&A with the scriptwriter and a Txoko inspired 6 course dinner by Urdaneta. Chef Javier was inspired to create Urdaneta and Basque Supper Club based on his own childhood experiences with his grandfather’s txoko so I am super excited to learn more about Txoko and get a personal take story-wise and food-wise from Urdaneta.

I’ll recap that experience and meal later, but for now I can’t emphasize enough that you have 2 meals left to get over there for Portland Dining Month. Fortunately, some of the dishes are also on their regular menu, so even if you can’t make it today and tomorrow you can still enjoy some of these dishes.

This is not part of the Portland Dining Month, menu, but it is impossible to resist ordering some pintxos every time I come here whether I am only coming here for Dumpling Week or for Portland Dining Month. Go ahead and give in and get a few starter bites after browsing the menu with the marinated olives. A sherry flight or sangria or Basque cider (sidra) would also be great choices to wash down your pinxto bites.

The Urdaneta pinxtos you see are the

Sobrasada, a soft chorizo in fry bread with grilled halloumi and truffle honey;
Albondiga, a lamb meatball with house tater tot, spicy brava sauce, apple, sofrito aioli;
Camarón, grilled shrimp al ajillo with tomato conserva, ajo dulce, chili, dill, and toasted bread;
Morcilla, a grilled blood sausage with dad’s marinated peppers, piquillo jam, piparra, and toasted bread

Now onto the Portland Dining Month options…

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Filed Under: Food and Drink, Restaurant Review Tagged With: #dinepdx, #foodiefriday, Albondiga, Basque Cuisine, Basque food, Camarón, cameraon, Filete de Culotte, Foodie Friday, grilled shrimp al ajillo, Morcilla, Pastel ruso with toasted meringue, pdx, Pinxtos, portland, portland dining month, Portland Dining Month 2018, salt cod and potato fritter, salt cod croquetas, salt cod croquettes, sobrasada, Spanish cuisine, Spanish Food, Urdaneta, Urdaneta for Portland Dining Month, valdeon foam

Fimbul Icelandic Dinner Spring 2018

March 16, 2018 by Pechluck 4 Comments

Fimbul PDX is a pop up focused on Scandinavian and Icelandic cuisine. I raved about the dinner I attended last year, and am excited to see what they do this year. They took a little bit of a break as Matt and Aurora welcomed their beautiful daughter last year, but seem to be ramping up for more this year. After a short research trip by the Matts to Iceland, there is a possibility that we’ll be seeing more frequent offerings of Fimbul dinners (possibly even twice a month?!), so make sure you are following them on their email list (sign up on the website) and social media to be in the know! In the meantime, he’s a look at the recent dinner I attended, the Fimbul PDX Spring 2018 dinner on March 13.
Fimbul Icelandic Dinner Spring 2018

They do have one dinner already planned – a collaboration with Johan Vineyards for their annual wine dinner in the vineyard on August 25th, 2018. Tickets available through Johan (info@johanvineyards.com). Expect that dinners may sell out, and you need to make reservations. The usual Fimbul pop up dinners are ticketed off their website, and you can choose to purchase just the prix fixe dinner, add on wine pairings, or purchase beverages a la carte there. The wine pairings for this dinner were all Wines by Johan Vinyards, and there were also spirits like Brennivin and Opal, both which are Icelandic liqueurs.

For the Fimbul Icelandic Dinner Spring 2018 edition, I attended the 5:30pm seating, and they did an amazing job of prepping beforehand so that we were out as the 7:30pm seating was coming in. Here’s the menu, and then I’ll go through my thoughts course by course.

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Filed Under: Food and Drink Tagged With: #foodiefriday, Fimbul Icelandic food, Fimbul PDX, Foodie Friday, Icelandic cuisine, Icelandic Dinner Spring 2018, PDX Pop up restaurant, PDX pop-up, Pop up restaurant, Portland pop up restaurant, Portland pop-up, Scandinavian cusine, Scandinavian food

Bar Casa Vale Brunch

February 9, 2018 by Pechluck 3 Comments

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.
Bar Casa Vale Brunch is served on weekends, Sat and Sun 10-3 Bar Casa Vale Brunch cocktail of Tea Cobbler with Brandy, hibiscus, and citrus Bar Casa Vale Brunch Chocolate Toast with pistachio and olive oil Bar Casa Vale Brunch Grilled Sardine Toast with potxta beans, calcot, and 'nduja
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Filed Under: Food and Drink, Restaurant Review, Sponsored Post Tagged With: #foodiefriday, Agua de Valencia, Bar Casa Vale Brunch, bloody mary, brunch, brunch cocktails, Brunch in PDX, Brunch in Portland, Chicken Meatball Cazuela, Chocolate Toast, Cinnamon Roll with tangerine curd, cream cheese and trout roe, Cultured Yogurt, English Muffin with smoked whitefish, Fancy Toast, Foodie Friday, Fried Chicken with churros, Fried Egg sandwich, Grilled Sardine Toast, Mato Grosso, PDX Brunch, Portland brunch, Rotisserie Lamb Cazeula, Sheep Cheese Toast, Spanish Brunch, Sparkling Sangria Blanco, Steelhead Crudo with salsify chips, Tapas Brunch, Tea Cobbler

Circa 33 Brunch

February 2, 2018 by Pechluck 2 Comments

Circa 33 on SE Belmont is probably most known for in the evening as a neighborhood Prohibition-themed cocktail bar. But, did you know they also offer an al fresco dining alley area, and on weekends by the restrooms when the red light is on, host a speakeasy type bar? And don’t overlook the additional hidden gem of its weekend brunch, served 10 AM – 2 PM, featuring a curated list of dishes which include several vegetarian and vegan friendly options and of course, cocktails. Today I share my brunch visit, and here’s a look at the secret speakeasy – which will be put to good use on a Prohibition Party in a couple weeks!
Circa 33 interior during the day. Circa 33 is a Prohibition-themed cocktail bar and on Fri Sat boasts a hidden speakeasy - look for the light to be on - and you can enter past a bookcase door with a special code Circa 33 brunch, Bloody Mary c.1921 with vodka, summer-spiced bloody blend, creole-salt rim and choice of bacon/veggie/combo garnish

The name Circa 33 is a nod to the neighborhood street block they are on (SE 33rd block on Belmont) as well as the year prohibition was repealed, 1933. Their cocktails are a mix of drinks from the late 1800s and early 1900s as well as more current inventions that follow the framework of spirit, sugar, citrus, and bitters. You’ll see a dozen options of specialty cocktails. If you are not into cocktails, not to worry – they have almost a dozen wines by the glass and smaller selection of beer, and non-alcoholic beverages like a ginger limeade. Below, you’ll see the Circa 33 cocktail, The Huntress which is c.1937 with Effen vodka, bubbles, black currant, citrus, Becherovka herbal liqueur
Circa 33 is a Prohibition-themed cocktail bar. This Circa 33 cocktail, The Huntress is c.1937 with Effen vodka, bubbles, black currant, citrus, Becherovka herbal liqueur
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Filed Under: Food and Drink, Restaurant Review, Sponsored Post Tagged With: #foodiefriday, bacon bloody mary, Cardamom French Toast, Circa 33, Circa 33 brunch, Circa 33 speakeasy, Circa Benedict, Foodie Friday, hidden brunch gem, PDX Bar, PDX Brunch, PDX Prohibition Party, PDX secret bar, PDX speakeasy, Portland Bar, Portland brunch, Portland Brunch secret, Portland Prohibition Party, Portland secret bar, Portland speakeasy, Prohibition Bar, smoked blue cheese potato chips, vegetarian brunch, weekend brunch

Alto Bajo Brunch

January 26, 2018 by Pechluck 1 Comment

We’re rounding the corner to the end of January, and as the dark winter days are now getting shorter, I thought I’d give you still a little more color for your breakfast or brunch. Alto Bajo is a restaurant in the new boutique Hi Lo Hotel (in fact, Alto Bajo is Spanish for High and Low) offering a blend of Northwest with Oaxacan cuisine for weekday breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and a weekend brunch. All of the seatings take reservations, including brunch.

The hotel and restaurant are new, so still seem a bit under the radar on the Portland scene. I really like their twist on brunch, so wanted to highlight it here for you. Otherwise, I’ve been here for drinks a couple times – getting drinks in the Hi Lo very cool lobby area is a classy way to start a night out downtown. Alto Bajo does not have its own bar, and so the drinks are shared between this lobby bar and the restaurant.

Hi Lo Bar inside the Hi Lo hotel Alto Bajo cocktail - margarita