vegan-friendly Archives - Pechluck's Food Adventures

Amazing world influenced flavors at Grace Cafe

Grace Cafe has taken over the space formerly occupied by Delores and before that Smokehouse Tavern. Some of the remnants of Delores remain, most noticeably with the flamingos that the namesake mother Delores loved that are still seen on the walls. But, unlike the protein heavy Smokehouse Tavern, or rich heavy food of Polish inspired Delores, Grace Cafe is a gluten-free kitchen that sets the stage with a vegan or vegetarian preparation that you can optionally add proteins like Carman Ranch hanger steak, szechuan spied pork belly, Mad Hatcher chicken thigh, or Korean cured salmon. The stars now are the surprising combinations of global influences built upon the foundation of chef and co-owner Brian Han’s Korean heritage, merged with the health consciousness of California upbringing and restaurant experience in the Bay Area and Los Angeles until his move to Portland in 2020. The world influenced flavors at Grace Cafe really make it unique.

As an example, a signature dish found on both the lunch and dinner menu is the Purple Reign. This dish offers okinawan sweet potato with seared oyster mushroom, shiso chermoula, salted plum tzatziki, market greens, and avocado. That’s right, you can find Japanese sweet potato and shiso and salted plum combined with North African chermoula and Greek tzatziki sauce concepts.
Grace Cafe in Portland, Purple Reign. This dish offers okinawan sweet potato with seared oyster mushroom, shiso chermoula, salted plum tzatziki, market greens, and avocado. That's right, you can find Japanese sweet potato and shiso and salted plum combined with North African chermoula and Greek tzatziki sauce concepts Grace Cafe in Portland, Purple Reign. This dish offers okinawan sweet potato with seared oyster mushroom, shiso chermoula, salted plum tzatziki, market greens, and avocado. That's right, you can find Japanese sweet potato and shiso and salted plum combined with North African chermoula and Greek tzatziki sauce concepts

Meanwhile at dinner, where you will find more entree dishes then the bowl-centered lunch menu, the King Carnitas offers Thai green curry carnitas, yellow corn, rainbow chard, Mario’s sope, daily salsa. Somehow the different spicy layers of Thai green curry with Mexican works, tickling the tongue in different but complimentary ways.
Grace Cafe in Portland, King Carnitas offers Thai green curry carnitas, yellow corn, rainbow chard, Mario's sope, daily salsa.

We also tried the Kabocha! a vegan dish with roasted kabocha, miso mole, black lime cashew cream, pickled red onions, pepitas. We both immediately thought how great a dish this would be during Thanksgiving. Thankfully the Grace Cafe team is two steps ahead of us. They are already thinking of sharing the immigrant experience by offering a Korean-American Thanksgiving with items like white kimchi water brined turkey, korean fried chicken with perilla ranch dressing, miso potato gratin, goji-cranberry sauce, miso potato gratin, Japanese curry green bean casserole, japchae inspired stuffing, black sesame coconut cream cornbread, and kabocha pie. YES I’M DROOLING ALREADY SIGN ME UP. Seriously where is the sign up sheet, I’m ready.
Grace Cafe in Portland, Kabocha! a vegan dish with roasted kabocha, miso mole, black lime cashew cream, pickled red onions, pepitas

But wait there’s more…

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Experience at Quaintrelle 2.0

I was surprised to hear that Quaintrelle was moving so SE Clinton, but I also celebrated the news – it now makes it much easier for me to visit at this new location. The location is smaller for indoor seating then the previous two story spot on Mississippi, but has more outdoor seating and the elegant atmosphere seems more focused now. And the food, as it has been for the past few years under Chef Ryley Eckersley joining one of the top mixologists in Portland IMHO Camille Cavan with cocktails and wine manager Chris Cooper, continues creating a dreamy combination of unique Pacific Northwest showcase of season and ingredients in flavor while also being visual feasts for the eyes. Welcome to the updated experience of Quaintrelle 2.0.
The exterior of Quaintrelle 2.0 at the new location on SE Clinton The interior of Quaintrelle 2.0 at the new location on SE Clinton

The menu offers a dozen or so plates that hint at the flavors with a few ingredients with their simple descriptions, and you will then have to wait for the delightful surprise when it arrives at your table. Or go for full surprise with the 3 levels of chefs tasting menu of 5, 7, or 9 courses. With all the fresh farm ingredients on hand, Quaintrelle can also accommodate vegetarians and vegans. The dinner I am going to share with you is from the 5 course Chef’s Tasting menu.

Cocktails

Whenever I visit Quaintrelle I want to drink all the cocktails. All of them. Sometimes I have visited Quaintrelle and only had the beverages after another meal… and sometimes that is more memorable then the meal I had beforehand. When people ask about grabbing a drink, Quaintrelle is always one of the first places I think of. Cam not only creates beautiful presentations as if you were in a fairytale, but I love how she does her descriptions on that describe the experience not just the ingredients in each cocktail. Here are a few examples from the opening menu

Prohibition Punch, with pisco, chartreuse, velvet falernum, passionfruit, lime, tiki bitters, absinthe ‘Tropical, pisco sour-esque, bright’
Mystical Aperture, with aviation gin, ver, cucumber, orgeat, lime, melon rind cordial, st. george absinthe verte ‘Sophisticated, absinthe forward, herbaceous’
Divinity in the Making cocktail, created with mezcal union el viejo, blanco tequila, strawberry & almond, honey golden vinegar, lime, black pepper, described as ‘Rich, slightly tart, sultry’
Wonder-Lust, with japanese whiskey, rye, px, dell e’tna, maple, vermouth, lemon, egg white, salted walnut ‘Lemon & sherry forward, silky, light’