Beta
Beta
In addition to reclaimed wood and exposed filament lightbulbs, the hippest Portland restaurants have a new decor requirement: an open hearth blistering up the best bites with smoke and flame. Here are Portland's hottest spots to catch some residual heat from wood-fired ovens.
From the wood-fired pizzas and handmade pastas to the pitch-perfect cocktails, the menu is a veritable Greatest Hits playlist of my favorite Italian foods. Insalata Nostrana is my pick for the best salad in town. Tip: head to Nostrana for late-night happy hour and get $5 pizzas and $5 glasses of wine every night after nine pm.
This upscale-industrial spot serves up a killer cheese plate, and its a go-to spot for business lunches. Try the farm-fresh salads or the tagliatelle with lamb ragù.
A former pizza parlor got the Cinderella treatment and is now a colorful haven for farm-to-fork cuisine. No wait for brunch--get the polenta w/ mushroom gravy! All salads are delicious.
Bruce Carey’s pizzeria dishes out Neapolitan-style pies and calzones, from a brick oven made from Vesuvian ash, next to the original Voodoo Doughnuts. Great full bar and an impressive selection of Italian wines.
Greg & Gabby Denton raise the bar on PDX grilled meat (veg, too). Expect long waits rewarded by transcendent meals. New bar next-door offers refreshments while you wait. Don't skip dessert (try the brown butter torte)!
With a focus on oven-fired pizzas, stromboli, and cecina along with a select few family-style entrees, Cibo is a great place for casual fare and friendly service decked out in cozy-chic decor.
Paley's Imperial boasts new-old-fashioned fare ranging from roubust steaks topped with chanterelles and garlic herb butter to sophisticated salads for lovers of greens who lunch.