What Penny Eats: Portland Diary

1 / 50

Flight to Portland is 5 hours late. Thank you, Wolfgang, for having your veggie Puck pizza @ O'Hare.
Penny Pollack
2 / 50

The first of many many food carts in Portland.
Penny Pollack
3 / 50

We reach the promised land, Pearl Bakery.
Penny Pollack
4 / 50

Don't hold back @ Pearl Bakery. Financier, shortbread, macaron.
Penny Pollack
5 / 50

The 1 1/2 hour wait @ Toro Bravo. Worth it. 1st tapa: sautéed spinach w/ pine nuts & raisins.
Penny Pollack
6 / 50

Grilled spring onions w/salbitxada @ Toro Bravo. Yes, Portland. Yes, terrific.
Penny Pollack
7 / 50

Moving on to raciones @ Toro Bravo: There is amazing braised lamb under the egg noodles.
Penny Pollack
8 / 50

Paella @ Toro Bravo is full of goodies yet falls short of the mark.
Penny Pollack
9 / 50

Churros & chocolate dipping sauce for dessert @ Toro Bravo would be good for breakfast, too.
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10 / 50

Portland's Pok Pok has a lock on fab Thai. Started w/sticky fish sauce wings.
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11 / 50

Papaya Pok Pok salad is a wake up and a cleanser.
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12 / 50

Smoky grilled eggplant @ Pok Pok tastes super smoky & totally wonderful.
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13 / 50

Kai krapao khai dao (minced chicken & so much more) is now my Pok Pok passion.
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14 / 50

Phat si ew @ Pok Pok is a cozy noodle dish. Tame by comparison to the rest.
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15 / 50

Dessert @ Pok Pok dares to be different: Durian-scented custard.
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16 / 50

Another rainy afternoon in Portland. Another bakery. St Honore.
Penny Pollack
17 / 50

St Honore in Portland bakes a mean canelé. Very moist inside.
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18 / 50

Smoked trout salad @ Gruner is a stunner. I'm thinking of going back for lunch tomorrow.
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19 / 50

Riesling braised chicken @ Gruner in Portland hit every savory note in the book.
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20 / 50

Grilled golden trout @ Gruner in Portland w/sorrel cream sauce made our jaws drop.
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21 / 50

Gruner in Portland. Never heard of it? Listen up. Start w/tart flambee.
Penny Pollack
22 / 50

Ricotta dumplings w/shiitakes @ Gruner in Portland are rich & light. Good trick.
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23 / 50

The crowning glory of Gruner's Alsatian bent is this platter of choucroute.
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24 / 50

In honor of Chicago's doughnut trend, we ordered these minis for dessert @ Gruner in Portland.
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25 / 50

Overheard @ Willamette Valley Cheese stand @ Farmers Market. We are definitely getting the horseradish Havarti.
Penny Pollack
26 / 50

A Pinestate Biscuit sandwich is to Portlandians as a Chicago-style dog is . . .
Penny Pollack
27 / 50

We cut this Pinestate Chatfield - fried chicken, bacon, cheese, apple butter - 6 ways. We love Portland!
Penny Pollack
28 / 50

Nuvrei: the best bakery of all in Portland. Beware the strange hours & downstairs locale.
Penny Pollack
29 / 50

Everything @ Nuvrei in Portland is special, caneles, palmiers, macarons. But oh that almond croissant.
Penny Pollack
30 / 50

Dinner @ Paley's, a Portland tradition, started strong w/terrific wagyu beef tartare.
Penny Pollack
31 / 50

Escargots @ Paley's in Portland come w/two hunky bones filled w/bone marrow. Talk a/b decadent.
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32 / 50

Super fresh mussels in note perfect wine sauce @ Paley's in Portland called for lots of bread 4 dunking.
Penny Pollack
33 / 50

Sweetbreads @ Paley's in Portland weren't bad, but they didn't really deliver, either.
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34 / 50

Spit-roasted chicken @ Paley's in Portland sounded so good - too bad it was dry.
Penny Pollack
35 / 50

Dungeness crab risotto @ Paley's in Portland has 2 virtues: mushrooms & asparagus.
Penny Pollack
36 / 50

Finally an entree @ Paley's in Portland worthy of its reap: rabbit ravioli w/bacon, mushrooms, & garlic.
Penny Pollack
37 / 50

Dessert @ Paley's in Portland rebounded with a big finish: banana tarte Tatin. One was not enough.
Penny Pollack
38 / 50

In Willamette Valley today. Very taken w/Penner-Ash viognier. Fruit-forward; perfect w/spicy dishes.
Penny Pollack
39 / 50

Argyle tasting in Willamette Valley held a bubbly surprise: 2008 Black Brut. A blend of currants & blackberries.
Penny Pollack
40 / 50

If you like Tokais, check out 2009 white riesling dessert wine from Sokol Blosser (Willamette Valley).
Penny Pollack
41 / 50

#1 Le Pigeon: We almost passed on the argula salad w/apricot, duck egg, & Gouda.
Penny Pollack
42 / 50

#2 Le Pigeon: Scallops with smoked salmon? A revelation.
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43 / 50

#3 Le Pigeon: Of course there's a pigeon tart. A little gem w/ duck, blue cheese, tomato, & mustard, too.
Penny Pollack
44 / 50

#4 Le Pigeon: I've had perfectly seared foie gras before but never w/baby artichoke & green peppercorn.
Penny Pollack
45 / 50

#5 Le Pigeon: Squash, spring onions, & smoked tomatoes elevate pork beyond all reasonable expectations.
Penny Pollack
46 / 50

#6 Le Pigeon: On its small seasonally changing menu, the signature is beef cheek bourguignon. No wonder.
Penny Pollack
47 / 50

#7 Le Pigeon: Hanger steak w/carrot, fava & anchovy butter. Hey, I thought I didn't like anchovy.
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48 / 50

#8 Le Pigeon: Long live the marriage of lamb and green garlic risotto.
Penny Pollack
49 / 50

#9 Le Pigeon: Salmon is a daily prep. This pan-roasted wild fillet brought grilled fava leaves into my life.
Penny Pollack
50 / 50

#10 Le Pigeon: Foie gras profiteroles—a ten indeed—were the perfect finale for my Portland culinary adventures.
Penny Pollack

Penny puts Portland’s restaurant reputation to the test. Is the hip West Coast city a culinary comer? Actually, it’s even better than that. Here’s a photo tour of the evidence.

By Penny Pollack

June 15, 2011, 2:54 pm

Before heading off to Portland for a long weekend, restaurant research in hand, I still didn’t quite believe the city that inspired Portlandia could possibly be a culinary comer. And I was right. Portland isn’t a comer: It’s a star.

I offer the following as evidence:

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