The Ultimate Portland (OR) Shopping Thread

[dixonmanor]

Does anyone have a real estate agent they like? Doing a scouting trip next month and want to look at some places. Feel free to message me.

Erin Rothrock. She and her team have been our family realtor for years, and I've turned a few friends on to her who have been very happy.

 

[tomenugen]

what’s everyone’s most memorable meal/restaurant of 2021?

luce - casual italian food executed at a very high level. itching to go back and order all the contornis and antipasta

republica - if this arrived 5 years ago, this would be my choice but it feels like something i can find in OC/LA/SD.

 

[domdomdomdom]

One last dinner at Paleys before they closed last month was memorable.

I also always love Davenport (RIP Kurt), very classic food done incredibly well. A dinner I had there a month or so ago with coppa steak, lamb belly, and fried quail was up there for me for 2021.

Finally, I was diagnosed with gout late 2020 and didn’t eat meat for 7ish months after that. First meat I had was a burger from mid city smash - probably the best bite(s) of food I had all year.

A bit off the prompt but I really missed this year was dining at Coquine. Republica is maybe number one on my list of restaurants to try, just haven’t gone to many new restaurants this year.

 

[Timbaland]

Damn Paley's place closed? @justridiculous had recommended it to me and I was going to stop by next time I was in the area. Hope he's doing alright, Imperial had closed too.

I'm not from the area but so many good places have closed recently: little bird bistro, Toro bravo, imperial, etc.

 

[domdomdomdom]

At least with little bird there’s still canard and le pigeon, though yeah they’re all really different.

 

[justridiculous]

Oh no! Didn't know about Paley's Place. Vitaly is such a good dude... loved that restaurant.

 

[domdomdomdom]

Yeah it’s tough, a Portland icon for sure. Here’s some info:

Exclusive: After 26 years in Northwest Portland, Paley’s Place is closing

After Thanksgiving service, Vitaly and Kimberly Paley plan to put their restaurant and its century-old building on the market and retire.

www.oregonlive.com

 

[dixonmanor]

Haven't really dined out much in the last 2 years, but recently had an exceptional meal and drinks at Expatriate. Our party of 5 ordered nearly everything on the menu, and all of it was great.

Eem remains killer, and their food travels well for takeout. I dream about their brisket curry. Likewise Hat Yai - food travels well and is always on point.

Luce is always so good... that will probably be our next "fancy" dinner out.

I thought Republica was.... good. The food was pretty great, with the occasional dish being merely fine. Wine pairings were a surprising highlight. Service was uneven, but perhaps that's just me being jaded by decades in the service industry. Front of house crew just seemed a little green, which, when paired with a $200+ dinner, left me a little cold. But it's been a wild 2 years for restaurants, and they are relatively new, etc etc, so I think giving them the benefit of the doubt is the thing to do. I think it's a great addition to Portland's scene tho, and I look forward to checking back in and seeing how things have tightened up.

 

[justridiculous]

Love Eem and Hat Yai. So dang good. Luce is also great.

I think Republica is good, but definitely not revolutionary. Really like them for brunch and I love the coffee shop behind them in the building. It's called La Perlita.

I also highly, highly recommend Cafe Rowan for dinner. Their brunch is incredible and what their chef has been doing for dinner is awesome. The wine pairings are great (Chosen Wines) and they make great cocktails. My wife and I had a blast and we actually try to hit them up for brunch weekly as well.

 

[domdomdomdom]

Eem and Hat Yai have been take-out MVPs during this pandemic. And Cafe Rowan has been great for brunch takeout, especially with so many actually good meat-less options for me. I did not know they did a dinner though.

Probably the most abused "take-out" for me for 2021 would be sandwiches from Little T Baker.

 

[winston86dit]

Little T has been a constant go-to for me as well.

I've been going to Navarre quite a bit and recently for brunch, which has been consistently great. Finally got to try Tabiki which I thought was pretty good. Another one that has been on rotation is Bar Diane. Good wine (a lot of natural wine) and I'm just a big fan of fish in a tin can, so it won me over (plus their milk rolls are amazing).

Thanks for the rec on Cafe Rowan. That looks great!

 

[justridiculous]

Rowan is the spot. And Spencer is such a good dude.

 

[knathaniel]

My last meal before moving out of PDX was Gado Gado, and I was definitely not disappointed! I think they're still doing it as a Rice Table menu (so basically multi-plate prix fixe) but I think they change it up pretty frequently. Would def recommend.

Also love that Eem was virtually impossible to eat at pre-pandemic, but became immensely more accessible for takeout.

 

[domdomdomdom]

On that same tip is Oma's Hideaway (same owners), equally recommended.

 

[knathaniel]

On that same tip is Oma's Hideaway (same owners), equally recommended.

Yeah I was bummed I didn't get a chance to go before I moved. Heard great things.