This is definitely PSU's version of Reed's Tom-Yum. In other words, Baan-Thai is cheap, tasty, generous with its portions, and close to campus. I had my typical pad thai and thai iced coffee - both were amazing. It's located on the second floor of a charming blue house with yellow walls and lots of artwork. Also, they play 80s love songs.
Baan-Thai Restaurant
Tai Sei Ramen is conveniently located on the edge of downtown. The food is decent, but they give a lot of freebies: a free drink if you spend over $5; a $3 kids menu... The service is friendly but a bit slow.
My ramen came with an abundance of vegetables, but the noodles were somewhat bland. However, I did appreciate the large portions. Our gyoza was delicious, but I have never had bad gyoza.
Tai Sei Ramen (downtown)
I love this place! Habibi is a casual, friendly Lebanese restaurant in downtown, right next to the Persian House (which is also right next to India House). My friends and I went on a Friday night. It was pretty full when we came, so I'm glad I had made reservations earlier. We were led up the stairs, which were lined with hookahs, to the upper level.
The service was quick and friendly. One of the guys (the owner, I think?) was quite flirtacious, which is always a nice touch on a Friday night with the girls. I need to go back very soon because I am craving that coffee!
Why is this place always so empty?? My friend and I have been here twice, both on Friday nights, and it's either completely empty or occupied with one or two other tables.
Persian House is a cozy, dimly-lit Persian restaurant in downtown. The service is warm, and the food is delicious, although a bit on the small side. We started with bread (is it called naan in Persia?) and Persian tea, which is very floral. I ordered the lemon chicken. it came with a large serving of rice with saffron and some vegetables. So much flavor! The chicken had just the right amount of lemon and spices.
For dessert I ordered baklava. It was the best baklava I've ever had! Light, crispy layers of phyllo dough filled with nuts and honey - now that is how baklava is supposed to taste. My friend ordered the Persian ice cream, which had cherry rice and pistachio ice cream in it. Also amazing.
This is definitely one of my favorite restaurants in Portland. We'll have to try the lunch buffet sometime.
Persian House Restaurant (Downtown)
Another fabulous place for a lazy breakfast. This restaurant is located on the first floor of the hotel at which my parents were staying, Hotel Fifty in downtown Portland, overlooking the Willamette River. Breakfast is a nice time to come because it's pretty empty, maybe a few other tables occupied with other hotel guests. We were seated by the window with a perfect view of the waterfront park.
I ordered two over-easy eggs, bisquits with a sausage gravy, and roasted potatoes. I was a little upset that they didn't have any hot chocolate (our waiter said they had run out of their homemade chocolate syrup), but I survived just fine. Their coffee and orange juice were good. The eggs and potatoes were perfect, and my sausage gravy was delicious. My dad ordered some of the best french toasts I've ever tried.
Good service, pretty food, and straightforward delicious food. The perfect way to start a lazy morning.
H50 Bistro and Bar (Downtown)
After a successful shopping day in downtown, my friend and I somehow thought we still deserved some dessert. Unfortunately, 7:30 pm is late in Portland, so we had trouble finding a suitable place. Finally, after roaming Broadway and a few more streets, we saw the neon sign of Pastini Pastaria. I had read about it before and had been on its website multiple times. It was a straightforward Italian place, not quite interesting enough to put it on my List. However, we were desperate, and so we walked in and asked to see their dessert menu.
I'm glad we did! I ordered the chocolate tartufo. Yummm. I'm sure all they had to do was microwave the cake and plop scoops of vanilla ice cream, but still. It tasted great. The warm center of the chocolate cake was oozing out and tasted great with the TWO scoops of vanilla bean ice cream and some whipped cream. Gluttony in a bowl. My friend also enjoyed her tiramisu, although she did admit that it did taste packaged and was nowhere near the authentic tiramisu we had at Veritable Quandary.
Service was decent, and the noise level was kind of loud because we were sitting next to two high school girls. Overall, I would recommend coming here when you, like us, are stuck in downtown craving dessert after 7 pm. Great price!
Pastini Pastaria (Downtown)
Oh man, this place is fantastic. It reminds me of St. Honoré in Portland. Brasserie Du Vin is an adorable little French place in the newly-"hip" section of Chinatown (art galleries, boutique hotels, exotic restaurants, the usual...).
Since we were there on a Saturday afternoon, it was almost completely empty. We could either eat in the very dimly-lit indoors or go in the back to the outdoor patio. We opted for the outoor patio because the umbrella-shaded tables and tiny fountain beckoned us. Besides, it seemed to be cooler outside, thanks to our Hawaiian tradewinds.
I had the crostini sandwich with warm gorgonzola dolce and prosciutto served on a thin-sliced baguette. It was delicious. Three slices of baguette topped with proscuitto slices and the gorgonzola cheese, surrounding a tiny green salad. I had forgotten how salty proscuitto is, but I liked it anyway. My meal was $10. My friends ordered the mushroom & brie risotto, flat iron steak sandwich, and turkey & roast beef gouda croissant sandwich. Everyone was delighted with their meal.
As usual, I had to check out the bathrooms to see if they were up to par, and I was not disappointed. Pale yellow walls, black and white tiled floors, co-ed lavatories. The service was pretty good. Can't wait to return!
Brasserie Du Vin (Chinatown)
Oh how I love museum cafés. This particular one is called Downtown (because surprise! it's located in downtown) and is located on the first floor of the Hawaii State Art Museum, conveniently nicknamed HiSAM.
My friend and I came here for lunch yesterday. Reservations are a good idea because it was pretty crowded. Clean, modern, bright wood tones, with art all over the walls. Typical museum café food: sandwiches, soups, and salads. I got the black forest ham and sharp cheddar panini. It came with a salad. The panini was great (crispy bread and lots of ham), but the salad was kind of disappointing. Oh well, I don't like vegetables much anyway. Our waiter was fun. My friend and I shared a flourless chocolate torte - delicious! I wonder what they use if they don't use flour?? Hmm I won't ask too many questions. It was quite filling.
Everyone else there seemed to be downtown workers on their lunch break, which makes sense considering its location. The panini cost about $10, and the torte was about $3. After eating, make sure to go upstairs to the free art galleries!
Downtown @ the HiSAM (downtown)
This is my new favorite place for lunch. Just as its website states, Veritable Quandary is a "dining oasis in the heart of the city." My friend and I came here for lunch on a rainy day. We were seated in the middle section of the restaurant, which looks a lot like a greenhouse, with floor-to-ceiling windows facing the greenery outside. The rain droplets sliding down the window panes and the thick white clouds encompassing the entire sky only added to the magical experience.
About two other tables were occupied the entire time we were there. I ordered the VQ Burger, which had white cheddar and aioli and came with wonderful peppered fries. My friend and I shared a tiramisu and hot chocolate for dessert. The food was delicious, the portions were huge (both of us brought home half our lunch), the atmosphere was relaxed and secluded despite its proximity to the busy streets of downtown, and the service was excellent.
My friend and I are definitely adding Veritable Quandary to our list of places at which we are going to become regulars.
I was actually a little disappointed in this place - not because it was bad. On the contrary, I loved Mother's. There was so much hype around Mother's (Bill Clinton once dined here, my friends' recommendations, and online reviews), so my expectations were probably unfairly high. However, while eating there, I couldn't help but compare it to another one of my favorite brunch place, Gracie's; and I'll have to say that I prefer Gracie's.
Nevertheless, Mother's is a wonderful restaurant, and I will definitely be returning, maybe for lunch next time. I came here with a friend for brunch. I had eggs, bacon, and a hot chocolate - the same thing I always order at Gracie's.
Since I like lists, I will make one comparing Gracie's and Mother's:
Mother's Bistro and Bar (downtown)
This is the best restaurant I have been to in Portland.
Cozy, elegant French restaurant located on the edge of downtown. I forgot our waiter's name, but he was fantastic. All I remember is that he's Scottish and obviously loved his job.
Hopefully another friend's parents will come because I am dying to return to Higgins!
How often do you eat dim sum with cloth napkins? For me, not often, which is why I love Mandalay. This is a fairly new restaurant in downtown Honolulu. The dim sum is great, and so are the regular meals if you come for dinner. Clean, elegant setting that is a nice change from the typical Chinatown restaurants. Plus, the seats are some of the comfiest chairs I have ever sat in.
The Mandalay (downtown)
I come here when I'm in downtown, craving convenient Japanese, and not yet willing to settle for the food court variety. That's exactly how to describe Koji Osakaya - convenient Japanese. It's not the best Japanese, but it's decent enough for the price, and it's located on Broadway, my favorite street in downtown because it's actually busy - like a real city! It's a Portland chain, and I think there's even one located in Seattle now. The donburi is a good deal, and so are their lunches.
Koji Osakaya (downtown)
