Best in Portland 2006 Readers Poll

Our 2006 Portland restaurant poll results are in!

Best Restaurant For Those On a Budget:
1. Pok Pok
2. Nicholas
3. Tabla
Food Dude’s Vote: Pok Pok or Aladdin

If I Won the Lottery, I’d Eat Here
1. Paley’s Place (landslide)
2. Carlyle
3. Genoa
Food Dude’s Vote: Paley’s Place

Food Trend in Desperate Need of Retirement
1. Small Plates / Tapas
2. Foams
3. Charging for Bread

Thought I’d Like this Place, But I Didn’t
1. Nostrana (landslide)
2. Tie between clarklewis and Ten 01
3. Tie between Alberta Street Oyster Bar and Grill, and Fenouil
Food Dude’s Vote: Carlyle

Most Likely to Close in 2007
1. clarklewis (huge landslide – over 50% of the vote)
2. 23 Hoyt. Hmm
3. Olea

I Could Eat Here at Least Twice a Week
1. Pok Pok/Whiskey Soda Lounge
2. Park Kitchen
Nothing else close enough to be statistically significant.
Food Dude’s vote: Another tough one. It would be a 3 way tie between WSL, Park Kitchen, and Podnah’s

My Best Meal in 2006 was at
1. Carlyle
2. Paley’s Place
3. Le Pigeon

The voting spread in the top 4 were pretty darn close. Interestingly enough, Park Kitchen and Alberta Oyster Bar and Grill tied for 4th place. I mention this because AOBG also was high in the disappointment category. Shows how tastes can diverge.
Food Dude’s vote: This is a tough one, but I have to go with Le Pigeon

Best Wine List:

1. Carafe
2. Noble Rot
3. Higgins
Food Dude’s Vote: Higgins

Best Service:

1. Paley’s (by a landslide)
2. Carlyle
3. Park Kitchen
Food Dude’s Vote: Park Kitchen

Worst Service: (you knew this would be next)

1. Nostrana (by a landslide)
2. clarklewis
3. Fenouil
Food Dude’s Vote: Nostrana

I Don’t Know How This Place Stays in Business!

1. Hurleys
2. Nostrana
3. Fenouil
Food Dude’s Vote: Fenouil

Restaurant Closing in 2006 that I miss the Most:

1. Gotham (another landslide)
2. Ripe
3. Basilico
Food Dude’s Vote: Gotham

I’m Embarrassed to Admit I Eat Here!

1. Burgerville (personally, I wouldn’t find this all that embarrassing)
2. Taco Bell
3. Red Robin
Food Dude’s Vote: Taco Bell. After drinks. Walking of course. Late at night. Everything else is closed.

Best Place for Indulgence:

1. Pix
No one else statistically close

This Restaurant is Coasting on Its Reputation:

1. A tie for first place: Higgins and Wildwood.
2. Genoa
3. Jakes

Food Dude’s Vote: Wildwood.
This Restaurant Has the Most Unfulfilled Potential:
1. Nostrana
2. Meriwhethers
3. Tie between Ten 01 and Fenouil

Food Dude’s Vote: Nostrana. One should note that Merwhether’s just got a new chef, Tommy Habetz, and that Ten 01 has only been open a few months.
Best Bar/Tavern in Portland:
1. Horse Brass Pub – landslide. I’ve never been there!
2. Higgins
3. New Old Lompoc

Food Dude doesn’t spend enough time in bars to really have a vote here (seems to get into too many barfights ;)
Best Breakfast for Whatever Reason (could be service, comfort level, food, whatever)
1. Simpatica – by a landslide
2. Roux
3. Tie between Helsers and J&M.

Food Dude’s vote: Zell’s.
Best Date Place:
1. Carlyle
2. Paley’s (only 2 votes behind Carlyle)
3. Fratelli

Food Dude’s Vote: Date?

OUT-OF-TOWN VISITORS ALWAYS WANT TO GO HERE:

1. Jakes – a landslide vote. Shows you what a good advertising campaign in national magazines can do: 57%.
2. Wildwood – 14%
3. Higgins – 13%

Wildwood and Higgins are in a virtual tie with each other, but no where close to Jakes.
Food Dude’s Vote: None of my visitors would be dumb enough to think they control where we’ll eat ;)
BEST BURGER IN PORTLAND:

1. An absolute landslide for Cafe Castagna – 34% of the vote. No one else even came close.
2. Slow Bar. Got a fair amount of votes – 11%.
3. Higgins 7%.

No one else got more than five votes.
Food Dude’s Vote: Cafe Castagna.
BEST BARTENDER IN PORTLAND:

Since someone asked about this yesterday, I’ll post this today. The answer really suprised me, because I didn’t think very many people appreciated him.

1. Kevin Ludwig at Park Kitchen. He won with a 26% of the overall vote.
2. The bartenders at Carlyle. Some people specified names, some didn’t, so I had to lump them together. 6% overall.
3. No clear winner. Votes were all over the place, with no single person getting more than 4 votes.
Food Dudes Vote: Kevin Ludwig.
BEST PIZZA IN PORTLAND:

This was closer than I expected.
1. Apizza Scholls with 41% of the vote.
2. Ken’s Artisan with 35% of the vote. Surprising considering he hasn’t been open too long.
3. Pizzicato 6%.

The others were all over the map.
Food Dude’s vote: Not enough experience to have a valid opinion.
BEST CHEESE SHOP:

This vote was closer.
1. Pasta Works/City Market – 27% of the vote
2. Steve’s Cheese – 26% of the vote
3. New Seasons – 14% of the vote

Note: On first go, I forgot Pasta Works and City Market were technically the same company. Recalculating, that puts them… at 27%, barely nudging out Steve’s. I’ve changed the results. Sorry Steve!

Other favorites include Curds & Whey, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe’s (In order of popularity)
Food Dude’s vote: Curds & Whey
BEST WINE SHOP:

1. Liner & Elsen 21% of the vote.
2. Cork 12% of the vote
3. Tie between E&R and Great Wine Buys @ 10.5%. Square Deal was 1% point behind.

Food Dude’s vote: I like the people at every one of these places, so can only vote based on whether they carry a good percentage of the type of wine I like. My vote goes to Cork.