"Thank God the tiki bar is open Thank God the tiki torch still shines Thank God the tiki bar is open Come on in and open up your mind" John Hiatt The Tiki Bar is OpenMy own experience with tiki bars began early, and my love of the tiki bar has been with me ever since. As a young kid from a very cold and snowy climate, my family would often take "mini vacations" by … [Read more...] about Review: Hale Pele
Portland Metro Restaurants That are Now Closed
It's always sad to see a restaurant close. As places we have reviewed go out of business, they end up in this category
Review: Patanegra
Note: this restaurant is now closedI thought food writing would be easy. I would go to a restaurant three times, write a thoughtful, yet witty review, and be done with it. This has not yet proven to be the case. Sometimes the restaurant makes it hard on me “I want to like it, but due to the food or service issues, I just can’t. However, Patanegra is one of the easy … [Read more...] about Review: Patanegra
Review: Restaurante Bleu
Note: 12/2010 - This restaurant has now closed.I know the Food Dude rightly requires a few visits to each restaurant we critique, but in this case I thought it was fair to waive this requirement. The prior review, from 3.19.05, is still the gold standard. The other reason is that no one should have to sit through a restaurant experience as bad as mine at Bleu more than … [Read more...] about Review: Restaurante Bleu
Review: The Gilt Club
Note: 1.3.14. This restaurant has closed.Whenever I sit down to write a review, I ask myself, "What is the restaurant's goal?" Is it bar food, cocktails, bargain prices, family friendly, eclectic dining, fine dining, or what? Usually this is an easy thing to nail down, but in the case of the Gilt Club, the ambition is somewhat muddled. The cocktails are excellent. As a … [Read more...] about Review: The Gilt Club
Review: Westcafe
6/17 - Westcafe has closedWestcafé is a a sunny downtown outpost offering brunch, lunch, dinner, happy hour, coffee, take-out, snacks, cocktails, and dog-walking (just kidding on that last one). I am often in that neighborhood, and had been walking by Westcafé for months this past summer, curious to see what was going into the massive space. Westcafé sits on a … [Read more...] about Review: Westcafe