OX restaurant is a temple to “the wood-fired grilling tradition of Argentina, and with it, the culinary heritage of Spain, France, and Italy”. Opened in early 2012 by Quiñónez and Greg Denton, Ox has shot to the top of Portland's “must visit” restaurants, and placed number one on my 2012 Best New Restaurant List.On a recent warm summer evening, I ordered two … [Read more...] about Review: Ox Restaurant
Destination
Review: Podnah’s Pit Barbecue
Updated 6/20 I'm indulging myself at the beginning of this review of Podnah's Pit Barbecue by taking a walk down memory lane. Click here if you'd like to jump to the review section. When I was growing up, I spent many summers on a big cattle ranch just down the road from the booming metropolis of Maypearl Texas, population less than 300. We had a sprawling old ranch house … [Read more...] about Review: Podnah’s Pit Barbecue
Review: Salt & Straw
updated 6.17When I was growing up, on hot summer days dad used to get everyone into the car and head out to Lancaster California to pick fat juicy cherries and sweet peaches from the old orchards. We'd make a day of it, hiking in "The Devil's Punchbowl", stopping for a burger at A&W Rootbeer, and driving home tired and happy, the smell of ripe fruit playing harmony with … [Read more...] about Review: Salt & Straw
Review: Aviary Restaurant in Portland
Note: Aviary closed in 2020. Redolent of the sea, oysters at Aviary restaurant come five to a plate on a sparkling bed of ice. They hit the tongue like silk, sliding back, the tiny summer tang of tomato granite, building to the barest hint of horseradish, and then as they go down, a whisper of salty ocean air, like you are standing on a beach in a warm breeze.When you … [Read more...] about Review: Aviary Restaurant in Portland
Review: St. Jack
A Review of St. Jack Restaurant by Roger Porter Liberté, Egalité, Gastromie! The French Revolution has come to town, and the only guillotine in sight is a chef’s cleaver hacking at a pig. Within a month of each other two French bistros have opened in Portland—Little Bird downtown and St. Jack, in the Hosford-Abernethy neighborhood, across the street from Vindaloo. Gabe … [Read more...] about Review: St. Jack