Tag: Ned Ludd

Portland Dining Month 2016

Portland Dining Month 2016 | Serious Crust

Ned Ludd | Portland Dining Month | Serious Crust
Laurelhurst Market | Portland Dining Month | Serious Crust

The time has come. It’s March, which means I have combed through the dining month menus of 122 (!!!) restaurants in preparation for Portland Dining Month. This event is all about strategy – which places have you been itching to try, which places have multiple choices for each course, and which places give you the most bang for your buck. I’m here to help: below are my 14 picks for Portland Dining Month (in no particular order).

I also want to add that a donation to the Oregon Food Bank will be made for every reservation booked through the OpenTable links on the PDX Dining Month website! Sometimes we make our dining plans last minute, but I’m going to do my best to make reservations this year to make it count.

AviaryThis is one of my number one recommendations in Portland. I love the playfulness and creativity of the food here, plus the Asian influence doesn’t hurt. They’ve got two choices for every course, so you and your dinner partner can both get the dining month menu without ordering the same meal.

Clyde Common: I still haven’t made it into Clyde Common for dinner since chef Carlo Lasagna took over the kitchen, but I have heard fantastic things. Their dining month menu doesn’t look like anything crazy adventurous, but I bet it will be tasty.

Little Bird Bistro: Little Bird Bistro has a place in my heart – every meal I’ve had there has been pretty perfect, the space is romantic, and the service is great. They’ve got at least two options for each course on their dining month menu, and every single one looks like something I want to eat.

Paley’s Place: A Portland institution, Paley’s Place is reliably delicious. There’s only one option per course on their menu, but how can you go wrong with quail under a brick?!

Smallwares: Serving “inauthentic Asian cuisine,” I love the way Smallwares combines traditionally Asian ingredients in quasi-Asian dishes. For example, their dining month entree is Sichuan cauliflower or pork ragu, pine nuts, gochujang, tarragon and scallions. I mean come on.

Ned Ludd: Another memorable Portland dining month meal I had last year was at Ned Ludd. I love the food at this spot – all cooked in their wood oven, featuring great local ingredients, and with lots of creative flavor combinations. Again, only one option per course (except for a vegetarian option for the entree), but you can bet it will be good.

St. Jack: I’ll be honest, I’ll take any reason I can to make my way up to St. Jack. The space is beautiful, and the food and drink are lovely. For their dining month menu, they’re serving up a pork stew, with fried brussels sprouts to start and a chocolate pots-de-creme to finish.

Verdigris: I haven’t been to Verdigris yet, despite the fact that it’s only a few minutes walk from my house and that I’ve heard great things. Verdigris is offering up lots of options for dining month: 6 options for your started, 5 for your entree, and 2 for dessert, meaning lots of variation for you and your dining buddies.

Xico: Who can resist upscale Mexican food? Not me. While there’s only one option for each course on Xico’s dining month menu, each one looks GOOD.

Biwa: To be fair, it doesn’t look like you’ll necessarily be full after partaking in Biwa’s dining month menu. But their homestyle Japanese food is reliably delicious. So come with a buddy and share the dining month menu plus one or two other items, and I’m sure you’ll leave happy.

Ataula: Ataula remains one of the most fun nights out I’ve had in Portland. The food is something you don’t often find: traditional Spanish food, and the service and atmosphere are lively and fun. Plus, on their dining month menu you’ll find a mini version of one of their famous paellas.

Laurelhurst Market: Laurelhurst Market was my final dining month meal last year (and my last meal before getting my wisdom teeth out, which made it that much more special), and it was stellar. Start your meal with stuff mushrooms, then move to some braised beef shoulder (which is bound to be awesome), and then finish with a chocolate whiskey pudding. (Note: their cocktails are awesome, so I highly recommend getting one with your meal!)

Imperial: Located downtown and headed by two fantastic chefs (Vitaly Paley and Doug Adams), Imperial is my go to for brunch with guests staying downtown. Hit them up for dining month to get some grilled squash salad, braised pork, and a chocolate bouchon for dessert.

Ken’s Artisan Pizza: Is this the most exciting menu ever? No. Caesar salad, sausage pizza, and a brownie sundae for dessert. BUT IT WILL BE SO GOOD. This place has some of my favorite pizza in Portland, so take advantage of the price for the three courses and hit it up!

Where are you looking forward to going for Portland Dining month?

My Picks for Portland Dining Month 2015

Portland Dining Month | Serious Crust by Annie Fassler

Wow, it’s almost March. Which translates to: wow, it’s almost Portland Dining Month! This event put on by Travel Portland is always a favorite of mine, a chance to get out and try multiple courses from some of the city’s awesome restaurants for just $29. So, where are you going to go? You can see my picks below, and you can read about all the restaurants participating and their menus here.

Here are some I’m itching to make it to:

23 Hoyt: I’ve always been a fan of 23 Hoyt’s happy hour, and this seems like an expanded version of that. With two choices for each course (all savory, no dessert), you’ll have plenty of options.

Aviary: One of my absolute favorite restaurants in Portland. Delicious northwest food with an Asian bent, plus the bonus of friendly awesome service. And two choices for every course!

Cafe Castagna: The recently revamped menu recently left my tastebuds happy with middle eastern flavors. Read more here. Then go to there.

Departure: Somehow, I still haven’t been to Departure. How? Maybe dining month is the time to start. Mango salad, shrimp dumplings, chicken tonkatsu, and carrot cake all get my tastebuds tingling.

Imperial: Come on, you know you want to try Doug Adams’ PBR braised pork…

Lincoln: Jenn Louis is releasing a cookbook all about making pasta. So get in here and try some from the master.

Little Bird Bistro: I’ve always really enjoyed this downtown spot, and they’ve got lots of options to choose from on their dining month menu. I’d pick the gnocchi, the trout, and… I’m still deciding on dessert.

Ned Ludd: I love Ned Ludd’s delicious food and comforting atmosphere. I’d lean towards the charred broccoli raab for my first and the chicken breast for the second (though the vegetable gratin sounds awesome too).

Paley’s Place: Of course this Portland institution is on my list. There aren’t vegetarian options, but everything looks very tasty for us meat eaters. Elk for dinner? Um, yes.

Smallwares: I love Smallwares’ spin on Asian food – a true, funky, fusion restaurant. We went a few months ago and the food was really on point (as were the cocktails, I might add).

Tabla: If you are in the mood for some seriously tasty fresh pasta, I recommend Tabla. A well-kept secret on the east side, they’ve got multiple options for each course. Duck tortellini, anyone?

Xico: Octopus ceviche? Chicken in black, burnt-chili seasoning? Gosh that sounds tasty. Plus a carrot cake from pastry chef Mindy Keith.

Where are you going to go? Check out these other blogs for more PDM tips and picks: Pechluck’s Food Adventures, Martha Chartreuse, and Bakery Bingo.

Friday Finds 6:7:13

I’ve decided to start a weekly Friday post of things I’ve found during the week that I want to share with you. Whether it’s a recipe I want to try, a cool kitchen accessory, or a hosting idea, I’ll gather them all here in Friday Finds. This week’s roundup:

1. Vintage Trays

Silver Trays // Friday Finds from Serious Crust

I love this wall decoration using vintage serving trays from poppytalk.com. And trays like these are easy to find on Etsy (like these and this). And hey, they can even be taken off the wall, polished up, and used for dinner.

2. Ned Ludd

Ned Ludd: Friday Finds by Serious Crust

Jonah and I ate at Ned Ludd for our anniversary. Delicious, local, simple food and a very playful space. And the staff was very friendly.

3. Rhubarb Mojitos

Rhubarb Mojitos: Friday Finds by Serious Crust

I made these rhubarb mojitos last week when my little sister was in town, and I am working on making another, slightly different batch. It’s a nice way to enjoy rhubarb season without eating baked goods all the time.

4. The Family Meal

The Family Meal: Friday Finds by Serious Crust

I have been wanting this book forever, and after showing it to Jonah at a store this weekend, we ordered it immediately. I cannot wait to cook out of it.

5. Rhubarb Tart

Rhubarb Tart: Friday Finds by Serious Crust

This rhubarb tart is so beautiful, and while the recipe is in Spanish and my web browser can only do so well at translating, I get the general idea. I may just have to make my own version of it sometime soon.