Tag: Kann

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Favorites of 2023: Bakeries, Food Trucks, Restaurants, Bars, Cafes

Truly, one of the most beautiful salads I ate this year. It was a seasonal special of sharp greens, strawberries, daikons, onions, radishes, causa, and a chicha morada lavender vinagreta from Reeva.

Welcome back to another end of year list. Instead of publishing our Four Things column today, I’m giving you a list of my favorite spots of 2023, where I enjoyed happy times eating and drinking. There’s a whole variety of places, some established, some new. This list is in no particular order, aside from alphabetically; in other words, no top pick. Please enjoy!

Cheese and Crack

For my birthday this year we had lunch at Paadee and then headed a couple doors down to Cheese & Crack for their titular sundae. I maintain that they make the best soft serve ice cream in Portland. It is smooth, creamy, and luscious. The toppings on this sundae are classic: chocolate ganache, cinnamon butter cracker crumble, and torched housemade marshmallow fluff. The sundaes really are enough for two, and their seasonal sundaes never cease to impress with their magical toppings combinations. 22 SE 28th Avenue, Portland. cheeseandcrack.com

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Four Things I Learned This Week (June 9)

Some openings of note. Tonight, head to Bar Mame for their opening; The Heist will open tomorrow, June 10; and Arrosto re-opened this week with a new ordering system—the outdoor walk-up window is a thing of the past. As a bi fan of Arrosto (especially their salad), here’s some tips from them I found useful: order inside Providore at the self-service Arrosto kiosk; food is served from 4pm to 7pm; they’ll start out with a simple menu of favorites (though more options are coming); and the Arrosto chicken salad and sandwich can be had at the deli case if you want it for lunch. 3279 SE Hawthorne Blvd (Bar Mame), 4727 SE Woodstock Blvd (The Heist), and 2340 NE Sandy Blvd (Arrosto), Portland

Yelp’s top donuts in Portland. Four donut shops in the Portland area made it on to the Yelp Top 100 list of donut shops around the U.S.:

  • 15—Pip’s Original, 4759 NE Fremont Street, Portland (and in July, 12400 SW Broadway Street, Beaverton)
  • 73—Donut Day, 18955 SW Tualatin Valley Hwy, Aloha
  • 78—Doe Donuts, 4110 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland
  • 94—Mikiko Mochi Donuts, 300 NE 28th Avenue, Portland

    2023 James Beard Awards winners. It was great to see Kann (which I recently ate at—the hype is real) and Berlu do well at the 2023 James Beard Awards. Kann won Best New Restaurant, and Vince Nguyen was named Best Chef: Northwest & Pacific (AK, HI, OR, WA). Congrats to both! 548 SE Ash Street (Kann) and 605 SE Belmont Street (Berlu), Portland

    Happy one year anniversary, Fresh Love! Yesterday, Fresh Love celebrated one year in business. This little Roseway spot has become a dependable, lovely place to get delicious food (salad, sandwiches, bowls, smoothies, fresh juices, a few baked goods); pick up some produce and locally made artisan products (edible and not); and see local art. I was in there yesterday and got their seasonal chopped salad, which gets a thumbs up from me. They also stock my favorite Honey Mama’s bar, Tangerine Tahini. I wish them many more years in business! 7434 NE Fremont Street, Portland

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    Four Things I Learned This Week (March 31)

    Vegan arepa pop-up weekly at Ben & Esther’s. One of the most successful vegan joints in town, Ben & Esther’s hosts a weekly pop-up of El Salto. This Latina-owned company offers “traditional Venezuelan food–made vegan,” including arepas. They are split and stuffed with what looks like vegan meat substitutes. Find them at Ben & Esther’s Alberta location on Wednesday nights from 5pm-9pm. 1800 NE Alberta Street, Portland

    Kann accolades + Sousòl reservations. I saw this week that Kann, the celebrated Hatian restaurant from Gregory Gourdet is a finalist for Best New Restaurant for the James Beard Awards. “Thankful we get to share the story of Haiti and its rich history through food,” they say. Also, Sousòl, the bar below Kann, will take reservations via Resy starting Wednesday, April 5. But for those that don’t plan ahead, “Don’t worry we still have plenty of room for walk ins!” 548 SE Ash Street, Portland

    Beaverton’s The Sudra to close. Their final day of service at their Beaverton location will be Sunday, April 2, so head on over before then if you want a taste of their delicious, flavorful plant-based Indian food in the suburbs (the Portland locations will remain open). They add, though, “Although closing is sad, it’s not all bad news. We are talking to some old friends about an exciting collaboration that will take over the space. More on that to come.” Looking forward to hearing more about it.  4589 SW Watson Avenue, Beaverton

    NEW: Rice platters at Three Fifty Cafe. The good folks at Cully’s Three Fifty Cafe have a “secret menu item” that, if there’s enough interest, may go on the permanent menu. “Each platter comes with your choice of grilled pork, sirloin steak, or lemongrass chicken served with rice, fresh veggies, and sweet fish sauce. Pro tip: add an egg for the ultimate flavor experience!” So head on over and let them know what you think. 6205 NE Prescott Street, Portland

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    Roundup: Bests and Awards of 2022

    fireworks

    Excited for all the winners!

    It’s that time of year again: the time when local media outlets (and nationwide ones, too, but that’s not the focus here) gather their bests and make lists of various things—including food. Personally, I love lists and it’s fun to see what the different food media sources deem “the best” in any given year. It’s unclear in my mind if I’m going to do that kind of roundup before the close of 2022, so I thought I’d round up what’s out there already.

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    Four Things I Learned This Week (May 6)

    Plants, vegan baked goods, and cats. Tomorrow, Saturday, May 7, is the House of Dreams’ 2022 Spring Plant Sale and Vegan Bake Sale. From 10am to 3pm, head out to get some indoor and outdoor plants, baked vegan yums (held as part of the Worldwide Vegan Bake Sale), an good feelings knowing you are supporting a sale where all proceeds go to care for cats at the House of Dreams shelter. More details on Facebook. Should be a great event! 7634 SE Morrison Street, Portland

    Kann update. Gregory Gourdet’s new restaurant, Kann, featuring Hatian food, will open this summer. PoMo has the details: “Kann will open mid-July at 548 SE Ash St, with 80 seats and an eight-foot hearth at the center of a wide-open kitchen that will occupy nearly half of the space.” Read more about it on the Portland Monthly website. 548 SE Ash Street, Portland

    Current favorite dry drink. I made it over to Gabbiano’s recently and had their sparkly lemonade with an oregano syrup and a little salt. I loved it so much, I had two of them. Great fresh flavor and the oregano syrup adds something special. Truly delicious. 5411 NE 30th Avenue, Portland.

    Daily Fuel opens brick & mortar restaurant. On their Instagram this week they announced their new restaurant: “We officially have the keys & finalized all legal paperwork today. We’ll be working on getting the restaurant ready for open in June for y’all!” They’ve had a cart at the Hawthorne Asylum pod, offering “healthy vegan comfort food” for a while; it will be fun to see what they do with the restaurant. Big congrats to them! 3342 SE Belmont Street, Portland