A ROTATING GUIDE TO RESTAURANTS WE LIKE Navigator: Northwest | Southeast | Northeast | Downtown/Southwest | Suburbs $: up to $15 per person, beverage and tip included $$: $25 and under $$$: $35 and under $$$$: above $35 WW reviewers have visited these establishments recently and can recommend them. The restaurant world is squirrely; please call for reservation information and hours. Northwest BESAW'S CAFE Besaw's is old-school in more ways than one. The cafe was kick-started in 1903 by two French Canadian loggers and quickly became known as the place to get a good square meal. These days, the sunny cafe in Northwest Portland is still a sure bet for a reasonably priced, homey meal. Everything is whipped up by hand, and the desserts are beyond primo. Eclectic 2301 NW Savier St., 228-2619. $$-$$$ ¡OBA! ¡Oba! continues to break ground in the creation of nuevo Latino cuisine. ¡Oba! successfully adopts the flavors from a sweeping arc of the hemisphere's geographical menu, with influences from Texas, the Gulf Coast, the Caribbean, and Latin America from Mexico to Brazil, using them in dishes more familiar to norteño palates. Smoky and slightly sweet guava-habanero barbecue sauce elevates a full 2-pound rack of rotisserie-cooked babyback ribs a few notches above rib-shack barbecue, and the signature ahi tuna encrusted with mild ancho chili and black pepper is still just plain delicious. Latino 555 NW 12th Ave., 228-6161. $$$-$$$$ Southeast CAFE LENA Both the food and the crowd are authentic in this cafe known for open-mike poetry nights. No tired tofu dishes here--Lena serves food fit for a revolutionary. Take the Jean-Paul Angst on challah, for example: an open-faced sandwich of grilled chicken breast with baked brie, Roma tomatoes and basil. Or, consider the delicious Vinnie's Pesto Vino, fettuccine with an excellent, subtle pesto and Portland's tastiest sun-dried tomatoes. The servings are generous, so if you're a truly starving artist you can keep it cheap by forgoing the salad and soup. Eclectic 2239 SE Hawthorne Blvd., 238-7087. $ NICHOLAS RESTAURANT Everything is made from scratch at Nicholas, a Lebanese family joint, and it shows in quality and flavor; even the simple, vibrant tabbouleh is clearly a cut above the usual. In addition to a well-rounded lineup of sandwiches, mezza plates and kebabs, the kitchen turns out excellent Middle Eastern pizzas and calzone. Lebanese 318 SE Grand Ave., 235-5123. $-$$ PHILADELPHIA'S STEAKS AND HOAGIES Philadelphia's makes authentic cheesesteaks, the official heart-stopper of the City of Brotherly Love. If you get a hankering for hoagies, another Philly treat, this place does them right--layers of Italian cold cuts bathed in a herbed oil-and-vinegar dressing and served with brilliant house-prepared sweet peppers. And don't forget a Tastykake to finish up the meal. Philly 6410 SE Milwaukie Ave., 239-8544. $ PHO HUNG About the only good thing that came out of the Vietnam War was the wholesale export of one of the world's cleanest, most subtle cuisines to the land of big burgers and cottage cheese. At all three Pho Hung outposts, diners get tremendous food and lightning-quick service at fast-food prices. Pho (pronounced fuh), a staple in the northern part of Vietnam, is a soup made by simmering various cow parts with a rainbow of herbs and spices. At Pho Hung, you can choose from 19 different variations of the soup. Vietnamese 4717 SE Powell Blvd., 775-3170. 7330 NE Fremont St., 284-8355. 13227 SW Canyon Road, Beaverton, 626-2888. BREAD AND INK CAFE Bread and Ink Cafe is probably best known for its ample Sunday Yiddish brunch, attracting fans from neighborhoods far and near. Nosh upon smoked fish, blintzes, chopped liver and other delicacies hard to find in this pigs-in-a-blanket-eating town. The weekday menu changes, often taking advantage of regional ingredients prepared with a steady hand. In the midst of the Hawthorne coolville frenzy, Bread and Ink offers a fresh hit of pure calm. Eclectic 3610 SE Hawthorne Blvd., 239-4756. $$-$$$ THE COMPASS WORLD BISTRO This popular neighborhood bistro is darling, unpretentious and features one of the most comfy outdoor seating areas in town. The idea here is simple: One part of the menu changes every four months to reflect a geographic focus, and the other part is fixed with the cafe's most popular dishes. International 4741 SE Hawthorne Blvd., 231-4840. $$-$$$ Northeast MY-CANH RESTAURANT The bright, capacious dining room--enlivened by peppy Muzak--enables a lingering, piquant feast at this Chinese restaurant. My-Canh's chicken and ginger stewed in a clay pot is all-curing. The spicy-sweet flavor will leave your thoughts awash in blissful optimism while the ginger goes to work on any lingering respiratory troubles winter may have caused. Chinese 1801 NE 39th Ave., 281-0594. $ INDIA GRILL It's best to come here with at least a few friends to maximize grazing--there are so many tempting dishes that it's a shame to limit dining to just a few options. No matter what combination the table tally comes to, be sure to discover fish almond. The name is brusque, but the fish itself, mahi mahi, could only have been prepared with the most reverent care. It comes swimming in a thick, penny-colored almond curry; the flavor is earthy and increasingly better as you bite into layer after layer. Indian 2924 E Burnside St., 236-1790. $ $-$$$ LEMONGRASS This Thai restaurant that recently celebrated its 5th anniversary presents all the greatest hits of the region in such a fresh and authentic way, you'll want to search the Web for cheap airfare to Thailand so you can enjoy the complete experience. Unlike many of the quick-fix Thai joints around town, Lemongrass' menu features a small, focused group of traditional dishes that are prepared individually to order. You may be sitting in a comfy converted house in Northeast Portland, but you're as close to Bangkok as one meal can take you. Thai 1705 NE Couch St., 231-5780. $$-$$$ Downtown/Southwest MALLORY HOTEL DINING ROOM Generous portions and affordable prices are only one reason to check out this venerable institution. While it probably won't satisfy so-called "gourmets," the food is pretty damn good. Steaks, chops and chicken dominate, but local seafood is available, too. Breakfast time may be the most crowded, especially on weekends, when the city's established families descend from the adjacent hills to partake of fluffy German pancakes and respectable blintzes. American 729 SW 15th Ave., 223-6311. $$$ MORTON'S OF CHICAGO Morton's, perhaps the premier steak chain in America, is a haven for expense-account high-rollers, quaffers of big Bordeaux and lovers of enormous slabs of perfectly grilled beef. Much like its rival a few blocks away, Ruth's Chris Steak House, Morton's serves everything à la carte, so be prepared for a wallet-busting experience. The room is elegant and glamorous, the service impeccable and the theatrical demonstration of the ingredients (including a large and scary-looking lobster thrust your way) rather wearisome and pretentious. Still, Morton's delivers the goods. Steak 213 SW Clay St., 248-2100. $$$$ PAZZO Chef Ken Giambalvo's spread of dinner courses, which favors Northern Italy's meats and polentas, repays repeat visits. The involtini di pollo--chicken breast stuffed with zucchini, roasted peppers and fontina--is grand, as is the basil-crusted pork chop. For those interested in lighter fare, a menu of inexpensive antipasti sates diners in the bar off the dining room. Italian 627 SW Washington St., 228-1515. $$$$ RED STAR TAVERN AND ROAST HOUSE Rarely does homey food enjoy as grand a stage as the hearty spit-roasted meats and fried okra at Red Star Tavern and Roast House. There's no whiff of Delta Cafe whimsy here, and not all the cuisine is influenced by the bayou, but chef Rob Pando's Louisiana leaning is evident. Red Star's actual menu is oddly chatty--appetizers fall under the heading, "To begin, think big, start small..." and, moving on to salads, "Next step, it's a doozy..."--but once you've experienced the étouffée, it doesn't really matter. American 503 SW Alder St., 222-0005. $$$$ Suburbs GERALDI'S In a city crammed with so-called sandwich shops that serve thin slivers of so-so cold-cuts on lame-ass buns, Geraldi's is a stunning oasis. The hulking hot and cold sandwiches are served on the most superb lowbrow rolls in town--crusty and cantankerous on the outside, pillowy and inviting on the inside. Italian Beaverton Mall, 3205 SW Cedar Hills Blvd., 643-7200; 10000 SW Canyon Road, Beaverton, 297-2590; 2118 NW Glisan St., 224-7919; 6175 SW Lombard Ave., Beaverton, 643-8377; 518 SW 4th Ave., 224-1865. $     - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Willamette Week | originally published April 12, 2000