A ROTATING GUIDE TO RESTAURANTS WE LIKE Oh good, you found us. Welcome to Graze, WW's new weekly feature that guides you through the ever-growing maze of the Portland restaurant scene. You can count on Graze to serve up a rotating selection of short restaurant reviews grouped by locale in every issue. We'll also highlight restaurants tied together by a theme. This week we offer some choice burger stops. Eat up! Navigator: Northwest | Southeast | Northeast | Downtown/Southwest | Suburbs | Hamburgers Northwest ACCUARDI'S OLD TOWN PIZZA COMPANY A cross between a Victorian ice-cream parlor and a western saloon, Old Town pleases both families and after-work revelers. The menu says "the better the bread, the better the pizza," and that's the foundation of Old Town's pies: It looks like crust but tastes like bread. ITALIAN 226 NW Davis St., 222-9999. $-$$ FELLINI Fellini offers some of the yummiest food for your tummy, and at a price even a musician can afford. Plus, the urban-chic artwork won't make gourmets feel like they're slumming. Situated next to rock club Satyricon, Fellini is a good, quick place for pasta, polenta and sandwiches aplenty. ECLECTIC 125 NW 6th Ave., 243-2120. $-$$ LOW BROW LOUNGE This comfy dark enclave is the place to get perfect tater tots hot from the oven. No delusions of grandeur here--the little potato nuggets are middle-school-cafeteria style. Get a bratwurst and beer to go along with it. AMERICANA 1036 NW Hoyt St., 226-0200. $-$$ LA BUCA Now with two locales, La Buca serves simple Italian dishes at extremely reasonable prices. You've got your pastas (try the powerful puttanesca). You've got your panini (mmm, salami). You've got your salad (everyone, mista!). ITALIAN 2309 NW Kearney St., 279-8040, and 40 NE 28th Ave., 238-1058. $-$$ BIMA Sampling the long list of "small plates" is a great way to eat at this chic Pearl District restaurant, and the tombo tuna-filled fish taco is a good place to begin. Skewers of chicken, beef, squid or portobello mushrooms bring a nice smoky flavor from the mesquite grill. A roasted duck quesadilla layers slices of breast meat with roasted poblano chilies and pepper jack cheese between crispy brown flour tortillas. The place looks good and tastes even better. ECLECTIC 1338 NW Hoyt St., 241-3465. $$-$$$ Southeast MAD HATTER LOUNGE Thanks to parent restaurant The Rabbit Hole, the Mad Hatter Lounge has some of the most sophisticated pub food in town. Forget about buffalo wings and artichoke/spinach dip. The Mad Hatter sates snackers with Greek olive tapenade, chiles rellenos fried in wonton wrappers and spiced with a green chili stew, and a meat-based antipasto served with chipotle aioli. ECLECTIC 203 SE Grand Ave., 231-2925. $-$$ LA CALACA COMELONA The name means "The Hungry Skeleton," and it refers to the Day of the Dead decor, not the way you'll feel on leaving this informal but mordantly charming Mexican cantina. Virtually everything is homemade, including tortillas and an array of terrific sauces. The cooking is a labor of love for the chef, whose central Mexican region furnishes plenty of inspiration, especially in her use of avocado, chilies, corn and other grains. No burritos here, but there are thick masa tortillas crammed and dripping with juicy meats (don't miss the pork and pineapple version). MEXICAN 1408 SE 12th Ave., 239-9675. $ STICKERS Ah, dinotainment. Stickers' mission is to introduce you to Asian street food in all its glory. The menu, headed up by a hearty selection of dumplings, lists the history of the food and lets you know how hot it is. ASIAN 6808 SE Milwaukie Ave., 239-8739. $-$$ FOTI'S GREEK DELI INC. This quickie mart meets Greek to-go counter offers up spicy Greek fries with tzatziki or pita stuffed with souvlaki and, of course, gyros, the hulking, lamb-filled pitas that compete head to head with America's burgers. GREEK 1740 E Burnside St., 232-0274. $ KHUN PIC'S BAHN THAI This cozy, remodeled Queen Anne's cottage is often jammed. You're not going to get the typical Thai menu of 64 dishes, all under $7--this is where you come in search of high-end Thai food. Dive into the green curry (eggplant, bamboo shoots and basil) with firm tofu or giant prawns in a complex coconut-milk broth. THAI 3429 SE Belmont St., 235-1610. $$$ CAPRIAL'S BISTRO A recent expansion doubled the size of this restaurant made famous by its namesake chef/owner Caprial Pence, who appears on public television with her cooking show. Caprial's food is decidedly eclectic, often Western cooking with Asian inflections. If you enjoy a mélange of tastes, a kind of gastronomic travelogue within a single dish, this is your spot. ECLECTIC 7015 SE Milwaukie Ave., 236-6457. $$$$ FISHTALES This small and often lively fish emporium legitimately claims that its seafood arrives fresh from Spain--even species that are at home on our shores. This leap to authenticity allows Fishtales to offer preparations not usually seen in Portland, and generally the kitchen does very well by its imported ingredients. There's a seriousness at Fishtales, a regard for presentation and an interesting matching of complementary flavors. SPANISH 1621 SE Bybee Blvd., 239-5796. $$$ GINO'S This is a quintessential neighborhood place, but more than that--it's a wonderful spot for a casual but well-executed Italian meal. Whether you order the mussels and/or clams doused with mouth-filling tomato chunks and a sublime broth, or the hearty Grandma Jean's pasta, a peasanty meaty stew ladled over fettuccini, you can hardly go wrong. ITALIAN 8057 SE 13th Ave., 233-4613. $-$$ Northeast CHEZ JOSE Chez Jose plays around with the idea of true Mexican food. You can get a black bean and goat cheese quesadilla as well as a squash enchilada that will pleasantly reconfigure your notion of south-of-the-border. With its whimsical decor and playful sensibility, Chez Jose's a great place to take the kids. MEXICAN 2200 NE Broadway, 280-9888, and 8502 SW Terwilliger Blvd., 244-0007. $-$$ CANNON'S RIB EXPRESS There's barely enough room for three people to stand at the counter in this tiny rib joint, but that doesn't stop a line from forming around dinner time. Smoke pours from the 55-gallon drums out front, and you can taste it in the meaty pork and beef ribs. SOUTHERN 3328 NE Killingsworth St., 288-3836. $ LAURELTHIRST PUBLIC HOUSE Tasty vegetarian options abound inside these exposed-brick walls: Dare to eat an entire "cannonball-o-beans," a large, legendary toasted bread bowl filled with flavorful bean soup and topped with jack cheese and onions. The homemade, sunflower-based veggieburger is the biggest and tastiest in town, served with chips and a garlicky dill. Carnivores enjoy filling turkey sandwiches and comfort foods like chicken chili. AMERICANA 2958 NE Glisan St., 232-1504. $ LASLOW'S BROADWAY BISTRO Housed in an old Victorian that's pleasant and warm, Laslow's prepares a cuisine that blends French and Northwest. This is not fusion cooking, thank heavens--just an intelligent way of reconceiving tradition with indigenous values. Local ingredients star--you'll find wild mushrooms and wild berries on many a plate, including dependable rabbit, poussin and duck. A pretty garden patio is a bonus in warm weather. FRENCH/NORTHWEST 3135 NE Broadway, 281-8337. $$$$ Downtown/Southwest AL-AMIR Few restaurants offer the ravishing ambience of Al-Amir, a Middle Eastern restaurant that takes up the bottom floor of the Gothic-Victorian Bishop's House. Though carnivores are certainly catered for, Al-Amir's vegan and vegetarian entrees are also recommended. From taboulleh to baklava, Al-Amir graciously offers the best of the region. MIDDLE EASTERN 223 SW Stark St., 274-0010. $$$ ATWATER'S Perched on the 30th floor of the U.S. Bancorp Tower, Atwater's has long enjoyed a unique status as the culinary penthouse of Portland--it boasts the best restaurant view in the city. Salads erupt with aromatic cheeses and farm-fresh produce, the wine list is extensive enough to be kept at your local library, and steaks and chops ooze with juicy flavor--all to the tune of some of the best live jazz in the city. ECLECTIC 111 SW 5th Ave., 275-3600. $$$$ ESPLANADE Pascal Sauton, one of the few French chefs in Portland, brings world-class apprentice experience from Lasserre in Paris. Esplanade's menu has focus, interest and some stunning dishes. A small casserole of chanterelles and shallots is bubbly and delectable; the surprise is a beautifully poached egg resting atop (a very French touch) that gushes golden gore into the stew; it comes with a round of toast laden with chevre. For lighter tastes, a thinly sliced heirloom tomato is beautifully dressed and as fresh as anything you'll find at the farmers market. The room is handsome, in an aged-dowager sort of way, and the view of the Marina beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows is inspiring. FRENCH 1510 SW Harbor Way, RiverPlace Hotel, 295-6166. $$$$ Suburbs MARINE POLIS SUSHI LAND Better judgment tells us that the terms "conveyor belt" and "sushi" should not be used together under any circumstances. Marine Polis proves that you can't always trust your judgment. This Japanese diner serves dishes of sushi that rotate around a horseshoe-shaped counter on a conveyor belt--pick what interests you as it bobs past. Vats of pickled ginger and wasabi are self-service, and at the end of the meal you add up the colored plates to figure out your bill. Great for kids and first-time sushi eaters. SUSHI 4021 SW 117th Ave., Beaverton, 520-0257. $ Where's the Beef? A GUIDE TO GUT-POPPING HAMBURGER HAVENS. Giant Drive Inn Sure, you can get hot dogs here, but you'd be crazy to go to Giant for anything other than the large, messy hamburgers. For the ambitious, Giant presents the Filler, a sandwich that fits an incredible two pieces of bacon, two beef patties, cheddar cheese, ham slices, one large egg, a kosher dill pickle, onion, tomato and lettuce inside a sesame-seed bun. In every way, the Filler is not for the faint of heart. 15840 Boones Ferry Road, Lake Oswego, 636-0255. $ Foothill Broiler For more than 30 years, tucked in among all the chi-chi tchotchke stores and pan-fusion restaurants of Northwest Portland, Foothill Broiler has provided a welcome alternative to foo-fooville. The burgers are made to order, and if you're still unsure of Foothill Broiler's bossness, just remember these two words: fixins bar. 33 NW 23rd Place, 223-0287. $ Stanich Ten till One Tavern and Stanich's West The Ten till One, around since 1949, and its younger brother on Macadam Avenue, are the grand burger pooh-bahs of Portland. This is home to the most obscene sandwich in town: the "World's Greatest" burger comes with ham, bacon, cheese, lettuce, pickles, onions, tomatoes, special sauce and, in case you missed breakfast, a fried egg. Stanich Ten till One Tavern, 4915 NE Fremont Ave., 281-2322. Stanich's West, 5627 SW Kelly St., 246-5040. $ Higgins Bar Memorize this: Higgins Restaurant has an adjacent bar with a bistro menu featuring the most classy hunk of beef served on a bun around these parts. Hulking and perfumed with garlic and pepper, the broiled burger served on a hearth-baked roll is unforgettable. 1239 SW Broadway, 222-9070. Open daily. $ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Willamette Week | originally published November 10, 1999