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Oral
History
Mating food and occasion is as old an idea
as knocking two rocks together to make fire. We can't
resist the stirrings in our Cro-Magnon marrow to hank
off a piece and raise it to the crowd, as if to say,
"This is important, and filling our stomachs together
seals the deal." From the first apple to the Last Supper
to Big Night, we're orally fixated on food as
symbol.
The 1999-2000 Restaurant Guide is Willamette Week's
overflowing table of celebration. In November, WW
turns 25, and we are using the opportunity of
our birthday to take some liberties with the regular
Restaurant Guide format. Usually, for example, we
choose a Restaurant of the
Year and highlight it in an in-depth story. The
Restaurant of the Year represents a movement forward
in Portland's epicurean history and symbolizes the
excitement a new dining establishment can create.
Certainly, many worthy places have popped up since
last year's guide. Castagna
introduced an elegant simplicity to the scene; the
remodel of Caprial's
Bistro introduced us to Caprial and John Pence's
expanded vision; Oritalia
unleashed a level of swank rarely seen in our city.
Although they all could have picked up honors, we
decided to choose a Restaurant of the Quarter-Century
to reflect and celebrate our cornerstone birthday.
That restaurant is Genoa. Genoa is even older than
Willamette Week: In June it will celebrate
29 years of serving regional Italian cuisine to Portlanders
eager to mark their special occasions with a seven-course
prix fixe meal. We're pleased to provide a
historical background to a restaurant that became
an important thread in the fabric of the city we've
covered for 25 years.
The restaurants in this guide tend toward the higher
end of the dining scale. Please refer to our yearly
supplement called Blue Plate
for tips on scrounging up the best low-cost meals
this city offers. The scale for this restaurant guide
is measured by the cost of one person's meal with
wine or beer: inexpensive (under $10), moderate ($10-$20),
expensive ($20-$35) and very expensive (over $35).
How did we pick the best? A core group of reviewers
created an initial list based on our own experiences
dining around town. A larger circle of tasters then
went out and checked on the level of food and service
at each restaurant. Some on the original list did not
make the cut. It was of the utmost importance to us
that we recommend only the best restaurants. We know
that every meal defines a time, place and event, and
we hope our advice will help you create history.
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