Restaurant Guide '08: Foster/Powell

CLOSED Cava

While no one disagrees that the Foster-Powell neighborhood is on the uptick, making gritty Southeast 53rd Avenue and Foster Road a destination for duck confit cassoulet still seems a stretch. This is part of Cava’s charm. Antique light fixtures dangle over custom-built wooden booths fashioned from reclaimed lumber, and the walls are painted a deep hue of pomegranate red. On a cold and windy night, a friend likened Cava’s softly lit interior to being in the womb. Entrees are mainly Southern European-inspired, like the tasty bouillabaisse, with tender slabs of cod, chubby mussels, clams and shrimp in tangy tomato broth served with grilled bread and a glob of garlicky rouille. Cava’s burger—ground sirloin on a dense housemade bun—rivals Castagna’s.  Like its thoughtful roster of well-priced European red and white wines, Cava’s dessert menu sports a variety of dessert wines for around five bucks a glass.

IDEAL MEAL: Seasonal salad, burger, pecan pie.

Tastebud Dining Room

A friend of mine nailed this Canby-farm-turned-Portland Farmers-Market-cart-turned-tiny-Southeast-Portland-dining-room’s style: “home-plus.” Sure, you can make your own garden salad, but Tastebud’s—brimming with a rainbow of leafy greens, tart yellow tomatoes and crisp orange peppers in a puckery-peppery vinaigrette—is just gonna taste way better. Same goes with that simple roasted mackerel drizzled with olive oil or that mess of garlicky-wine-drunk clams that just hit this cozy spot’s mismatched china plates. Like home, but better. (Even Tastebud’s soundtrack is laid-back, from Built to Spill to the full length of Madonna’s Immaculate Collection). Farmer-turned-chef Mark Doxtader has had a serious love connection going with his wood-fired brick oven for years, so it’s no surprise Tastebud’s menu centers on crusty, chewy, beautifully blister-topped pizzas— for my money, this place is one of the top three pie-producers in the city along with Apizza and Ken’s. Doxtader’s got a knack for exceptional salty-sweet combos, like a recent pizza epiphany that married oozy roasted peaches with house-cured pancetta, mozzarella and arugula. Then again, his chewy-spicy combos (red pepper-marinated baby squid and cherry tomatoes) or smoky-tart (roasted poblano chiles with cilantro and goat cheese) ain’t too shabby either. Honey, I’m home.

IDEAL MEAL: Seasonal pizza, an oven-baked fruit crisp or a housemade berry cheesecake and a glass of Hair of the Dog Blue Dot. Plus, you can always get a gigantic Tastebud lamb pita at the farmers market....