Where to Get Food This Week

Going from Paris to Portland may seem an odd career move for a chef. But for John Denison, it made perfect sense.

By WW Staff

1. Dimo’s Apizza

701 E Burnside St., 503-327-8968, dimosapizza.com. 4-9 pm Wednesday-Sunday.

The menu at Dimo's Apizza is loaded with variations of the New Haven-style pies chef Doug Miriello grew up eating in Connecticut. But his new spot aims for a place in Portland's sandwich pantheon, too, with monstrous grinders like The Beast—as in, "roast beast."

Read more: Sure, Pizza Is on the Marquee, but Dimo's Apizza Is Aiming for Portland's Sandwich Pantheon, Too.

Lechon con mojo. IMAGE: Courtesy of Havana Cafe.

2. Havana Cafe

901 NW 14th Ave., 970-400-8887, havanacafepdx.com. 11 am-10 pm Tuesday-Saturday.

Cuban restaurants are hard to find outside their native turf and nearby Miami. Havana Cafe remedies that with an unmissable rooftop experience in Northwest Portland. Among a handful of platters, lechon con mojo may be your power move. It's a mound of ultra-tender, deeply flavored slow-roasted pork infused with garlic.

Read more: Chef Pablo Portilla First Started Making Cuban Food Inside a Cart. Now He's Serving It on an 8,000-Square-Foot Roof Deck in the Pearl.

3. Rough Draft Burger Shop

Inside Uptown Beer Co. at 6620 SW Scholls Ferry Road, rdburgershop.com. 4-9 pm Wednesday-Thursday, noon-9 pm Friday-Saturday.

Rough Draft's idea of the perfect burger is fatty, simple and crispy-smashed—just meat, cheese and condiments. The dark horse menu item, though? Vegetables. The fried broccoli with hot cheese, pickled peppers, scallion and crispy jalapeños at least delivers cruciferous vitamins and fiber.

Read more: Seattle's Rough Draft Pops Up in the Burger Desert of Southwest Portland.

The pate en croute at La Moule. IMAGE: Aaron Barnett.

4. La Moule

2500 SE Clinton St., 971-339-2822, lamoulepdx.com. 4-9 pm Wednesday-Sunday.

Going from Paris to Portland may seem an odd career move for a chef. But for John Denison, it made perfect sense. Having started his career at St. Jack before bouncing around some of Europe's finest kitchens, he's back at Aaron Barnett's other French-inspired restaurant, moving the menu in an even more Gallic direction. Denison's tour de force? An ultra-rustic pâté en croûte.

Read more: Chef John Denison Has Worked in High-Profile Restaurants Across Europe. The Pandemic Brought Him Back to Portland and Into the Kitchen at La Moule.

IMAGE: Trevor Gagnier.

5. Kimura Toast Bar

3808 N Williams Ave., 971-266 8087, kimuratoast.com. 8 am-3 pm Tuesday-Sunday.

At Kimura Toast Bar, thick slices of shokupan, or Japanese milk bread, can be the stuff of a light breakfast, a savory lunch or a meticulously composed dessert. You can get your toast simply, with French Isigny St.-Mere butter, or as a cheese toast, even under a hot dog.

Read more: Kimura Toast Bar Introduces Portland to the World Beyond Avocado Toast—but It Also Has Avocado Toast.

Willamette Week’s reporting has concrete impacts that change laws, force action from civic leaders, and drive compromised politicians from public office. Support WW's journalism today.