Where Portland Monthly Staffers Really Eat Lunch

Chinese crêpes from Bing Mi!
Image: Karen Brooks
We all know that Portland is America's Great Restaurant Destination, and given proper planning you could likely come up with enough incredible meals to fill a full week without repeats (ahem, like we did here). But when time is short and budget is a major concern—like during a panicked lunch hour downtown—all of that foodie research and preparation flies out the window and you're left staring down at a $15 Whole Foods salad or a risky cart purchase you made on a whim just because it had the shortest line.
We get it. We work downtown, making the magazine that informs Portland about the all-time best meals this city has to offer, and even we get overwhelmed with all the options and default to a few tried-and-true favorites. To help out our fellow man—and acknowledge that it's not always practical to sit down to a two-hour, $40 meal worthy of our cover shot in the middle of a busy Thursday—we assembled a list our favorite downtown meals. Behold, how Portland Monthly really eats.
- Caspian Kabob: Doner kabob on pita bread (Wednesdays only)
- Addy’s Sandwich Bar: Duck confit, cranberry relish, and shredded cabbage sandwich
- Korean Twist: Taco combo (3 tacos with Korean salad and fried rice)

Image: Caspian Kabob
- The carnitas burrito with everything at La Jarochita ("Make sure to get the green sauce called 'guacamole.'”)
- Tuna and White bean salad at Café Voila ("If you’re feeling guilty after eating the burrito.")
- Double burger with fries at Lardo
- The Kelsey sandwich at Grilled Cheese Grill, with added grilled mushrooms and turkey
- Bing Mi!, add Chinese sausage and double cracker
- Café Voila chicken caesar
- Spielman Bagels
- Maya Taco chicken mole burrito w/ extra salsa
- Garden Bar ("I usually try out the special or anything with kale.")
- All-Way cheeseburger & fries
- Sawasdee Thai cart pad kee mao medium spicy w/ extra veggie ("Because the owner Sunny is the nicest human on the planet and she has remembered my order for a decade")
- No 1 Bento bulgogi with yam noodle salad
- In case of emotional emergency: Lardo's meatball banh mi.
- Northwest Bowl with chicken subbed in instead of tempeh at Garden Bar
- Nong’s Chicken at Nong’s
- Wolf and Bear's falafel sandwich
- Rolling Gourmet Fusion's veggie combo with kimchi roll on the side
- Bing Mi!
- Wolf & Bear's: sabich on greens instead of pita with a side of grilled potato and extra green sauce
- Lardo's sandwiches made as salads!
- Imperial: Kale & Vegetable Salad with rotisserie grilled chicken
- Kure Juice Bar: Honey Be Good bowl
- Prasad: Utopian Dream "Pasta" (shredded green papaya, carrots, shredded collard greens, scallions and broccoli tossed in almond butter pad thai sauce) and a Gilt smoothie (carrot juice, coconut milk, mango, pineapple, turmeric, ginger, bee pollen).
- But, really, homemade leftovers from the night before...
- Café Voila, Caesar Salad
- Huong’s Vietnamese Cart on 10th, Bahn Mi
- Kelvin’s Döners next to Caspian Kabob
- Thai Cart on Oak and 2nd, salad rolls with spicy version of peanut sauce

Wolf & Bear's SW Portland cart
Image: Allison Jones
- Wolf & Bear's, Guero, Spielman Bagels, NKMG, Bing Mi!, Maurice, Tasty N Alder, Marmo, Lardo, Grassa, All-Way, Dime Store, Garden Bar, Boxer Ramen, Little T, Lauretta Jean's, Portland Penny Diner, Little Big Burger, and Kalé
- BBQ pork bahn mi at Roll Plus Sushi ("So cheap!")
- Bulgogi burrito at Korean Twist
- "The thing with the meat and the egg" at Emame’s Ethiopian
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"And I do like the polenta clafouti with an oyster on the side at Maurice on those days when the following are all true: I’m in absolutely no hurry and have something to read. I just feel like pretending I'm a wealthy femme d’un certain âge. I’m kind of hungover."
- Caspian Kabob: Veggie kabob over salad, side of rice
- Rolling Gourmet Fusion: Tuna roll with ginger and wasabi salad sides
- Kargi Gogo Georgian Cart: Mushroom soup dumplings and tomato/cuke salad
- I admit to medicating myself about once a month, or as needed, with an All-Way burger. Also like the soup n sandwich cart (Savor Soup House) and Nong’s of course.
- Caspian Kabob: Kubideh Kabob over salad (juicy grilled lamb and beef meatballs)
- Garden Bar: Northwest Bowl sub avocado for cheese ("Solid.")
- Verde Cocina farmer’s market stand on Wednesdays: Paleo Verde plate ("Simple, generous, and done right!")
- Sonny Bowl's OKQ Salad
- Prasad’s Smokey Tempeh Scramble (or anything)
- Los Gordito’s vegan garbage burrito
- Sizzle Pie’s salad & slice combo (ideally with a slice of vegan brunch pie)