Our definition of restaurants is changing, daily. What are they now? What will survive? What should be saved ... or tossed in the compost heap of history? And what kind of places show us a possible future, against the odds, celebrating community values, personal food journeys, or hell-bent creativity. That includes Portland Monthly’s annual restaurant feature. Previous markers are gone, for now anyway—the experience, the waiters, the plating, the hard sear on the salmon, not to mention the notion of a star chef. What’s left is something deeper, cooks and places digging into self and spirit, backed by cheerfully good eats. Let’s savor the moment.
Published in the Wine Country Weekends 2020 issue of Portland Monthly.
Malka Shows There Can Be Beauty in Chaos
Call it global hippie food from a mad scientist or a tornado twisting of Thai food and Shabbat. We call it delicious.
Matta’s Richard Le Remixes Vietnam with His San Jose Roots
What began in late 2018 as straightforward family recipes now embraces edgy remixes of Vietnam and America.
Sunshine Noodles Stirs Modern Influences into Cambodian Food
The pop-up serves up a contemporary yet homestyle take on Cambodian cuisine—equal parts family history and who chef Diane Lam is today.
The Pandemic Crushed Restaurants. But Bar King Had Two Aces up Their Sleeve.
With two talented pros, Bar King and the Bakery at Bar King is a hot hand.
Magna’s Filipino Treats and Berlu’s Vietnamese Bakery Soar
Pandan, the floral-grassy-neon green “vanilla” and food coloring of Southeast Asia, is the ingredient of the year.
Oma’s Takeaway Mixes Wild Curries, Disco Balls, and Crazy Parfaits
Gado Gado’s offspring has its own home and purpose in the former Whiskey Soda Lounge, blessed with spacious backyard outdoor seating.
By Any Measure, Tonari Is Next-Level Take-Out
The spirit of Okinawa is healthy, happy, and living on in Portland
Kee’s Loaded Kitchen Wants to Feed Everyone
The restaurant is rightfully renowned for nailing all the finer details of traditional comfort food, and beloved for its ample serving sizes.
Make Mine a Muffuletta
Sebastiano’s, a new Sicilian-inspired deli in Montavilla, focuses on muffulettas and cannoli.
Cooperativa, a New Italian Food Hall, Is Now Softly Open in the Pearl
Travel to a Florentine market without leaving town.
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