Karen Brooks eats, drinks and thinks about food for Portland Monthly, as the magazine's trend-spotting food critic. Karen's reviews and think pieces ferret out the restaurants, food carts, and maverick thinkers defining Portland's food voice. In 2017, Karen won one of the food world's most prestigious titles: the James Beard Craig Claiborne Distinguished Restaurant Reviewer Award. She's penned nine books on food and drink, and in 2020 guest-starred on Hulu's food series, Eater's Guide to the World.

BREAKING FOOD NEWS

Naomi Pomeroy to Relocate and Update Beast

Portland’s pork princess plans to roll out a new look, new location, and new ideas by September.

02/06/2012 By Karen Brooks

Eat Here Now

Review: Boke Bowl

The ramen at Boke Bowl is sensational. But there's a lot more than noodles happening here.

01/26/2012 By Karen Brooks

BREAKING FOOD NEWS

UPDATE: Christopher Israel’s New Mexican Restaurant

ChefStable teams up with one of the city’s top chefs for an exciting downtown project.

01/24/2012 By Karen Brooks

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Milwaukie Kitchen & Wine

Veteran chef Pascal Sauton brings French comfort, great baking, curated ingredients, and spontaneous evenings to Clackamas country.

01/11/2012 By Karen Brooks

BREAKING FOOD NEWS

Kristen Murray Leaving Paley’s Place

The acclaimed pastry wiz and dessert chef is searching for a location to cook up her own dreams.

01/10/2012 By Karen Brooks

BEST OF PDX

Foodie Retrospectives

Two year-end roundups put the 2011 world of food in perspective.

12/28/2011 By Karen Brooks

Review

Littlest Italy

Is Luce a Fellini movie, a Lombardy roadside attraction, or a food lover's minimart as imagined in Portland?

12/23/2011 By Karen Brooks

BEST OF PDX

The Dish on Portland Dining: 2011

Eat Beat’s annual food and drink survey is here…pull up a chair and weigh in!

12/21/2011 By Karen Brooks

BREAKING FOOD NEWS

Christopher Israel’s New Project

Christopher Israel and Kurt Huffman look to open a Mexican restaurant in downtown Portland.

12/20/2011 By Karen Brooks

FOOD CART WATCH

Nong’s Khao Man Gai at PSU

With a new location, Portland’s famed Thai vendor debuts new dishes and soon, Nong’s Khao Man Gai Sauce

11/30/2011 By Karen Brooks

Review

Pie High

Pie priestess Kate McMillen concentrates on the crust at Lauretta Jean's.

11/23/2011 By Karen Brooks

Best of the City

Portland's Best Restaurants 2011

Eat, Play, Love: 35 Divine Dining Experiences

11/22/2011 By Karen Brooks

SNEAK PEEK

Get Ready for Oven and Shaker

Three reasons to get excited about Portland’s soon-to-open pizza and cocktail experiment.

11/15/2011 By Karen Brooks

BREAKING FOOD NEWS

Paleys Plan New Downtown Location

Portland’s famed food-lovers Vitaly and Kimberly Paley are close to signing a lease downtown, bringing two concepts under one roof.

11/08/2011 By Karen Brooks

FOOD & WINE EVENTS

Chef Studio Dinners

Food school is open, with four nights of collaborative dinners and demos at Robert Reynolds’s celebrated cooking school.

11/08/2011 By Karen Brooks

BREAKING FOOD NEWS

Nong’s Khao Man Gai Grows

Portland’s prominent food cart plans a late November expansion with a second cart at the PSU pod and a sauce line.

11/04/2011 By Karen Brooks

SNEAK PEEK

Noisette

Next week, former Portland star chef Anthony Demes unveils his anticipated new restaurant Noisette in Northwest Portland. Here’s our field report on what to ...

11/02/2011 By Karen Brooks

Best Restaurants 2011

Eat, Play, Love: 35 Divine Dining Experiences.

10/19/2011 Edited by Rachel Ritchie and Karen Brooks

Best Restaurants 2011

Best Restaurants 2011: Amped Up

All of the best culinary minds in Portland understand the power of pairing.

10/14/2011 Edited by Rachel Ritchie and Karen Brooks

Best Restaurants 2011

Best Restaurants 2011: The Best of the Rest

Our 30 other favorite restaurants in and around Portland.

10/14/2011 Edited by Rachel Ritchie and Karen Brooks