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.

Word of Mouth

One of the Country’s Few Wagashi Experts Lives in Portland

Gena Renaud crafts intricate, time-consuming Japanese confections.

01/21/2020 By Karen Brooks

Love Shack

Garrett Benedict Puts Heart and Soul into "Reverse Steakhouse" G-Love

At the veg-centric restaurant, protein dishes still shine.

01/21/2020 By Karen Brooks Photography by Stuart Mullenberg

Breaking News

Portland’s Beloved 180 Xurros & Xocolata Gets a New Lease on Life, Literally

In February, Ataula’s Jose Chesa will reprise a mini-version of his seriously missed xurro and drinking chocolate shop inside downtown’s new Hyatt Centric hotel

01/08/2020 By Karen Brooks

Word of Mouth

Portland Chefs Reveal their Secret Projects and Predictions for 2020

Salt and pepper on your table: in. Shitty bar food: out.

01/02/2020 By Karen Brooks

Nooners

10 Portland Lunches We Can’t Stop Eating

Portland’s collective brunch trance is ending. The golden age of workday lunching has arrived.

12/31/2019 By Benjamin Tepler With Karen Brooks and Kelly Clarke

Breaking News

Pok Pok’s Andy Ricker Will Open Ping Yang Pow in December

The Thai food luminary is transforming the upstairs of Pok Pok NW into an intimate spot for charcoal-grilled cooking.

12/06/2019 By Karen Brooks

Breaking News

Star Chef Gregory Gourdet Will Open His Own Restaurant in 2020 … At Last

The face of downtown’s swanky Departure restaurant will put his Haitian roots front and center in a 60-seat, globally seasoned, wood-fired concept late next year.

11/29/2019 By Karen Brooks

Word of Mouth

Food Critic Karen Brooks on 2019's Best Dishes You Never Heard Of

Why you need to know about babka waffles and roti with creamed corn curry...

11/26/2019 Photography by Karen Brooks

Guerre de Brunch

The Great French Brunch Smackdown: St. Jack vs. Bistro Agnes

From pain perdu to croque madame, we test two Portland French restaurants’ morning mettle. Who will come out on top?

11/26/2019 By Karen Brooks

Best New Restaurants 2019: Trends

Seven Spots Expanding Portland’s Food Map

In 2019, Guam, Burma, the Philippines, and other nations got more room at the table.

10/18/2019 By Karen Brooks, Kelly Clarke, and Marty Patail

Best New Restaurants 2019

Asian flavors—wild to traditional—ruled the day, a scotch destination was born, vegan fine dining got serious, and two bakeries cracked our list. And that’s ...

10/18/2019 By Karen Brooks, Kelly Clarke, Ramona DeNies, and Benjamin Tepler

Best New Restaurants 2019

Portland Monthly’s Best New Restaurants 2019

Asian flavors—wild to traditional—ruled the day, a scotch destination was born, vegan fine dining got serious, and two bakeries cracked our list. And that’s just a taster of 2019. Pull up a seat.

10/18/2019 By Karen Brooks, Kelly Clarke, Benjamin Tepler, and Ramona DeNies Photography by Stuart Mullenberg

Best New Restaurants 2019

Best New Restaurants 2019: Keep Your Eye on These Runners-Up

Yonder and Erizo just missed the cut for our list of the year’s Best New Restaurants, but we’ll be back to see what happens at these high-profile spots.

10/18/2019 By Karen Brooks and Ramona DeNies