Favorite
The Cantonese restaurant may be better known for plump wontons and egg noodle soups, but many return to So Good Taste Noodle House just for the congee. Families, young couples, and elders pack the tables here like they do in Hong Kong’s neighborhood spots. “We have a regular who is heartbroken when we are out of roasted duck congee,” says Read more...
Favorite
The rich, salted rock cod congee is the runaway hit at Kenny’s, according to kind, patient nine-year veteran server Corina Wang. Kenny’s crispy Chinese doughnut (a.k.a. youtiao) is made for dunking into the bowls of thick porridge. (For congee cravings at dinner, call to make sure they haven’t run out.) Read more...
Favorite
Helmed by sister-brother duo Amy and Kang Zhu, who also run Southeast 82nd Avenue’s Sichuan skewer spot Pot N Spicy, this North-meets-South mash-up of classic Guangdong cuisine and Northern Tianjin dishes is home-cooking, streamlined. With a short menu of Chinese comfort food, it’s a small, (sometimes) quiet place that feels like it should have always been a staple along 82nd Avenue. Read more...
Favorite
Points for truth in advertising at downtown Chinese operation Stretch the Noodle, which specializes in, yes, noodles—hand-stretched, pulled, double-bounced and thumped all day long by Xuemei Simard inside the homey cart she runs with her husband Duane near Mama Mia Trattoria on Southwest 2nd and Washington. On a bone-chilling winter day the lunch wait for Simard’s dishes, a tight list of stir fries, soups, and jian bing Read more...
Favorite
Known for its super beefy Taiwanese soup, this Sellwood spot also boasts a tangle of cold noodles mingled with fresh sliced veggies and shredded omelet, dressed with a velvety peanut-sesame sauce. It’s a simple summer pleasure. Read more...
Favorite
Portland’s take on Chinese street-food fixation jian bing folds giant savory crêpes and super-crunchy crackers into a many-splendored breakfast thing. The cart’s crêpes skew pretty traditional: a cracked egg cooked and raked right into a crêpe, which is browned, flipped, and brushed with black bean paste, hoisin sauce, and chile paste. Then comes fresh cilantro, scallions, pickled bamboo and mushrooms, two Read more...
Favorite
Roasted, hung, and dried in traditional Beijing style, this PSU-area haunt serves sliced duck generously but unceremoniously on a platter arrayed with scallions, cucumbers, sauces, and a pile of steamed tortilla-like pancakes. Assemble the crispy, fatty-skinned meat into a Chinese taco and delight in its simplicity (as well as the dining hall’s stripped down, Olive Garden vibe). Psst: Quantities are Read more...
Favorite
Authenticity is at the heart of Danwei Canting, a newish Chinese spot on SE Stark Street, just across from the beloved Slammer dive bar. Former Bluehour chef Kyo Koo taps owner James Kyle’s 17 years spent eating around Beijing for inspiration. They aim to give Portlanders a best-of playlist from this capital city and melting pot of regional Chinese cooking, Read more...
Favorite
At this tiny Cantonese bakery, there’re buns and more buns, corn sausage to pineapple taro to—yes—hot dogs and cheese, plus mini tarts, sponge cakes, and porky pastries. Not all flavors are amazing, but Mei Sum has some delights, including the Chinese analog to Snowballs and Twinkies: coconut-shrouded mochi balls and cream-filled sweet flower cake. Read more...
Favorite
Former Aviary chef Jasper Shen brings his take on soup dumplings, a.k.a. xiao long bao to Portland. The dumplings—pleated purses full of garlic- and ginger-flecked pork and scorching-hot, deeply spiced broth—headline Shen’s atmospheric little North Portland Chinese restaurant, joined by a dozen or so strictly un-Americanized noodle dishes, mellow chicken bites, and steamed buns. Read more...
