DaweStotz's Profile
Best Food Carts in Eugene/Springfield
We don't really have a food cart culture in Eugene. If you can find the Tacqueria Volcan cart, that's pretty killer, but I haven't seen it since it vanished from the scenic Hollywood Video/Side Pocket Tavern parking lot no-man's-land this past summer.
Did see something called Oklahoma Smoker BBQ or some such out of Highway 99 today. Said "coming soon" but who knows what that means. The smoking rig looked right and proper, though, so there's the potential for good.
Eugene: Chanterelle
Haven't eaten in the restaurant proper in well over a decade, but have eaten the in the bar, where Mr. Mahaney's influence is most apparent, quite a lot over the past few weeks. Salt Cod Fritters on a fennel and mushroom salad, oysters remoulade, green beans and blue cheese, escargot -- all have been excellent, especially the fried items for which Brendan seems to have a gift. The bar itself is a keeper, too: Hidden away, stocked (seemingly exclusively) with regulars and staffed by good, talented people. I vote yes on Chanterelle.
Looking for Best Beer & Food Joints in PacNW
Agreed. The Jolly Roger is solid as can be. I like most of the beers quite a bit, which is what led me there in the first place, but I like the food even more. Ray's Boathouse is pretty reliable too if one is looking for beer and food together.
As for Portland, can't say the menu or the beer list at the Green Dragon moved me, although I wasted a perfectly enjoyable couple hours there. It's new, though, and the ownership is solid, and I have high hopes.
The Horse Brass is a classic pub and probably the best (or at least most comprehensive) tap selection in the city, but anyone with a lick of common sense should know moments after they walk in the door that under no circumstances should they actually eat there.
AFAIC, the only place for good beer and good food under one roof in Portland is Higgins' bar. Used to also say the Concordia Ale House, but since they ownership change I can't vouch for the food, which used to be terrific if too generous by half.
There's also the Full Sail Pilsner Room, the bar of the McCormick & Schmick's on the waterfront on Montgomery, which isn't stellar food, but is passable and, during happy hour, hilariously cheap and very acceptable. The beer, OTOH, is almost uniformly stellar, with a couple of otherwise nonexistent Full Sail beers on tap, or even on hand pull.
McKinlay Vineyard?
McKinlay's arguably the best thing going in Oregon wine, but the tastings/meet and greet thing isn't really Matt's bag. You won't hear back about the message you left, but nobody else does either.
Eugene, where to go?
Taqueria Volcan, formerly Tacos al Nayar, on Highway 99 near the bingo joint in the same parking lot as the old Pumpkin station. I very nearly full-on mouth-kissed the guy after my cabeza taco, and it wasn't even on a house-made tortilla. They even made a chicken taco taste good, which is a slightly rarer occurrence than water flowing uphill. Birria by the pint, too. Seriously among the best food in Eugene -- hell, Oregon -- at any price point. Just go.
Wine bars around Seattle
Yes, go to Bricco. Of course my taste in wine leans heavily -- very heavily -- toward French and Italian, so I would say that, but still. Aside from the dated electronica background music, there's nothing about the place I don't like. Above average cheese and charcuterie selection, very well-chosen wines by the glass (and an even better bottle list), non-outrageous prices.
(PDX) Vist to Reed College & Eugene. Looking for Oysters and Other Recs
It's not fashionable, but I really like Dan & Louis. The building's great, the staff's genuinely friendly and it's right downtown, thus negating the need to trek all the way out to Alberta. Oysters are always perfectly shucked, too. When I want oysters in Portland no other place is even a consideration. Not that the other places are bad -- on the contrary -- they just aren't places I feel as comfortable in as Dan & Louis.
Brasa
How could I forget the Zig Zag? Yes, best happy hour around and the best bartender I've ever encountered. I'd have Murray Stenson's baby.
Brasa
Wish I had a better command of Seattle happy hours, but alas I'm in Oregon and don't get up there nearly enough.
Brasa
Was up there a couple weeks ago. I had the lamb burger, which was as good as could be. The frites with it were just OK, not really resembling the real thing. Wife had the mussels which were among the best I've had. The tempura vegetables, however, were an oily mess and close to inedible. Wine list was OK, very Spain/southern France-centric as you'd expect, but far too expensive (a glass of wine costing roughly what a bottle does in the store) for what it was. I'm not disappointed we went, but I'm in no rush to return.
Microbrews and Good Food
Agreed on Diamond Knot having the best IPA in WA. Baghwan's Best is a close second, though.
Maritime Pacific is great for a balance of the best food with the best beer. The Latona (http://www.3pubs.com/latona/latona.html) matches it, though, plus you get to sample beers from around the region on a number of well-chosen taps and one cask, which is the best hand-pulled beer I've had in the USA. Last week they were pouring the Diamond Knot Industrial IPA, too, so, bonus.
What's to eat in Eugene?
Agreed. Trevor's beers are generally excellent. Plenty of hop bitterness, but also hop flavor and firm malt backbone for balance. Nice stuff.
Are the write up's from Gourmet and Bon Appétit re: Portland restaurants really deserved?
Portland's nice but it ain't even close to "there" yet.
What's to eat in Eugene?
Iraila's perfect for you, then. I'd definitely call for a reservation, as it's popular and pretty small. Haven't had anything there I'd call less than very good, and it's convivial. Watch the vintages on the wine, though; they're pushing some over the hill stuff.
Beppe & Gianni's is close by. Nominally "Italian" -- whatever that means -- but not regionally specific and just as informed by Pacific Northwest cooking and ingredients. The trick there is to order whatever dish seems to need the least cooking and fussing. Last time I was there that was a dish of "bishop's hats" which were sheets of pasta loosely folded around a filling of (good, not gloppy) ricotta, prosciutto and chard, napped in a sage brown butter. Other dishes were mostly pretty good, but more complicated and kind of muddy in comparison. Another illustration of their less-is-more principal was an appetizer of melted Cambozola and roasted garlic which was a greasy mess lacking much in the way of flavor. A simple plate of bresaola with arugula tossed in just a little good olive oil was a lot better. Good, well-priced Italian wine list; the less said about their Oregon wine selection the better.
Chef's Kitchen was always good in the past, but I haven't been for a while. Still hear good things. Again, Northwest-y stuff (lots of salads and local mushrooms), but really varied. Informal and fun, plus there's no liquor license so you can bring your own wine or beer; Jiffy Market, with an acceptable selection, is conveniently located across the tiny parking lot from Chef's Kitchen.
More informal and out just a bit is Doug's on McVay Highway. Burger joint -- and make no mistake, it's a *joint* -- but it's made to order and good. Certainly better than anything similar you'll find in town, and it attracts an entertaining clientele if people watching is your thing.
People may tell you Studio One Café is good for breakfast. It was at one time. It is no longer. Avoid at all costs.
That ought to get you started.
What's to eat in Eugene?
New *and* good? In Eugene? That's a tall order...and a short list. So short, in fact, that I can't come up with anything fitting those criteria (though that would depend on your definition of new). Iraila (www.iraila.com) is quite good, and does family-style dinners on Sundays that are fun, tasty and hilariously underpriced at $25 or so.
Still plenty of good places that aren't necessarily that new, though. What are you looking for? Price range, part of town, type of cuisine?
Dinner at Salumi
Culatello's very good, but not as amazing as the press has made it out to be. I think it's the Coors syndrome at work: Scarcity of a product making it nearly mythical thus artificially inflating the intrinsic goodness of the product. I personally prefer his lomo, which has nice buttery, nutty and ferment flavors that leave plenty of room to taste the actual pork. The culatello, in comparison, is simplistic, at least the one I tried.
Hillsdale Cafe in Coberg I-5 Eats!
Hillside Grill, actually, and yes, it's much better than one would (or should) expect.
Good Lunch Stop in Eugene??
Nothing all that easily accessed off the interstate here, but I'd recommend:
1) Marché, because it's the best restaurant in town. Located on the bottom floor of the Fifth Street Public Market, 5th and High, downtown. Excellent if unadventurous Northwest/French, vaguely upscale by Eugene standards.
2) Tacos el Nayar, a taco wagon (taco motorhome, to be more precise) parked out on Highway 99 (1910 Empire Park Drive) next to the bingo parlor. Buche and cabeza tacos, plus birria. The real thing, plus the added bonus of dining under a blue tarp in the most godforsaken part of Eugene. Worth going out of your way for this.
3) Fisherman's Market. Seafood market (the town's best [which isn't saying much, but still]; Newman's buys their fish from these guys) on the corner of W 7th and Blair does inexpensive fish and chips (very good oysters and flat-out great razor clams) with creative sauces (the wasabi-cucumber tartar on the razor clams does not suck at all), plus some more elaborate dishes with prices in the $12 - $20 range. High quality stuff all around, they never disappoint (um, except for their cole slaw, and I wish they'd stop using frozen french fries). Above average beers on tap, plus a grim little wine selection.
4) Not in Eugene, but Novak's in Albany is a great Hungarian place. Doesn't really sound like summer food, but there's plenty on their menu (http://nowtowns.com/businesses/?id=22525&fi=Novaks+Hungarian+Restaurant&fd) that's light and cooling. Good little in-house bakery as well.
