quovadis's Profile
Portland Adventures
"I'm hoping to catch Tanuki for dinner since I realized after my last post that Tanuki's not even open on Sunday and I wouldn't have been able to even go there! Do you think I need to make reservations for a Saturday night? "
Hi, thanks for your interest, I own Tanuki
Tanuki does not take reservations.
Saturday is generally not busy at Tanuki, especially earlier.
Portland Adventures
"With regard to Tanuki, is it just me or do the plates there seem to be predominantly Korean, not Japanese... but I'm just basing this on their current sample menu up on their website... is the chef there Korean?"
The menu changes daily. Tanuki does Okinawan, Korean & Japanese drinking foods. The emphasis is on the beverage selection w/the menu created to match it and to utilize the freshest things at the markets.
In anticipation of upgrading the liquor license to be able to serve sochu there is currently a bit more Korean going on.
What Portland food item(s) should an out-of-towner not miss?
Kens is on 21st, not 23rd
Pizza in Portland
Apizza Scholls. Accept no subsitutes.
I hate waiting. I don't like places with kids. I prefer to be in places with full liquor.
All that goes out the window when it comes to Apizza Scholls because it simply is the very best.
Care, love, craftsmanship. End of story.
What Portland food item(s) should an out-of-towner not miss?
HaVL is a tiny mom&pop that crafts everything in limited quantities.. you'll want to get there before 11am or they can be out of soup. Also, cash only there.
They have banh mi but I'd skip them- they don't hold a candle to AnXuyens.
What Portland food item(s) should an out-of-towner not miss?
Laurelhurst Market
ToroBravo
HaVL for vietnamese breakfast soup-redefines soup, make sure to get Vietnamese iced coffee, even if you don't usually like it you'll love this
AnXuyen for best banh mi (ask for extra spicy or they give you gaijin treatment though) and get a lotus stuffed pastry pig for your kid while you're there!
Cool Moon for ice cream- must try the spicy thai chile peanut!
Apizza Scholls for pizza. Get there right at opening to avoid a long wait
Navarre for a nice wine bar small plates experience (I think they allow children but you should double check)
Extra credit card charges listed on menu
Discount for cash is both legal and (until the cc companies get wise) not in direct violation of standard restaurant merchant services agreements.
Not only that but what could be better than rewarding guests who are sparing an owner a hasle and an expense?
It is not the restaurants that are greedy- it is the credit card processers.
ASKING TO ADD 10 PERCENT TIP TO MEAL [moved from Ontario]
Regarding tipping an owner... if they are your server you do.
ASKING TO ADD 10 PERCENT TIP TO MEAL [moved from Ontario]
Did they speak English very well or only minimally?
This actually makes a difference because on some credit cards machines
there isn't a spot for a gratuity... basically the kind of machine a convenience store would have.
If they don't speak very good English their merchant services saleperson may have conned them into taking a machine that doesn't print out the tip form the way a restaurant slip does.
I own a restaurant and had some salespeople try to unload these on me (older models they wanted to get rid of but still make money off of). This could well be the issue...
Help with Portland and Willamette Valley stops.
Nettie, that discussion is in the Biwa post on that food board.
Also of note while discussing some misguided notion of "authenticity".
No authentic or traditional izakaya serves sushi.
Sushi-ya is sushi-ya... izakaya is izakaya.
Just sayin'.
Help with Portland and Willamette Valley stops.
Kimchee is not "like a hamburger at an Italian restaurant".
Kimchee is the #1 selling pickle in Japan and has been for almost 10 years. In fact, Japan has it's own national style of kimchee (often spelled kimuchi in romanji) that is specific and unique in flavour. Most, if not all izakaya..including Biwa, which you claim to enjoy have some form of kimchi... because kimchi has replaced takuan and oshinko as drinking food pickle of choice in Japan..starting in 1998 & becoming undisputed #1 in 2000.
Fun and moderate in Portland
a great local site to check out for the latest happenings in good/cheap food and drink is www.portlandfood.org
(sorry for the outside link chowmods but since Oregon state liquor law doesn't allow restaurants to post happy hour drink specials online or advertise them local food blogs are all we have)
Clyde Common has a really popular and cheap happy hour scene and Biwa is an izakaya w/good happy hour prices and can make a lot of stuff veg on request.
No HH goodness at PokPok but it is reasonably priced and veg friendly.
What we need now is Sauce Supreme, happy hour expert of Portland to come along and give you the comprehensive list.
Fun and moderate in Portland
Not to seem glib... but what "kind" of vegetarian?
Most "vegetarians" I meet these days eat chicken, fish, shellfish, sometimes even pork... some will eat broth made of any animal but won't eat "chunks"... makes it very hard indeed.
Once this info is provided I would say "bang for buck"=Portland's great happy hour scene.
Just moved to Portland
PokPok for Thai
Toro Bravo for tapas
Biwa for Japanese izakaya style food
Are the ones I think of off the top of my head.
Fish in PDX?
Alberta Street Oyster Bar and Grill.
Get the escolar if they have it and the steak tartar w/bone marrow toast is a must have as well.
What to do about bad hosts?
Wow.
She really is a bad host.
But hosting is part learned skill and part natural good people skills... and for people who never learned past that "frat party stage" they really may mean well and simply be clueless. If she is so thick that a few low turn out parties don't make her think twice hopefully a close friend of hers will politely explain to her (when she is complaining about low party turn out) that their are certain responsibilities of hosting.
