Tag Archives: Taste

Food Portland

{Taste} Portland, OR: Boke Bowl

May 13, 2013 – 6:30 am

My mom used to crave warm soups on winter days. We’d drive around to find a local pho or noodle soup place to cure the craving and the cold. Since then, nothing’s given me more comfort than finding a perfect soul warming bowl of noodle soup. A and I headed to Boke Bowl. We ordered siu mai and fried chicken in steamed buns (I’ve been meaning to try out their Boke Bird on Thursdays) for an app. Then we got a bowl of Pork Dashi and Miso Black Cod Ramen to share. Then, the Donutorama creme brulee doughnut taunted us in the case, so we saved that for dessert. I just love the feel of the place and the branding. So simple and direct. Our noodles were a bit undercooked, so that was disappointing though the flavor of the broth was super umami (do you like my made up adjectives?), but those fried chicken steamed buns. WOW. I think those stole our tastebuds’ hearts. We’ll definitely need to take an early Thursday off work one day to make the fried chicken night…

{Boke Bowl} 1028 SE Water Ave., Portland, OR 97214 | 503-719-5698

What’s your cold day comfort food?

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Food Portland

{Taste} Beaverton, OR: Honey Toast Cafe

April 29, 2013 – 6:30 am

In the Bay Area, I had lots and lots of Taiwanese style cafes to choose from. Each with their little specialties. But in Oregon, I don’t really have that little luxury anymore. So, when I found out a new choice opened relatively nearby, I had to test out the waters. Honey Toast Cafe has little savory Asian snacks like salt and pepper chicken, fried tofu, sandwich-bobs, and the like along with the usual boba teas and coffees. Their namesake dessert though are honey toasts. They are a hollowed out sweet Asian breaf loaf that is sprinkled in sugar and charred on the inside. The bread from the cavity is then cut into little soldier sticks that undergo the same treatment and layered back in with honey pastry cream, ice cream, fruit, and even macarons of your flavor choice. We’ve tried the strawberry, honey classic, and deluxe versions. The classic and deluxe are our faves. The faint honey taste in every bite totally makes my mouth happy and I love the almost creme brulee taste with every toasty stick. I’ve already started taking my visiting friends there and though the size is really overwhelming, it’s a fun shareable dessert that everyone can’t stop eating. Plus, it’s open late for an after dinner stop in.

{Honey Toast Cafe} 12520 SW Farmington Road, Beaverton OR 97005 | 503-747-2712

Are you a fan of boba/bubble teas? What’s your favorite flavor?

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Food Portland

{Taste} Hillsboro, OR: Curry And Crust

April 22, 2013 – 6:30 am

I would never think about Indian food with pizza, but this new place we tried recently definitely had me backtracking. Their indian style pizzas are so creative and delicious! Think naan with curry built in. We tried one with tandoori chicken and another with paneer (Indian style cheese) and we were hooked. The creamy sauces with the herby crust. It was crave-able! We also got some papri chaat, which I haven’t seen served in Oregon much. It’s a delish snack introduced to me by my bff back in my Berkeley days. We used to share one from Chaat Cafe. It’s a mixture of tamarind and yogurt sauces with little crispy chips. garbanzo beans, and potatoes. Anyways, it took me back to our “studying” days. I’m excited to go back to this place to try their daily buffet and other desi pizzas.

{Curry And Crust} 4950 NE Belknap Ct, Hillsboro, OR 97124 | 503-992-6363

Have you tried any unexpected food combinations recently?

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Food Portland

{Taste} Portland, OR: Jam On Hawthorne

April 1, 2013 – 6:30 am

This place always has a huge line so we avoided going there because there are lots of brunch options in Portland, but right before moving into our house I convinced A that we had to try it. I’m so glad we did. I opted for the corned beef hash and some lemon ricotta pancakes to share. Of course, silly me bought the “wrong” lens so you get a good close up view of the hash.

Jam On Hawthorne | 2229 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR 97214 | 503-234-4790

Is there a place that always has a big line that you’ve been wanting to try?

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Food

{Taste} Redwood City, CA: Old Port Lobster Shack

March 25, 2013 – 6:30 am

Sometimes I feel like a preggers woman because cravings instantly hit and I can’t get them out of my head. When I was down in California for work one time, I met up with my guy bff and I had this need for a lobster roll. The search led us to a little joint in an unlikely strip mall called Lobster Shack. It was packed on a week night, so I knew it was going to be good. We shared naked lobstah rolls (without the mayo and drawn butter on the side), bacon garlic cheesy fries, black & white lobstah ravioli in cream sauce, blueberry bread pudding, and key lime pie. (Now you see why he’s my bff! He’s a foodie too and let’s me order way too much.) It was all so crazy delicious. In fact, the craving is coming around again just looking at these pictures.

Old Port Lobster Shack | 851 Veterans Blvd, Redwood City, CA 94063 | 650-366-2400

Are you a fan of lobster?

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Food Portland

{Taste} West Linn, OR: Lil Cooperstown

March 18, 2013 – 6:30 am

Sometimes A and I just go driving with no destination and we end up somewhere new. Unfortunately, we’ve been doing this for a while, so now even when we try to get lost, we can’t. But! Sometimes it’s pays off. We found the adorable little downtown of West Linn one time and we’ve been back a couple times since because they have a really good fabric store, a little French boutique and more. This time we ate at Lil Cooperstown, a local chain. The burgers were huge and the decor was eclectic. We’ll definitely be back.

Lil Cooperstown | 1817 Willamette Falls, West Linn, OR 97068 | 503-655-1995

Do you go exploring in different neighborhoods often?

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Food Portland

{Taste} Portland, OR: My Brother’s Crawfish

March 11, 2013 – 8:04 am

I have a soft spot for Southern food. I don’t know why. It’s just comforting. We tried out a new place a bit ago called My Brother’s Crawfish. We were super hungry so we got oyster shooters, crabcakes, crawfish gumbo, and blackened catfish. It was all so delish that we cleaned our plates. We can’t wait to go back and get the crawfish boil.

My Brother’s Crawfish | 8220 SE Harrison St, Portland, OR 97216 | 503-774-3786

Do you like Southern food?

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Food Portland

{Taste} Hillsboro, OR: Veggie Grill

February 4, 2013 – 6:30 am

Last week A & I went to a Yelp event because I’m lucky enough to be Yelp Elite. I was super excited for A to try out this new vegan place, Veggie Grill. I first had it with my cousin D when I lived in LA. We were obsessed and after this meal, I remembered why! I’m definitely a carnivore, but if I could eat vegan like this every day, I would have no issues switching. It’s so darn good! We got a veggie stack (veggie steak with onion rings on a burger bun) and a Santa Fe “chicken” sandwich. We also tried out the buffalo wings and their chocolate pudding parfait. OMG! Both were soo good. At the end of the meal, A & I were stuffed, but he said “Can we just start over?” Yes, please!

Veggie Grill | 2065 NW 185th Ave | Hillsboro, OR 97124 | 503-466-0345

Have you tried any vegan places?

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Food

{Taste} Lake Oswego, OR: Kurata

January 21, 2013 – 6:30 am

{Kurata} 450 5th St | Lake Oswego, OR 97034 | (503) 675-4496

I’m back! We just back from our little road trip for A’s birthday and our jaunt to LA to visit my BFF and we’re finally setttling at home for a while. It’s been so fun, but now I’m ready to get our house and bodies back into shape!

We’ve been trying to have a taste of all the places in our new “city.” We stumbled upon this little mom & pop Japanese place, which are my fave! They had takoyaki, which I was super excited about. I haven’t had that in forever. Its chunks of octopus in a batter that cooked on a griddle to form little balls. It’s sprinkled with seawood and drizzled with a vinegary sauce. So yum! We also dabbled in their more traditional sushi selection and tempura soba noodles. Mmm!

Have you ever had takoyaki?

Tags Asian, dinner, Japanese, seafood, Taste | Permalink | Comments (2)

Food Portland

{Taste} Portland, OR: Basa Basa

November 5, 2012 – 6:30 am

A’s mom is a big fan of Caprial Pence and her newest venture is opening a Korean fried chicken shack called Basa Basa. On one of our moving days, we were seeking something with a delicious taste to reward ourselves and we drove on over to try this place out. The iphone pics are a poorly lighted, but the wings were soo good! I’m craving them now as I write. They are definitely crunchy as the cook’s shirt advertises. This isn’t like Bonchon with drumsticks/thighs, but it’s just a really crunchy and juicy wing well glazed in yummy Asian flavors. We opted for the Basa Basa original and the Basa Ono, which had a Thai lemongrass-y twist. The Box comes with rice and mac salad. Yum!

Basa Basa | 2333 NE Glisan, Portland, OR 97232 | (971) 271-8260

What’s your favorite wing place?