Best Places to Eat in Portland
From food carts to microbrews, here are the superstars of the Portland dining and drinking scene.
Four-wheeled fare
Choosing among Portland's fleet of 600 food trucks and carts is a tall order. The gold standard may be Lardo (pictured back in its wheeled days--it has since graduated to brick-and-mortadella status). Rolling or stationary, the place has always been a meat-lover's paradise with perfectly crisp fries cooked in rendered pork lard. A current favorite is the Big Egg Breakfast Cart, which serves up farm-fresh egg sammies and breakfast burritos.
More favorite Portland food carts
Local libations
Nestled along "Distillery Row," socially conscious New Deal Distillery crafts vodka and other spirits from organic and local ingredients--including water drawn from the Bull Run watershed.
Full-tilt Thai
Fish sauce chicken wings and papaya salad are among Pok Pok's Southeast Asian fare--some of the most authentic this side of the Pacific.
Who wins in a food fight between Portland and Seattle?
A good cuppa Joe
Baristas at Stumptown Roasters talk of coffee beans the way the rest of the left coast talks about wine. Credited for spurring the movement of direct-trade and socially responsible roasters, Stumptown offers masterfully brewed cups of coffee at nine Portland locations.
The best doughnuts in the West
The Bacon-Maple bar, the Voodoo Doughnut (pictured, in the shape of a doll with raspberry filling and a pretzel stick), and the city's official donut, the Portland Crème, are among Voodoo Doughnut's 50+ fried and glazed creations.
Microbrews
There are dozens of microbreweries in Portland, but we like the intimacy of the tiny Upright Tasting Room, wedged into the corner of the brewery, where your arm might rest on a barrel as you sample trays of seasonal brews.
A two-wheeled Portland pub crawl
All natural
Where the four-course menu changes weekly based on fresh and seasonal deliveries from local farms, Natural Selection serves vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free meals so innovative, it even tempts enthusiastic meat eaters.
More on Natural Selection
Artisanal everything
At the lofty-rustic Meadow, one wall is lined with hundreds of hard-to-find chocolate bars, while another has floor-to-ceiling shelves stocked with every kind of salt you can imagine--chunky white flakes, rosy pink blocks, dark charcoal grains. Vases of lush flowers and a thoughtful collection of wines and bitters round out the mix.
Oregon truffles
A sandwich with PDX pride
Bunk calls its yummy Oregon albacore tuna melt the Ultimate Oregon Sandwich because everything except the condiments comes from local sources, including the ciabatta rolls, sourced from Fleur de Lis Bakery.
Portland foodie haven
Inside the Pearl District's Ace Hotel, in place of ordinary continental breakfasts and a drab hotel bar, you'll find Portland icons like Stumptown for perfectly brewed coffee and Clyde Common for an impeccable old-fashioned.
Our Insider Guide to Portland
