Loved a Vegetarian Dinner at Natural Selection

In the past couple weeks Wifey and I have made a concerted effort to eat healthier, which, if you have been reading this blog for a while, you know that healthy isn't necessarily a requirement for us when we eat out. But this is Portland, a mecca for not only just about any kind of food you may want but also vegetarian and vegan options coming out of your ears.

Last year Wifey showed me the menu at Natural Selection, a small restaurant on Alberta in northeast Portland. Chef Aaron Woo (read about him on Oregonlive here and here) puts together a weekly menu focusing on ingredients currently in season and local that is 100% vegetarian and mostly vegan and gluten-free. At the time I thought it sounded good, but really? Vegetarian? As in no meat? How good could it be, right?

Then we made our decision to eat better (more on that later) and the restaurant came up again. Oh what the hell, we decided, it definitely sounded good...we'll give it a try. So we made a reservation (highly recommended if not required) and spent Leap Day stuffing ourselves with vegetables.

Natural Selection is a small place, seating around 30-40 (I'm horrible at estimating), with an open kitchen. You step inside and the atmosphere is dark but inviting, lots of warm colors and friendly people. The kitchen, manned by Chef Woo and three others plus one person working the front desk/mini bar, is on the left and the tables the right, extending all way to the back of the space. Our table was almost to the very back, facing the impressive wine rack. (It may not show up in the pic, but if you click on it and blow it up you may be able to see the 40oz of Olde English 800 in the top right - there has to be a story there because it absolutely doesn't fit anything else in the restaurant.)

The menu is comprised of eight dishes (the one we tried is below), divided into two possible four-course meals, one being completely vegan. The prices vary, but there are two starters, two salads, two entrees, and two desserts. You can mix and match or, if you want to try more things, you can order one of each for $35 (this is about a $11 savings from ordering all four a la carte, the price of the first course). Optional wine pairings/flights are available as well as several other wines and a limited amount of mixed drinks.

We were hungry and everything looked good...so screw it - we ordered two four-course meals. That means literally one of everything on the menu. Yes, each of these dishes was pretty healthy on their own, but the sheer amount of food we ate makes it not necessarily a healthy meal. Shrug. (Click on the pic below to read the menu.)

We started off with a non-alcoholic mixed drink - a cherry fizz with ginger ale, cherry juice and a dash of vanilla. Quite tasty. Then we were presented with an amuse bouche of pita topped with a chickpea and chickpea puree (or, hummus). This picture didn't turn out, but it was a tasty beginning to the evening.

The first dish was black truffle and tagliatelle pasta with brussels sprouts, baby turnips and crispy shallots.

I had never had anything with shaved truffles before - amazing. This "never had ___ before - amazing" became a theme of the evening. This was probably the least healthy dish of the night because the sauce was a little on the creamy side - nope, not vegan - but the truffles added so much depth.

The other half of the first course was a spring leek and white bean soup with parsnip, thyme, red onion and lemon. We aren't entirely sure what the item in the middle was, but it was nice and crunchy and contained whole chickpeas. Also damn good.

The second course began with this treviso and kohlrabi salad with medjool dates, pistachio, Meyer lemon and green olives. Treviso was something new to us - I know Treviso as a city in Italy - and while the greens were bitter, the lemon balanced it nicely.

The other salad was a citrus and frisee with arugula, fennel, goat cheese and radish. Again, perfect balance between the sweet of the oranges and the bitter of the greens. And that cheese? Oh my. I could eat that all night long.

Next came the entrees. This is a black trumpet (new to me) and sunchoke hash with butternut squash, rapini and roasted peppers. The squash is wrapped up inside the cabbage leaf.

The other entree featured pine nut crusted cauliflower with nettle pistou, quinoa, carrots and saffron oil. I am on record as not being a fan of cauliflower, but this was really, really good. And the quinoa? This was another new food to us we both enjoyed. Might have to pick some up. Everything in this dish just worked. I will say, though, the knives we were given with our meal did a poor job of cutting either the cabbage leaf or the cauliflower. And yes, that's my worst criticism of the night.

After the entrees we were served a light palate cleanser, a pomegranate and lime granita. Pretty, isn't it? And tart. Wow that was tart. Consider my palate cleansed.

It's worth mentioning that you will not get a fast meal, but that's by design. We were there for two hours from start to finish and while that seems like a long time, the pace of the dishes coming out seemed just about right. There was a little downtime between each dish, but we could watch everyone at work in the kitchen, something we find interesting. In other words, plan to relax and enjoy your meal, especially if go the four-course route.

Then it was time for dessert. At this point were both pretty full, but the desserts are on the small side, though that doesn't mean they are simple by any means. This orange and rhubarb cake with white chocolate mousse and vanilla sauce? Amazing. It also came with a slice of blood orange, some toasted walnuts, and a hollow chocolate stick. So good.

The other dessert was cinnamon and fennel beignets with Meyer lemon curd, creme fraiche and marmalade (tart, not sure what the fruit was). This dish wasn't marked on the menu as vegetarian. The beignets were so light and fluffy and everything together was simply amazing. Have I said that enough yet?

We're converts. Well, not to being vegetarians - no chance of that - but to the fact vegetarian food can not only be tasty but also every bit as intricate and flavorful as any other kind of meal. Heck, maybe even more so. Wifey and I agreed we'd go back to Natural Selection in an instant, though four courses probably isn't necessary - that was a lot of food. The service was friendly and good, we never felt forgotten (this happens to us a ridiculous amount of times, as if we are ninjas and they can't see us or something), and the food was just plain excellent.

So go visit Chef Woo's restaurant of awesomeness and see what we mean. Us? We'll probably go back later in the spring when berries start to come into season to see what he'll do with those.

I Paid $17 For A Burger And Would Do It Again

We aren't huge on holidays around here and usually choose to celebrate them in our own way. When Valentine's Day comes most years we just stay home and cook, avoiding the mess of traffic and packed restaurants, but sometimes we just decide to move the day. February 15th is a fantastic day to celebrate because most of the time restaurants are much less busy. This year we decided to spend our annual obligatory Hallmark celebration of love at Paley's Place on 21st and Northrup in NW Portland.

This was our second trip to Paley's, the first being part of Dining Month Portland last June. We went specifically for two reasons: desserts created by amazing pastry chef Kristen Murray and to try out the burger. This burger is only on the bistro and bar menu (why I still am not sure - not fancy enough for the main dining room?) - which really means bar and bistro area, plus the porch area visible in the picture below - so I made a reservation for the bistro at 7:30pm. Paley's is one of the few places in Portland a reservation is just about a necessity, no matter what day of the year.

Front of the restaurant. It's the main part, up the short stairs. Beneath is a spa of some kind.

The restaurant was full like it is every night. You know what I said earlier about the day after Valentine's being generally less busy? That doesn't apply to Paley's. Continually regarded as one of the best restaurants in Portland it's a destination spot for out of towners as well as locals because of the great service that goes with the great food.

After being seated we were brought some bread (from Ken's Artisan Bakery just down the street and one of the few things not made completely in house) and an amuse bouche. It's hard to tell from the picture, but these tiny squares of a layered potato dish topped with romesco were on six-inch metal stands. And tasty.

Considering one of our entrees was going to be the burger I thought it a good idea to order a vegetable side dish, so I chose Brussels sprouts cooked with bacon and creme fraiche for $8. I tried to be healthy. Really.

All of the flavors were excellent. We typically prefer smaller sprouts because then the core is smaller, but these were very well cooked and the bacon pieces (more on that later) provided wonder punches of smoky flavor.

For my entree I ordered the winter vegetable cassoulet. It comes served in a stone pot (Le Creuset or something similar) and is HOT. It's not much to look at, but included large white heirloom beans, Brussels sprouts, beets, and a couple other vegetables for $18.

At first glance it seems small, but spoon some of that out onto your plate and see the size of the beans and you realize it's quite hearty. In fact, this came home and was part of three more meals. That makes the price tag seem dirt cheap.

Then came the burger. It's not cheap - $15, plus $1 each more for bacon or cheese (blue or gruyere) - but it does also come with a simple green salad with a citrus vinaigrette, house-made ketchup and pickled vegetables. The meat is ground to order, the buns baked in house, the mustard aioli is also made by Paley's, and the $1 piece of (yes, house-made) bacon is closer to a slab of ham than a strip of bacon you get most places. Heck, Burger King charges more to put bacon on a burger (I think - been awhile). Besides, if you are willing to pay $15, why not $17? We chose the gruyere this time.

And would you look at this thing? Are you drooling yet? Unless specified it's served medium-rare; we asked for medium.

The meat is loosely packed, not a tight patty, and is a well seasoned burger. The aioli, a little ketchup, the grilled onion, the cheese, the slab of bacon/ham...it's perfect. This may very well be the best burger we've ever had and regardless of anything else at the restaurant we would return just for this. We didn't order the side of fries but should have - the couple at the next table did and they looked fantastic, matching up with other reports we've read online. Next time.

Now it was time for dessert. Kristen Murray is one of the highest regarded pastry chefs in the region, but unfortunately for Paley's she is leaving at the end of the month to strike out on her own and open her own place, one at a location as yet unchosen on a timeframe as yet undefined, though supposedly she wants to open by fall of this year. Of course we were getting dessert.

Wifey chose the creme brulee (all desserts are $9).

The crust was very evenly toasted, easy to crack with a spoon without being so thick as to cause issues. Inside was thick, creamy, Tahitian vanilla yumminess. Is this one or the one at Le Pigeon better? Might be whichever one we've had last. I'm not really sure why they all seem to use Tahitian vanilla beans, rather than Madagascar ones. Is there a cost issue? I'd love to try this made with Madagascar beans. Or, better yet, I want a tasting flight of creme brulees made with Madagascar, Tahitian, Hawaiian and Mexican vanilla.Yum!

I chose a passionfruit creme caramel, which came with cara cara oranges and churros.

The passionfruit added a nice balance to the creme caramel, while the acid in the oranges complemented the entire thing quite well. One bite with churro, orange, and creme caramel was sublime.

All in all it really wasn't that bad of a deal, $61 for two entrees, two desserts and a side. When considering this meal really is one of the best we've ever had I'd call it a steal. Plus, the staff is extremely friendly without being overbearing and Paley's obviously puts a lot of emphasis on this aspect, something far too few restaurants in Portland seem to care about at all. Front of the house is run by Kimberly Paley while Vitaly (an Iron Chef America winner) runs the kitchen. Each of them, even on a night when the restaurant is packed, take the time to come out and talk to diners and always have a ready smile. The pair have also penned a book that is part stories of how they got to where they are and part recipes; we picked it up at the library to see what it's about and plan on buying a copy (hey, it has the burger recipe...).

If it's not clear by now, we can't recommend Paley's Place enough. The food and presentation is fine dining, but the people are down to earth. We can't wait to return.

Well Crafted Brunch at Ned Ludd

Ned Ludd, a restaurant in northeast Portland calling itself an "American Craft Kitchen," has been on our list of restaurants to try for quite a while. Each time we came close to choosing it, though, something else looked just a little bit more interesting. Part of that is because it's really difficult to nail down just what kind of restaurant it is. They are big on local and sustainable ingredients and there are influences of many different cuisines in their menus.

This past Saturday we decided to try it out; many pictures of dishes from the restaurant looking fantastic convinced us it was time to go. Here are a couple pictures of the menu and it help to illustrate why Ned Ludd is so hard to categorize (click the pic for a larger version).

Located on NE Martin Luther King Boulevard in a tin shed of a building set back from the street, the restaurant doesn't exactly announce itself. The name over the door blends in with the restaurant's colors. There is a courtyard out front with picnic tables and various plantings, making it seem like a pleasant place for a summer dinner outside (which sounds like a reason in itself to go back). The inside of Ned Ludd is small, seating maybe 40 diners or so, with some tables and some bar seating. The kitchen is open and dominated by a brick oven which keeps the place toasty warm.

On a Saturday morning around 10:30 there was only one other couple there when we arrived, but it started to fill up the closer it got towards noon. The decor is eclectic, a mixture of rustic country with rich curtains giving it a very welcoming feel, as if the chef was inviting you into his home. Large windows let in copious amounts of light.

We decided to start off with two smaller plates from the "bits" section. The first was the deck crisped muffin with honey and butter for $6.

Served on a wooden cutting board, one well loved in a good way, what it looks like is a quartered muffin that has been burnt, but it didn't taste that way at all. It was crisp, as promised, but it was very, very moist inside with a variety of sweet and savory flavors, including some apple, cloves and cinnamon. The cup in the picture is filled with warm honey and the butter flecked with large flakes of salt. The muffin didn't even need he accompaniments, but they definitely didn't hurt. We've never eaten a six-dollar muffin before, but this was fantastic.

Next up was the pork rilletes with mustard and volkhorn brot (that's the bread) for $9. It also came with some slices of pickled apple.

The rillette was smooth, rich, flavorful, and easily spread on the bread. The jar is topped with a layer of fat, which our waitress explained is the traditional way to store a rillette. See the crosshatch design in the top? That's an example of the attention to detail you find at Ned Ludd. It has to be a challenge to top something with a quarter-inch layer of fat and have it look appetizing, but they did it. This was fantastic. The mustard wasn't too hot and worked well with the bread and the pork. The apple also was a nice palate cleanser, though I don't feel it was necessary.

Wifey's main course was the "bird in a nest" over meat ragu for $13. The nest is a polenta cake, with a circle carved out and replaced with an egg.

There's the egg.

Simply put, this was amazing. The polenta cake by itself had plenty of flavors, not just corn, and had a nice crunch. The egg was cooked perfectly. And that ragu? Oh my - melt-in-your-mouth goodness. I don't know how long that had been reducing in the brick oven, but it's totally worth the time.

I went with the "hangtown bake" of eggs, leeks, bacon, mushrooms and oysters served with toast for $14.

Again, all of the flavors perfectly complemented each other. I don't even like mushrooms, but these were tasty and added a level of umami to the dish that was just right. The oyster pieces melted in your mouth and the bacon chunks added a rich, salty profile. These eggs were also done just right.

That's quite a bit of well prepared food that added up to a spendy brunch. While the cost was more than I would typically prefer to spend for brunch, I can't say any of this was overpriced. Considering the attention to detail and exceedingly high quality of the meal, I can only compliment Ned Ludd on a job well done. The service was good also. I will absolutely recommend Ned Ludd to others and can't wait to go back for dinner. Maybe in the summer we can and eat outside, with Misaki curled up at our feet.

Christmas Eve Dinner at Simpatica

It's probably been well established on this blog that Wifey and I are big fans of Simpatica Dining Hall, despite the fact it's a communal dining experience which is not really our thing at all. We had an excellent dinner with a burger as the main course back in 2009, had a great brunch there in 2010, and enjoyed the fruits of Simpatica's labor last summer at the Forest Park benefit we attended.

Each time the food has been at minimum solid and at times spectacular, so this year for Christmas Eve we wanted to do something a little special and chose Simpatica as our dining choice. The meal featured an entree of smoked prime rib and cost $45 per person before tip and drinks.

The first course was a French onion soup with a gruyere crouton (more a chunk of toast than a crouton).

One of the best I've ever had, if not THE best. The broth was thick and rich, and each mouthful of cheesy bread was simply perfect. As you can tell, not the prettiest dish ever, but I'll give it a pass because of the taste. Also, super damn hot. I think I burned my tongue. That's hard to get around when you pull a soup out of the oven like that, but I would think it could have been held back just a few more minutes to let the soup cool. I'm not patient enough - plus I was really hungry at this point - to wait when the food is put in front of me. Save me from myself!

Next up was the salad course - arugula and pear with parsnip crisps and creamy champagne vinaigrette.

It was...fine. Nothing special. The pieces were decent all on their own but didn't seem to make much sense together. And neither of us are big fans of bitter greens. Moving on.

The main course was the smoked prime rib - pecan-smoked Piedmontese prime rib with Marchand de Vin, plus Yukon potato gratin and creamed kale.

The above picture was Wifey's plate, and the one below was mine.

Um, I know prime rib is usually a tad pink, but each of these seemed just a tad bloody to me. Also, look at the flesh of each piece - hers is way fattier, and not in a good way. Much of that was gristle. One would think our dishes were cut in line, but the two pieces of meat don't match up at all.

Plus, OhMyGod those are the biggest chunks of meat I've ever seen on a plate! While it helps add value for the money, it was unnecessary. We took about 2/3 of it home. When the servers brought out these plates jaws were dropping all over the room at the sheer size of the chunk of meat. It reminded me of an episode of Top Chef this current season when a contestant, tasked with creating a dish based on her childhood, served a gigantic ribeye that filled the entire plate because that's how meals were like where she grew up in Wisconsin. Holy hell the size was unnecessary. Give me half the meat and take $5 off each meal price. Wow.

The flavor was actually really good. The smokiness came through very nicely and, the pieces not still bleeding, were really good. The creamed kale was fine, nothing special. The potatoes were overdone and dry, moreso in Wifey's serving than mine, which makes me think they weren't cooked equally.

I will say the prime rib we took home was very good - after it was pan fried to add sear on all sides and then cut into strips. We were able to get five more meals out the leftovers.

The last dish was dessert, an apple tart with salted caramel ice cream.

I would not order this ever again. The apples were dry and overcooked, the crust had no moisture to provide any balance to the overcooked apples, and the ice cream was, well, salty. We both love salted caramels, but now this is two different servings of salted caramel ice cream (the other was at Molly Moon's in Seattle) where the salt factor was ridiculous. Salted caramels taste 95% of caramel - unless they are covered in chocolate as well, then it's a balance - with just a hint of salt. A couple flakes. This was salt ice cream with the flavor of caramel; the proportions are way out of wack. I'd love to see the recipe and how much salt is actually called for - then reduce it to a quarter of the amount. And add more caramel flavoring. We've made caramel ice cream at home - a standard vanilla frozen custard recipe mixed with Alma's caramel sauce - and the flavors are so much more pleasing to the tongue.

In the end we both left a little disappointed. One dish was fantastic (the soup), one was good but had drawbacks (the prime rib), one was just there (the salad), and one really left a bad taste (the dessert). Considering the final bill was three digits (added one glass of the suggested red wine - a 2007 Triennes Vin de Pays from France - to pair with the beef), it seems a little ridiculous, doesn't it? (By the way, if you go to Simpatica for dinner, allow 3-3.5 hours for the entire meal. I thought maybe two, but everyone is served a course at once, meaning you have to wait for everyone to finish the previous one. We typically eat our meals and chat a little bit, so it's not up to our speed. Not good or bad, just something to know before going.)

I'm not really sure what to make of this. Is Simpatica losing their touch? Or were all the inconsistencies and failures in this meal an aberration, perhaps the product of the holidays? Who knows. What I do know is that for the price I expect to see good execution and good flavors in all aspects of the dishes and that didn't happen. If I can get a good meal for half the price or less, even with multiple dishes and dessert, at any number of places around the city - plus not have to share my table with strangers I really have no interest in interacting with - I am much more likely to do that.

A successful meal will make you want to return, especially given a restaurant's reputation and pricing. When you are in the upper tier of both, as Simpatica is, you never want to give a customer a reason to question whether or not you are getting a good value and experience.

Sadly, after some very good meals in the past, I'm left questioning if a return to Simpatica is worth my money and time.

Paley's Place For Dining Month Portland

Last week Wifey and I decided to take advantage of this pretty cool thing Portland does called Dining Month Portland. Participating restaurants offer up special menus - appetizer, entree, and dessert - for $25. Usually this is a good deal, but it depends on the restaurant, of course.

The idea of Dining Month Portland is to encourage out of town visitors to check out the restaurants, but - and this is just a guess on my part - I think locals partake in it just as much or even more.

Paley's Place, in Northwest Portland, is one of the top restaurants in the city, with owner Vitaly Paley recently appearing on Iron Chef America (and winning the radish challenge) and also authoring a book. Paley's prides itself on sustainable, local food done with a French twist (Paley's background).

The restaurant also does half and full portions of many of its entrees, something we love because it means we get to taste more things without getting stuffed.

With the Dining Month special it worked out the dessert was free based on the menu list prices. The offered a salad, a dessert, and an entrees. We ordered another entree and another dessert and shared everything.

We were started off with some fresh bread from Ken's Artisan Bakery, which is just down the street.

Then came the salad.

George's Gathered Greens - with lemon and extra virgin olive oil

This may be the best salad I've ever eaten. The lemon aided a whole new dimension for me. See those white things on top? Radishes. He's good with them.

The first entree, the one as part of the Dining Month menu, was a half-order of grilled pork shoulder.

Grilled pork shoulder with fava beans, raab, and apple cider pork jus

Again, this was excellent. The vegetables on the side were just as tasty as the pork, and apple cider jus provided the right amount of sweetness.

Our other entree was a half order of grilled salmon. Our waiter - who was very, very helpful and courteous - told us it came from the Quinalt Indian Nation in northern Washington (yes Twilight fans, the same Quinalt, but no, I don't think our fish was caught by a shapeshifter/werewolf), on the Olympic peninsula. Apparently rules state 90% of the fish caught there must stay with the nation and Paley's has a deal for a decent chunk of the final 10%. Our fish was caught by a fisherman named Sonny, so - thanks Sonny!

Quinalt River grilled salmon with pesto, braised leeks, roasted potatoes and turnips, and greens.

The skin on this fish was amazing - crunchy and salty. Wifey doesn't like fish skin so I ate the whole thing. And it was heaven.

Here's another view. The fish was cooked medium rare, but the flavors were excellent. I've never put pest on salmon - might have to try that at home.

Then it was time for dessert. Paley's pastry chef is Kristen Murray, also widely regarded as one of the best in the city. Since we love our desserts, we were excited to try her treats. This toasted coconut cake came with the Dining Month menu.

Toasted coconut cake with salted butter ice cream and pineapple

We weren't sure about salted butter ice cream, but it was done with a light touch and worked perfectly with the coconut cake, served warm.

Wifey ordered the chocolate souffle cake after agonizing between that and the creme brulee.

Chocolate souffle cake with toasted hazelnuts and honey-vanilla ice cream

Everything on this plate complemented everything else, even the hazelnuts - and neither of us are super excited about nutty things.

My only gripe is I was still a tad hungry at the end, which just meant we should have chosen the full order of salmon. Duly noted for next time - and there will be a next time. Paley's Place is one of those Portland restaurants that can't be missed. (And we might have to try another restaurant or two before Dining Month is over.)