Saturday, March 19, 2005

When you're too lazy to cook...

Looking at the links from the article in Leslita's last post, I noticed one that is supposed to have great restaurant reviews. That made me think about places I like to go when I am too lazy to cook.

What are your favorite restaurants in the area? Here are a few of mine:

1) The Iron Horse (especially their Chicken Belize Tostada!)
2) That Thai place on 40th & Hawthorne that I can never remember the name of - Tran Thao? I'm not sure. What I do know is that their eggplant in garlic sauce is DE-LIC-IOUS!
3) Flying Pie Pizza on Division
4) Legin on 82nd & Division
5) Wink's in Troutdale (but only when I'm craving huge portions of greasy food that is really bad for me!)
6) The Steak & Chophouse downtown for cheap Happy Hour appetizers
7) Jen, MQ & Nancy's house :-)
8) Mother's
9) The Alameda Brew Pub
10) Kennedy School (though more for the cool building than the actual food - not that it's bad)

Ok. There are some to get us started. I'm sure I'll think of more later. What are your favorite restaurants? Any recommendations? (I'm looking for a good Chinese restaurant.)

9 comments:

Leslita said...

Ooh - good idea. I have not eaten at most of those places so I'll have to remember them next time I'm wondering where to go. With so many choices in this town, that happens with surprising regularity. Here is my list of favorites, not in any particular order:

1) Thai Orchid on Burnside. #1 Thai food in my opinion and you really get a lot of food for very reasonable prices.
2) Mio Sushi on NW 23rd & Johnson - great sushi and sooooo friendly!
3) Acupulco's Gold on NW 26th & Vaughn (their chile relleno almost brings tears to my eyes from the sheer yumminess)
4) Seven Stars on NW 4th & Davis (salt & pepper squid...mmmmm!). Martina, of all the places in Chinatown, I've liked this one the best. The food seems authentic and always tasty and they serve huge portions.
5) Stepping Stone on NW 25th-ish & Quimby (or Pettygrove?). Great Tofu scramble.
6) Delta Cafe - blackened catfish to die for! And cornbread!
7) Sushi Takahashi. So cheap on Wednesday nights and Saturdays - and a TRAIN!
8) Dots. They have spectacular vegan dishes
9) Escape from New York pizza - just a slab of goop - wonderful!!
10) My friend Robert's House. He is such an incredible cook and liked to throw huge elaborate dinner parties where I would very cheerfully eat things like chorizo and chicken mole until he bought a new house that needed complete remodeling. I don't know why he can't just set aside some money for feeding me more!

Martina said...

Interesting suggestions. There are a bunch in yours that I've never tried either. We used to go to Acupulco Gold a lot when I worked in the Montgomerey Park building. I will have ot try the lpace in Chinatwon. There is a Takahashi in walking distance from my house(but no train that I know of), I wonder if it's the same place.

I thought of some more places that I like:
1) Muu Muu's (good drinks and their burger with the harissa mayo is really awesome as are their fries when you get them with the garlic dressing they use on their Brutus Smash sandwich, which is also really good)
2) Popeye's - as unhealthy fried chicken goes, they kick KFC's ass, plus they have red beans and rice
3) Produce Row Cafe (but only in summer, when you can sit outside)
4) Papa Hayden
5) This little hole in the wall Thai place behind Arby's in Wilsonville, because the buy who owns it is really nice and you can get a really big curry lunch for $5.95
6) Jazzy Bagels (or something like that - it's near Main St. and has a really good bagel sandwich with corned beef and stone ground mustard) in Gresham
7) Montage, but only sometimes, because I'm a misanthrope, and sometimes the crowds are too much for me to handle :-)
I'm sure I'll think of more. I like eating out...

Martina said...
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Martina said...
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Jen said...

Man, I've been meaning to post to this question for-evah! I don't eat out a lot, but I will give it a shot. (in no particular order)

1) for when you are driving to Ikea -- East/West in Tacoma. I think they are primarily Thai, but they also have some sort of "pan asian" selections. SO GOOD. and pretty reasonable. Everything that I have had is fresh and tasty. It is right off of 1-5 (you can see it from the freeway if you know where to look) - if you are driving northbound, it is on the left. Get off on the Tacoma Mall exit - it is right across the street from the Shell station (delightful locale, I know).

2) Salvador Molly's - they pride themselves on "pirate cookin'" aka tropical/caribbean food. I don't think it's as good as that place that used to have the lime smoothies.... I can't remember the name of it... SWEETWATER'S Jam House!!! that's it. Anyway, sweetwaters is gone, so Salvador Molly's is a reasonable substitute. It's over on the Beaverton-Hillsdale hwy.

3) ole ole - this is kind of cheating because it is right by Bec's work! Anyway - I like that they have nice old-school tacos and that I can get lunch there (including a drink) for under 4 dollars.

I know there are more... we should keep adding to this topic. Handy resource!

Jen said...

PS: I removed the duplicate posts. hope that's ok with everyone.

Leslita said...

Muu Muu's IS tasty and I'm also partial to the brutus smash (that's the one with all the cheese and sautee'd mushrooms, right?). I've never been to Popeye's but David has been raving mad for their red beans and rice ever since I met him, I think. Someday I have to find out what that's all about! Salvador Molly's YESSSS! I love/hate how they give you unlimited salted peanuts on the table. Once I actually tried one of their "great balls of fire" which are supposed to be so deathly. It was, actually, ridiculously hot and I did it out of pure "provin' myself" as I figured it wouldn't taste like much. So true. I remember a moment where my brain involuntarily checked itself out of the conversation at the table because it needed to focus 125% on my mouth pain. But I ate that thing, dangit! One thing about SM's (hey, is that abbreviation on purpose?), do not attempt to go to the one in SE anywhere near a weekend. It's a frat party in there for real. One time, though, a waitress at the Bvt-Hillsdale one came out and gave me the recipe for their pickled red onions - so sweet of her!
Say, does anyone know of a single good restaurant in Salem that does not involve a major national chain?

Jen said...

Yes to the restaurant in Salem!!! It is by total freak accident of birth (long story), but I know about an Indian place that is not a chain and pretty darn tasty. Only problem - I don't know the name, or where it is exactly. Lucky for me, Bec heard me asking and has looked it up - it is most likely the India Palace, 377 Court Street NE, Salem, OR. 97301. 503-371-4808.

I thought there was another SM's! Where in SE is it?

Leslita said...

It's on 3350 SE Morrison St - don't go!!! Well, you can but not during frat boy prime time!
Thanks so much for the Salem restaurant tip!