PDX-Fish and chips, winebars, regular bars
In addition to my "What Portland does better than SF" post, I would also like to ask about f&c, winebars, and drinking establishments. Of all the reviews I've read here and elsewhere, Halibut's and Corbett's seem to get the most positive mentions but there are still dissenters. Any recent opinions?
Favorite wine/regular bars? Thanks again.
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I have to disagree on the Hawthorne Fish House. I just ate there with my wife, and it was one the worst restaurant experiences of my life. Not only was the food terrible but it was way too expensive.
I had the sampler platter (salmon, halibut, spicy catfish and oysters) and my wife had the fried perch. Except for the oysters, which tasted a little old, all of the fish was significantly overcooked, to the point of being practically inedible. The french fries were greasy, limp and cold.
When we informed our waiter about this (which we rarely do), his response was " I'm not sure how to respond to that" which he subsequently didn't, and walked away never to return except to drop off the check. All in all a lousy way to handle what could have been a very minor problem.
I don't know if this is indicative of their normal food and service, but I won't be back to find out.
As for other fish and chips shops, I would have to agree with Extra MSG that Halibuts, while not perfect, does the best job in Portland.
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As far as "regular bars" go, there are 100 great bars in Portland. Where are you going to be, what are you looking for?
›2 Replies-
re: chickenlover
hertzdonut
Sep 8, 2006 11:50 PM
The horse brass (4534 SE Belmont) has truly legit fish and chips and it's a pretty great place to lift some pints.
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re: hertzdonut
extramsg
Sep 9, 2006 12:22 AM
I don't know. I think there are a lot of places that do a better fnc than Horse Brass and their fries are pretty terrible. Plus, if you're not a smoker, like myself, the air in there can be tortuous.
I still haven't had better than Halibut's and I keep trying. They're not perfect, but they're pretty good. I think the fries at Hawthorne/Corbett Fish House are better than the fish, but the fish is acceptable (though spendy).
Alameda Brewhouse makes good fnc and some other nice dishes. (Although they did once FUBAR a burger on me so badly it became comical even on the retry.)
I still haven't gotten to Laurelwood or Lompoc for the fnc.
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For wine bar:
Pour on NE 28th/Broadway. Friendly unpretentious but knowledgeable owner Robert. Light food menu. "Poor hour" between 4:30-6:30, selected glasses only $3, filberts only $2.Other great wine bars with more substantial food offerings: Navarre, Noble Rot.
I'll vouch for Halibut's & Corbett being both outstanding.
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patrick
Sep 6, 2006 10:28 PM
The fish and chips at Laurelwood are quite good. Two locations, one on NW 23rd and one in Hollywood.
Corbetts (and their new location, Hawthorne Fish House) serve f+c that are quite good, very fresh, juicy and tasty. But it's by no means traditional in the west/east coast sense -- they're Midwestern expats and that's what they're going for, hence their inclusion of walleye and perch on the menu. They use rice flour batter for a coating, so the batter is a paper-thin layer of crispiness. I like the halibut and the spicy catfish, and the clam chowder is pretty good. Also the fried Tillamook cheese curds are soooo tasty. Nice selection of beers. All of this is based on my experience at the Hawthorne location, since I've never been to the original Corbett's.
Burgerville has a surprisingly good halibut + chips. Panko breading.
