Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I don't think he's wrong. As long as I've lived here I've been saying the same things he did. And it isn't a matter of restaurants, it's talking to people and hearing what they like and don't like. "It's too hot", even if it isn't. There IS a difference between spicy and hot. And a lot of restaurants know this so they under-spice for the masses. If I'm dining where I know they do this I ask them to spice it up a notch.
This is a fair assessment. Best Thai food I found in Portland was a place called Lemongrass (and it was legitimately good). The entire time we were ordering, this old couple that runs the place was warning us that their food was incredibly spicy. The hottest in Portland. To be very careful about saying things like "make it hot" because they'll burn our nosehairs if we say it. 3 levels of hotness, don't pick 3 whatever you do. This got me intrigued. Are they using naga jolokia? Is there a special concoction of sauce that will make me turn red in the face? I fired up my smartphone for reviews real quick, and the posters validated this. "It's SOOOOOOOO spicy!" was the general sentiment.
I still told the guy "go ahead and light my world on fire". I had to try it. I love spice. Dish came out and, while it was delicious, I would rate it as no more than a 6 or 7 on the hot scale.
And while continuing on the topic of spice and a previous poster stating that there was great Indian food in Portland - I will disagree. It's average at best. Why is it? I asked an Indian friend of mine (incidentally, works for Intel, which ties into another conversation on this board), because I didn't get it, given their large population. Wanted to know why nobody had opened a truly authentic Indian restaurant out here to cater to the Indian population. His response was something along the lines of "that's what we eat every night at home, why would we want to go out to eat it as well?" Couldn't argue with the logic.
This is a fair assessment. Best Thai food I found in Portland was a place called Lemongrass (and it was legitimately good). The entire time we were ordering, this old couple that runs the place was warning us that their food was incredibly spicy. The hottest in Portland. To be very careful about saying things like "make it hot" because they'll burn our nosehairs if we say it. 3 levels of hotness, don't pick 3 whatever you do. This got me intrigued. Are they using naga jolokia? Is there a special concoction of sauce that will make me turn red in the face? I fired up my smartphone for reviews real quick, and the posters validated this. "It's SOOOOOOOO spicy!" was the general sentiment.
I still told the guy "go ahead and light my world on fire". I had to try it. I love spice. Dish came out and, while it was delicious, I would rate it as no more than a 6 or 7 on the hot scale.
And while continuing on the topic of spice and a previous poster stating that there was great Indian food in Portland - I will disagree. It's average at best. Why is it? I asked an Indian friend of mine (incidentally, works for Intel, which ties into another conversation on this board), because I didn't get it, given their large population. Wanted to know why nobody had opened a truly authentic Indian restaurant out here to cater to the Indian population. His response was something along the lines of "that's what we eat every night at home, why would we want to go out to eat it as well?" Couldn't argue with the logic.
Just a quick fyi: India is a gigantically large country translating into MANY MANY MANY MANY different types of "Indian food". Same with Thailand, but obviously that country is smaller so the discrepancies are less pronounced when it comes to "Thai food".
I personally prefer Indian from the North East of India, but that's just me. Sometimes I leave Indian restaurants hating my food, but that's only because they have a totally different way of preparing their food per spices, technique, etc......Same goes for "Thai Food". Example: While living in NYC I found it EXTREMELY hard to find Thai food that was prepared like the Thai I was brought up on in Baltimore City (Baltimore Thai immigrants tending to hail from the SW of Thailand). Did this mean ALL the "Thai food" in NYC was bad except for the handful I found to match the type found in Baltimore city? NO. Not even close. It tends to comes down to immigration pockets.
That said, there ARE just some flat out horrible and/or badly prepared Indian/Thai restaurants. But I'm sure not ALL of Portland's Indian/Thai restaurants, especially the ones who are owned and run by people from said countries, are terrible. I'm sure it's more than the ONE or TWO you've found.
Last edited by kapetrich; 11-16-2010 at 09:55 PM..
I'm not really in a position to argue... but... without really trying to... long before I ever set foot in Portland I had heard, read, viewed blogs to the effect that: Portland was one of the premier foodie destinations... erm... what gives?? Professional food critics give Portland their unabashed praise year after year and... and... like I said... I am really not in a position to argue. Eating out is a very rare treat. I think though that I will take the opinion of professionals with a reputation to protect over career malcontents that seem to take a particular delight in arguing the contrarian viewpoint whenever possible. FWIW Lentil Garden (185th and Evergreen) serves very acceptable Indian fare.
I'm not really in a position to argue... but... without really trying to... long before I ever set foot in Portland I had heard, read, viewed blogs to the effect that: Portland was one of the premier foodie destinations... erm... what gives?? Professional food critics give Portland their unabashed praise year after year and... and... like I said... I am really not in a position to argue. Eating out is a very rare treat. I think though that I will take the opinion of professionals with a reputation to protect over career malcontents that seem to take a particular delight in arguing the contrarian viewpoint whenever possible. FWIW Lentil Garden (185th and Evergreen) serves very acceptable Indian fare.
H
Well, you have a point. But I've watched way too many movies that expert critics loved or hated and ended up with the very opposite opinions. I don't even pay attention to them anymore.
I'm not really in a position to argue... but... without really trying to... long before I ever set foot in Portland I had heard, read, viewed blogs to the effect that: Portland was one of the premier foodie destinations... erm... what gives?? Professional food critics give Portland their unabashed praise year after year and... and... like I said... I am really not in a position to argue. Eating out is a very rare treat. I think though that I will take the opinion of professionals with a reputation to protect over career malcontents that seem to take a particular delight in arguing the contrarian viewpoint whenever possible. FWIW Lentil Garden (185th and Evergreen) serves very acceptable Indian fare.
H
What the reviewers mainly rave over are places that serve Northwest cuisine, which is what Portland does best, what it's known for. Try Higgins if you ever get a chance.
The people complaining in this thread about Portland's food seem to have preferences for Asian cuisine; it's understandable that Portland's Asian restaurants may not be the best.
Last edited by Metlakatla; 11-18-2010 at 12:05 PM..
Reason: spelling
I have a daughter in Portland. She may or may not stay there. The draw to Portland is that its just like Sacramento but much cooler and less pollen. Both of those things have been creating health problems for me. On the Peninsula we have checked out Port Angeles, Sequim, and Port Townsend. Port Townsend is a neat little town but its broadband capabilities are 4 years behind, its too touristy, and WAY too liberal for me. Sequim is a town with no real character or at least not what we are looking for. Port Angeles has good broadband, its a REAL working town, great bargains for homes, and the politics is 50/50 ( I like the fair debate that results from that). But PA is far from really good city hospitals and there are other issues. But the view of the mountains and the proximity to the strait make it a really beautiful place to live.
If you think Port Townsend is WAY to liberal for you, wait until you see Portland.
Just a quick fyi: India is a gigantically large country translating into MANY MANY MANY MANY different types of "Indian food". Same with Thailand, but obviously that country is smaller so the discrepancies are less pronounced when it comes to "Thai food".
I personally prefer Indian from the North East of India, but that's just me. Sometimes I leave Indian restaurants hating my food, but that's only because they have a totally different way of preparing their food per spices, technique, etc......Same goes for "Thai Food". Example: While living in NYC I found it EXTREMELY hard to find Thai food that was prepared like the Thai I was brought up on in Baltimore City (Baltimore Thai immigrants tending to hail from the SW of Thailand). Did this mean ALL the "Thai food" in NYC was bad except for the handful I found to match the type found in Baltimore city? NO. Not even close. It tends to comes down to immigration pockets.
That said, there ARE just some flat out horrible and/or badly prepared Indian/Thai restaurants. But I'm sure not ALL of Portland's Indian/Thai restaurants, especially the ones who are owned and run by people from said countries, are terrible. I'm sure it's more than the ONE or TWO you've found.
How about stuff like Channa Saag. What side does that come from?
Oh and have you tried the India House? I thought it was ok, I got better off the Chaat house food wagon though.
How about stuff like Channa Saag. What side does that come from?
Oh and have you tried the India House? I thought it was ok, I got better off the Chaat house food wagon though.
The North of India and Pakistan, most notably. I know that really only because my roommate in grad school was from Dehli or New Dehli as I used to tease him. He ate this stuff ALL the time. Very strict vegetarian, he was, due to religion. I gotta admit. It's pretty amazingly good! You like?
Wiki stuff:
---
It is popular mainly in the Punjab region of northern-India, and also notably in the regions of Sindh and Gujarat. In Gujarat and Rajasthani areas, it is commonly cooked dry, with tangy spices.
In India, it is often eaten with a type of fried bread and is known as chole bhature. It is commonly sold by street vendors but also can be found in restaurants.
---
I've never been to Indian House. I've only been to Portland for about 8 days total...ha. Should I check it out?
And while continuing on the topic of spice and a previous poster stating that there was great Indian food in Portland - I will disagree. It's average at best. Why is it? I asked an Indian friend of mine (incidentally, works for Intel, which ties into another conversation on this board), because I didn't get it, given their large population. Wanted to know why nobody had opened a truly authentic Indian restaurant out here to cater to the Indian population. His response was something along the lines of "that's what we eat every night at home, why would we want to go out to eat it as well?" Couldn't argue with the logic.
On the other hand, there's a famous truism: If you want to want to know how to tell a good [insert ethnicity] restaurant, looks for restaurants where the majority of the patrons are [insert ethnicity]. I've met people like your Indian friend at Intel who don't go out for their own ethnic food because they eat it at home all the time, but I've met others who do go out for eat, because they don't cook, don't have anyone else at home who cooks, do cook but don't have time to do it as much as they'd like, want a break from cooking, want to try someone else's cooking as a change of pace, or just enjoy the act of going out to eat at a restaurant. As someone who likes to try ethnic cuisines, my first tactic is to ask a friend or acquaintance of that ethnicity which restaurants they recommend. Some do say, "I haven't really found a good one" or "I don't know, because I usually eat at home," but others enthusiastically recommend particular restaurants. I think a lot it just comes down to personal taste.
What I'm looking for in restaurants is good, fresh food. I like raw food, vegan and vegetarian. Are there many restaurants like that in Portland?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
