SarahWS

Ken's Artisan Bakery has been advertising seasonal tarts and pastry on the classical radio station. I believe they mentioned cranberry, apple, pear, and pumpkin as the flavors. I've always found Ken's tarts to be very good. Sarah

I would avoid Mio Sushi. The location on Hawthorne serves okay salads and entrees, but the sushi is not very interesting. Everytime I've been I've wondered why the fish was so tasteless. There are much better places in Portland; Syun, and Yoko's are all better than Mio Sushi. Sarah

I have to say that I like Burgerville much much better than any of the other chains in the NW or even In-N-Out. What's great about Burgerville is their wide menu. I can get a very healthy turkey burger, an out-of-this world fresh berry milkshake (or the smoothie so I can actually finish it), grilled chicken burger, good salads (although the dressings could be better), sweet potato fries, the best onion rings, and even a strawberry shortcake. Does any other NW chain (or independent) match their level of quality at that price point? No. In-N-Out does fries (usually undercooked to the point of rawness), 2 types of burgers, and very standard milkshakes. I do love their burgers, especially the Double-Double Animal Style, but the rest of the food is SO ordinary or just plain bad. Burgerville on the otherhand offers a variety of good local food at fast food prices. The difference in beef quality between their burger and the other chains is amazing (you can see the filler and crap in the other chains' burgers). They offer local cheeses, Rogue River Blue and Tillamook Cheddar! All their sandwiches have real lettuce, tomato, and sometimes pickle on them. They make huckleberry milkshakes, relying solely on gathered berries. Unlike any of the other chains, it is possible to eat a wide variety of healthy foods at Burgerville. You have the option of grilled chicken, 2 flavors of Boca burgers, the grilled turkey burger, a turkey sandwich, or 2 different salads. Their seasonal shakes are all available as smoothies. McDonalds is starting to move towards this, but Burgerville has been doing this for the past 5 years. Yes, it is fast food. But we all need to wake up and realize that slow food is not an option for everyone, especially for every meal. It is an art to sell good, healthy (and non-healthy), local food made for a drivethrough window and sold at the same prices as national chains. I, for one, am proud that Burgerville is showcasing the Northwest's food for those who would never eat at Higgins, Caprial's, clarklewis, or Wildwood. I wonder how many kids have only experienced local NW produce like marionberries, walla walla onions, or sweet potatoes through Burgerville. I guess my argument is that Americans will eat fast food anyway due to time and financial pressure. Isn't better if they eat Burgerville with healthy choices and NW products than Burger King or McDonald's? Sarah

I have to add one more contender, Higgins. When Higgins is in its groove, its is one of the best restaurants in the United States. However, I have had a few merely great meals there in the last year. It has a fabulous wine list and a strong emphasis on local cuisine. A visit to their bar for lunch is worth it, as the pastrami sandwich is out of this world good. Higgins, after all, was called the best restaurant in the US by Ruth Reichl, the editor of Gourmet. Despite the hype, I eat there everytime my family hits town and can say that the food is always incredibly creative, fresh, and real. The desserts are always better that what your grandmother could make on her best day, the service is attentive and professional, and the food is always wonderful. I believe a gastronomic tour of Portland would be incomplete without Higgins. For some ethnic places, I would have to recommend staying away from PDX Chinese unless you are desperate because it is way below the quality of Seattle or San Francisco, but Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, Korean, Southern/Louisiana, and Italian are ably represented in Portland. I've actually think the Southeast Asian food found in PDX is better than that found in San Francisco. Indian is also weaker than the Bay Area (especially Silicon Valley) standard. For specifics, check out the WWeek guides.