Lauro Kitchen

[nwells]

My mom's been wanting to go to Lauro Kitchen. Anybody out there been yet? I can imagine a good night of Mediterranean dining and Pix for dessert. If we end up going, I'll post later. Would love to hear from others...

[Jim Dixon]

I haven't been, but several friends who live in SE have been raving about it. Give us a report.

Jim

[Joni]

Please go soon and write a review!! I am planning on going to Pix's Magic Show on 9/29 and need a place for a light bite before !

[nwells]

I did go to Lauro Wednesday night. Unfortunately, small scale tragedy occurred and I have had no Internet access for to days...

Dinner was very good. I want to rave about the place because I really liked the people and the experience, but I can't honestly say that the food knocked my socks off. Ultimately, the best thing for me about Lauro is the atmosphere. It is a beautiful and spacious environment and they are making a very purposeful effort at being neighborhood/family friendly. They seem to understand who their long-term clientele is likely to be. We went early (6 pm) every table was full and there were maybe five tables with kids. The odd and wonderful thing was that every single child was quiet and well behaved (including mine--which was a blessing). We sat at the counter in front of the open kitchen. Actually, right in front of the chef/owner's grill station (can't remember his name). My daughter was thrilled to watch the action and the chef was nice enough to engage her, and us, a bit. He heard me say that I was interested in a burger, but knew I should be more adventerous on the first try, he agreed and I followed his advice.

We started with an heirloom tomato salad and the special sardine appetizer. The sardine was great, but here's the catch. I'm a dummy and have never tried sardines. I asked the waitress if it was served boned and/or was hard to eat. She had no idea and asked the host. He had no idea and asked the sous chef. Who, in Spanish, said they did have bones and showed us. I decided to try it anyway. When we got our starters I discovered that the bones were so miniscule that they were just eaten with the fish. My daughter LOVED the sardine so much that I barely got any. The tomato salad was simple but wonderful. I very much appreciated them leaving the harvest unencumbered.

For entrees, we ordered the lamb kebab with rice pilaf, a special trout stuffed with housemade sausage and wrapped in pancetta, and a mushroom and gorgonzola pizza (there was no specific kids' menu, which I can easily live with). I hope they call Su-Dan soon because my lamb was virtually flavorless. The figs which were cooked with it were wonderful and the rice was good, if a bit uninspired. My mom liked her dish and loved the sausage stuffing. IShewould have preferred more focus on that, but said that she thought part of her problem was that she isn't used to eating fish skin. The pizza was good. All of the portions were way too big. I hope that they pare them down a bit in the future. Mom requested a suggestion for a glass of wine to go with her trout. She said she would do white or red, but that she didn't like dry. The waitress said, "I have no idea which of these are dry, but some people like this one..."

Mom ordered a port infused flan for dessert. My mom and daughter both thought it was so good that they were battling spoons. At one point mom literally tried to trick daught into being distracted with a cookie--it didn't work.

At the end, I asked the waitress, who stated that she would be collecting the bill from us, if they took checks. She said that she had absolutely no idea. It wasn't a big deal, but it reinforced the idea that they could stand a bit more training in general. What is the food like? What's great? What are policies? Nothing huge, just a pet peeve I guess.

All in all, I commend Lauro for an interesting menu, beautiful decor, wonderful attitude toward family dining, and good food. I hope their service gets a bit, but not too, polished, and that they reconsider portions. By the way, our total bill before tip was $64 with one glass of wine. Not a cheap family meal in my book, but a really nice night out in which my kid felt included, not just a tag along. As I read over this I think maybe we just had a nice, but not skilled, waitress and that I shouldn't lump everybody together. I will definitely go back, but not until I've tried lots of other new and enticing spots.

[pitti]

I went there tonight for the first time. The waitress was knowledgeable and able to answer questions about the food. I ordered the soup and stuffed chicken. The soup was too salty for me and I am usually a salt lover. The chicken was quite good as was my friends pasta with clams. The high point was the dessert- fresh berries with zabaglione.

The meal was fairly expensive including the soup, dessert, and coffee. The meal was enjoyable but didn't compare with those at my favorite restaurants.

[ExtraMSG]

So what's the range for the entrees, then (in price)?

[pitti]

Prices for entrees was in the thirteen to seventeen dollar range. They are all a-la-carte. Pizza was about eight dollars.

[ExtraMSG]

Went to Lauro for the first time tonight. What a pleasant neighborhood gem it is. Got second dessert at Pix across the street afterwards too. Couple of hogs, me and my wife, but very contented ones.

It's nice inside with high ceilings and attractive chic lighting, an open bar with a large mirror behind, huge windows to the street, soft benches facing comfortable chairs for most of the tables, and an open kitchen with seatings facing the wood oven as well.

I like the menu. The highest priced entree was $17. The highest priced appetizer was $8. Plus they have a -- what you might call -- blue collar section with pasta, pizza, and burgers, though the pizzas sound very interesting, things like Linguica and Roasted Peppers for $9. The highest priced item on this section was only $11. And I saw a pizza. It was probably about the size of a standard medium pizza, maybe 12" or more. Very fair price.

The back wall next to the bar is essentially a huge chalkboard. On one side of the doorway are specialty drinks, on the other are the appetizer and entree specials.

My wife ordered the "canja" chicken soup with rice, lemon, and mint ($5), a special of ahi tuna with Sardinian cous cous, tomatoes, and fennel topped by a green olive, caper, and lemon preserve relish ($16), and the pudim flan "Portuguese port custard" ($5). I had the crispy calamari with Portuguese piri piri sauce ($6), a special of boccacia rock fish with winter root-truffle oil puree topped by a chanterelle sauce ($15), and the Marsala poached pears with zabione ($5).

The soup was interesting and light. The chicken was tender and juicy and the flavors well-balanced. My wife really loved it. I could see it as a wonderful palate cleanser soup in between courses in a tasting menu. The ahi tuna was cooked perfectly, grilled nicely on the outside, rare in the middle. It had no off flavor whatsoever. It was a pretty big portion. I'd say at least 8 ozs. I like the large Sardinian cous cous that seems to be in vogue. It has substance and holds up to big flavors. There was an absolute ton of it on the plate coated with a tangy tomato sauce. The sauce didn't have much depth to it, but it was okay. The relish, however, was very good, a nice mix of briny, sweet, and tart that broght the fish alive. The flan was very good. I can't imagine something being more smooth and creamy. One of the best textures I think I've ever encountered. The flavors were somewhat muted, but had to be because you're essentially just getting one thing. There was no sauce, just a couple cookies along side. I would have preferred some texture variations and options, but I know this often happens with pot de cremes and the like. In its limited scope, though, it was excellent.

My calimari was probably the most disappointing item of the night and somewhat of a failure. The calamari themselves were way oversalted and I don't like the coating they use. It tastes almost processed, like they're coasted in ground Doritos or something. Maybe they toss them in salt and MSG. The sauce was good, though, a vinaigrette, really, with a little spice to it. If I had three times as much sauce I could have drowned out some of the salt (and I like more salt than many people). My fish was fantastic, though. It reminded me in many ways of monkfish it was so meaty and juicy. There was no off flavor at all. I'm hypersensitive to that and can't stand things like salmon or trout even when they're at their best often. The winter vegetables were really good and the truffle oil enhanced them perfectly. The chanterelle sauce had a nice rich flavor with large slices of sauteed chanterelles. The portions, again, were very generous. I liked my dessert better than my wifes. The pears had a nice firmness to them while still being able to be cut with a spoon. They weren't near as alcohol soaked as I expected, which was nice. That is often overdone. The zabione had a wonderful light creamy texture and came with two twisted flaky sticks that were fun to dip into the flavorful froth and then crunch. The desserts are simple, but good.

If I didn't have so many promising restaurants to visit in Portland, this is one I would definitely put on a rotation. I was very impressed and its a great value. The servers were very helpful in their recommendations, although I'm not sure if I could have gone wrong.

Afterwards, we got second dessert at Pix. (We were stuffed but our car was parked right in front of Pix and the dessert case in the window called to us.) Picked up a Tart Menage a Trois: almond cream, chocolate ganache, and orange vanilla bean creme brulee all piled into a butter tart shell for $5. Very good combination of flavors (we ate it later during our video rental, Legally Blond 2 -- the tart was much better than the movie).

[Coop]

Where is this place? Seattle, Spokane, Portland, or Honolulu?

[ExtraMSG]

Portland.

[mklynch]

Been a few times and loved the calimari!

The clams and pork sounded strange, but was delicious.

Ate off the specials board for everything else and was very happy.

The wine list is very reasonalbe - good wines for under $30.

Get there early - before 6:00 as they don't take reservations and fill up quick.

[ExtraMSG]

Did my description of the calamari seem way off? I wasn't very kind to it, but you love it.