Gotham Building Tavern/Portland,OR

[syrah girl]

Has anyone tried this new place in Portland yet? We have dinner reservations and I was wondering what's good to order here. I'm waiting for a menu to be faxed to my office from the restaurant. I've been hearing great things about this place. It is one of the sister restaurants to clarklewis which we are also fans of. :)

[Jim Dixon]

The menu just changed, so some of these may not be available...

The grilled squid appetizer, house-cured boccarones, duck fat potatoes, and porchetta were all amazing. The clarklewis pasta maker, Eduardo, also makes fresh pasta daily for the Gotham, so I always get some kind of pasta. Uncle Margaret's chicken liver ragu is great, but the very simple bevette with pepper and pecorino shows off the pasta itself a little more.

My relationship with the ripe empire is complex (some of my best olive oil customers, employers of my children, and good, talented people who I'm happy to call friends), but theirs is the food I eat most often when I have to pay for it myself.

Jim

[trillium]

We went this weekend, as a thank-you dinner with some friends. It was the new June menu.

We tried the clams steamed with sopprasetta and vermouth, ravioli, the grilled octopus with chorizo and potatoes, the chicken liver ragu pasta, the gnudi, the venison and the seared duck breast.

My two favorites were the asparagus ravioli sauced in lemon and brown butter and the grilled octopus which was liberally seasoned with smoked paprika and olive oil. I would happily order both of these again. The ravioli really tasted like asparagus and were a light and happy mouth explosion. The octopus was great with the red wine we were drinking, really robust and tasty. The potatoes soak up the red oil and are almost better then the octopus.

I didn't like the clams because the vermouth really dominated the dish and made it very sweet. The sopprasetta didn't really contribute unless you ate a piece of it. I thought it was the poorest execution-wise. I personally didn't care for chicken liver ragu because it had an intense amount of fat in it. Livers are already rich enough for me, adding extra oil and butter was overkill, but I can see how other people would really love it. The gnudi were strange. When you closed your eyes it tasted like you were eating mushy American lasagna. I probably would not order those again ever. The venison was very good, the creamed chard and roasted onions and porcini were the best part of the dish, especially when you ate them with the sauces it was plated with. The venison itself was almost too mild for me (but I grew up eating wild venison) and my half of the portion had a sinew running through it which made it difficult to eat. The partner didn't have this problem. The one bite I had of the duck was very good, and the rhubarb and duck fat fried potatoes are an inspired combination.

Some people like the decor better then clarklewis, I found it a bit odd in a mountain lodge meets the Jetson's kind of way, and the lights drive me nuts because they look lopsided. The view out the windows of the sun setting over the bridge was very appreciated by our guests. There is no way in hell I'd pay $50 extra to sit in a wood cage for the night, but we actually saw some people arrive and sit in one of them as we were leaving, so it must be to some people's taste, just not mine!

regards,

trillium

[syrah girl]

I had the June menu faxed to my office yesterday and have been trying to decide on choices for us. I want to try the scallops, since I really enjoyed the ones at clarklewis awhile back. Trying to decide between the spaghettini, the asparagus ravioli or the tagiatelle with chicken liver ragu (it was highly recommended on another board.) Hmmm..... :)

The arugula goat cheese stuffed dates, pancetta and almonds sound good. What is fregola with local favas, mizuna and preserved citrus all about? I want at least one green salad, possibly the simple greens with the sherry vinaigrette. The pan seared salmon sounds very good. Goat cheese souffle with morel sauce may prove to be interesting and I know my husband would love to try the Venison. Is there Pinot Noir (local) btg there? Dessert? I want to try the chocolate-plum torte. Still there? Should be a great time! :)

[little ms foodie]

What is fregola with local favas, mizuna and preserved citrus all about? 

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Fegola is a grain size pasta, think orzo or couscous

[syrah girl]

Thanks! Can you help with bavette cacio e pepe? :)

[tsquare]

Thanks!  Can you help with bavette cacio e pepe?  :)

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thin pasta with cheese and black pepper (and butter, oil, and salt.)

[syrah girl]

Our meal at the Gotham Builiding Tavern was excellent all around. Food, service, ambiance all perfect for our one dinner in Portland. We started with the scallops and housemade blood sausage with fennel and sherry vinegar. Excellent and innovative. Then we each shared two of the pasta dishes. The asparagus ravioli with brown butter and the tagiatelle with Uncle Margret's chicken liver ragu. Both wonderful with the chicken liver ragu being my favorite.

We then moved on to the arugula goat cheese stuffed dates, pancetta and almonds. This salad was wonderful and the stuffed dates were sweet and flavorful. Our entree was the pan seared oregon salmon fennel gratin with sorrel sauce. My husband said this was one of THE best ways he has salmon prepared while in Portland. Dessert was the housemade malt ice cream with fresh raspberries, chocolate syrup and shortbread cookie. The perfect ending to our excellent meal. A glass of local Pinot Noir was also very good. I highly recommend visiting this place! :)