Mandrian Cove (Grade C to C+)

Date of last visit: October 2010
Address: 111 SW Columbia Street, #1, Portland Oregon
Phone: 503 - 222-0066
Hours: M-F 10:45 to 9:00  Sat Noon to 9:45;  Sunday 4PM to 9PM
Link:

General Impressions of the place itself::  I have driven past this place 100s of times and never thought to go it, But the other night we were headed to the Variable Quandary--and it was not open yet..so we walked down the street to the Mandarin Cove, a restaurant located at the base of a large office building. It appears to be a glassed in porch -- and when you enter the inside-outside feel of the glass wall and ceiling is maintained with lots of plants--sort of an old fashion fern bar feel with standard old fashion Chinese Restaurant chairs and tables.  This is a functional place that is a little run down at the heels (entry carpet needs replacing, etc) But we were seated right away and given an extensive menu.  
What we ordered:  Szechwan Beef and Double Cooked Pork + rice.
Things we liked and disliked: The food came very fast..and it was as good as any other Chinese Restaurant we have found in Portland. But then we have lived here for nearly 10 years and so far we have not found 'a favorite' Chinese Restaurant. We HAVE looked for one. But so far we've not found oen that stands aboive the crowd.  Mandrian Cove is just fine--but it is not special
Number in our party: 2
Total Bill: approx $20 -- good value
Recommended? With a Five Star Scale - and Five being perfect - we rate this place? 2+

BELLY (Grade B)

Date of last visit: October 2010
Address: 3500 MLK Blve, Portland Oregon
Phone:  503-249-9764
Hours: Tues to Sat 5pm to closing; Sunday 10 to 2
 Link:

General Impressions of the place itself: Open space, clean lines, slightly aging but comfortable. Open kitchen so you can watch them cook.  One long bar-motif seating (good for happy hour) Lots of tables but not crowded.  A bit on the hip side, but family friendly too,
What we ordered: I had an order of "Spiced beet salad, pear bourbon vinaigrette, chevre" -- It was tasty but it certainly was NOT spicy (spiced v spicy..humm.. a little communication problem here) and it was way too much for one person, so it would be a good dish to share. And we both had the "Pan-roasted scallops, crispy chanterelle risotto, warm savoy cabbage slaw, apple cider beurre blanc" Beautiful presentation and double delicious. Also I had, from the bar a "Pancho Villa’s Revenge.. a house infused orange tequila, papaya puree, lime juice, jalapeno salted rim, rocks."  It was ok and it had a little jalapeno kick. 
Things we liked and disliked: Overall a vey nice place but the 'fresh baked bread" seemed to be overcooked. We like crusty bread but this was very, very crusty--almost all crust. Alsom, three silver dollar pices of this bread were thrown (litterally) on a place and dropped off at our talbe after a pretty long wait.  Kinda tacky. Then the beets realy didn have any spicy to them...but the Scallops made up for it all. They were perfection.

Number in our party: 2
Total Bill: about $75
Recommended? yes..but it is a just a little spend
With a Five Star Scale - and Five being perfect - we rate this place? 3 to 3+

Super Dog, Grade C-

Date of last visit: August 2010
 Address: 1438 SW Park Ave, Portland, Oregon
Phone: (503) 243-5045
Hours: not sure -- better call to check
Link:

General Impressions of the place itself:  fast food joint on the park row--small, a few tables inside, a few tables out front --order at the counter. People eating there seemed to know the place (& each other) and that gave it a nice community feeling.

 What we ordered:  two dog special -came with a drink and chips + coleslaw side --we ordered spicy dogs (chicken with jalapeños --and a Spicy Italian)
Things we liked and disliked:  We ordered two different kinds of dogs -BUT they both tasted and looked EXACTLY the same...did they mess up our order?--or is the selection a scam and they don't really have as wide a selection as they say?  To like is the nice list of dogs to choose from --but, then they ought to taste different don't you think?  The bread-bun is super fresh--love that--but it is also a bit too big for the dog.  They have lots of different kinds of mustard.  But they have no mayo, no catsup, no BB-Q sauce, etc. The onions were chopped too big so they fell off the dog.  Slaw is homemade, and is ok--but nothing wonderful. There was a very nice guy behind the counter.
 Number in our party: 2
Total Bill: $9.99 (for the 2 dog special) $3.50 for the slaw
Recommended? not quite--but then, maybe. If we were in the area and wanted something quick and not too expensive we might give them another try. But our first time (courtesy of GROUPON)  was not really very impressive--and with out the GROUPON COUPON we wouldn't have ever gone there.
With a Five Star Scale - and Five being perfect - we rate this place? 2 stars

The City State Diner - 3 Stars

Date of last visit:  July 2010
 Address: 128 NE 28th Street, Portland Oregon
Phone:
Hours: 8 AM to 10PM Daily
Link:  City State Diner
General Impressions of the place itself: nice clean, open setting, booths and tables

What we ordered: Meatloaf and Mac& Cheese & A Turkey Sandwich with a Beet Salad
Things we liked and disliked: The service was friendly; All the food was very good, the sauce of the meatloaf was great, the Mac and Cheese would have been better to have split for two people as a side with a split sandwich-- it was a just a bit too much carbs in one dish as a stand alone meal.  The Turkey Sandwich people said it was outstanding.
Number in our party: 6
Total Bill: we got 3 bills (each for 2 people -- ours was not bad $28.00 for meatloaf and Mac & Cheese)
Recommended?  yes.. very nice, everyday sort of drop in place
With a Five Star Scale - and Five being perfect - we rate this place? 3 Stars

Ten 01 (Grade B-)

Date of last visit:  JULY 2010
Address: 1001 NW Couch (corner of Couch & 10th), Portland Oregon
Phone: (503) 226-3463
Hours:  Mon-Wed 4pm-10:30pm; Thu-Sat 4pm-11pm; Sun 4pm-9pm
Link:  Ten 01

General Impressions of the place itself:  Glitz -- two floors--downstairs bar /with a bar menu for less expensive meals and upstairs with an expensive menu. Nicely designed restaurant --but don't be fooled: there is no grand view of Portland from upstairs (like some of their ads say). They have valet parking--the sign said $4 --which could be valuable in the Pearl. But we found street parking a block away at 6:30 on a Thursday night.
What we ordered:  We ate upstairs and ordered: 
DRINKS: A Nice Draft Beer (forgot the name) & "A PALOMA" a house specialty tequila and grapefruit juice drink that had no punch and was ok but not special
SALAD: Butter Leaf Salad was shared-- nice presentation and nice dressing--but again, nothing to write home about.
DINNER --Salmon and Halibut. Both fish dishes were well prepared but we have both had better at less cost.  Not that it was bad--it was good-- but it was not exceptional
Things we liked and disliked: The place is too spendy for what you get.  The staff was pleasant. We are glad we tried it out but we won't go back to the upstairs area; we might try the downstairs.
Number in our party:  2
Total Bill: $82 PLUS TIP
Recommended? nope
With a Five Star Scale - and Five being perfect - we rate this place 3+ stars for the food/ but drop that to 3 when you factor in the price.

Veritable Quandry (Grade B+)

Date of last visit: July 2010
Address: 1220 SW 1st Ave, Portland Oregon
Phone: 503-227-7342
Hours: Lunch M-F 11:30 to 3:00;
Dinner Mon - Sun 5:00 to 10:00;
Brunch Sat-Sun 9:30 to 3:00
Bar Open to 2:30 AM

Link:
General Impressions of the place itself:  Nicely done long ago-addition/renovation/expansion of an old building in downtown area. Patio is lovely on a nice day.  Inside has big windows and a warren of rooms --nice brick wall

What we ordered: 

Appetizer Grilled Pizza: Black Mission Figs, Brie, Toasted Hazelnuts & Arugula--which was a nice size for a table of four and it was delicious.
SALADS:  1) Warm Chevre Crostini, Fresh Oregon Strawberries, Raspberries & Toasted Hazelnuts with Mizuna Garden Greens & Honey Pepper Vinaigrette and  2) Roasted Wild Mushroom & Baby Spinach Salad with Buttermilk Blue Cheese & Pancetta Vinaigrette . Both were outstanding --not overlarge--but each was shared by 2 people and was sufficient.
MAIN DISH:  1) Osso Bucco (VEAL) Served with Parmesan & Basil Risotto (we were told the Veal they serve is is humanely raised locally)  -- wonderful dish--hope they are telling the truth about the Veal. 2) Alaskan Halibut with Wild Rice Risotto --Morel & Porcini Mushrooms with a Truffle & Mushroom Jus was outstanding--the Halibut was perfectly prepared and there was no skimping on the  mushrooms.
DESERT:  CHOCOLATE NOCELLO SOUFFLÉ--ahhhh perfection -- It looks bigger thatn it really is -- it was shared by 4 --and we each enjoyed a few bites.
Things we liked and disliked:  Well there is lot to like here--but ONE THING was VERY BAD.  We had reservations--and we were place at a table with air conditioner vents under two of the chairs.  They were blowing rather vigorously making the seating uncomfortable.  There were many OPEN tables around us. And we asked to be moved but were told the tables were all taken?? !! -- The host said she would turn off the air--which she did--but it came back on in about 10 minutes.  She also gave me a small flat item to put over the vent--but it did very little to solve the problem.  So the seating was terribly uncomfortable and the wait staff seemed to know --and not give a hoot--that it was a problem.  Indeed, because I had arrived before our friends, the host suggested I take another seat at the table and let our friends have the bad seat.   
Number in our party: FOUR
Total Bill: $123.00 Plus tip
Recommended? Yes..the food was exceptionally good but watch out for the table in the corner next to the window if the air conditioner is on. Refuse to sit there would be my recommendation.
With a Five Star Scale - and Five being perfect - we rate this place? 4 STARS --and the rating might well have been higher if the seating problem had not been so poorly handled

City Thai, (Grade C)

Date of last visit: July 2010
Address: 341 SW Capitol Highway, Portland, OR 97239-1937
Phone: (503) 293-7335 
Hours: You'll need to call to check

Link:

General Impressions of the place itself:  Sitting toward the back of a little strip mall on Capitol Highway. Unless you are looking for it, it is very easy to miss.  I am not even sure you can see it from the street. Nicely done inside for the space they have to work with--not fancy but comfortable and with a little style.
What we ordered: Pad Thai, Yellow Curry; Thai Ice Tea, Sizzling Spinach --all ok--nothing noteworthy either direction.  -We have been here before and ordered various things..and it is always the same, fine, but not great
Things we liked and disliked:  Food is entirely acceptable--but it doesn't reach great. People who work here are always pleasant.
Number in our party:  3
Total Bill: $32.00
Recommended? Yes it is reliable
With a Five Star Scale - and Five being perfect - we rate this place? Standard Average Place 2 1/2 stars