The other weekend, my girlfriend and I drove down to Portland for the weekend. Portland is a fun town, and this time we really started exploring some of the neighborhoods on the east side of the river, including the great restaurants in the area.
Pok Pok was one of them and it's perhaps one of the most original Thai restaurants I've been to anywhere.
The biggest thing here is
the menu. There was almost nothing on it that you would expect to find. Phad thai? Absent. The standard stoplight selection of curry? Replaced by regional curry varieties. How authentic it really is, I can't say (
yet) but they go out of their way to provide a different view of Thai cuisine and the recipes were researched and developed in Thailand and then brought back to Portland. After looking over, we eventually settled on two great dishes (and one alright dish): The Pok Pok special and the Neua Naam Tok (and the Khao Muu Daeng).
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| The Pok Pok Special: Roasted Game Hen & Papaya Salad |
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| Neua Naam Tok: Steak Salad |
Next time, go to Mee-Sen on North Mississippi (then go to Ruby Jewel down the street for ice cream for dessert!)...better food, less spendy and just as authentic as Pok Pok. I eat there at least twice a month because it's sooooo good. Pok pok is pretty authentic for Northern Thai cuisine. I like it, don't get me wrong...I just don't like the lines and the wait. You should also try Nong's Khao Man Gai food cart on SW 10th/Alder for some real good Thai street food. $6 for chicken/rice and some broth...seriously one of my favorite food carts downtown.
ReplyDeleteI will definitely hit those up next time I am down there. Thanks for the recommendations!
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