Portland Restaurant: Q Restaurant

What: Q Restaurant & Bar
Where: 828 SW 2nd Ave
When: Dinner daily, lunch on weekdays, and brunch on weekends
Honey's Heart: The Quiche

Veritable Quandary, a classic old Portland restaurant and favorite of downtown professionals and travelers alike, recently closed its doors after 45 years. The property that was home to VQ is being turned into a new Portland Courthouse (boring) and so the GM and chef were forced to start a new venture or, in some ways, replicate their previous one.

Q Restaurant, their new spot, does share much of the same vibe as VQ with dark wood, similar menu items, the bar separated from dining space, etc. It is missing VQ's beloved patio, but we have insider news that Q is working with businesses in the building with the hopes of utilizing the rooftop at some point in the future.

Anyway, here's the real question. Is it worth the trek downtown on a weekend morning?

We started our brunch at Q with grapefruit mimosas, which were some much needed hair of the dog for this gal who had indulged in wine, fireball shots, and vodka sodas the night prior.

Katie also ordered a black coffee with cream and sugar (which I shared with her...did I mention the state I was in?) and it was beautifully presented. Perhaps taking up a bit too much table space, but never-the-less an upscale coffee experience.

To amp up our citrus intake, we also enjoyed Grapefruit Slices ($5) with green tea simple syrup and mint. If you're looking for something super light and refreshing, this is a great starter dish to share. One for a group of four would probably be great.

For our savory brunch items, we opted for the quiche special ($16), which we learned Chef Annie only makes occasionally. It was definitely our favorite dish with sweetness from caramelized onions and hearty squash and cheese, and I think probably they should just make it all the time. I would be fairly disappointed if I went there for brunch and didn't get to have this!

We also shared the Chilaquiles ($15) which were tasty and beautifully presented. Our waiter had also recommended the Monte Cristo and I feel like that could have been a good direction for us - apparently it's the real deal.

On the sweet side, we shared the Pugliese French Toast ($14) with bananas, mascarpone, and candied walnuts and Cinnamon & Sugar Churros ($7) with dipping chocolate. Unfortunately, both slightly missed the mark on texture and flavor. The french toast felt bland and a bit dry to us, and the churros weren't quite crispy enough on the outside, leaving the whole bite with a pretty doughy consistency.

We should also mention that the service we received during our visit was impeccable, right down to the thoughtful tour of the kitchen that Q's GM Erin took us on.

So, will Q be around in 40 some years like its predecessor? Will people be up in arms when/if it closes? I'm not sure yet, but I think the new location combined with the strong references to its predecessor is nothing but a good thing. 

Portland Restaurant/Pastry Shop: Maurice

What: Maurice
Where: 921 SW Oak Street
Honeys Heart: Black Pepper Cheesecake 

The basics: 

• It's super cute (think Sweedeedee twee but with a good dose of Scandinavian minimalism).
• The pastries and desserts are amazing.

but...

•  It's seriously pricy.
•  The service is not so hot.

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Maurice is owned by Kirstin Murray, a well-respected Portland pastry chef who has worked with big names like Boston's Barbara Lynch (owner of my beloved Drink) and Portland's Vitaly Paley. Described as a "modern pastry luncheonette", the restaurant/pastry shop serves pastries, desserts, and Scandinavian-influenced small plates, as well as beer, wine, and tea.

Maurice has been open for a year and it's taken me that long to finally cajole Doug into going with me. He claims to not share my sweet tooth (though evidence suggests the contrary), so I think it was the promise of lefse that finally hooked him.

We each ordered a dish off the "luncheonette" portion of the menu. Doug choose Lefse with Pheasant Confit, Apples, and Sunchoke ($10).

Obviously, it was a gorgeous dish and quite delicious. But I think Doug was hoping that for $10, he would be a little more full afterward.

I went with the Quiche du Jour with Greens ($10).

The quiche was incredibly creamy, probably some of the best I've ever had. For me, it was the perfect light lunch.

In the end, I was smitten but Doug, not so much. For him, leaving a restaurant still hungry is never a good sign. True, we could have ordered more, but the service had been slow to begin with, we didn't want to spend more money, and we had things to do. A bit of a bust... but I was determined to give Maurice another try.

I decided that maybe it would be better for a girl's date, so I took Allie there a week or so later for an afternoon snack.

Though we were the only customers there save a gentleman who had already been served, we waited at our table for a good ten minutes without any acknowledgement from the three-person staff before we got antsy and wandered up to the register to see if we should just order our desserts up there since no one seemed to be interested in coming to our table. We were told to a server would come to us. Okay...

Once we finally ordered, I tried Maurice's famed Black Pepper Cheesecake ($10) and Allie chose the Meyer Lemon Souffle Pudding Cake ($6).

The cheesecake was rich, creamy, and not-too-sweet, and perfectly complimented with a luscious brown-butter ice cream. The souffle reminded us of a melty lemon bar and we loved the robust meyer lemon-y taste. So, so good.

We also each had a glass of wine. Prices weren't listed on the board so I was a little surprised when my selection turned out to be $15 for a glass. Yikes. 

In the end, our girl's date totaled up to $41 for dessert and wine. On the plus side, everything was delicious and obviously lovingly crafted. But seriously, thank goodness I could chalk this up as a business expense because even though I firmly believe in treating myself now and then, this would have been a serious hit to my wallet for such a small indulgence.

The final verdict: good thing Maurice is as expensive as it is, otherwise I would be in there way too often. I'll definitely save it as a "special occasion" spot- though a "special occasion" spot usually has the added benefit of superb service so... maybe not? But it is so cute and the desserts are so good. Verdict's still out on this one I guess.