HHH Girls Night and Date Night Favorites

No offense to Doug, but one of the best Valentine's Days I've ever had was in Boston with Anna, Shannon, and Erica. We had an early dinner (and sake bombs) at our favorite sushi restaurant, indulged Anna by meeting some weirdo author at our go-to Emerson bar, and then went to the movies, which really just turned into downing nips in the front row (nips = mini liquor bottles obvs.) and then having a drunken heart-to-heart in the theater bathroom. Seriously, it was the best.

So in honor of that night and because Valentine's Day is coming up real soon too, here are some of Kel's and my favorite Portland spots for Girls Nights. And, because we don't want the boys to feel left out, we'll include some of our Date Night favorites too. (FYI, we filled our lists out separately, just to see how much they would or wouldn't vary.)

Girls Night:
Early Happy Hour
Katie: Mint/820 or Elephants Deli
Kelly: Noble Rot

Late Happy Hour
Katie: Driftwood Room or Cocotte
Kelly: Driftwood Room

Wine Bar
Katie: Sauvage
Kelly: Ambonnay

Cocktails
Katie: St. Jack
Kelly: Mint/820

Dinner
Katie: Por Que No?
Kelly: Luc Lac or Thai Peacock

Dancing
Katie: Splash  
Kelly: Jones or Boiler Room

Brunch
Katie: Sweedeedee
Kelly: Gravy

Girl Time
Katie: Pedis and mimosas at Oasis Nails and Spa
Kelly: Pedis and champs at Oasis Nails and Spa

Date Night: 
Early Happy Hour
Katie: Clyde Common
Kelly: Paadee

Late Happy Hour
Katie: Cafe Castagna
Kelly: Nostrana

Casual Drinks
Katie: Hale Pele
Kelly: Elephants Deli

Casual Dinner
Katie: Dove Vivi
Kelly: Boxer Sushi or Samuari Blue

Special Occasion Drinks
Katie: The Box Social
Kelly: Imperial

Special Occasion Dinner
Katie: Beast or Toro Bravo
Kelly: Beast or Le Pigeon

Dessert
Katie: Fifty Licks
Kelly: Fifty Licks

After Dinner Entertainment
Katie: Curious Comedy Theater
Kelly: Helium Comedy Club or Movie at Kennedy School

Happy (Early) Valentine's Day to you and yours! Cheers!

Portland Restaurant: Cocotte

What: Cocotte
Where: 2930 NE Killingsworth St
Honeys Heart: Chicken liver mousse 


A couple of weeks ago, Doug mentioned that he had never tried escargot, but really wanted to. So when we realized we had a weekend night free (a rarity these days with wedding season in full swing), I decided that needed to change.

Doug is pretty much the best at planning surprise dates (see: this and this and this) so I always feel a little inferior when it's my turn to figure where to go and what to do. This time, however, I was pretty sure I had it in the bag. 

We started things off with a drink at Barwares, the just-added full bar connected to Johanna Ware's Smallwares.

The drinks were good but I would skip the food the next time around. We were hungry so we tried the chicken lollipops and mu shu pork pancakes. Nothing special for being a bit pricey.

After that, it was off to our dinner destination. Doug guessed we were going Cafe Castagna (we've been wanting to try their burgers) but nope! Instead we headed for Cocotte.

Cocotte is a little French bistro that first caught my eye when Doug took me to dinner at Beast. I've been wanting to try it ever since, so when I spotted escargot on their menu, I thought it would be the perfect choice.

Cocotte greets all diners with a warm baguette served with apricot and mustard butter. Sounds a little strange but it was very tasty.

Of course, we had to get the Escargot sur Champ Vert  ($8) made with garlic butter, herb pistou (think: French pesto) & leeks on brioche. 

The only experience I had with escargot before was of cruise-ship variety so I was pleasantly surprised with the texture of these escargot. They were soft and not at all chewy, similar to well-cooked scallops (which I guess makes sense. Yay mollusks!). The herb pistou and leeks lent a freshness to the dish that was perfect for an almost-summer night. Doug wasn't a huge fan of the brioche but I never say no to bread so I was happy. 

We decided to round out our meal with another French delicacy: Chicken Liver Mousse ($8) served with house pickles, mustard, port cherries and a baguette.  

Though we both liked the escargot, Doug and I agreed that the mousse was our favorite dish. With so many accoutrements, there were many flavor combinations to be tried and each was delicious in its own way. We'd definitely order this dish again. 

As we were paying our bill, our waitress mentioned that Cocotte has a happy hour. They offer $3, $5, and $8 food specials Tues-Sat 4-6pm & 9pm-close and all day Sunday. Need to hit that up ASAP!

Oh! And I almost forgot. Cocotte ends each meal with the gift of sugared Madeleine cookies (my second favorite French cookie). Such a lovely ending to a great dinner!