Portland Restaurant: Olympia Oyster Bar

What: Olympia Oyster Bar 
Where: 4214 N Mississippi 
When: Tues-Thurs 4-9 pm, Fri & Sat 2-10 pm, Sun 2-9pm, HH open-6 pm Tues-Fri 
Honeys Heart: Natty and Shellfish Wednesday Special

My life really got a solid shake up in 2017 and as a result, my cousin Chase got an expected new roommate: yours truly! My new living situation means more than a few things have changed for me. For example:

• I drink good wine now (because I drink Chase's wine).
• I watch substantially more sports and boy movies, i.e. movies with Keanu Reeves.
• I have been exploring more of my new neighborhood, Mississippi St.
• I don't cook anymore because one of my roomies cooks, or I order food, or I meet up with friends.

In accordance with those last two bullet points, I think I have now been to every restaurant on Mississippi, my favs being Lovely's Fifty Fifty, Por Que No, and my #1, Olympia Oyster Bar.

(photo courtesy of Olympia's website)

Olympia Oyster Bar (can we just call it OOB because I'm typing this hungover and it's a long restaurant name?) is just the cutest neighborhood oyster and wine bar with dishes inspired by Chef Maylin's Mexican heritage and flavors influenced by Japan and the Mediterranean. It's where I like to go when I want to class it up a bit and balance out those nights of drinking beer at dive bars (because I do that now too).

The best discovery I made about OOB is their Wednesday night "Natty and Shellfish" special. It's a $20 bucket of mussels and clams and $20(ish) bottles of natural wines. The bucket is enough to share, but if I'm going to be drinking/eating alone (add that to the list), it feels better to do it somewhere nice.

On my recent solo visit, I did take home about half the mussels and clams and half the bottle of wine because Chase and I needed to watch The Voice. #priorities

I also probably didn't need to add oysters into the mix that night seeing as how I was a party of one, but I felt like trying their Raw Pomegranate ($13) preparation with pomegranate elixir, ginger amaranth, and blood orange oil. I mean, it was tasty but I would rather go on "Oyster Tuesday" and just get a $9 half dozen. 

Because I have become obsessed with this Wednesday night special, I try to go a lot. A friend I hadn't seen in six months wanted to grab happy hour and I knew the life update would need to be accompanied by plenty of wine - perfect opportunity for the OOB Wednesday night special!

Bottle one. Look at that funny dog...

Yes, we got the mussels and clams and yes, it was delicious again.

Bottle two. 

Two bottles in means more food, obvs. We tried to get bread and goat butter, but they were out of butter so instead we tried the Trout Conserva Toast ($7) off the happy hour menu. It was light, fresh, and delish.

There were a couple other things on their happy hour that looked tasty, so I'm open for Wednesday night dates (friend dates, come on...) with people so that I can try more things.

Bottle three. (Yes, you read that right. We had three bottles of wine and the best part is that for three bottles of wine, mussels and clams, and trout toast, I think our bill was only $96 aka $48 per person... um, that's a good deal for all that food and wine!)

In addition to great food and drink, the service at OOB has always been exceptional. Their staff is friendly and they offer recommendations, which is important for someone who lacks certain decision-making capabilities.

Even when I move out of the hood (I can't live with my cousin forever, I am a 30-year-old single lady, after all) OOB will bring me back. And probably I'll also swing by Chase's for some wine while I'm at it...

Portland Restaurant: The Alameda Cafe

What: The Alameda Cafe 
Where: 4641 NE Fremont St
When: Wednesday - Sunday 5 - 10 PM
Honeys Heart: Steamed Mussels 

The Alameda Cafe and I go way back. I ate there with Mimi and Papa as a kid, I bussed tables there in college, I blogged about their happy hour in 2009, but it has since been reborn and deserves a blog revisit in a big way.

The restaurant has been an Alameda neighborhood joint for 30 years- hence the new owners hope to keep the name, but revive the image- but for the last few years it has struggled with it's identity, consistency, and ownership. Cameron Addy, formerly a chef at Ava Gene's and Papa Haydn and owner of Belly has, with partners, purchased the cafe, remodeled the dining room and kitchen, and gave the menu a much needed overhaul. The small, but particular menu has a Pacific Northwest focus with occasional southern influences (Addy's roots).

We had a family dinner there a few weeks ago and left pretty impressed. Mimi opted for the Pan-roasted Halibut ($22) which was arguably the best dish at the table. The generous portion was cooked perfectly with crispy edges and a sauce worth eating in spoonfuls.

Adam and I shared the 40 Day Dry Aged Ribeye (for two- $40) with "twice-baked potato" which were really once baked, once fried, but who cares- they were delicious! The meat was really flavorful, though Adam felt it was a little too fatty making the $40 price tag seem a bit steep. 

Pork Chop ($24), one of the six main dishes to choose from, was my mom's pick. I believe her exact words were "this is the best pork chop I've ever had." I tried it, it was pretty damn good. The pumpkin puree and pear mustard gave it a taste of fall and it, like the fish and steak was perfectly cooked.

A unique option is the Primetime Special which is served every night around 7pm until it is gone, allowing the chef to feature dishes that are best served immediately. The dish and price varies. On this particular night it was a White Lasagna ($14) with homemade pasta, chicken, braised greens, and a white sauce. Definitely a great comfort food.

Of course all of this was accompanied with bottles of wine or, in Adam's case, Manhattans. I started taking pictures too late so you're missing Steamed Mussels ($11) with salsa verde aioli and grilled bread, Roasted Cauliflower Salad ($7), Cheese Sticks ($8) of crispy fried taleggio with apple butter, and Apple Salad ($7).

I'm sure we'll be back as Fremont Street and The Alameda Cafe hold a special place in our hearts. The menu will evolve and I'm waiting for a happy hour (hopefully!), but I'm liking what I see, and taste. I could go for those mussels again soon. So good.