Feast Portland 2014: Recap of the Sandwich Invitational

We were lucky enough to stuff ourselves silly at Feast's Sandwich Invitational last Thursday. (Big thank you to Doug for Katie's ticket and Feast for Kel's!) We also learned that "Yacht Rock" is a thing. So basically, it was a good night.

Of course at events like these, all the food is good. But since the Sandwich Invitational has the added fun of being a competition, we thought we'd share our rankings of the 14 sandwiches we tried.

#1 Marche's Moraccan Lamb Pockets

We're suckers for well-cooked lamb and Marche paired theirs beautifully with warm spices, harissa aioli and cilantro pesto. If we had room for seconds, we definitely would have gone back for another round of these.

#2 Kachka's Smoked Sprats

We are already big fans of Kachka and this open-faced sandwich with smoked sprats, egg, and sour cream on toast only reinforced our love for its unique Russian-inspired dishes. This sandwich also won the Judge's Choice award. Woot!

#3 Avec's Gyro

There is a turning point in the night where you're really full, but there is still 6 sandwiches to go and you're not slowing down. This crisis moment was made easier by Paul Kahan's "Return of the Gyro" with pork, eggplant, yogurt, "fun", fenugreek, and "flavor". We appreciated the description and the fresh herbs. 

#4 FT33's Fried Bologna and Pimento Cheese

Sometimes the simple ones are just so good. 

#5 Lardo's Pork Burger

This was the longest line of the night (challenged only by Salt and Straw) and the combo of pork, peaches, American cheese, and arugula was pretty delicious.

#6 Dustin Clark's Water Buffalo Short Rib Sandwich

This was our last sandwich of the night, aka it was at a major disadvantage because we were SO full, but it still ranks high on our list. The water buffalo short rib with sichuan picked cucumber sandwich was rich and mouth watering. We will definitely be hitting up Dustin's upcoming restaurant The Oddfellow Social.

#7 Nostrana's Smoked Lamb

Made with smoked lamb ham, crescenza (a soft Italian cheese), tomatoes, pepper cress, and onion relish on focaccia, this sandwich featured more traditional flavors and textures, but we appreciated some balance to the craziness that was happening at other stands.

#8 Empire State South's Pimento Grilled Cheese

Doug's love for Hugh Atcheson knows no bounds, but even he agreed with us that Hugh's pimento sandwich, though quite delicious in it's own right, was not quite as good as FT33's. 

#9 Salt and Straw's PBJ Sundae

Made of buttery bread topped with marionberry jam, vanilla custard ice cream, peanut butter whipped cream and homemade peanut butter Captain Crunch, this thing was good- but a major sugar bomb very much in danger of leaving you with a serious stomach ache. It was also a bit tame by Salt & Straw standards. That peanut butter whipped cream though...

#10  Bunk Sandwich's Duck & Foie Banh Mi

Far more flavorful than Chris Cosentino's meh take on foie banh mi (#13 below) plus the boys manning the station were having such a fun time that it made it hard not to enjoy this sandwich. 

#11 The Bent Brick's BBQ Goat Fry Bread

Ugh, the Bent Brick. They just keep making it SO hard to like them. They ran out of fry bread by the time we got there and while the meat was good... it really could have used some fry bread. Turns out they serve this, or something very similar, on their happy hour so we could have a second go at it...

#12 Broder's Gravlax on Rye

This was Doug's favorite dish but it just didn't do much for us.

#13 Cockscomb's Banh Mi

Doug and Katie loved Cosentino's beef tartare at last year's Night Market but felt iffy about their visit to his restaurant and as a group we felt even iffier about this not-so-noteworthy banh mi. Sad.

#14 Bar Avignon's Deconstructed Cubano

The best thing about a Cubano is all the flavors coming together in one delicious bite. When those ingredients are separated and you have to work to get them all in one bite... it just doesn't work.

Aside from the sandwiches, there was also plenty of beer from Widmer and wine from Columbia Crest Grand Estates, Erath, Hawks View Cellars, Northstar, and wine cocktails from Union Wine Company.

We may have also drank some straight vodka from Reyka Vodka. Apparently, when your stomach is unhappy from eating way too many sandwiches, it is more than fine to consume many different alcohols at once.

It's also recommended that you go to Kask afterward for a few more rounds. At least that's what we did...

Until next year! Cheers!

SALEP Topic: Campari

Another month, another SALEP topic! 

This month, Dana taught us all about Campari! 

Campari (and snacks)

What is it?               

Campari is an Italian liqueur that is characterized by its red color and strong dry, bitter taste.

As an aperitif:

- An aperitif is an alcoholic drink that is served before dinner to stimulate the appetite.
- Aperitifs originated in Italy in the 18th century and are always dry, rather than sweet.

As a bitter:
-  A bitter is consumed to aid digestion and health, thus Campari is also a digestif.

-  Bitters/digestifs are usually drunken straight or with soda water. 

History 

Campari was invented in 1860 by Gaspare Campari and is comprised of a secret combination of herbs, spices, and fruit peels. For forty years, Campari could only be found within Italy.  In 1904, Campari was first exported to Nice, in the French Riviera.  Campari is unique in that it is its own brand; there are no “off” brands of the liqueur. Campari’s distinctive red color is derived carmine, a dye created through the crushing of dried cochineal insects.  Campari’s color was created this way up until 2006. 

Classic Campari Cocktails:

Negroni

1 oz Campari

1 oz Gin*

1 oz Sweet Vermouth 

Orange peel for garnish 

*for those who want to cut the bitter taste of the negroni, chardonnay can be used instead of gin. 

Campari & Soda

1 part Campari

4 parts soda water

Americano: 

1 oz Campari

1 oz Gin

1 oz Soda Water

Old Pal: 

1 oz Rye Whiskey

1 oz Dry Vermouth

1 oz Campari 

Pouring at:

-  Nostrana (SE Morrison & 14th)

-  Woodsman Tavern (SE 45th & Division)

-  Circa 33 (SE 33rd & Belmont)

Thanks Dana! 

Past SALEP Topics: 

• Vermouth
• Green Chartreuse 

 

Portland Happy Hour: Nostrana

What: Nostrana
Where: 1401 SE Morrison St.
When: Happy Hour 9pm - close 
Honeys Heart: Pizza Margherita

Nostrana's 9pm happy hour features thin crust pizzas, a charcuterie board, salad, mac and cheese, and wood-fired ciabatta. I haven't covered the entire menu yet, but so far everything I've ordered has been great!

It doesn't hurt to know you're in good hands with Nostrana's Chef Cathy Whims who has been named a finalist for the James Beard Foundation Award in the category of Best Chef: Northwest. This is her third consecutive nomination so I think she knows what she's doing!

During both visits to Nostrana, my group has ordered a few things to share, my favorite way to do hh.

Dana, Katie and I shared the Pizza Margherita ($6) which tasted so fresh with tomato sauce, basil and a house mozzarella.  

The pizzas arrive uncut with scissors, or "pizza sheers" as Adam liked to refer to them, to cut your slices. This is a fun way to serve this thin crust delight, and can result in nice triangle slices or unpredictable shapes.

We also attempted to order the Pizza Marinara ($5) with tomato, garlic and wild oregano, but our waiter ordered us another Pizza Margherita. Reason to go back I guess?

You know I can't resist a hh mac and cheese so we shared the Mac & Cheese ($6) featuring penne, five cheeses, tomato, and cream. It was baked so the top was a little crispy, but it was also creamy and hot which are two important stipulations for good mac.

Off the HH drink menu, Katie and I ordered the Gin & House Tonic ($5), while Dana opted for the Campari & Soda ($5). I really enjoyed our drinks. The tonic isn't super sweet like some can be, and with a little lime it's totally enjoyable.

During my second visit with Adam and his brother, we ordered two Pizza Margheritas to share. We thought we might be full and take some home, but that didn't happen. Too good!

Our waitress was a little confused so it took some time to get all of our orders, but finally we got the Charcuterie ($5) with salami, prosciutto, baby pickles, bread and spicy mustard. I'm not sure if their meats vary, but I would recommend this!

Apparently we were doing a little carb loading because we also ordered the Wood Oven Ciabatta ($3) which was really tasty. Sometimes you just can't beat really good bread and a little olive oil.

I definitely want to try the other pizza and the Insalata Nostrana ($5) in my next visit. There's also the option to add arugula, prosciutto, or anchovy to either pizza...I would go with prosciutto!

And a Quick Addition from Katie: I tried the Insalata Nostrana, Nostrana's version of a caesar salad, the next two times I visited, and I hope to have it again very soon. Those rosemary croutons are kind of amazing. I also ordered the Salumi  Pizza ($15) with dry salami, tomato, provolone, house mozzarella, wild oregano, and honey. It's not on the happy hour menu, but it was definitely worth paying full price. The combination of savory salami with the sweet honey was so unexpected but so delicious.

Aspirations II

Back in January, I made a list of eight bars and restaurants I wanted to try in the next two months.

It's a little past my deadline, but here are my results:

Happy Hours:
The Box Social- Fail. Haven't made it here yet.
Night Light Lounge- Eh, read my post about their hh here.
Nostrana- Obsessed. Combined, Kel and I have probably eaten there once a week since we first tried it. Post coming soon.   

Restaurants:
Olympic Provisions- Made the mistake of taking my not-so-meat-loving mom here. She was not a fan. I would like to try it again before making my final decision.
Boke Bowl-  Not so much. Read Kel's post here.
Tasty n Sons- Fail again. Still need to try.

Bars: 
Apex- Doug was not as impressed as he wanted to be and God, that screen displaying their beer options is horrible. Hurt my eyes to look at. We might be back.
Firehouse- And still need to go here too.

Let's try again.

Here's my list of spots to try by May 19: 

Happy Hours:
The Box Social
Driftwood Room- have been for drinks but not food. Planning to take the girls soon.
Sniff Cafe- Kel and I want to take her pups here. Drinks & doggies = woot!

Restaurants:
Mi Mero Mole- was reminded I wanted to try their tacos after seeing them in Willamette Weekly's 2012 Cheap Eats guide.
Olympic Provisions- hope to giving the SE location a try this time.
Tasty n Sons- will be kicked out of Portland if I don't go here soon.

Bars:  
Firehouse
Clyde Common- 2012 James Beard semi-finalist for Outstanding Bar Program.

2012 James Beard Awards Picks

As everyone close to the food world already knows, yesterday the semifinalists for the 2012 James Beard Awards were announced. Here are the categories with finalists I'm familiar with and who I'm rooting for:

Outstanding Bar Program: Drink, Boston
If you know me at all, you'll know this was a no-brainer. I've loved Drink from the moment I had my first drink there during my first week in Boston. The bartenders are incredibly knowledgeable yet so unpretentious. I love that. Already dreaming about the Southside I'll order when I visit in March...

Outstanding Pastry Chef: Joanne Chang, Flour Bakery + Cafe, Boston & Maura Kilpatrick, Sofra Bakery and Cafe, Boston. 
Flour and Sofra are literally my two favorite restaurants in Boston. Joanne stole my heart with her berry bread pudding as did Maura with her Moroccan donuts and chocolate hazelnut baklava.

Outstanding Restauranteur: Roger Berkowitz, Legal Sea Foods, Boston
Legal Sea Foods is overpriced no doubt, but it was the first restaurant I ate at in Boston when my Dad and I went to visit Emerson College, so it has a special place in my heart.

Best Chef Northeast: Jamie Bissonnette, Coppa, Boston
If Flour and Sofra comprise my top 2 in Boston, Toro makes the top 3. Not sure why Jamie Bissonnette is nominated for Coppa, not Toro, but I'm as long as he's nominated, it works for me.

Best Chef Northwest: Naomi Pomeroy, Beast, Portland & Cathy Whims, Nostrana, Portland
My dinner at Beast was one of the best meals I've ever had- if not the best- and I've only done happy hour at Nostrana, but I'd be happy if Naomi or Cathy won. Slightly more for Naomi, but you know. PDX love!

Portland Happy Hour: Oven & Shaker

What: Oven & Shaker
Where: 1134 NW Everett St
When: 2:30-4pm and 10pm-midnight daily
Honeys Heart: Corleone Original

Katie, Jenna, Dana, Gina and I have been trying to make weekly, or at least every other week, happy hours together a habit. Most recently, we met at Oven & Shaker for their late happy hour at 10pm.

This restaurant, which opened in November of 2011,  is the baby of three popular Portland peeps: Cathy Whims of Nostrana (which we went to and still nee to blog about!), Ryan Magarian co-founder of Portland's Aviation Gin and ChefStable's founder Kurt Huffman.

It's no surprise that this trio has created a successful restaurant and a delicious happy hour featuring salads and pizzas. Unfortunately the cocktails aren't discounted, but we ordered them anyway!

I went for the Corleone Original.

Made with seedless green grapes, Aviation New Western Dry Gin, Clear Creek Grappa di Sangiovese, freshly pressed lemon juice, simple syrup and a dash of Regan's No. 6 Orange Bitters, it was so tasty. We only had one cocktail each but I definitely would order this again!

Katie chose the Adagio Original made with vodka, Zirbenz Stone Pine Liqueur, Dolin Dry Vermouth, clover honey syrup, and Peychaud Bitters.

Katie enjoyed her drink, but it wasn't a hit with the rest of us. I think we all preferred the fruitiness of the Corleone.

With 5 awesome pizzas to pick from, we ordered the Margherita ($7) with tomato, mozzarella and basil and the Roasted Squash ($10) with escarole, spiced walnuts, mozzarella, and montasio, an Italian cheese made from cow's milk.

If you're looking for something simple and satisfying you can't go wrong with a classic margherita pizza, but the roasted squash offered a more unique combination of flavors. We definitely want to return to try the cauliflower pizza and reviews suggested that the Nostrana ($6) salad of radicchio, parmigiano, rosemary-sage croutons, and caesar style dressing is pretty great.   

Aspirations

Right now I have a list of all the restaurants, bars, and happy hours I want to go to on my phone. And in a spreadsheet on my computer. And saved in a Google doc that Doug and I share. And on random pieces of paper around my apartment.

But so far I haven't been very good about actually making it to any of those places. So the obvious solution is to post an abridged version on the blog and give myself a two month deadline to make it to all of them (and blog about it.) So here goes: 

Happy Hours:
The Box Social- recommended by Eat Beat
Night Light Lounge- recommended by Karissa of Delectable Dates
Nostrana- recommended by Dana (for a girl's night)

Restaurants:
Olympic Provisions- recommended by... everyone
Boke Bowl- see above
Tasty n Sons- ditto

Bars: 
Apex- Doug's addition
Firehouse- recommended by Abe of BePortland

I'll keep you updated on my progress...