It’s hard enough to decide what’s for dinner when you’re at home. Start traveling, and somehow the question feels even bigger ... but also more exciting.
To help you find the coolest restaurants in Portland, Oregon, I polled my sister Michelle and some of her fellow Portlanders to find their top picks for a meal and a beverage in and around the City of Roses.
Where to Eat in Portland
When it comes to the best restaurants in Portland, Oregon, there are two words: food carts. And maybe a third: breweries. The last time I visited, I think we ate half our meals from food cart pods, which are basically semi-permanent clusters of food trucks serving up everything from burgers and pizza to Himalayan and Cuban cuisine.
It’s impossible to create an all-inclusive ranking of where to eat in Portland, so here is a very short list of recommendations to get you started.
1. Heist Food Carts
Location: Woodstock neighborhood; 4727 SE Woodstock Blvd.; Portland, OR 97206
Heist Food Carts is a must-eat stop if you’re in the mood for Indian but your travel pals are craving waffles and now that you see your options, what does Guyanese food taste like? Enjoy your worldly sampler platter indoors or outside under covered seating, plus a variety of local brews to wash it all down.
2. The Flock
Location: Downtown Portland; 917 SW Alder Street; Portland, OR 97205
The Flock indoor food hall in the Ritz-Carlton gets started early in the day with pastry, ends the night with beer and wine, and dishes up some delicious eats when it’s time for dinner. If you’re looking for a variety of Asian foods — Thai, Southeast Asia fusion, Chinese — add this to your list.
3. Sugarpine Drive-In
Location: 1208 E Historic Columbia River Highway; Troutdale, OR 97060
Sugarpine Drive-In in Troutdale describes itself as “a heartfelt homage to the Golden Age of American roadside dining.” It combines the retro travel food experience with locally sourced ingredients. Get excited about their seasonal menus.
4. kann
Location: East Portland; 548 SE Ash St.; Portland, OR 97214
Plan ahead if you want to eat at the upscale kann. This restaurant has a James Beard Award winning chef, so you’ll need to start trying to get a reservation well in advance. If you do manage to snag a table, expect to be treated to Haitian dishes with seasonal produce and meats from the Pacific Northwest.
5. Terra Mae Restaurant
Location: Alberta Arts District; 1150 NE Alberta St.; Portland, OR 97211
Terra Mae Restaurant is one of the newer upscale restaurants in Portland featuring a fusion of Portuguese and Japanese flavors. You can find it at CASCADA, a wellness sanctuary and hotel with thermal springs.
6. Radio Room Restaurant and Cocktail Lounge
Location: Alberta neighborhood; 1101 NE Alberta St.; Portland, OR 97211
Across the street from Terra Mae Restaurant sits the Radio Room, a restored mid-century building, formerly a service station and now a beloved diner and cocktail lounge. Enjoy dinner and drink on the sunset-bathed patio.
7. Solstice Wood Fire Pizza
Location: 501 Portway Avenue; Hood River, OR 97031
Solstice Wood Fire Pizza is slow food (their dough is fermented for 72 hours) with ingredients from around the region and options for vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free guests. Their main location is near Mt. Hood, on The Waterfront. There’s also a pizza truck at the same location, giving you multiple ways to support this family-owned establishment.
8. Tacovore
Location: Beaumont-Wilshire neighborhood; 3707 NE Fremont; Portland, OR 97212
Michelle filed Tacovore under “cheaper but tasty,” adding that it has a “great unique taco selection.” It has some solid traditional flavors — carnitas and carne asada, for example — as well as smoked tofu, cauliflower, and rotating specials. The entire menu is gluten-free, too.
9. The Pocket Pub
Location: Irvington neighborhood; 2719 NE 7th St.; Portland OR 97212
The Pocket Pub probably isn’t showing up on many other “best of” lists, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a tasty joint worth a stop. That’s especially true if you’re looking for “great pizza at a small neighborhood hangout,” as Michelle describes it. Keep an eye out for the seasonal pizza specials at this woman-owned restaurant.
10. Lardo
Location: Ladd’s Addition; 1212 SE Hawthorne Blvd.; Portland, OR 97214
Sandwiches are the name of the game at Lardo, and Michelle’s picks are the BBQ or, if you’re there in the morning, the Rhinestone breakfast burrito with pork belly burnt ends. There’s also a banh mi and Korean pork shoulder, vegetarian options, or, for a more southern twang, Nashville hot chicken. In other words, something for everyone.
Best Brunch in Portland, Oregon
1. Slappy Cakes
Location: Sunnyside neighborhood; 4226 SE Belmont St. #3; Portland, OR 97215
Think hibachi grill but with pancakes. Choose your flavors and toppings, then cook your own hotcakes right on the tabletop griddle at Slappy Cakes. When Michelle took me in the fall of 2024, we had the seasonal (pumpkin) and regular buttermilk batters with sliced strawberries and bacon.
Have I had better pancakes? Honestly, yes. But it was a fun experience.
2. Hey Love
Location: East Portland; 920 E Burnside St.; Portland, OR 97214
If you’re in town on the weekend, stop by Hey Love for brunch and enjoy the greenery as well as the meal (dinner and cocktails are served all week long). Self-described as a plant paradise, this place prides itself on its overgrown plants, local art, and community vibes as much as the food. One unexpected twist you’ll find on the menu is its biscuits and gravy, always served vegetarian with a mushroom country gravy.
3. Screen Door
Locations: Pearl District, 1131 NW Couch St., Portland, OR 97209; or Eastside, 2337 E Burnside St., Portland, OR 97214
Screen Door offers some unexpected flavors alongside some typical Portland attitude. On the plate, you’ll find Southern comfort food. Admittedly, dishes like black-eyed pea fritters and fish n’ grits aren’t your usual Pacific Northwest cuisine. But like much of Portland, Screen Door is open (if you’ll excuse the pun). You might luck into a drag dinner if you time your visit right.
4. Tin Shed Garden Cafe
Location: Alberta neighborhood; 1438 NE Alberta St.; Portland, OR 97211
If you’re looking for a hearty breakfast or brunch to hold you over until late in the day, Tin Shed is a solid option. There’s everything from eggs and biscuits to burgers to potatoes served up in a variety of ways. Most dishes can be made vegan, too.
A few other fun tidbits: Tin Shed is dog-friendly and has a canine menu everyone can enjoy on the patio. They also have a featured artist of the month if you’re into supporting local arts while you dine.
5. The Hive Social
Location: 602 7th St.; Oregon City, OR 97045
The Hive Social is farther afield in Oregon City, about a 45-minute drive south of downtown Portland. It’s worth the outing, even if you aren’t there in time for brunch. There’s also a social hour and dinner menu.
If you do treat your tastebuds early in the day, you have options. Go savory with steak and eggs or more dessert-y with sweet cream French toast. Of course there’s a cocktail menu as well as house-made sodas and kombucha ... because it is Oregon, after all.
Where to Drink in Portland, Oregon
Portland loves a good craft brewery. There’s an extensive wine country right outside the city limits. And if you can combine something boozy with a sweet treat, Portlanders have probably tried it.
When I called my sister for her recommendations on all things awesome about Portland, she excitedly announced, “It’s Slushie Week!” Restaurants and bars around town were offering special adult (and non-alcoholic) slushie options ... because it was summer and it sounded like a good idea.
1. 10 Barrel Brewing Co.
Location: Pearl District; 1411 NW Flanders St.; Portland, OR 97209
Michelle picked 10 Barrel as the best brewery. They make much of their extensive tap list on site, and the brews have names like Evergreen Pale Ale and Danky Dank Chron Chron. There’s also a short list of mocktails and non-alcoholic options if you or your pals are sober curious travelers.
2. Revolution Hall Roof Deck
Location: Buckman neighborhood; 1300 SE Stark St.; Portland, OR 97214
Revolution Hall Roof Deck “is a great place to hang,” according to Michelle. The cocktail and drink menus aren’t huge — although they do have slushies, and you can order food from one of the other restaurants at Revolution Hall — but the views are good and the vibes are chill.
3. Tope
Location: Old Town-Chinatown; 15 NW 4th Avenue; Portland, OR 97209
Look for the Hoxton hotel, then head for the upper floors and rooftop to get a beverage at Tope. Michelle tabbed this bar as having some of the best scenery, and there’s steep competition for best restaurants in Portland with a view.
Tope’s menu has more cocktails (including spirit-free ones) and wines than beers. It also has a serviceable food menu, especially if you love tacos and other Mexican street food-inspired snacks.
4. Metropolitan Tavern
Location: Lloyd District; 1021 NE Grand Ave, Suite 600; Portland, OR 97232
For some of the best food to go along with your drink, look no further than the Metropolitan Tavern. It took over the top of the Hotel Eastland after the pandemic and has quickly become a local favorite with its glass-enclosed patio and eclectic menu.
Unlike some of the other bars on this list, the Met is open pretty much all day — brunch, lunch, dinner, happy hour, and our favorite, random snack time. Make it an early day with French toast bread pudding and a mimosa or close out the evening with Kobe beef sliders and a whisky sour. You really can’t go wrong.
5. The Love Shack
Location: Slabtown; 1645 NW 21st St.; Portland, OR 97209
You kind of know you’re in for an experience when the place is called The Love Shack. This bar prides itself on its eclectic drinks menu, from tropical cocktails to “crushable cans of beer” and wine. The Love Shack made Michelle’s list of favorites in part because of the food and desserts.
6. Hale Pele
Location: Northeast Portland; 2733 NE Broadway; Portland, OR 97232
Hale Pele earned points for “character” when I asked for recommendations. It's basically a tiki bar like done up to the max. The bar describes itself as “a glimmering pearl in Portland’s sea food & cocktail culture.” The cocktail menu has an entire section just for drinks with coconut, and the food menu is inspired by dishes from Asia and Polynesia.
7. Tipsy Scoop
Location: Boise neighborhood; 3987 N Mississippi Ave.; Portland, OR 97227
Newly opened in 2025, Michelle and friends were among the first to welcome the Tipsy Scoop franchise to Portland. Sundaes feature culinary madness like It’s My Party, with cake batter vodka martini ice cream, and Whiskey Dreams, with dark chocolate whiskey-salted caramel ice cream. If you can’t decide, order a flight.
8. The Sports Bra
Location: Northeast Portland; 2512 NE Broadway; Portland, OR 97232
You might’ve seen The Sports Bra on the news. This bar and restaurant shows all women’s sports, all the time on its TVs. Michelle’s a fan of the food, but a highlight for her is the Portland location’s piece of sports history.
In 2024, Portland hosted some of the Elite Eight NCAA basketball games but marked the women’s three-point line at the wrong distance. Part of that incorrectly marked court now makes up the bar top at The Sports Bra.
9. Multnomah Whiskey Library
Location: Downtown Portland; 1124 SW Alder St.; Portland, OR 97205
If you like your tipple with an upscale flare, head for the Multnomah Whiskey Library. It is on the more expensive side, and you’ll need reservations — it's a members-only establishment, but visitors can get a “hall pass.” If you get a seat, expect a variety of cocktails, mocktails, and wines. They call it a library for a reason.
10. Willamette Valley wineries
Location: Mountain valley stretching from Portland south to Eugene, Oregon
There are more than 700 wineries in the Willamette Valley, which runs from Portland to Eugene. That’s about 150 miles of wine country, known primarily for its pinot noir.
Don’t worry if red isn’t quite to your taste, though. You’ll find plenty of varieties to taste as you sample your way through the valley. In between sips, you can enjoy mountain views or even book a hot air balloon ride over Oregon wine country.
There's More to Portland
Read this blog and you might think the only thing there is to do in Portland is eat and drink. While there’s certainly no shortage of edible indulgences, the city is also known for some of the best outdoor adventuring in the U.S. Check out the locals’ picks for best places in Portland for nature lovers.
