Several years ago, we visited to Portland to take part in the Portland Marathon. While there, one of our travel buddies suggested that we head to Irving Street Kitchen for a post-race celebration. And, that’s just what we did.
Our experience was great and definitely left a lasting impression. After booking our flights to Portland, one of the first things we did was make reservations since we knew we had to go again.
This restaurant is located in the Pearl District area of Portland. They specialize in American Cuisine, signature handcrafted cocktails, have plenty of wine and beer options.
Happy Hour
As previously mentioned, we made dinner reservations but went a little early to check out their Happy Hour. It’s from 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm everyday, with great food and drink specials.
We arrived a little after 4:30 pm so, we grabbed seats at their very large bar and enjoyed a couple cocktails. We tried the Smoked Maple Old Fashioned and the Aviary, both fantastic choices. The Aviary is their take on the Aviation cocktail. It’s made with Crème de Violette, which seems to be a popular liqueur in Portland. We did see it on several menus during the weekend. And, I’m obsessed. Stay tuned, once I have my recipe perfected, I’ll post it.
Dinner
If you are wanting to sit in the dining room, definitely make a reservation. You can find them on OpenTable or click here.
It did take us a few minutes to look at the menu and make some decisions. They have so many mouthwatering options. I’m going to state the obvious, we ordered way too much food.
First, we ordered the Tennshootoe ham and buttermilk biscuits with their famous pepper jelly. It was delicious. The biscuits were particularly good, they were so flaky and buttery.
Next, we shared a salad with mixed greens, green goddess dressing and tangerine. What can I say? It wasn’t mind blowing but we needed some greens.
For our mains, we ordered the buttermilk fried chicken with collards, smashed potatoes and bacon gravy and the chorizo and squid ink risotto with manila clams, salt spring mussels, truffle oil and grana. Both excellent choices, but the fried chicken was the star of the show.
Obviously, we ordered dessert. We had the butterscotch pudding with vanilla bean cream and salter caramel. It is really good, but very rich. I wasn’t able to eat it all and I have an insane sweet tooth. So, it’s good for sharing.
Just as we did after our first visit, we left full and looking forward to our next visit.
Finally, if you are contemplating a visit to Portland, click here for our weekend itinerary for some more food destinations.