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| Source: Tasty n Alder home page |
This morning I had the pleasure of going to Tasty n Alder for brunch. Tasty n Alder is the sister restaurant to the original Tasty n Sons, which has quite a popular reputation. In fact, it's not uncommon to have to wait in line for brunch at Tasty n Sons. Naturally, I was also expecting a wait when we visited Tasty n Alder this morning, a Saturday. The place opens at 9, and we arrived a bit closer to 10am. Lucky for us, there was no wait!
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| Coffee! |
We were seated right away and promptly asked for our drink orders. After glancing at the drink menu and seeing that they serve Water Avenue coffee, I ordered a cup of joe. I always get coffee, unless it's Stumptown Coffee (which I hate). They also serve cocktails and have several Bloody Mary's to choose from- my dad enjoyed the Tasty Mary. Another bonus on the drink front is that they serve Smith Teas, from a wonderful local tea maker.
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| Bloody Mary |
I am really glad that there were four of us for brunch this morning, because after seeing just how many items on the menu I wanted to try, I knew that we would need to maximize our sharing. The restaurant encourages sharing, in fact, by serving the dishes up family-style. Items are brought out as they are ready and everyone digs in. There are small and large plates to choose from, as well as some boards (cheese board, meat board, and smoked trout board).
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| Budapest Coffee Cake |
We started out with the Budapest coffee cake, the potatoes bravas, and the yams. The coffee cake was delicious- moist, cinnamony, and just the right amount of sweet. I adored the potatoes, which came with two over-easy eggs and aioli. The serving was rather huge, if you ask me, so I ended up taking about a third of it home. I can't vouch for the yams, but my mom and sister in law thought they were incredible.
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| Potatoes Bravas |
To top everything off, my sister in law ordered the egg and cheese biscuit, I got the french toast, and my dad had the polenta with sugo. Let me tell you about the egg and cheese biscuit. Or just the biscuit. It was so buttery, so light and fluffy, it is what other biscuits aspire to be but come up short. My sister in law's family hails from the South, and she claims that this biscuit was as close to her grandmother's biscuits as she's found. Portland folks- this biscuit is better than Pine State. Just sayin'. As for the french toast, my goodness. It seems like it's made with brioche, and is served with a blueberry sauce and whipped cream. It was lighter than your average french toast and simply delicious. I did not try my dad's polenta, being a vegetarian and all, but he wolfed the whole thing down, so I'd say it's a winner.
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| French Toast |
As we were dining, the rest of the restaurant filled up. By the time we left, there was a sizable line waiting outside. And I can understand why those folks were waiting- this food was absolutely worth it.
Portland folks- have you been to Tasty n Alder or any other of Tasty's restaurants? What are your thoughts on the brunch scene in Portland?
The potatoes look so great! I really need to try this place!
ReplyDeleteSo good- go for it!
DeleteGreat photos!
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteGreat review! I love the places in Portland that use the sharing & family style mentality... especially for brunch! You're so lucky you missed the Sunday rush, brunch is a competitive sport in pdx!
ReplyDeleteI had no idea that Tasty n Alder had such good biscuits- I'll have to try it and see if I agree with your review of it being better than Pine the State Biscuit (though admittedly since I always get the Reggie I am never having the biscuit plain...). I agree with the potatoes bravas serving being huge- I sat at the bar and the bartender kindly recommended I ask for a half order.
ReplyDeleteI hope you keep up these reviews/recommendations of places to try, as I get a better feel from a blog post telling me of their experience than just a paragraph synopsis in the various publications.