The March Hit List: Clandestino, Gado Gado, Le Pigeon, and More

If you’ve lived in Oregon for any amount of time, you know there’s one thing to look forward to during the winter: Dungeness crab. Come February, they’re ubiquitous. On Sundays and Mondays, Northeast Portland’s Gado Gado puts its own spin on the sweet, meaty crustaceans: bathed in sweet chile gravy atop saucy rice noodles with a side of rolls griddled in coconut-herb butter. The gargantuan dish — enough for two to three or as a luxury add-on ($125) for larger groups — makes even the gloomiest winter days brighter. Reserve through Resy to order yours in advance.

Before Lauro Romero helped guide Republica to where it is today, he helmed a small pop-up called Clandestino, hosting, well, clandestine carnitas pop-ups and coursed menus here and there. Now that Romero has left Republica, he’s brought Clandestino back, three days a week, at Lil’ Dame just off Northeast Killingsworth.

It’s hard to know what might be on the constantly rotating menu, but know you’ll be in for a treat — maybe a tartare, maybe skirt steak asado, maybe quesadillas — but know if there’s carnitas on the menu, you best order them (every few weeks, Romero also hosts a special carnitas Sunday where you can order a half or full kilo of carnitas in advance to pair with fresh tortillas, salsas and other sides). There’s fun wine and tasty desserts to fill out the meal and it’s all just so dang good.

Find more info here.

Kaede brings stunning sushi-kappo to a small storefront in Sellwood. The sushi-meets-bistro menu is fairly simple: sushi and sashimi sets, sashimi by-the-two-piece, rolls with fish sourced straight from the famed Toyosu fish market in Japan, and a short menu of hot and cold prepared dishes.

Fish selection varies based on availability, but you’ll find mostly classics here, from fatty, marbled o-toro and seared salmon belly to striped jack and uni. Dishes on the bistro side start with sunomono and fried shishito peppers before diving into heartier dishes like fried scallop skewers, roasted duck breast, miso cod, and a mini kamo-negi soba. It feels like everyone is eating here, and the restaurant recently paused takeout to focus on dine-in — so make a reservation ASAP.

Call 503-327-8916 for reservations.

Longtime downtown Jewish deli Kenny & Zuke’s recently moved across the river to North Williams Avenue, shedding its large, multi-page menu for a shorter list of options mostly built around the shop’s par-baked bagels. The new space — in the former Kimura Toast Bar space — offers those bagels in nine varieties. All the classics, plus rye and cheddar-pecorino, come with schmear, hummus, avocado, fish spreads, and as sandwiches. Spreads and cured fish like whitefish, lox, and sablefish come from new-in-town Jewish deli Jacob & Sons. Reuben fans can rejoice: Kenny & Zuke’s housemade version, cured for nearly a week and smoked over oak for 10 hours, is available as an open-faced rye bagel sandwich.

Find more info here.

The five-course chef’s tasting menu at Le Pigeon remains one of the most fun set menus in town. The dishes throughout the meal, which change seasonally, meld both chaotically and seamlessly together in the way only Le Pigeon can. Most recently, the menu veered heavily into seafood territory, kicking off with hamachi tartare, studded with pickled salsify and kumquat, all resting in a calamansi creme anglaise before glazed prawn with country ham, XO applesauce, and pimento rangoon.

For a $25 supplement, you can also add a foie gras tostada with pork belly and unagi slaw to your set menu or head straight into roasted swordfish with escargot and garlic tarte tartin. The last savory course before dessert — black truffle beer can chicken — is paired with stuffed shells in a truffle Alfredo sauce. Close out with a chocolate cherry Luxardo semifreddo and of course, a foie gras profiterole.

Part music venue, part Mexican restaurant and bar, Mano Oculta serves an all-day menu of tortilla-clad breakfasts, lunches, and dinners. In the mornings, cafe de olla-infused coffees, breakfast cocktails, pastries, chilaquiles, and simple egg and cheese (with meat or made vegan) tacos fill out the menu. By midday and into the evening, find a host of mulitas, tacos, and chavindecas — with both meat and veggie/vegan-friendly fillings, including carnitas, soy curls, and chicken. Stay late to catch both local and international musicians and artists.

This gluten- and soy-free Latin American restaurant has been a popular spot for fish, vegan dishes, fun cocktails, and happy hour since it opened at the end of 2019. More than three years later, the restaurant remains a bright spot along Division’s restaurant row, with its bright and crunchy tapas, like langostinos frito with Fresno chile jam, Beyond Meat empanadas with pickliz (a Haitian pickled vegetable condiment), and chicken and pork skewers; tart and chilled ceviches made with shrimp, tuna, or coconut meat; and fish- and meat-heavy entrees like chicken tinga flautas, seafood ajillo, and grilled whole trout. This spot is popular on the collab circuit, with heavy-hitters like Chelo’s Luna Contreras and Sweet Creatures’ Gabriella Martinez often joining together with owner Ketsuda Chaison on fun projects and one-off dinners, often in support of community and current events.

Back from the dead in maybe its most intimate iteration yet, Nodoguro — Ryan Roadhouse’s astoundingly fantastic, $250 Japanese omakase experience — finally has a new home. Taking over a former event space at the end of a long driveway, Nodoguro brings all the flair and whimsy from its early themed menus, which took inspiration and theater from everything from the weather to Twin Peaks, and brought it into the present.

Snagging a spot is as easy as visiting the website and buying your tickets in advance. But with only a handful of seatings each week, and only a handful of seats each meal, you’ll have to be quick. Check back often for last-minute cancellations, which are perfect for singles or couples. And if all else fails, you can sign up for the waitlist. The lucky diner(s) who snagged the last-minute March reservations will enjoy the best of what Japan and the PNW have to offer, showcased in luxury seafood, local veggies, luminous snacks, buttery sashimi, composed courses, and of course, sushi.

What began as a wine bar-esque pop-up inside of East Burnside’s Bar Dune, Street Disco now has its own brick-and-mortar space in Southeast’s Foster-Powell neighborhood. Within the intimate double storefront, Dame alums Kyle Christy and Jessie Manning bring hyper-seasonal, French American-adjacent dishes with a touch of nostalgia and whimsy.

Menus here change often, but typically start with olives, bread (sourced from Cafe Olli), and oysters before veering into veggie territory — currently salt-roasted beets, squash, and onion fritters, and braised spigarello with bottarga represent — and settling into heartier meat and seafood dishes (the head-on Kauai shrimp is a must). A large selection of tinned fishes served with fried saltines, lemon, and pickles offer a different avenue for the restaurant’s fun natural wine, vermouth, and cocktail menu.

Northwest’s outdoors-meets-indoor Japanese American restaurant Takibi is among the most beautiful restaurants in town. Taking up residence behind 23rd Avenue’s equally drool-worthy Snow Peak store — a high-end Japanese outdoors gear retailer — the restaurant celebrates that feeling of sitting around a campfire at the turn of the seasons. Helmed by former Nimblefish executive chef Cody Auger and famed mixologist Jim Meehan, find seasonal, wood-fired dishes alongside crunchy chicken karaage; cozy soba paired with duck breast; and sweet-shoyu Mcfarland trout. Dream about your next camping trip from the dining room, with a cocktail in hand. Everything you need is just around the corner.