Professionally speaking, my most optimistic moment of 2025 came near the start of the year. It was January, during a review meal at a little-known pop-up called Ancestro, and the simple, graceful menu of Mexican-inspired brunch dishes that Leticia and Marco Escamilla made that chilly morning warmed me from the inside out.
If the Escamillas could make food this pretty, this tasty, this honest from a little cafe kitchen on the North Park Blocks, what could the rest of this celebrated food city do with more resources, larger kitchens and proper funding?
Portland’s dining scene is often at its best in the underdog role, with scrappy restaurants that punch above their weight. This year was no different. If you read through our best new restaurants guide last week, it should come as no surprise that some of the best things I ate in 2025 came from surprising locales — parking lot pop-ups, brewpub food carts, summer mariscos residencies and more.
And as luck would have it, this list of Portland’s best dishes of 2025, presented alphabetically, kicks off with Ancestro, and my favorite among the many delicious things I ate there this year.
Ancestro’s tlacoyo, a pre-Hispanic masa dish stuffed with black beans and topped with a thin block of scrambled eggs and a light tomato-onion sauce.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Tlacoyo at Ancestro
With respect to the great torta and tamal, my favorite item at this Mexican brunch pop-up was a pre-Hispanic masa dish shaped like a prolate spheroid — a deflated football, in other words. At Ancestro, that tlacoyo is made from good Three Sisters nixtamal stuffed with black beans, topped with a skinny block of scrambled eggs and drenched in a light tomato-onion sauce. For a moment, you might wonder if this is a Mexican take on the Japanese omurice, before realizing how silly that sounds. Check @ancestro.pdx for future pop-up dates.
Breakfast sandwich at Balong
Is this Portland’s signature breakfast sandwich? If not, it should be. Served on a subtly sweet pan de sal roll baked right here at the back of Fubonn Shopping Center, each sandwich comes with a fried egg, melted cheese and a choice of bacon or house longanisa sausage. They’re good on their own, even better with an extra smear or two of roasted tomato aioli, and best with a side of unfathomably crunchy hash browns. 2850 S.E. 82nd Ave. #27
Bún Berlu at Berlu Bakery
The honeycomb cake is still the place to start at Berlu’s new brick-and-mortar bakery. But as we wrote in September, there’s more to Berlu Bakery than pastries. Most interesting: the Bún Berlu, a shrimp-pork meatball soup with a viscous broth, slippery noodles, soft herbs and enough roasted peanuts to serve as a secondary protein source. The clean white walls and boxy orange benches don’t scream “comfort food,” but this soup certainly does. 661 S.E. Belmont St.
Thick and thin: A dry-aged Wagyu brisket cheeseburger and a double smashburger with tallow fries from Champs Burgers, a Brooklyn neighborhood food truck.Sean Meagher/The Oregonian
The Thick Champ at Champs Burgers
As a smash burger skeptic, it was a pleasant surprise to drop by this pop-up-turned-cart behind Away Days Brewing in the Brooklyn neighborhood and find this special, a proper pub burger made from dry-aged wagyu cooked medium rare, cheddar-based American cheese and pillowy house buns halfway between milk bread and brioche. Yes, Champs Burgers holds Portland’s smash burger championship belt. But lines will form the next time the Thick Champ hits the menu. 1234 Cora St.
Pork chop at Dimo’s Italian Specialties
There are sandwiches by day and a lengthy menu of salads and pastas at night. But the best thing I ate over two early visits to this new Italian supper club, a sister restaurant to Dimo’s Apizza, was the perfectly cooked and seasoned pork chop, sliced off the bone and served simply with lemon and salsa verde. More like this, please. 701 E. Burnside St.
A classic French onion soup from L’Echelle, a neighborhood bistro in the former Woodsman Tavern space.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
French onion soup at L’Echelle
Orange you glad I didn’t say carrots? Yes, I’ve written more than once about my love for the Vichy-style carrots glazed in honey and butter at this Southeast Portland bistro, aka Portland’s 2025 Restaurant of the Year. So let’s talk about the French onion soup instead, a classic rendition given a poignant kick from a base of the same demi glace chef Mika Paredes and the late chef Naomi Pomeroy used to simmer overnight at Northeast Portland’s Beast. 4537 S.E. Division St.
The yeasted waffle from Fair Weather, a fantastic brunch restaurant that opens roughly every four years.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Yeasted waffle at Fair Weather (redux)
I was always partial to the Dungeness crab toast drenched in Hollandaise sauce. But this yeasted waffle — fluffy yet crisp at the edges in a way I wish more Portland waffles were — was a fine order, especially once you fill the crannies with praline-hazelnut butter and maple syrup. At least it was before Fair Weather closed (again) in July. We’re including the waffle here in hopes the brunch restaurant makes its quadrennial return in 2029. Closed in July.
Pasta al limone on the sunny patio at Fantino.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Pasta al limone at Fantino
The buzzy room with its horse-themed decor is cozy and welcoming in winter. But Fantino shines brightest in summer, when the restaurant’s small patio is all fresh salads, refreshing spritzes and patio umbrellas frequently rearranged to block the setting sun. My favorite dish from that time was this lovely bucatini slicked with lemon cream under a shower of grated Parm — Amalfi Coast vibes without the Amalfi Coast costs. 2314 S.E. Division St.
The melon at Farag’s is topped with shaved manchego, Aleppo pepper, fruity vinegar and good olive oil.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
The melon at Farag’s
At Farag’s, Megan Sanchez stacks crescent moons of pale orange melon on gold-rimmed plates, dresses them in olive oil and fruity vinegar, then shaves manchego over the top with a tool used for making chocolate curls. Sometimes the fruit is firm, a fine, if humbler, pairing for the sheep’s milk cheese and a sprinkling of Aleppo pepper above. Other times it’s wonderfully ripe, sliced easily with a fork, dragged through the pool of dressing beneath, nearly collapsing with decadence and decay. Farag’s, 2821 N.E. Davis St., a seasonal residency behind Güero, will return in summer 2026.
Gochujang pork belly bites from North Portland’s Har-BQ.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Pork belly bites at HarBQ
When I visited in late spring, the crowds had yet to discover this North Portland barbecue truck. So I was often the only one in line when I ordered my juicy brisket burger (a Friday special) or some jiggly smoked beef cheeks (sometimes available on Sundays) or these pork belly burnt ends slicked in a spicy-sweet gochujang syrup, reminiscent of the very good ginger-soy glazed version at Hood River’s Grasslands. 825 N. Cook St.
A chopped cheesebao and Portland’s best fries.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
French fries at Jeju
I came back from an April trip to New York hungry to learn why so many Portland restaurants have no issue serving frozen fries — even the ones that shop at area farmers markets and make everything else from scratch. I instantly stumbled on not just the best French fries in Portland, but among the best fries in the United States, which chef Peter Cho cooks three times to transform each unevenly cut potato spear into a marvel of outer crunch and inner mash. 626 S.E. Main St.
Jerry’s Tavern in Northwest Portland serves cold drinks, hot wings, fresh burgers and more.Sean Meagher/The Oregonian
Chicken wings at Jerry’s Tavern
I thought I had a decent handle on Portland’s wing scene, but Jerry’s Tavern upended all that in a single visit. The friendly Midwestern dive, tucked between the breweries and strip clubs of industrial Northwest Portland, serves the best wings I’ve had in Portland, big but not flabby, fried until the edges go all crispy, coated in a flawless Buffalo sauce. Best paired with a bucket of Miller High Life. 3010 N.W. Nicolai St.
Oysters from the Puget Sound at Katy Jane’s Oyster Bar, a new sister restaurant to Coquine.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Oysters at Katy Jane’s
Katy Jane’s, a new oyster bar next door to sister restaurant Coquine, provides a powerful reason to let someone else do the shucking. The oysters here — the centerpiece of a seafood-focused menu filled with plump mussels, creamy crawfish dip and steamed clams in a parsley-green garlic butter — are just about perfect: the perfect size, the perfect salinity, the perfect shuck, the perfect everything. 6833 S.E. Belmont St.
Chicken katsu curry from Kau Kau, a Hawaiian plate lunch spot on Northeast Alberta Street.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Chicken katsu curry at Kau Kau
You might have heard this plate lunch joint described as an “elevated” Hawaiian restaurant. If that’s the case, it’s thanks to the quality of the ingredients and the technique chefs Brandon and Tracee Hirahara deploy. Take this Japanese-inspired dish, with panko-fried chicken draped across a pool of silky curry, small pieces of carrot and potato hiding underneath like sunken treasures, plus two scoops of good Koshihikari rice and one of the mustard-spiked house mac salad. 2026 N.E. Alberta St.
The green chile cheeseburger from Lone Star Burger Bar, its Anaheim chiles roasted in out front.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Green chile cheeseburger at Lone Star Burger Bar
In a city rife with smash burger carts, smash burger pop-ups and one incredible monthly butcher shop burger, Lone Star is a strong contender for Portland’s best everyday burger, available for lunch and dinner seven days a week with onion rings, hot dogs, draft beer and spicy margaritas for good measure. I especially enjoyed this green chile cheeseburger, topped with a relish of Anaheim chiles roasted out front, which slices right through any perceptible dryness in the bun. 1625 N.E. Killingsworth St.
The award-winning de Leon’s chile relleno is as good as ever at Madrina Cocina Mexicana, a new downtown Portland restaurant that walks the line between comforting and trendy.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Chile relleno at Madrina Cocina Mexicana
With blue corn tortillas, branded limes and tart shrimp ceviche, this restaurant from Salsas Locas owner Lucy De Leon walks the line between trendy and comforting. Fans of the great chile relleno served at the old Tortillería De Leon’s on the Portland-Gresham border take note — the version here at Madrina Cocina Mexicana, only slightly gussied up, is as good here as ever. 1235 S.W. Jefferson St.
A textbook panna cotta with crumbled pistachio and huckleberry jam at Maglia Rosa, a new Italian restaurant on Southeast Division Street.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Panna cotta at Maglia Rosa
Wait. Could some of the most proficient seasonal Italian cooking in Portland be found here in this big room, previously home to the Southeast Portland Bollywood Theater, near a market that once sold idli rice and ghee? That’s the thought I had after taking a bite of the radicchio salad, the house-made butternut squash ravioli and this excellent panna cotta with its crumbled pistachio and little river of huckleberry jam. 3010 S.E. Division St.
The “Baja sashimi” at Mariscos con Onda, a summer mariscos residency on the South Waterfront.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Baja sashimi at Mariscos con Onda
For those in the know, the name and presentation of the “Baja Sashimi” at Mariscos con Onda are clear nods to San Francisco’s superlative Swan Oyster Depot. At his South Waterfront summer residency, chef Adán Fausto topped thick slices of Hawaiian tuna, Hokkaido scallops and salmon with minced shallots, cracked Sonoran chiltepin, chunks of Castelvetrano olive, lemon and lime juice and a healthy glug of olive oil. Check social media for future pop-up dates.
Sweetbreads à la crème at Olympia Provisions
The sausage maker’s website describes its namesake restaurant as “rustic Spanish and Mediterranean.” So yes, you can get chilled gazpacho, charcuterie boards inspired by Spain and grilled octopus with a hazelnut romesco. But this is also the only place in town to get one of culinary icon James Beard’s favorite dishes, pan-seared sweetbreads with Oregon mushrooms in a caper-cream sauce. 107 S.E. Washington St.
Pamana serves a ube pancakes in Portland on Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025, as part of the brunch menu.Vickie Connor | The Oregonian/OregonLive
Ube pancakes at Pamana
Geri and Ethan Leung, the duo behind our 2021 Cart of the Year, are now fully entrenched in the lobby of The Hoxton, a hip London-based hotel chain in Portland’s Chinatown. So far, Pamana’s brunch has impressed more than dinner, with the morning menu featuring crisp little lumpia, rice and egg bowls and these mochi-like pancakes draped with purple ube creme anglaise the precise color of Grimace blood. 15 N.W. Fourth Ave.
Hush puppies at Parallel
This wine bar and restaurant on Northeast Sandy Boulevard pairs wines selected by advanced sommelier Stacey Gibson with a menu of Italian and Southern American dishes from chef Joey Gibson. The hush puppies, a signature, are meant to go with a sparkling white wine from the Alsace, and are surprisingly light and fluffy, perfect for spreading on a little sea urchin butter or a scoop of glistening trout roe. 3101 N.E. Sandy Blvd.
Quekas at Plaza Coyoacan
Among my favorite things to eat at this unassuming Mexico City-inspired restaurant are the quekas, folded quesadillas utilizing blue corn tortillas from Portland’s Three Sisters Nixtamal and queso Oaxaca from Salem’s Don Froylan. Plain, those quekas are delicious. Stuffed with black beans and serrano peppers (or chorizo and potato), they’re electric. 3433 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd.
Lontong cap go meh could be considered the signature dish at Pasar, an Indonesian restaurant in Northeast Portland. But you have to find it first.Vickie Connor/The Oregonian
Lontong cap go meh at Pasar
Pasar has become known, justifiably, for its fried snacks and desserts. But the more interesting aspect of the menu might be the historic Chinese-Indonesian fusion, most notably this electrifying soup, with its array of colors and textures and culture-blending marriage of tofu and tempeh, rice cakes wrapped in banana leaves and a coconut broth deepened with shrimp paste. 3023 N.E. Alberta St.
Third Coast Hot Dogs serves Texas-style hot dogs inside a 6,000-square foot space shared with Old Flame Cycles at the intersection of Southeast 7th Avenue and Southeast Division Street.Teresa Mahoney | The Oregonian/OregonLive
The San Anto at Third Coast Hot Dogs
You’ll probably hear this Texas-inspired biker bar before you see it: an engine roaring to life, a candy orange pickup peeling out from the parking lot. The foundational item on the bar’s menu of creative hot dogs is the San Anto, a far-out fusion dog owner Sage Hauser devised while riding dirt bikes as a teenager through the sprawling drainage ditches crisscrossing San Antonio. It features an all-beef Polish link scored with a Slotdog and topped with Oaxacan mole and crushed Takis. 2227 S.E. Seventh Ave.
Lan Roc pork tonkatsu breaded in house panko crumbs at Toya Ramen & Bar.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Tonkatsu at Toya Ramen & Bar
You’ve surely heard about the ramen by now. But while Toya’s noodle soups are excellent, you could just as easily skip ramen entirely, dropping by for a juicy bento box cocktail and a plate of this best-in-class tonkatsu. Here, chef Colin Yoshimoto and his team break down full loins of Lan-Roc pork and make their own fluffy panko breadcrumbs. Succulent and golden-fried, each deep-fried pork steak comes with pickled daikon, sliced cabbage, sesame-ginger slaw, Japanese barbecue sauce and hot mustard. 803 S.E. Stark St.
Longtime fans of Gregory Gourdet’s work at Portland’s Departure and Kann already know his skill with duck.Michael Russell | The Oregonian
Bonus pick: Glazed duck from Maison Passerelle, NYC
The duck at Gregory Gourdet’s new Manhattan bistro, Maison Passerelle, is a dead ringer for the one at Portland’s Kann, down to the cubed pineapple, a candy-crusted meat lollipop of a confit leg and slices of juicy mid-rare breast scattered with salt, all soaking in a sweet pool of tamarind jus. When I visited in April, it came with a side of diri ak sos pwa, the divine Haitian dish of rice with smooth bean sauce. 1 Wall Street, New York
Honorable mentions: Lamb skewers at Alma, shrimp omelet at Memoire Cà Phê, rigatoni alla vodka at Dimo’s Apizza, smoked chicken at Lil’ Barbecue, Monday’s $10 steaks at Panther Club.
