Late Night
In a city where most restaurants are eerily silent by 10pm and staying out until 3am is licentious, late night dining is limited. Along with the usual staid options (Denny's and IHOP), there's a smattering of slightly more interesting choices dotted around town.
Three recommended 24-hour eateries are The Roxy downtown, Tik Tok on SE 82nd and the Hotcake House on SE Powell. All three dish out greasy diner meals; food-wise, there's not all that much between them. The Roxy has an entertainingly kitsch menu and interior design that looks like it was done by a punk kid with a penchant for Priscilla. A few too many loitering high school delinquents makes for a sometimes unpleasant ambience. No such concerns about Tik Tok. It not only has a 21-and-over policy, but evidently also such a following that it boasts its own unofficial fan page, complete with unappetizing portraits of both food and staff. The panoply of clocks on display would drive Captain Hook to insanity. By comparison, the Hotcake House looks like a twilight haven of normalcy. But what it lacks in decorative eccentricity, it makes up for with its eclectic clientèle – a bizarre jumble of off-duty policemen, redneck townsfolk, and weary strippers who for the most part studiously avoid making eye contact.
The budding urban anthropologist will find another source of inspiration at Voodoo Donuts. Perhaps the quirkiest eatery in all of Portland, Voodoo is renowned for its grotesque – but unfailingly yummy – fried dough creations. The Triple Chocolate Penetration (chocolate doughnut, chocolate glaze, cocoa puffs) and the suitably massive Cock-n-Balls (use your imagination) are particular highlights. With opening hours as idiosyncratic as their doughnuts (10pm-10am), Voodoo attracts a crowd ranging from hungry office workers to incoherent vagrants to hipsters just out from seeing the latest saviours of music at Berbati's Pan next door.
A considerably healthier option lies just around the corner from Voodoo. During the day, Valentine's is a tastefully spare little café serving simple, well-made sandwiches and soups. By night, the same fare metamorphoses into enticing light meals. Valentine's is open until 3am on Wednesdays to Saturdays, making it another convenient stop after a show at Berbati's or Dante's.
On the east side of the river, along with The Delta (see above), is the hipster triumvirate of Dots, the Doug Fir and Le Bistro Montage. The first is known for its admirably fresh French fries and reasonable burgers. It would be a see-and-be-seen joint – except you can't actually see very much amid all that dark velvety wallpaper and dingy lighting. The Doug Fir has better-lit kitsch, but thoroughly undistinguished food. Unless you're already at the Doug Fir for drinks or a show, there's really no reason to be eating there. A savvy crowd heads to the Montage to munch on tolerable Cajun fare at long communal tables. Notwithstanding the fact that there are at least two restaurants in NE Portland serving much better food of the type (albeit none open as late), it's a fun place to go. More remarkable than the humdrum victuals are the pretty tin foil sculptures you get for taking home leftovers.
Le Bistro Montage: 301 SE Morrison St $-$$
Dots Cafe: 2521 SE Clinton St $-$$
Doug Fir: 830 E Burnside St $$
Original Hotcake & Steak House: 1002 SE Powell Blvd $-$$
The Roxy: 1121 SW Stark St $-$$
Tik Tok: 3330 SE 82nd Ave $-$$
Valentine's: 232 SW Ankeny $-$$
Voodoo Donuts: 22 SW 3rd Ave $
See also: The Delta.