Radio Room

www.radioroompdx.com

The Radio Room, located in the arts district of Portland, was packed two Fridays ago! Our party of four had literally nowhere to sit in the large indoor/outdoor, upstairs/downstairs, this-room/that-room plus bar smorgasbord of seating arrangements. Whew!



Where we sat.
From Radio Room photos.

 Apparently the spot serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner and from what I can tell by the looks of it, is that it is crowded during all of those meals. We enjoyed a nice, post-happy hour dining time of 7pm and sampling their seasonal beer on tap while waiting for our meal to arrive. We managed to squeeze in to a nice table situated on the backside of the main room next to a lively party of 8 who were welcoming to our wetness and close proximity. With us that evening was a bottle candleholder we were bringing on our way to an auction, which got many warm comments from the wait staff and the table next door. Friendly place!

For my meal I ate the salmon club, which was recommended to me and two other people at the table dined on as well. It was out of this world! It tasted totally fresh and not fishy, so much so that I would even recommend that a non-fish eater dabble into fish with it. The description of my dish says that it includes “sizzlin’ salmon” and some fresh thick-cut bacon, which I happily gave out as I’m not a bacon lover (I know that’s sacrilege) and some scrumptious red pepper aioli, as well as sandwich toppings. That red pepper aioli really made the meal – it tasted similar to a creamy spinach spread or a good baba ganoush in the sense that what I tasted was a fresh salad concoction and not the individual ingredients.

The stuffed butternut ravioli tempted me, I admit. “Brown butter, sage, hazelnut” all served in a gorgonzola sauce with a baguette. Yes! Additionally, the mix of brie and apples on a chicken sandwich sounds like a winner, as does the turkey cranberry sandwich.

This girl was not a friend of ours!
From Radio Room photos.

If I had to go back tonight, I think I’d eat the whole menu instead. No, in all seriousness I think I’d try out more of the “corners” of the menu. For instance, I think I’d sample the desserts and appetizers. Maybe investigate the macaroni and cheese with its wonderful toppings.

The ambience was slightly noisy, or waitress was slighty airheaded, but with the friendly mood and dark lighting, none of that seemed to matter. The night was destined to be a dark and storm night warmed by friends and good food!