19 replies to this topic

[Egads]

A new burger joint ("modern diner concept," per a Craigslist ad), "Dick's Kitchen," has opened up in the spot next to Laughing Planet on Belmont, the spot that has held three or four different ventures in the past five years or so, none of which have lasted very long. I don't know if this is also by the Laughing Planet guy, or if he's finally decided to let someone else have a run at this spot, but from the looks of the menu, they may actually make it. It looks like the kind of place that will have no trouble bringing in folks from the neighborhood. I wonder if anyone has been in to try it yet? They don't have a website that I can find, but the menu itself looks pretty good--everything (buns, sauces) done in-house, and using local, organic foods. Prices look pretty good, burger starts at $6, sliders are $3, and they've got a variety of veggie options as well. It's just a couple blocks from me, so I hope to try it soon. I think they're doing a soft opening for a couple weeks, and then the official grand opening is something like Aug 22.

Dick's Kitchen
3312 SE Belmont St
Portland, OR 97214

[aplyley]

A new burger joint ("modern diner concept," per a Craigslist ad), "Dick's Kitchen," has opened up in the spot next to Laughing Planet on Belmont, the spot that has held three or four different ventures in the past five years or so, none of which have lasted very long. I don't know if this is also by the Laughing Planet guy, or if he's finally decided to let someone else have a run at this spot, but from the looks of the menu, they may actually make it. It looks like the kind of place that will have no trouble bringing in folks from the neighborhood. I wonder if anyone has been in to try it yet? They don't have a website that I can find, but the menu itself looks pretty good--everything (buns, sauces) done in-house, and using local, organic foods. Prices look pretty good, burger starts at $6, sliders are $3, and they've got a variety of veggie options as well. It's just a couple blocks from me, so I hope to try it soon. I think they're doing a soft opening for a couple weeks, and then the official grand opening is something like Aug 22.

Dick's Kitchen
3312 SE Belmont St
Portland, OR 97214

The Trib says it's a new concept from the Laughing Planet guy (http://www.portlandt...793268080356700), but it's still nice to have a new option on Belmont.

(I've only been lurking for about 6 years, I guess it's time to start posting.)

[Joisey]

Someone needs to convince one of those big Greek families from Jersey to move out here and open a few real 24 hour diners. They'd make a KILLING.

[Kernel]

Living just a few blocks away, I am hoping for the best. That stretch of Belmont is going through some major changes and it would be nice to add some decent food options.

[chefken]

Yeah...Let's hope it doesn't suck as bad as Laughing Planet. What process do they use to remove every bit of flavor from everything they serve?

[hereitcomesagain]

It's still in shake down mode, but I'm convinced it will be excellent once they get the rough edges knocked off. House-made. House-made. House-made. Grass-fed burgers, hot air roasted baby potatoes, nice salads and pickles, a long list of sauces. Locally sourced and often organic produce. Only inescapable downside that I can see is that you won't be able to linger and yak. Not a lot of tables for the menu and they will have to turn them over aggressively.

[nervousxtian]

Yeah...Let's hope it doesn't suck as bad as Laughing Planet. What process do they use to remove every bit of flavor from everything they serve?

They figure you can't really taste things with cottonmouth?



And obvious shill is obvious.

[Kernel]

Went there for lunch last weekend and was pleased. They are still sorting things out, but I'm optimistic.

The burger was very good (not phenomenal, but very good) and cheap, if on the smallish side. The oven baked fingerling potatoes were excellent. We shared an outstanding kale salad. My wife had a grilled chicken sandwich which defied the usual restaurant grilled chicken sandwich - the chicken had flavor. Small but interesting taps, attentive service . . . nice addition to the 'hood.

[chefken]

...hot air roasted baby potatoes...

I almost coughed up a lung at this one! As opposed to cold air roasted? Is this the cousin of Fred Meyer's "Flame-crafted Hams?"

[nervousxtian]

...hot air roasted baby potatoes...

I almost coughed up a lung at this one! As opposed to cold air roasted? Is this the cousin of Fred Meyer's "Flame-crafted Hams?"

I prefer the room temp roasted taters myself.

[ExtraMSG]

Biked up Belmont the other night in case I got the urge to try a new place. Decided to stop in to Dick's Kitchen.



Two room setup with the kitchen/counter in the space on the right...



...and dining room on the left.

Menu has beef burgers, alternative burgers (tempeh, portobello, turkey, bison, etc), dogs/sausages, veggie/vegan options, salads, and various extras. It's seemingly typical of the new gourmet burger joints, but with hippie touches like agave sweetened sodas and coconut bliss vegan shakes.



I started with the kale chop, a chopped salad with kale, hazelnuts, blue cheese, and raspberry vinaigrette. Arguably a little spendy given there's no protein at $4.50, I enjoyed it a lot. The kale had a nice texture and went well with the cheese and nuts. The vinaigrette did a nice job of balancing the greens' natural bitterness.



The burger was fine, but ultimately I was disappointed, both with how things were conceived and how they were executed. First, the "not fries". These, I actually liked. If someone told you they were fries, you'd be annoyed. But as home fries or roasted potato wedges, I think they're pretty good. They had some crust to them yielding to a moist, creamy interior. Salt them immediately, though. (I didn't get a dipping sauce as stated on the menu. Maybe you only get that with side orders, not orders that come with burgers.) The "fries" are a $2.50 add-on. ($3 for yam "fries".) Burgers always come with a very small portion of a flat-tasting coleslaw gratis.



I chose the pimento cheese "Elvis" burger. No crazy peanut butter and pickle thing here, just their normal burger topped with a housemade pimento cheese. Lettuce, tomato, pickle, and onion come on the side. The burger also comes with a house "special sauce". I was surprised to see a sauce spilling out from the side of the picture above because I never noticed the sauce and was thinking it was a little dry and could use something sweet and tart to bring out the flavors of the burger more.



Patty was oddly cooked. It was over-charred (but griddled not grilled, I believe) to the point that the carbon got all over my fingers and the side of the bun as I was eating it. It tasted a little burnt to me and I love char. However, it was entirely under-done inside. I had asked for it medium (they ask you). There may have been part of the burger properly cooked, but the majority was rare (being generous). I was tempted to return it.

The more disappointing thing to me, though, was just the balance of flavors. If you look at that first picture, you can see how little pimento cheese there is relative to the patty. I could barely taste the cheese at all. It's only a 5 oz burger. Screen Door has a much bigger burger with a lot more stuff on it and the pimento cheese has no problem asserting itself. They should at least double the amount. They need to give more pickles, too. They don't give enough that you can taste them in each bite and the tanginess is really helpful for the burger.

Final nit-pick is with the claim that this is a cheap burger. It's probably fair. But this place is more expensive than Little Big Burger or Foster Burger, I'd say. The Elvis was $8.25, $10.75 with "not fries". That's putting you in bistro burger pricing for a smaller burger in more of a quick service environment. (Their basic burger is $6.50.) That said, I think there's potential here with some modest modifications. Might want to start with a price drop of about 10% or make the fry add-on about a buck cheaper.

Two final annoyances: 1) I ordered a papaya drink (an homage to Papaya King) and never got it (and no one ever realized I didn't get it), and 2) when I asked what ice cream they use for their shakes, she said Cascade Glacier (I believe she's one of the owners) and added that they haven't been able to find anything better. I held my tongue. I mean, that's total bullshit. You use Cascade Glacier because you get your food from FSA or Cash & Carry, probably. It's easy and relatively cheap. Nothing against that. K&Z has used Cascade Glacier. It's decent ice cream. But you could do better with Tillamook and a lot better with Cool Moon or even a premium commercial brand. The economics may not make it worth it, but that has nothing to do with not being able to find something better. Please, don't bullshit me.

[Jill-O]

Vey is mir, enough with the cheeseburgers, Zuke, hasn't your cardiologist put three kids through college already??! ;o) I can barely read about you eating another burger!

Cease! Desist!

Thank goodness you were on your bike...

[ExtraMSG]

It's been like 4 months since I did my last burger report, mom.

[Jill-O]

Nicholas Alexander Zukin, don't make me come over there!

[ExtraMSG]

http://www.portlandm...ent?oid=3081415

Newish SE Belmont eatery Dick's Kitchen stakes claim to the intersection of several subsets of Portland eaters: vegans, vegetarians, and label-conscious carnivores who are willing to pay a bit more for quality meat. Describing itself as "Portland's first 'Stone Age diner,'" Dick's provides a diner-style interpretation of Michael Pollan's edict "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." The menu emphasizes the foods "our ancestors evolved to eat," which translates to a focus on lean protein and vegetable dishes. (And milkshakes!) The menu provides a bibliography-style list of "food sources," as well as an actual bibliography of suggested reading.

[sacman]

A few days ago, the dude above watched benignly down on me while I ate at Dick's kitchen, like some sort of Big Brother. Here's another Dick:


That one's Dick Burton, whose final role, interestingly enough, was that of O'Brien in the 1984 version of Nineteen Eighty-Four. He stared at me while I was eating my burger, as if from the video screens out of the novel itself.

We - my favorite coworker and I - went there a few days ago, primarily because they offer a gluten-free bun. Well, no. Really, we went there because we were hungry, but we chose Dick's because of its bunnage.


We started with a Grasshopper shake, which is basically a minty alcoholic shake. It was pretty good, and quite alcoholic.


I ordered the bacon burger, and added bleu cheese. Can't see the bacon for the cheese? Look closer.


Still not apparent? Look closlier.


See it now? It's there, just poking out from under the bun near the center bottom of the photo. This burger had caramelized onions as well as raw onion. And you know what? It was pretty good. The meat was cooked properly, and was quite tasty. The house-made bun is tough enough. The burger definitely benefited from the tang of the cheese; without it, I'm afraid this burger's flavor would have been unbalanced. IMHO, it should probably be standard issue on this burger.


My coworker got the persillade burger on the gluten-free bun. The GF bun is sourced from Jensen's Bakery, which is a local GF bakery.


Anyway, she said it was very tasty. I didn't try it, but I think I might get the persillade burger the next time we visit. Both of the burgers came with a small dish of slaw, which was fine.

Also, see those fries a couple photos up? Those are the much-discussed "not-fries".


Here's a closeup. Nice potatoes, very tasty. But this portion is a large (verified by our server), and cost five bucks. Overpriced, in my opinion, especially given that you can get this monster:

from K & Z's for $8.50.


For dessert, we got talked into a berry cobbler, with a scoop of ice cream. It was just fine.

The philosophy behind this diner can be found on their menu here. But I'm in a snarky mood about this place, and I have to say I just don't care about their philosophy. I care much more about the quality of the food put in front of me, with price also being a factor. There is really nothing to complain about, quality-wise. Everything was well-prepared from high-quality ingredients. It was all very tasty, and we'll go back. But it will be after we get bonuses (boni?) at work, because we spent something like $45 with tip for two burgers, a side of fries, a dish of cobbler, and an alcoholic milkshake. I think the same meal would have been closer to $30 at Foster Burger or any number of other upscale burger joints around town.

But, to be fair, Dick's is not a burger joint, they just have lots of burgers on their menu. There are also plenty of sandwiches, salads, non-beef burgers, composed plates, and sausages. Oh, and specials, like this one, scrawled along the wall of the room where we weren't sitting:


That's something I'd probably have ordered instead of the burger. Alas, I was not told of any specials by our server, and it was not on the printed menu. I guess I was just supposed to notice it as I walked in. The same thing happened to me at Broder a few months ago, so I guess it's the new Portland thing.

-sacman

[Laksa]

This place hasn't gotten a lot of love but I think it deserves more. The food isn't terribly expensive--think brewpub prices--and it has flavor and, umm, depth. We've eaten there for $20 for two, as most dishes are under $10. Ingredients are top quality. Someone in the kitchen has flair, that's for sure. Certainly, finding a family and kid friendly place with food this good doesn't happen every day.

[ExtraMSG]

I heard from a reliable source the NW Dick's kitchen is aiming to open tomorrow.

Dick's Kitchen
704 NW 21st Ave
Portland, OR 97210

[Adam]

I'm kind of shocked by the mostly positive reaction to Dick's Kitchen here. I wrote more in depth about it here, but I've had a couple of their burgers and I'd rank them among the very worst I've eaten in Portland. The owner has some insane aversion to salting his food (he subscribes to the Paleolithic Diet, and even suggests salting your own burger at the table). Everything is so colossally bland. How do you make bland pimento cheese? Dick's Kitchen figured it out.

The not-fries have changed from the ones Nick and Sacman had (which themselves aren't even alike). The ones Nick & Sacman ordered actually look palatable, but what I was served was tough as shoe leather and about as flavorful.

I did like the chocolate malt, though. Probably the single-maltiest chocolate malt I've ever had. Wonderful. But everything else? Desperately in need of salt. A second location is the last thing Portland needs.

[truth]

The windows are still covered in paper. Not open yet.