13 Best Restaurants in Nob Hill, Portland

At this high-ceilinged, mod-industrial space in Slabtown, it's all about the free-range, pineapple-brined, wood-fired chicken, which you can order as a quarter, half, of whole bird paired with your choice of sauces—favorites include smoked-garlic miso and Thai fish sauce. Make it a true feast by ordering a couple of the enticing sides, maybe cornbread with whipped-honey chili butter, grilled Brussels sprouts with grilled lemon–Calabrian chili oil and confit or garlic puree.

This now nationally known artisanal ice-cream shop began here with this still always-packed café in the Alberta Arts District and continues to wow the public with its wildly inventive classics as well as seasonal flavors (freckled-chocolate zucchini bread and green fennel and maple are a couple of recent examples). Locally produced Woodblock chocolate bars and homemade salted-caramel sauce are among the toppings. Expect a long line, but take heart in knowing that the patient staff works fast and cheerfully encourages patrons to sample the different flavors.

While this upscale tavern serves fine dinner plates, it's happy hour and brunch that draws scene-y Nob Hill revelers to 23Hoyt. With a cool, clean ambience and the owner's private collection of contemporary art on the walls, this corner establishment makes an excellent place to partake in early-evening or weekend noshing.

With hardwood floors, Jacobethan brick walls, and rotating work from local artists, Coffeehouse Northwest is the quintessential Portland café—and one of the city’s pioneering specialty shops, the first to serve single-origin beans. Expect first-rate drinks made with shots of espresso from Dovetail Coffee Roasters.

Golden crusts are the trademark of Ken's rustic breads, croissants, tarts, and puff pastries, perfect for breakfast and lunch. Sandwiches, barbecue pulled pork, and croque monsieur are served on thick slabs of freshly baked bread, and local berries fill the flaky pastries. If the dozen tables inside the vibrant blue bakery are crammed (they usually are), you can sit outside at one of the sidewalk tables.

This New York-style kosher deli and bagel bakery evokes a 1950s diner. The thick sandwiches are made with fresh bread and lean, fresh-cooked meats, and the tender home-smoked salmon and pickled herring are simply mouthwatering.

There's one reason people frequent this buzzy 23rd Avenue bistro: its luscious desserts, like the banana coconut cream pie, the berry cobblers, and the boccone dolce (Swiss meringues layered with whipped cream and seasonal fruit and drizzled with semi-sweet chocolate).

This retro-cool Portland institution has been famous for its beef since it opened in 1944, though seafood lovers will find plenty of choices as well. Dine in cozy booths on rib eye, prime rib, and New York strip, which come in regular or king-size cuts, as well as Dungeness crab, broiled lobster tails, deep-fried prawns, and plank-roasted steelhead trout.

Named for the patron saint of bakers, this French bakery on a quiet corner in Slabtown serves light meals and pastries. Start the day off with a plain or chocolate croissant, or café au lait, but return for lunch (or dinner) and the delicious quiche, sandwiches, salads, savory puff pastries, and tarts. St. Honoré has outposts Downtown, on S.E. Division Street, and in Lake Oswego.

This always-crowded Slabtown restaurant takes its inspiration from the bouchons, or rustic cafés, of Lyon, the culinary capital of France. The menu changes weekly, with recurring favorites including such flavorful plates as beef tripe in a bouillabaisse of clams or pig's head with a confit of jowl and date puree, and there's an exceptional selection of French and Pacific Northwest wines.

Head to this boisterous, pink-tiled, modern restaurant in Slabtown for creative takes on Cambodian food, including an aromatic prawn stirfy with pineapple, bell peppers, and crispy garlic, and turmeric cod chowder in a hearty vermicelli noodle curry with fresh cabbage slaw. Chef-owner Diane Lam changes the menu regularly, depending on what's fresh and in season.

Step into an old-school slice of Portland's circa-1999 coffee-shop scene. This pioneering roaster continues to serve organic coffee and espresso at its flagship Nob Hill location as well as at the coffee bar within Powell's City of Books on Burnside.