OX
2225 N.E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
503-284-3366
oxpdx.com
Dinner, daily
$$$$
It's the hottest day of the year, the wood-fired grill is roaring, and despite the punishing heat, snagging a table at Ox still requires a 90-minute wait. The crowds brave the heat at Greg Denton and Gabrielle Quinonez Denton's Argentine-inspired blockbuster, where reservations are saved for parties of eight or more, for medium-rare meats charred on that grill and a handful of dishes that are household names for Portland food lovers. Think bone marrow-spiked clam chowder, beef tongue with horseradish, and grilled lamb with its smoking sprig of rosemary. Luckily, there are seats at the bar, where you can gaze longingly at the cool vintage fridge while drinking luminescent pisco sours or whiskey cocktails bloodied with beet juice. Stay put for braised oxtail fried in a cube atop a circlet of slowly melting peas in preserved lemon aioli. With so many hits, it's surprising to find a miss, though a limp plate of sauteed lettuce and fava beans didn't do much for us. Even at $82, the Asado Argentino, a big but not overwhelming platter of blood sausage, chorizo, fatty short rib and gorgeous skirt steak piled atop sweetbreads with fried potatoes and a simple avocado-lettuce salad, is still the go-to move for groups of three or more. I'm almost embarrassingly fond of Ox's desserts: The hazelnut brown butter torte with delicate chamomile ice cream and stick-to-your-teeth honeycomb candy was joined this year by an adorably color-coordinated sponge cake with Marionberry ice cream, shingles of Marionberry meringue and whipped cream hiding a cap of caramel.
Don't miss: Dessert!
-- Michael Russell Follow @tdmrussell