Filed under: Hawaiian, Southwest Portland | Tags: Hawaiian, korean short ribs, mahi mahi, paleo, Portland, southwest
0515 SW Carolina Street, Portland OR, 97239
Reservations: 503-977-2771
Ahhh…Maui….well, Back to life, Back to reality…wait a sec…..wha whaaa? Where did this restaurant come from? Tucked on a side street off of Macadam in SW, I would never have found this place if my friend didn’t work close by. Thanks May!
What we ordered: Small sized Mahi Mahi, Eggs and Rice (#20), Large sized Combination Platter any choice of 2 meats – Hibachi Ribs and Kahlua Pig (#38)
How we ordered it: We ordered the Mahi Mahi as is. Though the rice could easily be subbed out with green salad. The large sized combination platter we ordered with Hibachi ribs (dry rubbed). Hibachi ribs are just like Korean short ribs, kalbi, but has a dry rub that is various spices and seasonings and not marinated in soy sauce! The green salad was subbed in for the mac salad.
What we got:
Small mahi mahi, eggs and rice
Large combo platter
Green salad instead of mac salad
Cost: Small Mahi Mahi, eggs and rice – $10, Large Combo Platter – $18
Quantity: Holy canoli! The large sized platters are EASILY for two people. Pretty incredible the amount of meat that is on that plate! That combo platter plate was at least 14″! But a small platter would do just fine for the average person. If you are a large person or a small person with a large appetite, then go for the Medium sized platters.
Quality: The meat was really well done (as in cooked well). Not dry at all! The kahlua pig that is served from Thurs-Sunday is pretty fantastic. Some Hawaiian places make their kahlua pig too salty, but this kahlua pig was juuuuust right. Some might say this is better than Noho’s in SE, but it is a tough call. However, I am leaning towards Bamboo Grill…
MEAT-O-METER says!
Who is this guy? He looks familiar, but something is missing…..I can’t quite put my finger on it …….;)
If this place were closer to our house, we would go here much more often. This was my third time at Bamboo Grill and the Hibachi ribs were a bit different every time.
(UPDATE!) Call this a disclaimer: The waitress said that because they are dry rubbed and depending on when they cut the meat or where the cut of meat is from on the pig, it’s hard to get them to be consistent. (?) She was super nice about it though and said next time to let her know of any issues and she will give us more! In this case our ribs the third time were really chewy, tasty, but chewy.
Also, we went back a fourth time and did this!!! We ordered a VEGGIE GRIND: a fresh medley vegetable stir fry. On the menu you can order veggie grind and add your choice of three meats. We asked if one of those choices of three meats could be the Hibachi Ribs, even though it wasn’t listed. THe waitress was all game for it and that’s what we did! Since it’s stir fry, there was soy sauce in it, so I’m sure you could ask for sauce on the side and just have the veggies steamed. This options was between $12 and $16, I can’t remember…
- Side of veggies
We didn’t try the poke because we all know our history with disappointment when it comes to poke on the mainland. It’s listed as an appetizer for $12….hmmm…..I’m thinking icksnay on the okepay, but if anyone with a bigger wallet tries it, let us know! We’re curious….
There’s a slight Hawaiian feel when you walk in 
But I guess next to actually going to Hawaii, this place will do for now 
7123 N. Lombard St., Portland, Oregon 97203
A BBQ place that’s close to our house?? Woohoo!! We had to check it out! A new restaurant.com coupon showed up and we were there in no time!
What we ordered: Luau Sampler: Feeds 3 people. Includes: Kalua pig – Grilled huli huli chicken – Pork ribs – Grilled beef tri-tip – Smoked sausage - rice – Macaroni salad - Island slaw – Paniolo beans
How we ordered it: Substituted Mac Salad and Beans for Tropical Fruit and Steamed Vegetables. No rice please!
What we got:
Luau Platter
Sides
Cost: Luau Platter – $28
Quality: Wow, this meat was good! The brisket, ribs and chicken were all tasty and moist and flavorful. The sausages were just typical sausages. But it was a good combo of lean and fat meats. The Sides however, were a different story. Clearly this place is a meat place which is awesome! The steamed vegetables were nothing great. They looked and tasted like they were from a bag. The Tropical Fruit was definitely out of a can. Island slaw was nothing great….at least it didn’t have mayo in it! Booo, but the meat was pretty awesome!
Quantity: That platter had a ton of meat! Both of us could not finish all of it.
MEAT-O-METER
The meat was good, but the restaurant itself was tiny and awkward. There were only 4 tables, one consisting of a long and narrow table that faced the other three tables, not facing a window or anything. Very awkwardly spaced. The summer may be a bit better because there is outdoor seating. Regarding the food, however, the meat was pretty good, but the sides were terrible. I know this review is supposed to be about the meat, but I couldn’t NOT take in consideration everything else to give it a really good review…..It’s a give and take. Not our favorite place. If we wanted good barbecue we’d probably drive to Podnah’s.
Filed under: Hawaiian, Northeast Portland | Tags: Hawaiian, Milwaukee Oregon, Northeast Portland, paleo
(503) 335-5800
Since moving away from NoHo’s – the Southeast Hawaiian Restaurant, we haven’t had that much Hawaiian food lately. Also continuing on our quest to find good Poki outside of Hawaii has been very hard to find. Ah well, we’ll have to settle for what we can get locally.
What we ordered: Large Kalua Pig Main Plate, Garlic Mahi Mahi Main Plate
How we ordered it: No rice, No Macaroni Salad, Extra Salad please!
What we got:
Kalua Pig
Garlic Mahi Mahi
Let’s take a closer look at the fish.
Wow, very rare, moist and perfect!
Cost: Large Kalua Pig Plate – $10, Garlic Mahi Mahi – $12. Add $.50 for substituting green salad.
Quality: The Kalua Pig was a bit salty, but overall very moist and well done. The Mahi Mahi was Perfect! That’s how fish should be made. Melts in your mouth, on the very rare side, not fish smelling and definitely NOT DRY!
Quantity: OK. We were starving and after we ate this meal, we were still a bit hungry.
MEAT-O-METER says!
Even though it wasn’t an incredibly large quantity, the quality way exceeded our expectations. Meat is fer sure their specialty and they do it very well. The fact that eating Paleo here was so easy was awesome! They are great and a sure bet. They’ve also expanded to Milwaukee too!
