The Top Restaurants by Cuisine in Portland

by The OpenTable team

Updated February 20, 2020

Where’s the best Mexican, Japanese, Chinese, or Indian food in town? Where’s the best steak, the best pizza, the best plate of oysters? We’ve pulled data from thousands of restaurants to find the top spots among Portland's most expert, seasoned diners, broken down by each type of cuisine.

Davenport

4.8

4.8 (745)

$31 to $50

Contemporary American

NE Portland

About the restaurant

AMERICAN: This reasonably priced dinner-only spot has a regularly changing menu of globally-inspired American dishes that celebrate ingredients from the pacific northwest. This is also reflected in the ambiance they’ve created using calming earth tones and lots of wood. The standout menu items (if they're available) are the cauliflower soup, scallops, swordfish, and beef goulash.

Top review

ericaVIP

Dined on Dec 8, 2024

Always a pleasure to eat here. The food is always excellent, staff lovely, and mellow ambiance.

RingSide Steakhouse - Uptown

4.8

4.8 (7404)

$50 and over

Steakhouse

NW Portland

About the restaurant

STEAKHOUSE: When you walk into this classic steakhouse that’s been operating for over sixty years—with waiters in tuxedos—you’re transported to another time. Wooden beams, a brick fireplace, and red leather booths feel like a storied steakhouse mixed with an old hunting lodge. A perfect intersection for serving prime cuts of meat, like their filet mignon and prime rib, which are popular orders along with oversized onion rings and a great French onion soup.

Top review

Jeremy

Dined today

Was a lovely experience for our Christmas Eve dinner. Great service and great food.

Can Font

4.5

4.5 (1136)

$30 and under

Spanish

NW Portland

About the restaurant

SPANISH: Beautiful, elegant, and delicately decorated Catalan restaurant in the wonderful Pearl district. Their original location is in Spain, and their menu is specifically inspired by Barcelona, as is some of the design. Their unmistakably authentic food will make you feel like you’re eating at their original location. The octopus appetizer, Spanish rioja, and assortment of paellas (the traditional one with squid is top-notch) are popular choices, and as a bonus, you can see them make most of it from their open kitchen.

Top review

ChuckVIP

Dined 5 days ago

Always an excellent experience with great service and excellent food

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4.8

4.8 (3538)

$30 and under

South American

SW Portland

About the restaurant

SOUTH AMERICAN: Nestled right alongside the waterfront—with a very rare dining view of the Willamette River—is this sizzling South American restaurant that marries flavors from Argentina, Chile, and Patagonia. Their menu not only features tapas, empanadas, and ceviches, but also has a variety of veggie dishes and grilled seafood and meat. They even have an outdoor pig roast, which is where their smoked and slow roasted pork gets its intense flavor from. Their octopus with chorizo and bacon wrapped duck dishes are also strong standouts.

Top review

Jessica

Dined 1 day ago

We went the day before Christmas Eve and it was the most amazing and memorable experience of a lifetime! We had just found out that my FIL has a very aggressive form of cancer and this was a memory none of us will ever forget. The six of us ordered about 9 HH apps and two entrees and everything was a 10/10! The food was the out of this world, our server was the most attentive we’d ever had, and the ambiance was quiet, exciting, and amazing the entire time. I highly recommend this tapas-style culinary experience of a lifetime!

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4.4

4.4 (25)

$30 and under

Middle Eastern

NE Portland

About the restaurant

MIDDLE EASTERN: Dar Salam is about as close as you can get to eating authentic food in Iraq without taking more than a car ride. Behind this beautifully delicious Middle Eastern restaurant there’s a beautiful story too. In 2011, an Iraqi man and his Portlandian wife opened up a very popular food cart called Aladdin's Castle Cafe (where he and his mother made all the food), and then they opened Dar Salam so people could better experience the hospitality that’s at the core of their culture. They expanded their menu to include wonderfully flavorful things like kabobs, large rice plates, stews, and plenty of gluten-free options (like their falafel, which people swoon for). More recently, they opened Dar Salam Lazurdi, which also has live music and belly dancing!

Top review

Janis

Dined on Sep 22, 2024

We ordered several items to share. The baba ganoush was really excellent. Also highly recommend the cardamom gimlet.