Brasserie Montmartre

We stopped into Brasserie Montmartre on our way downtown to do some shopping. It is a bit off the beaten path, which I always like. It is a large space, and sprawling on the inside. Floor to ceiling white fabrics hang from various poles throughout the dining area, and multiple mirrors and wall décor give the interior a unique and authentic appeal. I can’t quite explain it, but it has a very old school Portland vibe.

A great long bar was a nice place to enjoy a glass of wine/beer in the middle of the day. We were here for Happy Hour at 5pm on a Saturday, and people were starting to trickle in. The bartender was very friendly, although he forgot my boyfriends beer, LOL. We ordered oysters on the half shell (served with a horseradish-champagne mignonette), and waited far too long. It was decent, but nothing memorable. My glass of red was only $5 though, and I think my boyfriends craft beer draft was on Happy Hour as well.

Overall a good place to have a drink, but probably not somewhere I would think to return to dive into the menu.

*Jayne

Dragonfish Asian Cafe

Not an overall bad place to grab a bite of sushi/beer if you are in the neighborhood. Located inside the Paramount Hotel (which has a bit of an outdated interior, but still has its attractive qualities), as you walk into the lobby there are two Dragonfish areas – the restaurant to your left, and the bar to the right. Both appear to serve the full menu, but we choose to sit in the bar area. Grabbed a cozy table right in the window, overlooking the busy streets (great people watching).

We happened to be here for Happy Hour, and this is where Dragonfish scores points. It may not be the best sushi, but it is decent quality, and the Happy Hour menu is stocked with a long list of affordable, delicious options. I highly recommend trying it out for this menu alone.

We ordered a mix of items from the Happy Hour and Dinner menu, and were most impressed with the following:

1) Miso Soup – solid rendition of the Asian classic ($2!)
2) Dragonfish Salad – fresh and light, with a wonderful ginger dressing ($3!)
3) ORE-WAII ROLL - Salmon, mango, and coconut, dusted with toasted macadamia nuts, with blueberry wasabi sauce and coconut sauce.
4) Great beer/drink specials
Just because I think this is a bit odd, I wanted to mention that the restaurant/hotel lobby does not have a bathroom. You have to take the elevator down one floor…strange! The service was friendly in the restaurant, and the atmosphere is completely laid back.
Anyway, my guess is that Dragonfish turns out consistently decent meals (also notable that is has another location in Seattle), and for that they earn a solid 3. I would recommend this place a good place to grab an affordable sushi lunch.

*Jayne