I'd heard Lion and Owl was great, and being from Portland I *MISS* having a solid artisanal brunch spot (or 10+) so obviously I had to give this place a go. Yeah yeah, insert Portlandia jokes here. Anyway, back to business. Brunch business.
So, I went with a friend last weekend expecting to have my socks knocked off. Though there was proverbial sock activity, I can't say they were fully knocked off.
First, the place is setup in an Airstream trailer. Bless 'em; I can't fathom cooking to professional standards in an Airstream. (I mean, I can't fathom cooking to professional standards. Full stop.) Part of the trailer, by the way, was indoor seating! Good on you people for the gymnastics that must take place to get those amazing dishes out in a timely manner, looking wonderful and tasting fantastic.
Second, there are only a couple of outdoor tables, and though covered, offer minimal protection in the event of say, a wind gust. Also, you've gotta share seating, which isn't awful, but also isn't always ideal. (I like to pull my seating closer to the table, but another patron on the bench next to me preferred it farther away, for example.)
As for the foodstuffs, we were encouraged to try a couple of things, as plates are meant to be shared. With that in mind, we ordered the following:
1) Sweet or savory bread plate. We got one of each: Seeded rye roll cooked in beef fat, served with a healthy dollop of smoky crème fraîche and pickled ramps. These were friggin delicious. The rolls had a nice crisp exterior and soft interior. Alone they left me wanting, but when dipped in the crème fraîche they hit the spot. The miso banana bread was really lovely. The miso was extremely subtle. I'm particular about sweet breads, and while I liked it, it didn't knock my socks off.
2) Macarons. We tried each flavor. In total, we received 6 macarons. That's cool, except having only 2 flavors, and 3 macarons of each flavor made it a little tough to split with a friend. This was further complicated when I went to take my first bite, and the 'lid' of my macaron broke away, leaving that top piece in my idiotic grip and the rest of the entire macaron in the dirt. Literally, in the dirt. It's outside seating, y'all. And yeah, everyone at my family-style table yelled "5 second rule!!" in solidarity, (and in complete sincerity,) but sadly, my food literally had tiny bits of dirt and road residue on it. I set it aside and carefully moved onto the next macaron, which I obviously handled with the care of a newborn baby's soft head. Y'all, I'm HERE for the carrot and manchego macarons. It was freaking delicious, once I finally got a taste. While I snarfled mine down, my friend made progress on the leek and roquefort variety. Turns out the carrot and manchego was my favorite, so you know what I did? I scraped that road muck off my fallen soldier and ate that thing like I knew it was almost $2 a pop. And, I only have minimal regret and shame to show for it. The flavors complemented each other perfectly! Now, the leek and roquefort macarons, well, those were okay. I think they needed to be paired with something else. On their own they're pretty heavy on the leek flavor. I wouldn't order these again, but I'd definitely eat a dozen of the carrot ones in a heartbeat.
3) Uhhhhh, error 404: the rest of the menu not found. Sorry, y'all, the most current menu isn't online and if you think this writer can remember specific details of micro green varieties and organic, hand-harvested mushroom entrees, you've got another thing coming. Seriously, we had a dish that was like, morell mushrooms stuffed with duck sausage and served with some kind of gravy and greens. (??) My attempt at describing it is only a disservice to the chefs and an embarrassment to my review skills.
4) We had another entree thingy that I can't remember at all. This is not helping...
So... Altogether I got my fancy brunch fix. I definitely felt it in my wallet. (Y'all, I'm a college student. Don't judge me.)
There were a couple of things that left me wanting. I did not especially love having to ask a few times for water, an extra napkin, and a fresh plate. Nor was I overly fond of being stuck at a family style table with 2 other couples, one of which was *so loud* they drowned out the rest of the table's conversation. Like, y'all have this brunch business nailed down; please just open a brick and mortar already so I can help build your kids's college funds. I understand the draw of starting up a food cart (trailer?) and seeing how it does before deciding to either stick it out in mobile food land, upgrade to permanent digs, or shut down. Lion and Owl could easily be a full, sit-down restaurant. I'd be flummoxed if they ever had to shut. I'm not convinced the trailer setup is the very best option. But what do I know, I can't even remember what I ordered without peeping the menu online. read more