In Portland, OR on business and I'm flying back east this evening so before I leave, I want a great…read moredinner. My co-worker mentioned wanting some "creole, southern cooking" so I did some more Yelp'ing of course, revealing yet another bookmark, Screen Door! Here's how it went.
Atmosphere/Appearance: Set right on Couch St. in the Pearl District is this gem. The outside isn't much to look at, it's straightforward and modern. The restaurant is set on the corner and is adorned with yellow touches with a decent-sized outdoor section. Once inside it feels like a nice old-school mansion set right out of the bayous of New Orleans. Lots of low yellow lighting, woods and bright tiles decorate the bar as well as the seating areas. It's one big open seating area with the bar off to the right. I loved the open concept. It was busy, but wasn't terribly loud. I also LOVED how this place loudly and proudly welcomed LGBTQ+ community with a rainbow of balloons as well as artwork!
Service: I can't remember who took care of us, but we had no issues here whatsoever.
Food: The drinks were strong, colorful and delightful. Being based on southern cooking I had to try the classing New Orleans Hurricane and Sazerac! The Hurricane was huge, delicious and of course, strong. The Sazerac was practically perfect.
First up I checked out the Hush Puppies which are cornmeal fritters w/ pepper jelly. These were delicious, hot, fresh and the pepper jelly had an EXCELLENT spice to it!
Next up were the Crispy Fried Oysters which are cooked then crusted with cornmeal, bacon, other seasonings and served with toast points. These were delicious and literally made me forget I was eating oysters.
Next up I tried the fried chicken that came with buttermilk-battered, crispy fried boneless chicken breast & thigh w/ buttery mashed potatoes, tasso ham gravy and collard greens. Absolutely fantastic. Chicken was crispy, juicy, tender and well-seasoned. The mashed potatoes were also moist and left my mouth watering after each bite. Collard greens were fresh and everything I wanted them to be.
I also got the chance to try the Chicken & Waffles which comes with 1, 2 or 3 pieces of chicken depending on how hungry you are, a sweet potato waffle and of course syrup while everything is dusted with powdered sugar. Fantastic. The savory and the sweet just balanced themselves so well.
My co-worked also let me try his macaroni & cheese which was damn good. Baked so it had that layer of crispy cheese across the top and was so cheesy, so gooey underneath.
Value:
Macaroni & Cheese Side = $7.00
Don't Tell Me What to Do! (Drink) = $13.00
Original Sazerac (Drink) = $15.00
Baked Oysters = $12.00
Chicken & Waffles (3-Pieces) = $29.00
Fried Chicken Dinner = $27.00
It's not fine-dining pricing, but it's not cheap either. The food and the ambiance are absolutely worth the price point. The quality speaks for itself.
In conclusion, I LOVED it here at Screen Door. It's worthy of its great rating, stellar reputation and pricing. I am excited to pay this place a visit again in the future when I make it back here.