Lincoln

In August I'll be shooting another wedding.  Our great friends, Joe and Sue are taking the plunge and tying the knot.

Joe was visiting from Seattle to firm up wedding plans, and  invited the hubs and I out for dinner and to taste wines for the wedding at Lincoln, a super cool little restaurant in NE off of Williams.

The food was really good.  Perfectly and sparingly prepared, with seasonal fresh tasting, local ingredients.  An exercise in restraint, really.  The appetizers, salads, desserts and entrees were not over-done over spiced or manipulated in any way... the ingredients were allowed to 'speak for themselves'. Lincoln's philosophy seems to be to allow simple fresh flavor to shine through all of their dishes. One of the Chefs, Ben, is a graduate from Oregon Culinary Institute.



We ordered a couple of starters, including Chef owner Jenn Louis's famous baked fresh hen eggs.  They are a symphony of delight, comforting and delicious, with cream, with green olives and herbed breadcrumbs, served piping hot in a ceramic dish;

then gorgeous, mouthwatering airy croquettes with a tiny bit of shaved Parmesan and saffron Aioli...

and arugula greens with local lamb bacon, toasted sugared walnuts and yellow raisins.

The dining space is informal and classy at the same time, with high ceilings, glowing votive candles, cool Frank Lloyd Wright style fixtures, and enormous glass windows that let the soft blue-grey Portland light wash over the recycled wood tables.   The vibe is exceedingly comfortable and our waitress was angelic and attentive.

Next time you're in NE Portland, check it out.