- Capsule Reviews of Places We Liked -
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Slow Bar
533 S.E. Grand Ave.
503-230-7767

HIGGINS MEETS SATYRICON -- This bar is replete with intriguing contrasts. An ambitious collection of old-school punk/new wave blasts from a corner juke while the kitchen gets in a groove with subtly sophisticated Northwest/Italian bar food amped by farm-fresh produce. Top-shelf liquors sit alongside Hamm's highboys, and the hi-low design scheme includes gigantic circular diner-style booths and a chic little nook of milky-white armless chairs. Soak it all in while taking in a serious burger on a briochebun, homemade ravioli topped with such things as braised lamb shoulderand tomato sauce, some rockin' ceviche and a bittersweet panna cotta toseal the deal. They pump up the volume here, so make sure you like your food good and your music loud.
-- Karen Brooks

NEW SUPPER CLUB ROCKS -- Slow Bar, the house of punk-music and conscientious eats, has launched its own underground dining event with The Last Supper, a three-course dinner served on the last Sunday of the month. January's kickoff unfolded largely at a makeshift communal table covered in black linen. Promising young chef Amy Jermaine got to stretch beyond her savvy burgers and righteous ravioli with such things as pan-roasted venison in a wildfire honey-and-mustard glaze and warm frisee salad in chicken liver vinaigrette. In keeping with Slow Bar's cleverly contradictory themes, The Last Supper is billed as "a night of seedy bliss under the guise of fine food and wine."
-- Karen Brooks

SLOWBURGER -- Bring a buddy along to help you out with the Slowburger ($8.50), a take-no-prisoners tower of Painted Hills beef (a good half-pound of the stuff), silky pancetta, Gruyere and -- the capper -- fried onion rings. It's a bit obscene, but there's no denying that battered onion rings add outstanding textural contrast to soft, fleshy beef. Why didn't anyone think of this sooner?
-- Christina Melander

SLOW BAR -- The bar in David Lynch's surreal Technicolor noir "Blue Velvet" is called the Slow Bar, but you won't find Bobby Vinton on the sound system here. What you will find is a culty, knowing catalog of rebel rock blasting from the jukebox and food far superior to anything wacko bad dude Frank Booth ever thought about eating. But Lynchian touches are here: street creds, stiff drinks and a hangout/hideout vibe lit by glowing orange orbs. Only the creepiness is missing.

Cuisine: Northwest/Italian bar food with high-end flirtations.

Atmosphere: Loud and smoky, with a sly hi-lo design. Tats and ties mingle here, watching sports at the bar, hosting parties at circular red booths or lounging in the "Champagne room," a nook with milky-white sofas.

Menu: About a dozen things, some substantial, some nibbly, including daily ravioli, a trio of sandwiches and a couple of salads. Sometimes there's a fondue, sometimes more ambitious seasonal things like mussels with apple-cider curry or risotto cakes ($3.50-$9.50); two desserts ($5.50).

On the cheap: Happy hour has a handful of things under $5.

Must-have dishes: Big, juicy Slowbar burger on a brioche bun with pancetta, homemade relish and fried onion rings; vibrant seviche with big, fresh tortilla chips; bittersweet chocolate panna cotta with candied orange shreds.

Reason to go: A fun place that can feed your rebellious center and your palate.
Where else can you do the Ramones and stylin' ravioli?

Serving: Lunch Mon-Fri; dinner daily. Take note: Sunday Supper club last Sunday of each month; street parking; smoking.
-- Karen Brooks