Summer time means being lazy, neglecting blogging (having the computer on is too hot... is my excuse), and traveling! FT and I joined two of our fellow bay area friends for a short trip to Portland, OR. On one of the mornings, after reading glowing reviews from many places, we opted to try Broder for brunch.
Despite going fairly early at ~10:30, there was already a fairly sizeable wait. Luckily, you can have all the locally roasted Stumptown coffee as your caffeine addled veins desire. Do arrive early though - by the time we left, the crowd waiting had more than tripled.
The restaurant was small, with a few tables and a bar inside; as it was a nice day, we had one of the outdoor seats. I thought the place was charming, in a this-could-be-an-anthropologie-catalog kind of decorative scheme.
Our sad, liver-compromised table opted for just two peach bellinis - refreshing and not too sweet, but not anything particularly special.
FT and CS both ordered the broder house sandwich, which is a Swedish take on an open faced breakfast sandwich with ham, eggs, and Swedish cheese. Simple but tasty.
I went for their swedish potato pancakes, which I thought were FANTASTIC. Thin, crepe-like pancakes with savory breakfast fillings and topped with a lightly tossed arugula salad yielded just the right combination of a filling breakfast with light fresh flavors. This was probably one of my favorite dishes of the entire Portland trip.
EW went for the lost eggs, which was much heavier compared to the other lighter fare of lunch. Two eggs baked with ham and spinach with a parmesan and panko crust... heavy, cheesy, salty, and bubbling as they bring it to you in a tiny little skillet.
Although it wasn't on the menu, I asked for a plate of their house cured gravlax as well. enjoyed this - I find a lot of similarly cured fishes to be too salty and one toned, but theirs was only slightly salted. I would've loved to be able to have this as part of a dish as well.
Although the pictures look simple, the taste is there - clean, well balanced, and just delicious! Note that for the price the portions are quite small though, so order accordingly. If I lived in the area I would definitely try to sample their normal Swedish fares as well.
Portland, OR
