Audrey’s Kitchen

407 NW 17th Ave
Portland, Oregon 97209
503.473.8760

There’s been a trend toward cupcakes in recent years, probably because of Sex and the City’s infatuation with New York’s famed Magnolia bakery. My friends in SoCal have been going nuts over Sprinkle’s cupcakes. So it’s only a matter of time before the craze hits Portland, right?

Saint Cupcakes, located on Northwest 17th, is just the place to satisfy your craving for sweets in cute and trendy setting. I went there twice this weekend and thanks to their dot-sized treats (mini cupcakes), I was able to sample nearly everything on their menu without getting sugared out. From their sassy pink website, I expected a place where my girlfriends and I could swoon over and indulge our girly sides with creamy cakey confections. I was a little disappointed that the place, though pink and in a pretty glass building, seemed to lack the cozy ambience that I wanted. They had a nice open bar area where you could see all the bakers hard at work mixing giant vats of batter, but not once did they smile or acknowledge the customers. They just kind of looked annoyed that I was looking on. I guess these saints take their work seriously!

Their website www.saintcupcake.com certainly is cute and features different cupcake “centerfolds” with personalized descriptions. It was an entertaining read, and they participate in community events. Their blog will keep you up-to-date on all their current events, such as their expansion to the Belmont neighborhood.

(clockwise from top: chocolate with caramel buttercream, toasted coconut, red velvet cake, caramel apple, and carrot cake)

Chocolate with Caramel Buttercream:

They do the basic flavors very well, so this chocolate cake had a deep intense cocoa flavor without that wasn’t overly sweet! I loved the cake, but wasn’t too fond of the caramel flavored buttercream. The cream has a lovely silky texture that has just the tiniest big of toffee crunch in it, but I just prefer caramel to caramel flavored creations. Still, it’s an interesting combination.

Toasted Coconut:

For this cupcake alone, I will go back to Saint Cupcake. This delectable cupcake is topped with a sweet, slightly chewy, coconut frosting thats like a creamy macaroon. Again, they make the basic white cake flavor very well, and tastes nothing like your supermarket cupcakes! In fact, these are in a whole league of their own!

Caramel Apple:

I had high hopes for this combination because I love caramel apples, and this frosting looked like what true caramel should feel like. Maybe it was because I got the dot-sized one, but I couldn’t taste any apply flavor, and most of the dot was pure walnut chunks. The frosting was good, but not particularly memorable.

Carrot Cake:

This one…was not good. I would highly recommend that you do not try this one. It had lots of carrots, yes, but thats all I tasted. Normally, a good carrot cake would be moist, well-spiced, nutty, with just a hint of pineapply goodness. This just tasted like grated carrots–and it wasn’t a good thing. I think part of the reason is that their turnover is so fast that the carrot cake hasn’t had enough time to mellow yet, resulting in a sharp carrot taste.

Red Velvet Cake:

I have a friend who DROOLS over this cake so I know there is a certain cult following with this variety. However…I am just not one of them. I do like Red Velvet in general–I like cocoa flavor and the pretty color. That’s essentially what red velvet cake is. Back in the day, the way cocoa was processed was different, so when the cocoa powder mixed with the buttermilk in the recipe, it’d turn reddish. Nowadays, bakers just add in a few drops of red food coloring to achieve the same look. Saint Cupcake’s Red Velvet is different. It’s described as a buttermilk cake with a hint of cocoa, and apparently parties like Lindsay Lohan. I just thought it was kind of scary–the red velvet was BRIGHT RED as in melted crayola crayon red. Some people love it, but I can’t get over the artificial redness of it. The texture was also pretty dense and firm compared to their other cakes. Maybe it has to do with the overload of food coloring? The cream cheese frosting was nice though, very light and not overly sweet.

Other flavors I sampled but not pictured include:

Big Top-vanilla cupcake with chocolate chips. Topped with bright colored frosting-most likely vanilla flavored. The cupcake itself was delicious and the chocolate chips melted to the touch. I would order this again.

Vanilla with Pistachio buttercream-The buttercream is supposedly made with pistachio gelato base, but I couldn’t taste the pistachio flavor. For excellent pistachio treats, try the pistachio gelato at Via Deliza instead. Sublime.

All in all, I would give this place a B. At $2 for a full sized cupcake and $1 for the minis, these cupcakes aren’t cheap. They do offer day-old baked goods at half the cost, so if you are interested in sampling before buying, that’s your best bet. Too bad they don’t offer free samples. Cupcake menu changes on a day to day basis, so if you have your heart set on a certain flavor, make sure you check their website first! Their overall cupcakes are delicious if you stick to basic flavors, and it’s a trendy spot to go to when you’re in the Pearl or NW 23rd for an after dinner treat. Just the fact that I’m eating a fluffy ooey gooey cupcake is enough to make me smile. Now if only the bakers could learn to do the same.

UPDATE: Unfortunately, Genoa has closed down as of Nov 22nd, 2008.  I hope you had chance to try it!

2832 SE Belmont St
Portland, OR 97214
503.238.1464

Genoa is truly a special occasion restaurant. I went there two weeks ago with my BF for our anniversary, and I was truly amazed by the food. We heard about the restaurant through word of mouth, but had our hestitations about the place because it wasn’t rated that highly on Citysearch.com. We decided to bite the bullet though, and went for the 7 course meal. Let me tell you…I am SO glad we did! The food was amazing! I have to admit–walking in was a bit underwhelming. For such an expensive restaurant, you’d expect decor to match it. At the same time, it wasn’t nearly as bad as the citysearch reviews made it to be. It was neat, cozy, with an antique feel to it. We had an early reservation on a Monday night, so we were the only patrons in the entire restaurant for a good hour. There was no music at first either, so it was a bit intimidating. Our server was really great though, so any unease I initially felt melted away as he was describing the dishes for us.

Having studied the menu well in advance, I thought I knew what I wanted. I was pleasantly surprised when our server offered us some alternative options to suit different dietary needs. For instance, they were serving raw oysters as their appetizer that night, but had a delicious grilled brioche with a creamy gorgonzola spread, fresh figs, and proscuitto de parma. I love variety, so I ordered that while the boyfriend ordered the oysters. While the brioche was good–I truly regret not ordering the oysters because it looked amazing! I did get to sneak one oyster while the BF wasn’t looking, and now I cry a little wishing to taste the other two varieties.

Our second course was a mushroom soup-rich, savory, and meaty. It was the only item that I was not too fond of. While it had a nice texture and mouthfeel, it seemed to be missing some of the “oomph” that the other dishes had.

By now, I was already getting full and there were still 4 more courses to come! One thing is for sure, while the price was expensive, the portions are very generous. I would highly recommend lightly tasting the dishes and take leftovers home.

The 4th course of butternut squash ravioli with sage butter was insanely good. The BF agreed that it was the BEST pasta dish that either of us have tasted! The silky sweetness of the squash combined with the slightly chewy exterior of the ravioli was accented by crisp cubes of browned pancetta and fried sage leaves. The sauce was creamy but not overpowering so you could really taste the different ingredients with each bite. Delicious!

Next up was a salad to cleanse our palate. I wasn’t looking forward to this as much because in my opinion, salad is just salad. My goodness was I wrong!! This wasn’t any ordinary salad! I didn’t see a single speck of lettuce! Instead, it was a mix of different herbs and leaves that I have never had before! The dressing was very light-citrusy almost, with no oily feel. It was topped by sweet kernals of pomegranate that added a nice pop of flavor and texture. It cut through the creamy taste left by the ravioli and really prepared the taste buds for the main course.

Next came our main course. We got to choose between halibut in a lemon-caper sauce, duck breast flamed with cognac, or roast pork shoulder served with apple and prune chutney. Originally the menu featured monkfish, and we were excited to try that, but sadly, it was not offered that day. Since we eat halibut pretty regularly and lemon-caper sauce is pretty abundant, we opted for the duck and the pork. The pork was delicious, but it was the au jus that surrounded it that made it mind-blowing. It was served atop a bed of mashed root vegetables, a nice alternative to the humble potato or the popular celery root, and was amazing with the au jus. BF had to defend his plate because I kept sneaking bites even before I took one bite of my duck.

I should have saved room for the duck however, because it was THE dish that made spending $80/person worth it! I eat duck all the time. It’s probably my favorite meat but it’s rare to find one that is done nicely. This duck is the BEST duck I have ever had, hands down. It was served rare/medium rare with a nice warm red center. I cut a little slice and really enjoyed the pure duck flavor. Then I cut a larger piece that had skin on it and my eyes widened in disbelief as a tidal wave of flavor enveloped me. The skin was crisp and crackly, well-seasoned with a delicious blend of spices…the fat layer melted on contact, and the meat was succulent. It was served with a duck risotto of grains, studded with duck meat. While I wasn’t too fond of the risotto, I did enjoy the bitter brocolini that accompanied it, but the star of the entire meal was the duck. I feel like one of my culinary quests ended with that first bite of duck.

After that, I was done. I cleaned the plate even though I was very full…but how could I resist with our waiter brought out this yummy tray of house desserts?

I chose the chocolate brick thing located in the bottom left of the picture. It was like a giant chocolate truffle, flavored with sherry and served with house made cherry cordials. As much of a chocolate lover that I am, I feel that I met my match with this dessert. It is something that a family of four could enjoy, but for one person, it was too much. (even as I am typing it, part of me is in disbelief that there could actually be too much of chocolate).

BF’s choice was much better. In fact, it’s a toss-up between the duck and the dessert for the “best of show”. Each layer of slightly chewy hazelnut meringue had a toasted hazelnut sporadically thrown in for crunch. The smooth chantilly cream subdued the sweet meringue and was the perfect complement for this light, airy dessert. It was exceptionally well excuted-messy to look at and messy to eat, but it is truly manna on earth. I would go back for this alone, or maybe stop in some day and beg for a to-go order of this. I would serve it as my WEDDING CAKE if only I could get 250 servings stacked on a pedestal. It is that good.

By then, I was stuffed to the point of being uncomfortable (and my belly seriously protuded so much that I looked like a lady approaching her 6th month of gestation). Slightly ashamed at my gluttony, I stopped before the final course of fruit.

Overall, I would have to say that Genoa is a place that you must try at least once. They offer several options: 3-course dinner for $45/person, 4-course dinner for $65/person, or the entire 7-course meal for $80/person. You do not have to have the same number of courses as the other members of your table. I would strongly suggest getting that if you are going with just 2 people, one of you should definitely try the 7 course option. The other guest would be fine with the 3 or 4 course meal. That way, you two could share some of the courses (which are exceptionally large for fine dining), and have room to really enjoy all the dishes.

For taste, I give it a solid A. The food was delicious, and while not every dish was innovative, it was perfectly executed. The flavors came out strong, clean, and distinct.

For ambience, it gets a C. Not all the guests dress up for the restaurant and the crowd tends to be older. I saw typical Portland fashion of birkenstocks and windbreakers at one table, and a trio of nice, bookish people wearing tweeds with elbow patches at another. We felt over-dressed (I in sequined halter dress, BF in a nice pinstriped jacket), which is a shame since it is meant to be a special occasion type of thing. Maybe if it was in the Pearl or downtown, people would treat it with the respect it deserves. Once they turned on the music, it helped the ambience a lot. Part of the reason it’s not as visually appealing as other restaurants is that it’s an older building in an older part of town. Sometimes it works, but in this case, the surroundings weren’t luxurious enough for the food. Nevertheless, I must emphasize that FOOD is the ultimate reason for coming here, and they really exceeded in that category.

For service, Genoa gets an A. Our server was knowledgable, prompt, and our courses came out well-timed even though he was the only waiter/host/server in the entire restaurant and had several tables to look after. Every whim of yours will be well-tended to, and he had excellent knowledge of the wines.

All in all, I truly enjoyed my dining experience at Genoa, and may consider making it an annual treat from now on. I signed up at www.genoarestaurant.com to receive their new menus as it changes every 3 weeks just so I could read their food descriptions and drool over them

Until next time, au revoir and happy eating!