Aviary

I went here on a date with my husband not knowing it was asian/​french fusion. We were expecting french food based on the name.
I liked the foi gras best but my husband liked the pig ears. Everything was good, a little rich for my taste though. The ambiance didn’t really match the food theme and the service was so-​so.

I was pleasantly surprised how well prepared the goose dish was. Hailing from California, I will definitely be back for more next time we visit Portland. Excellent food!

In general, this place seems disjointed, like it’s trying to be super fancy but the ambiance and service are definitely not what I would expect with «fine dining».
The service was very unwelcoming. There were several servers who visited our table and all seemed disinterested, cold, and vacant. They never really spoke to us — just picked things up and put them down. They were so focused on picking up dishes that they took our empty drinks and never even asked if we wanted a second round (which we did)! I usually love dining out in Portland because the servers are so knowledgeable, friendly, and excited about the food. Not my experience here.
The food was good but not great. It seemed to me like there was too much effort put into presentation of the food. Portions were really small and it was pretty expensive. Also, this might just be me, but I didn’t know what a lot of the items on the menu were! I had to Google them (since there was no server checking in to ask). The timing of the food was strange too. We ordered some smaller plates, which came out really quick and then waited for a long time — with empty drinks and no communication from the servers — for our bigger plates.
To top the night off, I have a food allergy which I addressed in detail with the server before placing any orders. I was assured my order was safe for me — WRONG! One bite into the 2^nd large dish and I knew it contained my allergen. We flagged down the server to check with the kitchen and sure enough, my allergen was included in that dish. I’m not sure how that’s missed — it was clearly marked on the menu to discuss allergies with the server, which we did, and at a nice restaurant like this, I assumed I could really trust that they take the allergy seriously and know what’s in the food they serve. My allergy isn’t severe, which I mentioned (no hospital required), but it makes me very uncomfortable and definitely ruined my night — I went home, took Benedryl for swelling/​itching, and went to sleep.
I really hated putting my credit card down for a gloomy dining experiencing totaling more than $ 150. I definitely won’t be back. There are too many other great restaurants creating a better all-​around experience for significantly less cost.

Went for Portland Dining Month with a friend to catch up and the whole thing was fantastic from start to finish.
For the first course, we both opted for the braised beef cheek dumpling that was served with an egg yolk on top, plus a side of jicama, cucumber and peanuts. I feel like this was actually my favorite part of the three course meal. At first, the egg yolk didn’t seem to react to any soft pokings from my fork, but it was actually because it was done so well, that the outer part of the yolk was a bit crystallized but the inner part oozed out just in time.
Second course; I did the pineapple curry glazed skate wing (it’s a type of fish… I have never heard of it before until I came here, I actually had thought it was a street name for chicken lol) with a side of manila clams, cranberry beans, chanterelles, and sea beans. The fish was not fishy at all, in fact it was just perfectly coated with a soft batter that soaked up the sauce really well.
The third course; we both picked the pistachio dacquoise served with yogurt mousse and grapefruit sorbet. Dessert was rather underwhelming — with predictable citrus tastes that did compliment the yogurt. However, the first and second courses really shined through and made me excited to come here again and try their regular menu.
The ambiance of the restaurant was nice — separated into the main dining room from when you first walk in and then it leads to a nice bar, connecting it to a garage-​like extension. We sat in the garage extension on a very sunny day with no shades. The next time I come here, I would probably request to be seated in the main dining area.

Went here for portland dining month and every dish that we had has complex and unique. I enjoyed every course and I would definitely recommend it.
Im usually skeptical about finer dining restaurants and think a lot of the times what you pay isn’t worth what you get but with aviary I do think what they serve is very unique and worth trying.

*** This review is for dining month. ***
Normally I’m a little iffy about fusion restaurants – it always tends towards one cuisine, and in the case of asian fusion, it often turns out to be nothing more than glamorously plated chinese takeout. However, every dish I tried at Aviary was complex, unique, and creative, and I loved the experience.
Complimentary bread: The dipping sauce for the bread was amazing– rather than going for the typical butter/​oilve oil + balsamic vinegar combination, Aviary came out with a deliciously buttery, fragrant dipping sauce that tasted faintly of fresh seafood. Loved loved loved the dipping sauce – it was probably my favorite of the night.
Beef cheek dumpling: The dumpling was topped with a perfectly cooked (sous vide, I think) egg yolk. Loved how the yolk flavors meshed with the tender beef cheek.
Skate wing: While a bit on the salty side, I enjoyed the curry sauce and how it complemented the tender fish. Also really liked the pops of sweet fruitiness that the chunks of pineapple brought.
Kurobuta short ribs: Deliciously rich, fatty, and very well marinated. Everything you could ask for in a short rib dish.
Chocolate cremeux cake: Probably the most deliciously bitter chocolate cake I’ve had. I’m a huge desserts person, but I don’t like my desserts too sweet, and this definitely hit the point. I also loved how the passion fruit flavors broke the bitterness of the chocolate. One of my favorites of the night, next to the bread dip.
Pistachio daiquiri: A little bit underwhelming after the chocolate cake. Very solidly done, but nothing extremely special here.
Aviary was the most creative dining experience I’ve had in a while, and I would definitely love to stop by again next time I’m in Portland to see what else they come up with.

Came here for Portland dining month, and it was definitely worth coming. The only qualm I had was that we were told no reservation was necessary if we were willing to wait, yet when we tried to come yesterday the manager was very condescending and rude when turning us away.
Overall the service was ³⁄₅ (good aside from one incident) and food was 4.5÷5. I especially enjoyed the desserts (chocolate cake and yogurt mousse) which were very light and fragrant. I would definitely come back again given the chance. The appetizer (prawn salad) was also very good, though the short ribs were a bit too spicy and rich for my taste.

Tried out Aviary during Portland Dining Month. The Asian fusion menu is what caught our attention. We went with a group of friends and we were able to sample everything on the three course meal special for March. Every dish we ordered had complex flavors that all worked together really well! One of the appetizers had powdered lemongrass with mild green curry! Asian fusion can be hit or miss, but Aviary does it well and is right up the alley for an adventurous foodie. We will coming back to dine on the main menu for sure. Forgot to mention that the service was impeccable and our group had a great night out for dinner!

Never in my life did I think I would eat beef cheeks, but this is a restaurant that calls for being adventurous, so the first of the four small/​smallish dishes we ordered was the beef cheek dumpling. Wow … unctuous and with a smooth texture, it was wonderful. The warm vegetable salad surprised me as well. Different textures, tastes, and «what was that flavor?» delighted me. This was a meat-​centric meal, and the two larger dishes were a delectable pork belly in plum sauce that sat on a mash of what I’m not quite sure, but it tasted great, and a beef short rib and steak in broth. This was my least favorite dish, but the broth was really redolent of beef, and my husband adored the begging marrow bone. Dessert was very small, but quite nice; a chocolate mousse with rice crispier in a passion fruit sauce. Excellent meal.

I made a reservation for 2 for 6pm on a Friday night but it turned out it was unnecessary. The place didn’t really fill up until past 7pm. There were, however, a number of parties who were coming through the main restaurant to the back bar area for happy hour which is from 4 to 7pm on Monday to Fridays.
My favorite dish of the night was the flat iron steak with mashed potatoes. I actually think I liked the creamy mashed potatoes more than the steak which, although was cooked well, wasn’t all that flavorful. The bone marrow custard was an interesting flair but I didn’t think it really added anything to the dish. Aaaaand… That’s pretty much it. It was an overall nice experience but nothing else was especially memorable.

Everything seemed pretty uninspiring to me. Inside was a typical Portland trying to be hip without being hip style. Service was tolerable. Food was small portions with not exciting flavors or taste to write. Won’t be eating here again because we can go better places for the same price and better service.

Interesting mix of flavors. It’s worth trying especially during Portland dining month where you can sample multiple dishes. Good portions that doesn’t leave you bloated.
We walked in at 9:30pm and they still were able to seat us even though they are usually super busy. Very nice service too.
The bread dipping sauce is heavenly and the pig ears are amazing.
PS. The brittle is feather light and I enjoyed every bite.

Came to Aviary for Pdx Dining Month (3-​course meal for $ 29) & was not disappointed! We requested a seat at the chef’s table, which we got, so we were able to watch the chefs do their magic while we waited for our meals.
We ordered everything on the pre-​fixed menu (there were two options for each course).
FIRST COURSE
— Braised Beef Cheek Dumpling with egg yolk, jicama, cucumber, & peanuts — I’ve never had beef cheek before, but it was actually tasty & not too strong in flavor. The outside of the dumpling had a nice chewy texture I enjoyed.
— Prawn Salad with snap peas, coconut, cara cara oranges, jalapeño, & taro root crisp — This salad tasted SO FRESH & light. it had flavors that mixed together really well.
SECOND COURSE
— Red Cooked Kurobuta Pork Short Rib with rutabaga, enoki mushrooms, & thai chile vinaigrette — My FAVORITE dish of the night! The pork just fell off the bone & the sauce/​flavoring was so savory. I could’ve eaten 2 more helpings of it!
— Pineapple Curry Glazed Skate Wing with manila clams, cranberry beans, chanterelles, & sea beans — A really «light» & flavorful dish. The skate wing was tender and the manila clams were on point (not rubbery at all).
THIRD COURSE (DESSERT)
— Pistachio Dacquoise with yogurt mousse & grapefruit sorbet — If you like light & fruity desserts, you will LOVE this one!
— Chocolate Cremeux Cake with passion fruit, crispy rice — Great for chocolate lovers! Presentation was awesome too.
All in all, great dining experience here!

Had high expectations after the Oregonian rated it No 5 on its list of the best 101 restaurants… but it just felt ok-​plus.
We went with octopus, blackened cod, warned vegetables, pigs ears… and I agree the menu is a high wire act… but I was underwhelmed. Great service. Great fun if you’re up for an adventure. But this place is not the kind of place that will blow you away. Felt more trendy than great.

Happy Hour Review Only!
It was surprisingly very quiet on a Wednesday night around 5pm. Our party of 6 was seated in the back. They have great happy hour specials on food and drinks! All beers are only $ 3 and the house cocktail is $ 6.
Unfortunately they didn’t have the cider that night, so I ended up with an IPA.
They have several food options all around $ 4 – 6.
Two of us shared the brussels sprout nachos, duck liver toasts, and bread with bagna cauda
–Brussels sprout nachos: actually everyone at our table ordered this! They basically take the leaves and fry or bake them, then top them with sauce and cheese. I thought that was just ok. Very cool concept but taste-​wise it was just aite.
–Duck liver toasts: probably my favorite out of the ones we ordered! They’re actually duck liver-​stuffed fried puffs! Kinda like tempura batter on the outside. Very unique. I was expecting little bread toasts with spreadable duck liver, but this was an interesting variation.
–Bagna cauda was flavored well. It’s basically a hot dip made of garlic, cream, and olive oil. Pretty standard, good with the bread they give you.
The others in our group also got the pork sliders, which looked great! It’s served on a french baguette rather than individual mini hamburger buns
Good to try and great happy hour prices!

I was a little worried about dining here since I read some reviews about how horrible the service was, but my worries were for nothing. Service was great. Food was interesting with strong Asian flavors. The bagna cauda that came with the bread was delicious — it tastes somewhat like seafood and even though it’s made with sardines, you can’t tell at all. Really excellent. We ordered the famous pig ears, which were thin crisp. I wasn’t a huge fan of this though. The pig ears had a slightly strange taste to me that I couldn’t put my finger on. Also got the Poached Egg, since we were told they no longer had the Chawanmushi on the menu. This tasted like star anise and had dates, croutons, and pieces of duck surrounding a poached egg. I liked this one a lot. Also got the flat iron, which was not very flavorful (flat iron in general is not a flavorful cut), but the potato purée and marrow custard (which had a bit of burnt sugar on top) were good. The Slow Roasted Onion flan was different but in a good way. The «flan» part was very cream with a nice onion flavor. I didn’t like the olive (dark) sauce, but everything on the plate was good. We ended the night with a chocolate pudding that came with malted krispies (I loves this part the best!!), berry compote, and delicious crème fraîche ice cream. Drinks were well made. There’s a cute bar area on the other side, too, where you can also choose to dine.

3 stars for service, 4 – 4.5 for food.
I have been meaning to check out Aviary for a long time now, so when my dining companion suggested it as a place to get dinner and catch up, I was game. We made a reservation for Friday night, and while I was about 10 minutes late, I believe my dining companion was seated promptly.
Service was a bit awkward. We had one person take our drink order, and then moments later our actual server for the evening arrived. He tended to mumble, so when he said something about drinks, we thought he was asking for our drink order again. Having clarified that our drinks were on their way, we proceeded to ask questions about some of the dishes on the menu.
Our server was nice but not very effective at describing dishes, essentially saying, «Everything is really good.» We asked for recommendations between two or three dishes that we had picked out, and he couldn’t point out any of his (or staff) favorites, instead basically reciting the ingredients in each dish — which we could read ourselves. When describing the Bigeye tartare, he missed describing a key component of the dish — the pickled duck tongues — and when asked about them, he admitted that he hadn’t actually tried them. The server just kinda kept saying that the chefs behind the restaurant are very good chefs, which, of course, we already understood, but didn’t really help us choose between several equally great-​sounding dishes.
We ended up ordering: Foie Gras Hum Bao ($ 4), Bigeye Tuna Tartare ($ 8), Pineapple Curry Glazed Black Cod ($ 22), and Flat Iron Steak Smoked Over Douglas Fir ($ 22). To drink, he had a cocktail that I don’t recall the name of, and I had the Accidental Witchcraft ($ 12).
My drink was good, but rather small for the price point. I am quite used to $ 12 cocktails in this town, but they’re almost always bigger than a dainty champagne flute.
I am not a foie fan (ethically opposed) but my dining companion ordered the dish and was underwhelmed by it. He opened up the steamed bun and saw that there were actually just 2 small pieces of foie inside, and the rest of the filling was some kind of pâté.
The Bigeye Tuna Tartare was unusual due to its inclusion of (around 8) pickled duck tongues. You read that right. The pickled tongues were arranged on cubes of watermelon dusted with (a little too much) cumin. The cumin really overpowered that part of the dish. The tartare itself was served in a ring mold, the tuna being combined with avocado and tobiko (a great addition!) and topped with julienned jicama. Overall, a pretty great dish, though much shorter/​flatter (read: smaller) than most tartares.
The Pineapple Curry Glazed Black Cod was the winning dish of the evening. In fact, it’s the dish that bumped this review up from 3 to 4 stars overall. The cod was cooked absolutely perfectly, to a melt-​in-​your mouth consistency. I tried about 3 bites from my friend’s plate, and they were sublime. The dish also included very delicate manila clams that went great with the green coconut curry broth that the dish was served in. Chanterelles, cranberry beans, and sea beans rounded out the dish, and all worked very well together. My friend practically inhaled this plate.
My Doug Fir-​Smoked Steak was perfectly delicious and tender. For the price, I felt that it was a decent-​sized portion, though the potato purée made up most of the plate. I also wished that the steak had more of a seared crust, but the smokey flavor was very pronounced and played well with the medium-​rare texture (erring more on the side of rare).
Aside from a few more service hiccups (one server giving us fresh silverware for our main course while we were still enjoying our appetizers, then another server taking away the untouched silverware together with our used dishes after we finished the apps, and yet another server having to replace the silver) that distracted our conversation, Aviary provided us with an enjoyable dinner, and I’d probably return. However, portion sizes were overall small, and only one dish (the cod) stood out as exceptional. Additionally, if you’re looking for unobtrusive yet helpful service, I would recommend looking elsewhere. Expect spending at least $ 50/​person here, including one drink each and no desserts.

Found this restaurant through Eater Portland, top restaurant August 2015.
A nice little place with indoor and outdoor seating.
Service was good, they took time to explain the dishes.
Food was an art of cooking.
Appetizers:
Amazing kampachi crudo, heirloom tomato salad was so refreshing, green beans tempura was cooked right on the crispness of the beans, and prawn salad was so flavorful.
Entrees:
Charred octopus was good with the ricotta cheese plan, kind of the rich side.
Sole was cooked delicately. Short ribs was delicious and finally the crispy pig ears was yummy!
Portland has a lot to offer and Aviary is one of them. Worth trying!

Great customer service. Atmosphere is very comfortable, simple, stylish.
I did not want meat so I had the heirloom tomato salad and vegetable barigoule which as far as I can tell was a stew kinda.
The tomato salad had a rye crisp, a soft boiled egg in a tempura like crust, some kimchi and a butter sauce. It was… interesting. The rye crisp was delicious. The kimchi was spare, there could have been more.
The barigoule came with a big dollop of goat cheese and a little olive loaf. I appreciate the daring in this menu but I don’t feel like these were home runs.

Granted my favorite eating partner loved this place last year when they first opened and coupled by the fact it was probably one of the more interesting prix fixe menus in Portland Dining Month, we went to try it and we were not disappointed.
Chawanmushi — Upon first whiff, i could smell the truffle and was afraid it would be too much – not at all. This dish was well-​balanced and every bite was different. I could taste all the components, scallops, sea urchin, Dungeness crab, charred asian pear, and fresh peas with the entire dish slicked in bone marrow oil. And the underbelly of creamy egg custard, I think I said «WOW» out loud between several bites.
Miso-​braised short rib — Reminded me of my mom’s braised beef– which is a staple recipe for all Chinese moms. Definitely could smell the hints of star anise and soy umami notes, and probably so much more tender than mom could every make (sorry mom). And that Asian pear slaw – definitely a perfectly balance with the rich protein – from now on I will add a dollop of yuzukosho with my mom’s braised beef.
Brown butter cake — when i saw this dish arrive I thought it looked like a simple butter cake (actually at first i thought it was butter mochi), but it was so much better than that. Warm buttery cake paired with the subdued sourness of the rhubarb and the light airy texture of the whipped sweet ricotta and hints of basil — definitely a dark horse for the best dessert I’ve had in a while.
Service was prompt and and fairly attentive. I will definitely be back to try more dishes.