More Old Salt Appreciation; Honesty at Yara Lebanese

Photo of Old Salt courtesy Avila/EPDX

The Oregonian's Michael Russell is the latest critic to visit Northeast's supperclub/deli/market hybrid Old Salt Marketplace, describing the wood-enveloped room as "the restaurant as conceived by Mumford and his sons." The spot gets a "B" grade, with mostly complimentary descriptions of chef Tim Wastell's food: a half chicken arrives "beautifully roasted," a "kissed by fire" albacore is deemed "marvelous," green tomatoes fresh and "expertly fried." The buttermilk biscuits continue to collect accolades: Per Russell, they're "toasty outside, buttery and flaky within, and billow steam when split into appealing layers. In other words, this is the proto cronut."

The negatives? Cocktails are hit-or-miss, and several items end up burnt (including, tragically, one serving of those biscuits). Service also stumbled, with a party forgotten for more than a hour: "a server only remembered when she came outside to shoo us away." Ultimately, with the "patina that only comes with time," Old Salt "could be the restaurant [neighborhood folks] deserve." [OregonLive]

You know that one friend who tells it like it is; whose zero-tolerance for bullshit consistently pisses people off but ultimately proves helpful, in one way or another? According to the Mercury's Chris Onstad, N. Mississippi's Yara Lebanese could use one of those friends: "I strongly recommend the team at Yara... starts asking hard questions." First strike goes to the falafel, deemed "mushy in the middle instead of moist and tender, and lacked an appealing surface texture." Other dishes range from "generously sized" to "massive," but are consistently "monotonous": shawarma "look better than they taste," arayes also entice but prove boring.

There are a few bright spots, including sambousek, house-cut fries, and "delicious" baklava, but ultimately, "The food is not as good as that of peers in its immediate vicinity." [Mercury]

The Tribune's Anne Marie DiStefano visits the month-old Teote and discovers "solid" food and drink from "a place that wants to please everyone." Most attention is paid to Teote's meat dishes, including "fatty and sweet" pork belly and a "tingling and exotic" shredded pork, with enough contrast between each offering: "High quality local meat is cooked with special attention to assigning the right spices to the right cut."
· All Previous Weeks in Review [Eater PDX]