Local French bakery chainlet, Petite Provence, is more than just flaky croissants and crusty baguettes — it’s also a convincing boulangerie, complete with wicker chairs and rustic country charm. The restaurant serves a full-day menu of soups, sandwiches, and heartier fare like bouillabaisse at select spots. All locations serve the French onion soup, though, prepared classically with beef consomme and sweet, browned onions, topped with a toasted round of Provence bread and parmesan and Swiss cheeses. It’s available by the cup or bowl.

This Alberta district restaurant might be the only place in Portland to get a full-on Swiss meal. Along with traditional entrees like emince Zurichoise, many of the starters are a veritable cheese-fest: fondue, spätzli, and rösti all come smothered with Emmentaler. The Alpine restaurant also borrows from its western neighbor and proudly serves a so-called Swiss onion soup as one of its rotating soups of the day. It’s best to call ahead to make sure it’s available.

Rose City Park’s retro steakhouse serves all the iconic mid-century fare, including French onion soup, which along with fondue became popular during the ’60s in the US. Clyde’s version relies on a foundation of veal stock, enlivened with a hit of brandy and topped with traditional accoutrements: toasty croutons and a thick layer of melted Gruyere. Order it ahead of a slab of prime rib, or call it lunch.

The dazzling selection of layer cakes on display might be Papa Haydn’s calling card, though this Portland mainstay with locations on both sides of the river also has a robust savory menu with a standout French onion soup. Papa Haydn’s version is quintessential, house-made beef stock teeming with caramelized onions, layered with a crostini smothered in melty Gruyere and parmesan cheeses. It’s best followed by a slice of cake, or course.

Along with purveyors of rustic French cuisine, steakhouses are also a reliable source of decadent starters to tee up the main course. If diners can resist the siren song of Ringside’s famed onion rings, the baked onion soup is a welcome alternative. Served in individual copper pots, the deep amber stock is topped with a crouton and shredded Gruyere, spending a short time in the broiler to ensure a bubbly crust with photogenic char. Grab a seat by the fireplace for extra cozy vibes.

Located within the hotel Dossier in downtown Portland, Bistro Alder’s dazzling dining room hosts a variety of tourists and locals, who sit down to meals of escargots and mussels marinieres. The French onion soup here is a highlight on the menu: An astoundingly rich broth, reliant on grass-fed beef bones, sets up a savory soup, which arrives topped with both Gruyere and Emmental cheeses. It arrives in a glazed white crock, cheese bubbling over the edges.

This Hawthorne restaurant is primarily known as a creperie, stuffing buckwheat and blonde crepes with things like lemon curd or smoked bacon. However, Frog & Snail’s French onion soup is also stellar — and one of the few in town that’s vegetarian. Although there’s no beef within the bubbling crock of French onion, it’s still topped with the requisite sheet of croutons and browned Gruyere cheese.

Cafe du Berry has been serving fans of French-inspired fare with Pacific Northwest touches at its unassuming South Portland location since 1984. Despite using local ingredients, there’s nothing particularly nouvelle about Cafe du Berry’s menu, which means Portlanders will classics like escargot drenched in butter, and of course, the deeply savory French onion soup, which arrives in an earthenware crock, with picture-perfect rivulets of melted cheese dripping down the sides. It’s available for lunch and dinner.