Both the Northwest 23rd and North Williams locations of this wood-fired pizza joint are open for lunch and dinner all week long, with personal-sized pies all under $20 making for a great deal at any time of day. The small menu isn’t as simple as it seems: Life of Pie is notable for is curated selection of upscale, locally sourced toppings and potential for creative combinations. Preset pies include bacon with goat cheese and roasted leeks or seasonal mushrooms with a truffle oil. One can go wild in the build-your-own section, where any pizza can be topped with fennel sausage, garlic confit, anchovies, or honey.

This takeout staple, with locations in Beaverton and on Northwest 23rd Avenue, serves great renditions of all the hits. But a few things separate Thai Bloom from the pack, with extravagant seasonal dishes like the fisherman’s fried rice with calamari, scallops, and crispy basil, or lamb shank braised in massaman curry. Another highlight is the wild, retro dessert cocktail menu, complete with Godiva chocolate martinis, Thai White Russians, and tom yum vodka.

This Portland institution, opened by former mayor Bud Clark in 1967, is known for its cozy vibe, 18 beers and ciders on tap, and its popular Reuben. The historic sauerkraut sandwich arrives hot: dark toasted rye bread with tender corned beef, melty Swiss cheese, and tangy house sauce. The menu also includes classic deli staples that can be difficult to find elsewhere in Portland, like braunschweiger, and Pacific Northwest staples like Dungeness crab or bay shrimp melts with Tillamook cheddar.

A Portland institution, Jake’s Famous Crawfish has served local seafood dishes since 1892. Still a coveted evening reservation during the bustling dinner hours, a quiet lunch at Jake’s is severely underrated, particularly in the corner bar section with its enormous windows offering prime people watching on Southwest Harvey Milk Street. While sipping on a blueberry Arnold Palmer or a cucumber mint lemonade, daytime diners can enjoy Dungeness crab and bay shrimp cakes with jalapeno and ginger aioli, a classic crispy cod sandwich, or a cool Caesar salad with a filet of blackened salmon.

From six-time James Beard-nominated chef Cathy Whims, Oven and Shaker serves wood-fired Neapolitan pizzas topped with house mozzarella, pistachio pesto, and fried sage, on crust made using a decades-old sourdough starter. Years of trips to Italy inspire Italian street food selections like saffron arancini and crispy salted chickpeas with rosemary. Both Portland and Lake Oswego locations are open for lunch and dinner daily.

This Seattle-based chain now serves a wide array of house dumplings and dim sum within a sprawling Portland waterfront restaurant. Scallion pancakes arrive rolled with spicy, saucy beef and shredded lettuce; Berkshire-Duroc pork wontons come tossed in chile oil; and dan dan noodles get a numbing tingle from Sichuan peppercorn. All can be washed down with an iced passionfruit green tea or sour plum juice at lunch or dinner, and most dishes cost less than $10.

The only thing better than ordering Hat Yai’s fried shallot-topped, Thai herb-spiced birds — they come whole, halved, by leg, or by wing — is ordering them in the combo, complete with sticky rice, flaky layered roti, and creamy curry, a rich dipping sauce for all of the above. The combo is, in a word, iconic. Hat Yai’s chicken pairs well with cooling cucumber salad and cocktails such as the nutmeg-spiced coconut mango horchata or tamarind whiskey smash. Locations on both Killingsworth and Belmont are open for lunch and dinner daily.

This airy and spacious restaurant on Southeast Stark features Beijing-style dishes from chef and Chopped contestant Kyo Koo. Sichuan pork wontons filled with ginger and scallions are dressed in a chile vinegar sauce or served in a savory house broth for noodle soup, and Ota tofu is wok-seared with green beans in fermented bean paste, and some interpretations. Chinese-American dishes, like sesame chicken and crispy fried spring rolls, are also available. All are best paired with a Beijing lychee-lime mojito, made with Vinn Baijiu, the Oregon-based take on the national liquor of China.

Southern cuisine heavyweight Screen Door’s original east side location is known for having lines down the block for bananas foster french toast and sweet potato waffles weekend brunch, but diners can get in with relative ease on weekdays. At dinner, the boneless buttermilk fried chicken is the main attraction: enormous chicken breasts and thighs with a shatteringly-crisp, black pepper-heavy crust served alongside mashed potatoes with tasso ham gravy and the option of either collard greens or coleslaw. The banoffee pie, a chilled caramel and banana cream number with pecan shortbread crust, is a great way to end a meal at any time of day.

This BIPOC worker-owned, vegan, tipless restaurant on Belmont serves spicy Sri Lankan food for lunch and dinner seven days a week. Starters like jackfruit croquettes and spiced banana blossom empanadas give way to ever-changing curry options, like cassava root in creamy coconut gravy, served with paper-thin roti for scooping and dipping. Diners can finish with sweets like cardamom flan and fluffy chocolate pudding.

This Buckman Thai restaurant from the family behind Khao Moo Dang and Thai Peacock is a pastel pink and green oasis, decorated with quirky prints and hanging ornaments. Fresh rolls with tofu and peanut sauce, generously-stuffed yellow curry crab rangoon, and green papaya salad with shrimp crackers make a great lunch. For dinner, rich curries like the smoky and pickle-y khao soi with thin fried noodles or the herbal panang with basil and makrut lime make for deep and complex entrees. Upon leaving, in-the-know guests can spin their own cotton candy for free at a machine tucked in a corner by the door.

This sibling restaurant of Thai Peacock specializes in its namesake Thai dish of pork cooked two ways, served over rice with a sweet reddish gravy, Chinese sausage, and soft-boiled egg. It’s a meal that’s otherwise hard to come by in Portland, and the dynamic duo of shatteringly crisp pork belly and melt-in-your-mouth tenderloin is a special experience. Other menu highlights include khao soi with egg noodles, pork dumplings with yu-choy and vinegar, and the lychee hibiscus iced tea.