Duckfat — Attraction in Portland

I think this place is a bit overhyped. After reading all of the great reviews, especially on the poutine, it was definitely a spot I wanted to check out while in Portland. We had a party of five but my friend went to go put down her name first and we would meet her there later. They quoted her about a 40 minute wait on a Sunday at around 7. When we met up, they told us it would be another 30-40 minutes, which was annoying but ok fine - we just grabbed a drink next door. Finally, our buzzer went off and we weren't seated until almost 8:30.

To start, we ordered the Shishito Peppers (fried garlic · Korean chilli powder · ginger mustard aioli). You know sometimes, the basic dishes are the best dishes. These were cooked perfectly and I the enjoyed the Korean chili powder dusted over it, especially combined with the aioli

Next, we shared a large poutine (Belgian fries topped with cheese curd, duck gravy & fresh chives) and added the duck egg + duck confit. The gravy was nice (good flavor and consistency) and it was the perfect amount for the amount of fries it was served with - enough to coat most of the fries, yet the fries are not drowning in it. I wish it had more cheese curds though. But then again, I always wish things had more cheese curds. We ended up getting another order of this

For mains, I had some kind of lobster grilled cheese panini, which was one of their specials for the night. It was fine, nothing to write home about. I think it was because I wasn't a huge fan of the bread and the bread can really make or break your sandwich. It was thick and chewy, and just not something you'd expect for a panini. My fiance had the house Smoked Brisket Panini (vegetable chow chow, cheddar, BBQ sauce). The brisket was dry and the BBQ sauce was overpowering - almost like they were trying to use it to negate the dryness, but it didn't work too well

To finish off, we shared an order of the Doughnut Holes (duck fat-fried & citrus scented, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, served with duck fat caramel dipping sauce). These were not bad but I'm biased since I don't have a big sweet tooth. If it were up to me, I probably would have just gotten another order of fries for dessert

Overall, everything was just okay. It was definitely not worth the 1.5 hour wait in my opinion. If you're just looking for their fries, which seems like their best-seller, you're probably better off just heading over to their...

TL;DR: come for the fries but don't sleep on the other items on their menu

We came one rainy evening and were seated right away. The restaurant filled up immediately after we sat down and had a constant inflow of new customers for the rest of the evening. Considering how busy they were, the kitchen was extremely efficient and fast, and service was friendly and everyone made sure we were having a good time.

The food was delicious! I saw this featured on Somebody Feed Phil, and was doubtful but the reviews looked very promising so here we came. The menu is fairly curated with some daily specials so you don't need to take too long to decide.

Duck fat Belgian fries: we got the large size served with garlic mayo, horseradish mayo and ketchup. These were so delicious and were a pretty large portion! They were salted just enough and we fished out every last fry from the cone. Duck Rilettes: served with apple gelee, and rye bread, this was one of the specials. One of us thought it was too sweet overall with the apples, I thought it all went deliciously together. However the coarse rye was pretty filling. Duckfat Caesar: this was served with smoked duck on top of the salad which was salty and delicious with a good smoked flavor! The salad was dressed just right and wasn't dripping dressing which I appreciated. The star of the show were the crunchy breadcrumbs strewn on top that provided a delightful textural contrast. Montreal Reuben: I was surprised when this was served, it looked more like a panini than a Reuben I'm used to seeing. Maybe they do things different in Montreal. The brisket was thin cut but very juicy and flavorful, the sandwich held together very well and they were kind enough to cut it in two when serving to facilitate sharing. Couldn't really taste the thousand island though I'm used to places using Russian dressing. Was delicious overall.

We saw a lot of people getting the poutine and milkshakes. Both looked good but heavy so I'm glad I ordered what I did.

One fun highlight: someone came in and sat on the patio with...

Food review. Food was amazing. Small menu with the fries, sandwiches and a few other things. My husband and I ordered the small poutine with an egg and duck confit. Wow, this was amazing. One of the best things I've tasted. I then ordered the smoked brisket sandwich and my husband ordered the smoked turkey. Each sandwich tasted amazing. Truly the smokiness of the brisket was out of this world. Then the turkey was also smokey but had a great fresh bright taste because of the lemon. All in all despite my issues in the below part of my review I had to give it a 4. I will definitely come back when in Portland.

Revising my below review: My husband and I attempted to go to Duckfat the day after my below review. My husband placed his name and cell phone # on their list and we were told it was a 45min-1 hr wait. We walked over to a neighboring bar and got drinks while we waited . Once we hit 40 mins we were a bit antsy. At this point there were other patrons sitting near us that were also waiting to be called. At about the 1 hour mark one of those groups mentioned that their table was ready and my husband and I were really confused as it was 4 of them and a dog and they got their table before the 2 of us. My husband called the restaurant and they asked for his name and number and they remarked that they did have his # but didn't have his name and they couldn't explain why at least 3 (according to the man on the phone) had been called but not us. He told us to come right over and they would sit us right away. We walked the 2 mins to the restaurant and had to find wave down the host and let him know we just talked with him we had 2 seats inside at the bar in 3 mins. This was quite an annoying experience but we tried to be understanding.

Old review: Tried to have dinner. The hostess let the 2 couples in before us but when we stepped to the podium she told us that the wait was now too long and they were sitting no one else. There was an empty table right next to me. There was still an hour...