Ate-Oh-Ate — Restaurant in Portland

If you're looking for a Hawaiian Portland vibe, Ate-Oh-Ate is it. I hadn't been in for a while, but we returned recently for lunch and split a pork katsu / shoyu chicken plate and spam musubi. The chicken was full of flavor, although not quite as moist as I remembered (not a deal breaker because it was still good). The pork katsu was super crispy and somehow not greasy feeling at all. The mac salad is the closest I've found to my grandma's (and that's a high compliment, considering she was born on the Big Island and perfected her recipe over decades of holidays and family gatherings). And the spam musubi was satisfying, with the layers of egg and furikake bringing it a step up from the spam-only version you'll find most places. (Although both are delicious. Ono!)

Other items I would recommend based on past visits- the fried rice, vegetable curry, and taro chips. (Dining companions have also enjoyed the Aina burger.) And for dessert, try the butter mochi. It's not a light dessert by any stretch of the imagination, but it's just chewy enough, sweet, and delicious. It also travels well if you'd rather take it to go. Portions are plenty for me, so you may be full after enjoying the rest of your meal.

Beyond the food, service is friendly and reasonably fast. Order at the counter, grab your own drinks, napkins/utensils, and they'll deliver your meal to the table. Then you bus your own dishes after you're done.

And standard for the area, be ready to circle the neighborhood a couple times to find street parking. But...

Ate-Oh-Ate has consistently good food and is great for takeout. The teriyaki chicken is cooked just right—slight char on the outside and juicy and tender on the inside. The rice is perfectly fluffy and the Mac salad is great. I appreciate the variety of combinations you can order if you don’t like the standard two scoops of rice and one scoop of Mac.

The slaw is great. I typically prefer a creamier slaw, but this one hit all the right notes without as much cream, and the pineapple was a nice touch. The spam musubi was great, and the butter mochi is a nice way to have a sweet finish to a meal.

I prefer the Woodstock location to the Burnside one because Woodstock seems to have just slightly higher-quality food, but I frequent both depending on if I’m at...

Another great spot for amazing food! We ordered three items and were extremely pleased with each dish. We choose the Shoyu Chicken Plate, the Curry Bowl with Fried Chicken, and a side of Pineapple-Cabbage Slaw. The Shoyu Chicken Plate came with deliciously marinated chicken, rice and macaroni salad. The chicken and marinade sauce are the star of this dish. 4.5 stars 🌟 for this dish. The Curry Bowl was amazing! The flavor of the Curry and tenderness of the veggies we superb! I could eat this Curry every day! And the added fried chicken was crazy thin, tender, and crisp! My only complaint is I should have ordered more fried chicken. 5+ stars 🌟 The Pineapple-Cabbage Slaw reminded us of an ambrosia salad, but the healthier option. We treated this as...