Picnic House — Restaurant in Portland

The Picnic House has an awesome large airy space between Park and Broadway at 728 SW Salmon Street. It takes its theme of urban picnic and brings it to life in its atmosphere.

The decorative elements here combines the classic touches of the natural outdoors (a huge wooden picnic table including chairs of logs and moss simulated on some walls, and the wall behind what appears will soon be a deli area has a scene of tree, river, and forest animals), all while also lining the walls with printing blocks and touches of vintage 1920s Parisian chic with the fabric of the lounge and bar stools and various wall art and fixtures, interplaying all these various textures to add an air of romance and hint of antique treasure. A bear head with a bowler hat and monocle perched and presiding above the bar embodies all of these with a dash of whimsy. It's not often that I find a place that presents such style and character in its atmosphere

Everything seems to be of high quality bistro fare you'd find hope to find in the romantic Paris you would drop by in your neighborhood route- homey and smart and elegant all at the same time. Here and there you see a call back to their theme with an actual picnic basket, as well as signage letting you that these straw baskets, fully stocked with plates and silverware and glasses and even a blanket, can be rented by the day + filled with food.

The mixed greens with fresh berries, toasted cinnamon honey almonds and house made ricotta with a pickled blueberry vinaigrette had a tart freshness to it balanced by a touch of sweetness from the cinnamon honey. The arugula, roasted corn, spring onion and roasted tomatoes with avocado in a grilled lemon dressing on the other hand offered a piquant peppery contrast with each tomato giving a little burst of ripe sweetness here or there.

The dessert was one of the best chocolate cakes we ever had, a chocolate sour cream bundt cake with chocolate ganache that was served slightly warm, with rich milk chocolate in every soft moist bite.

And ah, pavlova. Ah, this light airy goodness of egg whites and sugar into meringue with fresh berries and vanilla cream. At first this plate looked intimidating as it is basically the size of a whole pie but then we realized you were being given the best part, the crunchy top half, a thin shell of firmness surrounding an inside that melted in our mouth so quickly that we needed another spoonful carefully balancing crisp bits of meringue with soft vanilla cream and such beautiful sweet strawberry in each bite to extend the rush.

I also discovered my favorite two cocktails that the Picnic House offers from their cocktail menu. After trying the lighter cocktail sparklers of the Fleur de Lis and Sauvie on previous visits, this time I welcomed the Moulin Rouge martini with Indio Marionberry infused vodka, Clear Creek Blackberry liqueur, blueberry simple syrup, fresh squeezed lemon and garnished with a pickled blueberry, a combination of sweet with a touch of tart so it was not too sweet. But, my favorite was The Nymph cocktail, both delicate and strong, with Pink Spruce gin, fresh squeezed lemon juice, and a simple syrup muddled with cucumber. Refreshing citrusy but you can feel the...

I have now been here 3 times in the last month and a half and if you know me, you know i REALLY have to like a place to be a repeat customer. This place is awesome for so many reasons!

1. Their sandwiches. Oh man. I've had the italian, the fig prosciutto, and the chicken bacon so far. They are all delicious, but if I had to pick a fav, it would be the chicken bacon.

2. The SOUPS! But, specifically, the mushroom thyme soup. I got the cauliflower soup last time I went, which was good, but the mushroom soup is better.

3. The salads. I've even gotten salads here, guys. The brown rice salad is tasty, but I'd go with the one with pickled blueberries if you are gonna go to salad-town. OR -the pasta salad looked amazing.

You can pick two from the above list for $12 or pick 3 for $15. I did the pick 2 about 5 hours ago and I am still full. When I did the pick 3, I didn't eat again that day because it hurt. so. good.

The ambiance/decor - this place is beautiful and HUGE. You could easily have a big group dinner/lunch here and could be accommodated.

I haven't tried them yet but the cocktails look NOM.

Seriously, go here...your tastebuds...

They have a small but unique happy hour menu of dishes including desserts and drinks. We ordered the chicken cesar skewers, prosciutto wrapped asparagus, and the crostini with goat cheese, honey, and nuts. The first two were small portions but the flavor was there and the crostini were quite plentiful and crazy good (I plan to recreate at home)! We also accidentally ordered the full-sized pavlova off the regular menu and wow, this was the greatest way to end an already stellar meal. Just try it.

The ambiance is great with a vintage vibe and low lighting. I was here with a friend but this would be an amazing place for a date night, especially if you are going to show at the Schnitz. Like mentioned in the previous reviews, the hostess is a little frazzled? confused? not sure. She told me that she would have a table available in just a few minutes but there was only about three other twosomes there at that point, around 4:30pm. I was confused but we were seated and the waitress and bartender were lovely.

Also, they are planning to open up a bar area that will serve over 20 beers/ciders on tap in the next few months. Renovations are...