PDX burgers: Lardo & Davis Street Tavern

last night we decided to check a burger off the list and finally check out Lardo. since we were heading into a movie and didn't want to be over-stuffed we split one burger (double burger, but eeh we tried). i was served on an everything roll (yay!), made with cascade natural beef, porkstrami (i still don't know what this is, but it looked and tasted like bacon and i just know i loved it), cheddar, shredded lettuce, and lardo sauce. the patties were very loosely packed -- i felt like the burgers would be on the verge of falling apart if you manhandled them too much. they just kind of swam around in a sea of delicious burger juice, with a boat of bacony porkstrami and and intensely buttery/creamy combination of cheddar and lardo sauce (whatever that might be) all up on it.

this was one of those burgers that pleasantly surprised me in that, even though i've eaten 12083098023 burgers in my day, it tasted like none of the burgers that i've had before. and i couldn't place why. there was a buttery flavor to the burger i couldn't place (maybe in the sauce? maybe the bun), and other flavors just popping out of the ying yang - even the sesame/poppy seeds were chiming in. it's exactly what i love about burgering - they are SO incredibly simple in theory, but SO hard to pull off well, and can still just knock off your socks with new flavors - even when you're still dealing with the same 5 core ingredients (beef, cheese, bun, lettuce/tomato, sauce). i think i'm still on my Lardo burger high from this! (also - the jalapeno hush puppies with honey butter are a DOPE side) 9/10.

Maui eats

Maui. fish tacos. pineapples. spam. kalua pork. fish. tacos. mas pork. while our first Sunday in paradise was spent watching football (boo team), i dotted up our map with every single taco/burger/shave ice/delish whatever location i had on my little HI hit list, including the recommended meal from each. since we ended up stomping all over the island, it was pretty clutch whenever we needed to make a little food break. when we're traveling, i usually end up missing half of the places i want to try since i don't realize i'm in the area until it's way too late - HOW i have never made a foodie map before now is beyond me. definitely no going back. 

Cool Cat Cafe, voted best burger in Maui 11 years running, and the location of where we celebrated National Cheeseburger Day. the September "burger of the month" was glazed ith homemade teriyaki sauce, topped with grilled onion & pineapple, melted cheddar jack cheese, shredded cabbage and kimchi, a lil of mayo all on a locally baked potato bun. i felt like fat rolly polly after this, but my god it was so much fun to take this messy beast. 

Stillwell's Bakery & Cafe - Spam, egg, cheese, tomato, touch of hot sauce on a fresh made croissant. so simple, so delish. after experiencing this delight we were so impressed by the wonders of the wonder meat we bought a can of Spam to grill up with breakfast for the rest of the week. day 1 Spam, delicious, day 2 & 3... not as good. but it's memory lives on through our memory of this beloved breakfast sandwich. 

Aloha Mixed Plate - why would we come here and NOT order the mixed plate from the menu. shoyu chicken, fresh fish, teriyaki beef, rice, macaroni salad. i don't usually eat macaroni salad (not a fan or cold pasta or macaroni salads really), but something in the slight vinegar sweetness just worked for me here. it was very simple, instead of what usually looks like a giant pile of macaroni mayo mush.






we split the mixed plate with coconut prawns which were actually of my favorite things we ate on the whole trip...and says a lot considering i don't really enjoy prawns or coconut a whole lot. sweet, toasty, crunchy delights. yum.





Hula Barefoot Grill - beer-battered mahi mahi (no pic), with kalua pig & maui onion pot stickers.