Editor’s note: This week, we continue our countdown of Portland’s best new restaurants of 2023. At No. 3: Xiao Ye, the Hollywood neighborhood’s new ‘first-generation American restaurant’
Before Louis Lin and Jolyn Chen opened their “first-generation American” restaurant in September, I could envision their eclectic approach to a menu filled like a picnic basket with things they loved. I figured the noodles would be good, given Lin’s time running Felix in Santa Monica, and that the service would be generous, as it was at Rose’s Luxury in Washington D.C., where the childhood friends first worked together and fell in love.
I didn’t know they would be so adept at crafting miniatures.
Xiao Ye’s menu-topping “Little Bites” section starts with dainty masa madeleines arranged in a pool of whipped butter like tiny standing stones, one of the only things hanging around from from late summer’s opening menu. Next comes a small ramekin of warm creamed collards for spooning onto adorably petite crostini. A more recent addition: baby bites of butter-basted chicken hearts served in a Lego-scaled kiddie pool of garlic oil that you’ll want to keep around for later dipping.
Xiao Ye might be the Mandarin for “midnight snack,” but a this isn’t some late-night Taco Bell run or regrettable Dominio’s binge.
Take the all’amatriciana, its rigatoni cooked just al dente, barely slicked with ever-so-spicy tomato and a few scraps of guanciale. Like any pasta worth its salted water, it’s hard to put down, if a little more austere than other versions around town. For pure pleasure, I actually preferred the initial iteration of Jolyn’s Favorite Noodles, though that’s probably because the mix of ramen-style noodles, sesame paste, cucumber matchsticks and spice reminded me of the sesame noodles I used to eat weekly from a stall in central Taipei’s sprawling Shilin Night Market.
The Other Portland, a cocktail from the Hollywood neighborhood's new "first-generation American" restaurant Xiao Ye.Sean Meagher/The Oregonian
Two hungry people could manage their way through most of the menu’s first three sections, though I would counsel focusing on the “Little Bites” and the “Warm” subheadings over the “Cold,” which has rotated through a couple of salads and a squash toast I don’t think I would order again (friends are still raving about the tomato toast it replaced). I might also pass on the ice cream, especially the salty-bitter chrysanthemum, which tastes to me like over-steeped tea (other flavors, including a seasonal pear sorbet and a classic fior di latte crusted with black sesame, have been fine).
But rather than shoot the moon on appetizers, save room for something from the “Bigger Stuff” section. So far, those have included an early Korean-style ssam plate with exquisite grilled Revel pork belly, a petite whole snapper with chipotle and chile negro butter and a fried half fried chicken with Japanese curry jus poured tableside from a kettle. Each protein arrives with a handful of sides: lettuce wraps and fresh kimchi with the ssam, Salvadoran curtido and cheesy fried potatoes with the snapper, plain white rice and a lovely roast sweet potato with miso butter with the chicken. Yet even here, the kitchen shows a sense of reserve, as if an essential part of their recipe development is knowing what to leave out.
One of my favorite parts about visiting Xiao Ye is entering the warmly lit dining room in the first place. With its gingham curtains, mismatched chairs and yellow-blue accents, that initial glimpse is a bit like peering into a diorama of an English farmhouse at some curio museum. Once inside, the feeling is more like attending a dinner party thrown by your most fashionable friends. With details hand-picked by Chen (note the handsome coat pegs and strawberry wallpaper in the private dining room), this is my pick for Portland’s best designed restaurant of the year.
What to know: Before it was Xiao Ye, this handsome brick building near the wedge formed by Northeast Sandy and Cesar E. Chavez boulevards was a DIY dog grooming facility dubbed Beauty for the Beast. The sign still hangs out front.
What to eat: Mini madeleines, chicken hearts, both noodles, the half fried chicken with its rice, sweet potato and Japanese-style curry jus.
Further reading: Rigatoni alla Gricia? Chrysanthemum ice cream? Xiao Ye’s ‘first-generation American’ menu readies to serve in Northeast Portland
Xiao Ye is open for dinner Monday-Saturday at 3832 N.E. Sandy Blvd., 503-764-9478, xiaoyepdx.com.
— Michael Russell; mrussell@oregonian.com